At AAW HQ in New York, Michelle bowed to Scarlet Riley, "My apologies, ma'am. We never met. My name is Michelle Nevins, a leading agent in Feral Beauty. One of your leading agents, Heather Dunn, was supposed to give you good news, but she forgot."

Peter huffed, "As usual…"

Scarlet said, "Agent Giese… Agent Rook… You knew that Michelle Nevins is alive?"

Rook said, "She will explain fully, in private."

Michelle said, "Not yet. I need to speak to the lads. Where are the rest of them?"

Scarlet said, "If you're looking for the others, Mundy and Heather are in New Jersey with Enzo Amore, and Farra and Steven have left to a mission in West Plaza."

Peter asked, "…and Mizuki?"

Scarlet said, "She's in the lab. Peter, go greet her."

"Right…"

He walked off, as Michelle asked, "Hey, whatever happened to your crow? Luzer?"

Peter said, "He's back in Darkveil, training to use his powers, by himself. He said that he'll be back, soon. Also, when Kendra knew about MIO's revival, she offered to have Luzer stay in Darkveil, for the time being. Looks like I'm on my own."

He walked out of the office, as Rook said, "Luzer is powerful enough to stop a Jewel Woman, the type that MIO is, but his combat skills are not enough to go evenly with one of those things, yet…"

Scarlet asked, "And what of Mr. Princeton, our guest?"

Peter sighed, as he was by the doorway, "Making out, I bet…"

XXXXX

Meanwhile, in a small asylum, a girl in a blue maid outfit, with long thick twin pigtails, done in braids, was walking to Room #37-B. She spoke, "Mr. Santana, it's time for your medicine…"

She opened the door, as she was about to bring the medicine in. But she gasped, as she saw Mr. Santana, in a straitjacket, covered in blood and wounds, lying on the padded walls, dead. She shrieked, "LORD MINORU! LORD MINORU! TROUBLE! EMERGENCY!"

She ran off, screaming in fear, "LORD MINORU!"

A man in gray hair, wearing only a white shirt and shorts, cried out in a German accent, "WAIT! Was ist los? COME BACK! WHY ARE YOU RUNNING? Do you know what I am saying?"

He yelled out, "She's ignoring me, for something she did! I DON'T NEED THIS TREATMENT, LOCKED INSIDE THIS CELL! I AM AWESOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOME!"

NOTE: Making a guest role return to the series: Chobits' Yuzuki and Hetalia's Prussia

Episode XXII – Chapter 1: Trouble in the Asylum!
The Inmates' Seas have Run Red!

Back in New York, Chazz and Asahi were walking down Central Park, with Asahi holding his arm. She whispered, "It's good to see you okay, my darling Chazz… Can you believe that it's been long? I missed you so…"

He grumbled, "Why do you have to be such a bitch?"

She ignored the remark and said, "Well, I don't know… I just felt lonely. You're the one for me…"

She cuddled by his shoulder, as Chazz thought, in anger, "She may be the one woman for me, forever and ever… but she's still a pain in the ass…"

He boomed, "How long are you going to hold onto me? Stop clinging to me, like I'm your pet!"

He pushed her off, and Asahi drops to the ground. She sobbed, as she said, "I'm sorry…"

He walked ahead, as Asahi chased after him. She remained by his side, not touching her. She said, "I know you're a bit nerved, after everything… but trust me. I'll give you your personal space, for now. But mark my words… We're getting it on, again… OH!"

She blushed, "OH, I did it again… I so want to have sex with you, again… But you said NO means NO, since those Ojamas. I hate Ojamas, so much… So ugly…"

He huffed, "Gimme a break. Maybe there's a reason why you remained celibate towards me, because of my Ojama Heart."

She pouted, "LIES! That's not true! Chazz, I love you for who you are, not those damned Ojamas! Even I hated the ugliness of these freaks! Spirits or not, I loved you for what you are, and that's not going to change that! Besides, you still love me, if I was Mech-Asahi?"

