.Hack//Heist
A .Hack fanfiction by Renfro Calhoun
Disclaimer: I claim ownership of nothing at all related to Project .Hack, save for characters created within this story. I do, however, claim ownership of all your base for great justice.
What? I'm late to this "Internet" thing. Sue me. I dare ya.
Notes: Takes place shortly after Infection. Parentheses indicate thoughts. No hax no dis no flyer no rush 5min gl hf.
Chapter VIII - Extraction
------------
Keys clacked to his right as the picture formed again; Mac Anu grew and stretched around him until he became a part of the picture once more, the streets and canals replacing the grasslands of the field before.
Shinji's voice came to him, seemingly from thin air. "I'll have this ready in a second. Go with Kite and BlackRose, make sure you have everything you need before we get started."
Dean nodded to Shinji, his character mimicking the action in The World. "Got it," he answered, and turned to face his new companions. "He'll be ready soon; let's hit the shops and resupply."
Both nodded, and the three went down the broadway towards the bridge. Upon reaching it, Stolls and Kite started down the stairs towards the item shop, but halted when BlackRose spoke up.
"I'm going to go save," she called. "I'll be right back!"
Stolls nodded as the Heavy Blade scampered off, rounding the corner and disappearing from view. "Good thinking... Kite, let's save, too, after we pick up some items."
"Do you really think this is going to be dangerous?" asked Kite, approaching the shop counter and hailing the NPC salesman.
"I honestly don't know." Stolls lifted his wand and lightly rapped it against his shoulder, shifting his stance. "Better to be on the safe side, just in case," he added, doubting his own advice as he recalled the earlier attack.
He heard Kite mumble in agreement as he turned and leaned against the wall, staring out across the canal. He watched in detached fascination as a team of adventurers boarded a gondola on the opposite side of the river, and pushed away from its mooring. All around him echoed voices, voices of merchants hawking their wares, of players looking to trade, of parties seeking additional members. Armor clanked, footsteps fell, water splashed; above him, a gust of wind drifted along the avenue, calling attention to the clear blue sky, complete with blazing sun and - much to Dean's amusement - lens flare.
The keystrokes stopped. "Done and done," said Shinji, dispelling the illusion of reality. "Be right back, I'm going to grab something to eat. You hungry?"
Dean shook his head. "No thanks."
Unseen footsteps retreated out of the bedroom he knew himself to be standing in. Smiling through his avatar, Dean took the in scenic view of the aqua capital at once. "Interesting," he said to himself.
His words did not escape the notice of the Twin Blade. "What is it?"
"Hmm? Oh," he mumbled, glancing over at Kite, who now stood next to him. "Sorry... just admiring the view," he explained, still smiling. "You got everything?"
Kite smiled back. "I think so. I know how you feel, I was a little overwhelmed myself when I started playing."
Stolls chuckled. "My first online RPG," he admitted, stepping away from the wall. "Was always more a shooter fan, myself."
Kite nodded, falling into step next to Stolls as he headed for the stairs. "So..." began the red-clad Twin Blade, trying to start conversation once more, despite the bustle around them. "Why can't you go to the police? I mean, if these guys are after you..."
Dean sighed, his character again mimicking the action to a tee. "That's... kind of a long story." He lowered his head as he trudged up the stairs; his steps became laborious, deliberately slow and heavy. "But in a nutshell, each of us has priors... that's kind of why they hired us."
"What do you mean?" asked Kite, peering curiously at the Wave Master.
Stolls climbed the last stair, and walked over to the bridge, leaning against the railing slightly; Kite followed closely as he continued. "Max... the guy you know as Tamon, he brokered the deal between us and the company because each of us had been convicted of something. In my case..." his voice grew weak, almost trailing off into silence. He paused long enough to swallow, feeling a lump grow in the back of his throat. "I was a cop. They hired me for security... and I got put away for taking bribes."
"That's the whole point, though. The job isn't exactly on the up-and-up, y'know? Company policy can't officially sponsor one of their business agents hiring people to steal from another company." Stolls shook his head. "Hence... we have no credibility. Going to the cops would make all our lives worse in the long run."
Kite fidgeted nervously, not knowing what to say. "I don't blame 'em, though," said Stolls. "It's what they had to do, I would've done the same. It's business, it's politics; that's all." He chuckled again, dryly. "Y'know, heh... Max found me in an LA Times want ad. I never met either of these two before coming to Japan."
"It was all so simple," he finished, gazing up into the sky. The silence between them returned, deafening even amidst the clamor and commotion of the aqua capital.
"Can I ask you a question?" Kite finally spoke.
"Shoot," came the reply.
Kite hesitated, visibly tensing up before speaking again. "Did you really do it?"
A long, deep sigh, head lowered, eyes closed, shoulders sagged. He then straightened his posture as he turned to face Kite, a haunted look in his emerald eyes.
His lips parted, allowing for one word of confession. "Yes."
Stolls turned away, feeling Kite's eyes on him, sensing the judgment he knew was imminent. The banging of a gavel echoed through his memory, his mind's eye recalling faces of men and women he once knew. He had long since given up trying to justify his actions; it had always been about the money. Money he didn't need, money he didn't even want, not really.
(I got greedy, simple as that.)
He leaned over the railing and gazed into the eyes of his reflection on the water, watching as it shimmered and twisted in the wake of a passing gondola; he almost didn't hear Kite as he stepped closer, his voice jarring the Wave Master out of his reverie.
"Dean," called Kite, causing Stolls to turn and face him. The look on Kite's face bore no hostility, no malice, no disdain.
His blue eyes showed that he understood, his expression soft and compassionate.
Dean smiled to Kite's player, offering a quick nod. "Let's go," he said simply.
Together, they turned towards the broadway once more, and headed for the Save Point, where BlackRose stood, apparently trading with another adventurer.
Stolls eyed the Heavy Blade curiously. "So, what's her story?"
"BlackRose?" asked Kite. "To be honest, I'm not so sure. She said she was new to The World, too, when I came in, but... she got mad when we encountered a Data Bug. Said something like, "It's you, I'll kill you!" and started attacking." Kite scratched the top of his head, pushing his cap further down against the mass of sky blue hair. "She helped me a lot while I was trying to find out about Aura and Skeith... she even came with me to stop him."
Stolls nodded. "Sounds like a good friend if I ever heard one."
"Yeah," said Kite with a smile. "She is."
Stolls glanced over at the Twin Blade, noticing a distant look in his eye; he followed his gaze straight to BlackRose, and a grin slowly crept across the Wave Master's face. "You like her?" he asked, keeping his voice quieter than usual.
He swore he saw Kite blush before he turned away, both players coming to a stop. "Well..." he mumbled, his stance becoming more guarded, more cautious; he slid his left foot behind his right, leaned back, and brought both hands before him, wringing them nervously.
Stolls got the message. "You should ask her out sometime, man."
Kite's eyes widened. "Uh??" he half-grunted before following with a stammered, "I-I don't know, what if..."
A shake of the head silenced him. "She likes you, Kite, I can tell. She'd have to to stick by you through all this, if even half of what you told me is true."
When Kite said nothing, Stolls continued again. "Sometimes, you just have to forget about the 'what ifs'." He smiled. "Let's leave it at that. C'mon."
-
The field changed once more. Mac Anu faded into distant memory as the rings fell before his eyes, drawing him into a wide, barren field.
Closer examination surprised all three as they discovered how empty the field was; devoid of all but dusty, gritty earth beneath them, the field stretched off into the horizon and beyond, without a single tree, rock, or other distinguishing feature to break the monotony. The air lay eerily still, highlighting the complete lack of any ambient noise; above them hovered a clear night sky, though neither moon nor star served to light it.
BlackRose cocked her head at Stolls. "Are you sure this is the right place?"
Stolls carefully scrutinized his surroundings, eyes searching for something, anything out of place. "Delta, Zero Optional Spire. This is it, all right..."
"Those keywords aren't normally visible to the players," came Shinji's voice, heard only by Dean. "Took a little trial-and-error to allow access."
Stolls nodded. "Right... this isn't a regular field. Supposed to be Admin only; guess they forgot to decorate."
"It wasn't locked, either," said Kite. "Do they even know about this?"