He sighed, as he gave up, "I take back what I said about Asahi Sakurai… She's a giant pain in the ass…"

They continued to walk together, as girls in dark red uniforms appeared. They were local high schoolers from a prep school, near New York City. They spotted Chazz and Asahi, as one girl in short brown hair called, "HEY, LOOK! Is that the famous Asahi Sakurai?"

Another girl in black hair said, "OH! WOW! And that's her boyfriend, Chazz Princeton, the famed Duelist from Duel Academy!"

A third girl in curly hair called, "Hey, you're right! What a lovely couple~!"

They approached the couple, as they were in awe for Chazz, but not Asahi. Asahi blushed, as she thought, "They adore him, more than me… But I guess that's fair… He's famous, since we dated…"

The girl in brown hair said, "OH, CHAZZ! Can I have your autograph?"

A girl in blonde hair barked, "Back off! Chazz is MINE to have an autograph!"

The girl in brown shouted, "Hey, I was here first!" And she held his arm.

The blonde shoved her and shouted, "HEY! Don't touch him! I don't like it when you're friendly to him. STAY AWAY!"

"Who the hell asked you, Ugly?"

"I'd watch what you say, No Boobs!"

Asahi tittered in embarrassment, "Oh, no…"

They turned away with a scoff. But the brown-haired girl jeered, "Ugly!"

The blonde retaliated, "No boobs!"

They exchanged insults, as Asahi pleaded, "Ladies… Please, stop fighting…"

They ignored Asahi and yelled at each other, in complete insults.

"Ugly!"
"No Boobs!"
"Ugly!"
"No Boobs!"

Asahi cried, "Girls! GIRLS! STOP IT! PLEASE! There's enough to go around of Chazz, except that he's mine!"

They shouted at her, "SHUT UP, YOU SLUT!"

Asahi gasped, appalled by the insult, as the girls resumed their jeering. Asahi seethed, as she was furious. She turned beet red, and was about to holler out-.

"SHUT UP! YOU WOMEN ARE FUCKING ANNOYING ME!" Chazz hollered out at the girls.

Asahi calmed down, as the girls shrieked in excitement. The girl in blonde cheered, "Did you hear that? Chazz Princeton spoke to me~!"

The girl in brown said, "Nuh-uh, me~!"

Asahi sighed, as she went to Chazz, "Groupies…"

She held Chazz and said, in annoyance, "No more groupies like them, understand?"

Chazz huffed, "They came onto me, you know. You've had that experience…"

"Welcome to my world…" Asahi grumbled.

As they walked, the girls chased after them, wanting to talk to them.

XXXXX

Back at West Plaza, aboard the BattleVan, their black tour van, Steven and Farra arrived at the Local Asylum. Farra was at the wheel, as she said, "Good memories, eh?"

"Which ones: our battle with Akai Kado or the moment that Asahi became a hero?" he said.

She replied, "Try Save the City and get us to fight Tohru Honda… Does that ring a bell?"

He scoffed, as he stepped out, "Let's get this over with…"

She parked the van and said, "I know it's just us two, and we usually work as a whole team… but we teamed before."

"Name one time you and I ever teamed up…"

"Imperial Lobby. But that was long ago. At the time, we were focused and in the zone, since we wanted to save Scarlet… 27 months of training, all for this moment…"

"Three years, since our reunion… It took us twenty-seven months of all this, and for the nine months, since we came back, this happens."

"I don't know. Maybe this is our calling."

Farra buzzed the doorbell, as a female voice called, "Yes? What business do you have, ma'am?"

Farra called back, "Excuse me, Miss? AAW-New York! We wish to talk to your boss, uh… Minoru Kokubunji."

The woman said, "Lord Minoru? Oh, yes. Please, step right in."

The door opened, as they entered the hallway. The same woman in the maid outfit bowed and greeted them, "Good afternoon, you two. What business do you have for Lord Minoru?"

He said, "Ma'am, my name is Steven Cooke, I am from AAW-New York. I am an A-Squad agent, and its leading agent of the New York Branch. This is my partner, Farra Stevens."