"No idea." Stolls shook his head. "Clearly, they didn't remove it... or couldn't. Somebody left it open." He narrowed his eyes. "And those guys seemed to know... damn, maybe they're expecting us?"
"Well, there's no turning back now," said Shinji. "Let's get this done and get out of here. The firewall should be due north of where you're standing right now."
Stolls idly chewed his lip. "Okay," he muttered, gazing up at the starless sky. "And which way might north be?"
A slight shuffle of movement caught his attention; he watched as Kite produced a Fairy's Orb and held it up. The orb vanished in a flash of light, and Kite blinked twice. "Well, there's no portals," he said, relaying the information.
"But... wait."
"What is it?" asked BlackRose.
"There!" he exclaimed, pointing in a direction Stolls could only assume was north. "There's something this way."
Stolls squinted towards the horizon. "I don't see anything. Let's get a closer look."
Together, the three moved in the direction Kite had pointed. Stolls swallowed hard, the featureless environs putting him ill at ease; if not for Kite and BlackRose, and the sound of boots colliding with dry earth, he wouldn't have known whether he was moving or not.
Kite slid to a stop, eyeing the air curiously. "It's around here somewhere... almost like a portal, but different." His brow furrowed, obviously puzzled. "Faint."
BlackRose frowned. "I can't see a thing."
"Me neither," said Stolls in assent.
"It's right in front of you," said Shinji to Stolls' player. "It's like a gate, have Kite hack it."
The Wave Master nodded. "He says the firewall's right here, that must be what you're sensing. Can you open it?"
"I'll try."
Kite stepped forward, hands raised, experimentally probing the air, as if searching for something. He came to a stop after two steps and flattened one of his hands, palm out, bringing the other around to brace it.
A flash of light split the sky, startling Stolls; BlackRose watched Kite intently as translucent crystalline shards formed in a large ring around his wrist. The shards began to spin, waves of force causing Kite's body to tremble and twitch. More bursts of light ripped through the field, briefly causing every color present, in both field and character, to switch to its polar opposite; Stolls watched, shocked, as his vision doubled, giving the impression of a hall of mirrors.
Kite grunted, loudly, as another flash of light restored both color and vision. Stolls tried to step forward to help him, but BlackRose held an arm out, stopping him from approaching.
"What's going on?!" shouted Stolls as he pointed to the air before Kite. "Is he okay?"
"He'll be fine!" BlackRose yelled back. "Trust me!"
Kite grit his teeth. "Almost... got it..."
One last burst of light rocked the area, causing the entire field to vanish instantly. Ground and sky disappeared from around them, leaving all three standing in an empty field of white. The sole noise to be heard was of Kite panting, his beating heart almost audible to his companions.
"What the..." muttered Stolls as he whirled about, eyes scanning the brilliant void.
"Kite?" asked BlackRose after a quarter-minute's pause, tentatively stepping up to him and touching a hand to his shoulder.
He jumped for a moment, startled, before turning back to face her.
He nodded. "I'm fine," he answered, letting out a short sigh. "I... think that did it."
Stolls gave a sidelong glance at Kite. "Were you able to open it?"
"I think so... it was a lot like a gate, but..."
"Dean!"
Stolls turned to face his companions. "One sec," he said before turning his attention elsewhere. "What's up?"
He heard the grin in Shinji's voice. "I'm in!"
"Yes!" shouted Dean. BlackRose and Kite peered curiously at his avatar, bringing him back to The World. "We're in," he explained, a smile forming on both of his faces. "Nice job, Kite. Shin, let's get the data and get outta here."
"I'm on it." Keys clattered, a chair creaked. "Starting download... okay. It'll take about five minutes; don't leave, the field might reset if you do."
"Got it." Stolls raised both arms over his head, leaning onto his toes as he stretched. "Mmm... says it'll be five minutes. Might as well get comfy."
Murmurs of agreement came from the other two; one by one the party sat on the undefined, invisible ground.
"So, what do we do next?" asked Kite.
Stolls leaned backwards, propping himself up on his arms. "Well, for starters we find out just what this stuff is. Like I said, I don't think it's accounting data, it just doesn't add up." He tilted his head back, gazing up into nothingness. "Of course, we also need to get the goons off our back. With the data, maybe we can force them to cut a deal."
"They tried to kill you," said BlackRose. "What makes you think they'd try to deal?" After a second's pause, she added, "And aren't you supposed to give that to the company that hired you?"
Stolls nodded. "First, despite all appearances, they're corporate; I know these guys, they'll bargain if they think we've something to bargain with. Second... we're mercenary." He lightly tensed his hands, pressing them against the intangible ground. "If our employer lied to us, then I won't feel too guilty about selling Cyber Connect's own data back to it."
Dean closed his eyes, feeling their combined stare upon him. "Look, it's not as simple as good guys and bad guys. This isn't about honor, or morals, or justice, or any of that." He sighed, deeply and slowly. "I'm sorry... me, Max, Shin, we're all in this for the money. That's what it's all about." His head lowered, his shoulders sagged again, his already deep voice growing darker, heavier. "That's all it's ever been about," he finished, his voice nearly a whisper.
"We're thieves," said Dean softly.
A long silence followed; Dean could hear the faint movement of skin, hair and cloth as Kite and BlackRose exchanged questioning glances. Beyond The World, he heard Shinji's slow, constant breathing, cool and collected as ever.
The breathing stopped, plunging Dean into total silence. He lifted his head and opened his eyes. The Heavy and Twin Blades peered at him, somewhat surprised at his sudden movement.
"Shin?" he called. "Everything all right?"
The voice that answered bore only superficial resemblance to the hacker he knew. "You've got company," came the high-pitched, almost squeaky voice that Dean knew meant trouble.
Additional noise reached his ears: the rushing of air; clinking of armor and a weapon; two startled gasps, followed by two sets of feet scrambling away from his position.
"Dean, look out!" shouted Kite.
All of his instincts and reflexes instantly switched from 'off' to 'high' as Stolls leapt back and away from the circle they had formed; he moved quickly to his feet and glanced at the shadowy form which descended on the spot he had been sitting in less than a second before.
His eyes went wide. His jaw dropped. He stammered, loudly, in disbelief as he took in the face of his attacker.
"Max," he muttered; the long-haired, olive-eyed Long Arm immediately turned to face him, spear at the ready, loose blue garments flowing dramatically about his muscular form.
The eyes the Long Arm stared at Stolls with weren't his own. Neither was the voice he spoke with. "Protected sector compromised," said Tamon, his voice sounding as three of varying pitch and depth. "Tagged entities Zero, One, and Three identified."
The voices brought a memory from the depths of Dean's mind and showed it to him in triplicate. "Delphi," muttered Stolls in recognition, speaking with obvious hesitation, as if attempting to escape the Long Arm's penetrating gaze, "Shinji, how much more time?"
"One minute, thirty seconds," came the quiet reply.
Stolls narrowed his eyes, staring hard at the hawkish warrior. "All right then."
"Warning: theft in progress," said Tamon as he stepped forward, his voice a cold, deep baritone.
"Suggestion," he began, his voice now a high falsetto, "tagged entities Zero, One, and Three are responsible."
"Action: termination of tagged entities is desirable," he finished in his final voice, a lifelessly insidious monotone.
Stolls brought his wand around before him as Tamon readied his spear; a slight twitch tugged at the Long Arm's lips, one that looked remarkably like the beginnings of a smirk to the Wave Master.
"It is so," said the voices as Tamon leapt at Stolls, spear held high.
- End of Chapter VIII
A .Hack fanfiction by Renfro Calhoun
Disclaimer: I claim ownership of nothing at all related to Project .Hack, save for characters created within this story. I do, however, claim ownership of all your base for great justice.
What? I'm late to this "Internet" thing. Sue me. I dare ya.
Notes: Takes place shortly after Infection. Parentheses indicate thoughts. No hax no dis no flyer no rush 5min gl hf.
Chapter VIII - Extraction
------------
Keys clacked to his right as the picture formed again; Mac Anu grew and stretched around him until he became a part of the picture once more, the streets and canals replacing the grasslands of the field before.