Farra smiled, and saluted, "AAW A-Squad agent, Farra Stevens, ma'am."

Yuzuki smiled, "Please to meet you. My name is Yuzuki. Lord Minoru is this way. Please follow me."

She escorted them to Minoru's office, as Yuzuki said, "Since an incident, involving the Great White Ocean, our asylum has had a lot of patients, mostly for the criminally insane. However, mentally insane criminals have drastically dropped from 25% to 10%, due to the Great West Greenwich War. We end up with tragically torn people, including prostitutes and gentlemen."

Farra whispered, "Black Dynamite's whores, I bet…"

Steven nodded, "Obviously. Tragedy befalls to them, after the man died."

Yuzuki said, "Even so, our intake of patients have increased, due to issues of health. However, a few have died, in our care."

Farra said, "Weird, huh?"

Yuzuki replied, "Yes. Mr. Santana, one of our patients, died in his cell, bludgeoned and battered. We have no clue on what happened, back there."

Steven stated, "Was it murder?"

Yuzuki said, "I don't know. We usually keep the patients locked in, because they are wild."

She added, as Santana's cell was being cleaned up and emptied of any blood and guts that was strewn about, "Of course, we keep our padded cells clean, to avoid traumatic patients from experiencing horrors."

They stepped into the office, as a boy in black hair, a white shirt, and glasses said, "Visitors?"

Yuzuki said, "AAW agents, Lord Minoru."

Minoru said, "I see. Detectives that I hired."

Steven said, "More or less… You're Minoru Kokubunji, correct?"

Minoru replied, "Yes."

Steven flashed his badge and said, "We came to investigate. This must be kept shut, within your jurisdiction."

Farra shut the door and added, "Yuzuki has to hear this, too."

Minoru said, "Okay. What brings you to my asylum?"

Steven explained, "Mr. Kokubunji, we have reports that a few of your patients have been murdered by other patients in your asylum. But according to Yuzuki, she stated that the cells are locked tight."

Farra continued, "But deemed impossible, since the victims died, but not by one of their own. According to our boss's record, from an operative in Interpol, it was not a patient in your halls."

Minoru said, "And who is it?"

Steven turned to Yuzuki and replied, "She did it."

Yuzuki gasped, as she was pleaded, "Sir, it's not true! I would never kill anybody!"

Farra responded, "That's what we thought. But she's the only other person that did this, according to ICPO. How else could these patients die, because of this catastrophe?"

Minoru replied, "Even I don't believe it… But I doubt Yuzuki would do such a thing. She isn't programmed to kill. That disobeys the Three Laws of Robotics."

Farra asked, "So, this Yuzuki… She's a robot?"

Minoru said, "Actually, she's a Persocom."

She smirked, "Short for PC – Personal Computer. A marvelous dynamo."

Minoru said, "Thank you. She was built to resemble my sister, Kaede, but then I grew to love her as what she is… She was like the only person that I cared for."

Farra read the files, using a PM she had on, "Uh-huh… Minoru Kokubunji… Family: unnamed parents, Kaede Saito (sister, deceased); Owner of Local West Plaza Sanctuary, computer whiz; Threat Level: Very Low."

She stated, "Sorry, but this is a PM that Mizuki remodified, thanks to the tech from our friends, Tanukichi Okuma and Ayame Kajou. We had it installed to create an interface for AAW Records. From what we read that you're clean."

He asked, "So, why the Persocom?"

Minoru said, "Well, Yuzuki, she has been my partner, running the place. Of course, we all have to build a peaceful place, since Mr. Kuchiki died, long ago. Most of his refugees were transferred here, but were killed off, due to tragic events, every night."

Farra asked, "How many, exactly?"

Minoru replied, "It gets worse off… Since we opened the asylum, two years ago, fifteen were dead, in the cells, with no footprints or trail. None of the other past patients were responsible. They even blamed it on Yuzuki. But I don't believe it… until I saw this video…"

He said to Yuzuki, "Yuzuki, Mr. Yoshida is due for his next dosage. Try to keep a calm face. You're not going to hurt them."

Yuzuki was saddened, as she replied, "Lord Minoru… Tell me, is this ruining me?"

Steven said, "Look, you're cute for a robot, but you wouldn't harm a fly. Now go, alright? Haste makes waste."

Yuzuki nodded, and then said, "Hm. Alright. Please excuse me."

She left to treat a patient, as Minoru said, "Now that she's gone, I have to show you the video, not to traumatize Yuzuki. Miss Stevens… Does your PM perform video coverage?"

Farra said, "And more. Turn your computer on, and I'll produce the security image on it. This thing can show a 3D screen from within. It doubles as a phone and a radio."

She explained, "Now, I'll adjust the frequency of this, and… … …Okay…"

He stated, "Since the DNC and the Nishikinomiyas halted their Decency Laws, for the moment, remaining DNC members gave us the technology to use it as useful tools."

Meanwhile, in one cell, Yuzuki approached Mr. Yoshida, a boy in a blue school uniform and black hair, "Mr. Yoshida, it's time for your daily medicine."

Yoshida laughed, "Come on, babe. Give me my shots, and let me go!"

Another boy, in another cell, "Yeah, woman. Just let him go."

Yuzuki smiled, "Now, now. You'll get your turn, in two hours. Lord Minoru is busy, so I'm going to give you your temperatures. It's a short process…"

She held up a thermometer, as Yoshida huffed, "Hmph! Get it over with, Nurse… And then, take me home!"

In Minoru's office, the screen appeared, as Farra stated, "Right. The screen's up. Minoru, play the tape…"

Minoru typed in, as he said, "Right… But I should warn you… It gets graphic…"

The video played, as it showed Yuzuki walking into the hallways of the west wing, at 2AM. She approached one of the cells, and was about to step inside. The video changed thirty minutes later, as Yuzuki, not covered in blood, emerged from the cell, walking back to her post. Farra gasped, as she asked, "Minoru… Are there cameras in the cells?"

Minoru said, "No. I'm afraid not. You see, the cells that we keep them in are private. We were offered to install hidden cameras, but… The budget wasn't enough for help."

Farra growled, "I bet President Iizuka had to do something about it… Damn him…"

Minoru asked, "Huh?"

Farra said, "Nothing."

Minoru added, "And when Yuzuki returned to that cell, the next morning, she found the patient dead. She ran to me, screaming for an emergency. But I know exactly what it was. When I showed her the footage, she was stunned, when I told her everything. She froze up, and I had to repair her, since she was scared. She may be a Persocom, built to resemble my sister, but she's still nice person."

Steven said, "Farra, perhaps I can help. Which cell was it that was bludgeoned?"

Farra said, "From the security film… it was taken, last week. Cell 104, Block #8, West Wing. Who owned that room, Mr. Kokubunji?"

Minoru was about to answer, but a male shriek was made. Steven cried, "WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?"

He looked at the wall, near the door, as it says:
"Steven Cooke,
Today you shall die in my hands!
Yuzuki"

He thought, "Yuzuki? She wrote this?"

He called, "Hey! Look at this!"

She and Minoru gasped, seeing a note, scrawled in blood. Steven rushed off, as Farra said to Minoru, "This note, written in blood! What is this? Did something like this happen, before?"

Minoru said, "Now that you mention it-."

Steven yelled, "FARRA! GET YOUR ASS OUT HERE AND HURRY! KOKUBUNJI! WHERE'S YOSHIDA'S CELL?"

Minoru said, "uh… Room #16 in Block 12, on the East Wing!"

He dashed off, "LET'S GO!"

Farra chased after him, and called out, "WAIT!"

She called to Minoru, "Yuzuki… I think she's malfunctioning, or something!"

Minoru gasped in shock. Steven called out, "FARRA!"

Farra dashed off and yelled, "I HEARD YOU!"

Meanwhile, Yuzuki was holding up a sharp pen, as Yoshida was cornered in his cell. He cried out, "Ma'am, what are you trying to do?"

Yuzuki's eyes went red, as her irises and pupils flashed an LED red. She spoke in a robotic voice, "Now-now-now… You must take your-, your-, medicine."

Yoshida cried, "THAT'S NOT A THERMOMETER YOU GOT IN YOUR HAND!"

The other boy shrieked, "YEAH! THAT'S A PEN!"

Yuzuki cackled, "Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha! Are you trying to make that mistake for me? You think I'm dumb? Let me ask you! How stupid are you? If you think this is a pen to you… then maybe… you need to… TAKE A CLOSER LOOK!"

STAB!
She lunged the pen into the left eye of Yoshida, as he screamed in pain. The other boy cried, "HEY! ASSISTANCE! YOUR NURSE IS A ROBOT!"

They arrived, as Minoru cried, "YUZUKI!"

Steven gasped, as he was shocked, "No way…"

Farra opened the other cell, as Yoshida screamed, "MY EYE! MY EYE! AAAAAAGH!"

The other boy ran away, as she cried, "RUN! RUN, AND NOT LOOK BACK!"

She said to Steven, "You thinking what I'm thinking?"

He nodded, "Obviously… This Persocom is evil… because she's possessed…"

"And who's possessing her, you ask?"

They boomed, as they pointed at Yuzuki, "MIO!"

Minoru cried, "YUZUKI! ENOUGH! Abort protocol!"

Yuzuki pulled the pen out, with the eyeball in the pen. Farra cried, "MADNESS! STOP THIS, uh, THING!"

Yuzuki turns to Steven and cackled, "What are you saying? You're not going to say that this is a pen, too, ARE YOU?"

She lunged her pen towards Steven's face, but caught it. However, he struggled to push away, only for the pen to cut through his left cheek. Steven snarled, as he was in pain, "Damn it… What possessed her to do this?"

Farra cried, "STEVEN!"

He cried, "This is no mere android! She has intense strength! Wait…"

He looked around, struggling to stop Yuzuki, "I sense something inside her. What sorcery is this? I want to know! Was it a stone? A gem from Mount Fuji? Did MIO somehow use something to control her?"

A boy in long brown hair said, near the corner, "No… That would be me…"

Farra gasped, "YOU!"

Minoru cried, "You did this to Yuzuki?"

Farra growled, "You son of a bitch! WHO ARE YOU?"

The boy ran off, as he called, "Yuzuki, kill those two, and your former master!"

Yuzuki beeped, as she wailed demonically, "Understood."

Farra grabbed her arms and threw her down. Steven said, "Farra, go after the bastard! I'll stop her!"

Farra said, "Right! Be careful!"

Minoru called, "WAIT! He might return and try again. He'll come back, but we have to stop Yuzuki!"

He roared, holding his arms back, "In that case, YOU LEAVE IT TO ME!"

He yelled, launching his fists to Yuzuki's head, "HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA-WAH-TAAAAAAAAA!"

JAB!
Steven called out, jabbing his thumbs to Yuzuki's temple, "Hokuto Zankai Ken!"

Yuzuki's eyes faded to black, as she slurred, "Lord… Min… nooooo… rrrrrrrrrrrr…"

She dropped to her knees and powered down. He sighed and said, "Only one way to stop a rampaging Persocom. Do not worry. I have known it to be delicate. My Zankai Ken is able to tone down and reboot, even the vilest of androids."

Yuzuki was not responding, as Farra said, "Uh… I think she's broken beyond repair…"

Minoru said, "Not exactly… Perhaps I can fix her…"

He carried Yuzuki off, as Farra assisted him. She said, "Here, let me help you."

They carried her away, as Yoshida was still in agonizing pain. Steven said, "It's alright, friend. I'll contact a hospital to take you away. Don't worry. I've seen these things, before…"

Yoshida was still screaming, as Steven clutched his fist in anger.

"Who the hell is he?" he thought.

Who, in the right mind, would possess a Persocom to commit mass murder?
Find out in the next chapter!

To be continued…