Shinji's voice came to him, seemingly from thin air. "I'll have this ready in a second. Go with Kite and BlackRose, make sure you have everything you need before we get started."
Dean nodded to Shinji, his character mimicking the action in The World. "Got it," he answered, and turned to face his new companions. "He'll be ready soon; let's hit the shops and resupply."
Both nodded, and the three went down the broadway towards the bridge. Upon reaching it, Stolls and Kite started down the stairs towards the item shop, but halted when BlackRose spoke up.
"I'm going to go save," she called. "I'll be right back!"
Stolls nodded as the Heavy Blade scampered off, rounding the corner and disappearing from view. "Good thinking... Kite, let's save, too, after we pick up some items."
"Do you really think this is going to be dangerous?" asked Kite, approaching the shop counter and hailing the NPC salesman.
"I honestly don't know." Stolls lifted his wand and lightly rapped it against his shoulder, shifting his stance. "Better to be on the safe side, just in case," he added, doubting his own advice as he recalled the earlier attack.
He heard Kite mumble in agreement as he turned and leaned against the wall, staring out across the canal. He watched in detached fascination as a team of adventurers boarded a gondola on the opposite side of the river, and pushed away from its mooring. All around him echoed voices, voices of merchants hawking their wares, of players looking to trade, of parties seeking additional members. Armor clanked, footsteps fell, water splashed; above him, a gust of wind drifted along the avenue, calling attention to the clear blue sky, complete with blazing sun and - much to Dean's amusement - lens flare.
The keystrokes stopped. "Done and done," said Shinji, dispelling the illusion of reality. "Be right back, I'm going to grab something to eat. You hungry?"
Dean shook his head. "No thanks."
Unseen footsteps retreated out of the bedroom he knew himself to be standing in. Smiling through his avatar, Dean took the in scenic view of the aqua capital at once. "Interesting," he said to himself.
His words did not escape the notice of the Twin Blade. "What is it?"
"Hmm? Oh," he mumbled, glancing over at Kite, who now stood next to him. "Sorry... just admiring the view," he explained, still smiling. "You got everything?"
Kite smiled back. "I think so. I know how you feel, I was a little overwhelmed myself when I started playing."
Stolls chuckled. "My first online RPG," he admitted, stepping away from the wall. "Was always more a shooter fan, myself."
Kite nodded, falling into step next to Stolls as he headed for the stairs. "So..." began the red-clad Twin Blade, trying to start conversation once more, despite the bustle around them. "Why can't you go to the police? I mean, if these guys are after you..."
Dean sighed, his character again mimicking the action to a tee. "That's... kind of a long story." He lowered his head as he trudged up the stairs; his steps became laborious, deliberately slow and heavy. "But in a nutshell, each of us has priors... that's kind of why they hired us."
"What do you mean?" asked Kite, peering curiously at the Wave Master.
Stolls climbed the last stair, and walked over to the bridge, leaning against the railing slightly; Kite followed closely as he continued. "Max... the guy you know as Tamon, he brokered the deal between us and the company because each of us had been convicted of something. In my case..." his voice grew weak, almost trailing off into silence. He paused long enough to swallow, feeling a lump grow in the back of his throat. "I was a cop. They hired me for security... and I got put away for taking bribes."
"That's the whole point, though. The job isn't exactly on the up-and-up, y'know? Company policy can't officially sponsor one of their business agents hiring people to steal from another company." Stolls shook his head. "Hence... we have no credibility. Going to the cops would make all our lives worse in the long run."
Kite fidgeted nervously, not knowing what to say. "I don't blame 'em, though," said Stolls. "It's what they had to do, I would've done the same. It's business, it's politics; that's all." He chuckled again, dryly. "Y'know, heh... Max found me in an LA Times want ad. I never met either of these two before coming to Japan."
"It was all so simple," he finished, gazing up into the sky. The silence between them returned, deafening even amidst the clamor and commotion of the aqua capital.
"Can I ask you a question?" Kite finally spoke.
"Shoot," came the reply.
Kite hesitated, visibly tensing up before speaking again. "Did you really do it?"
A long, deep sigh, head lowered, eyes closed, shoulders sagged. He then straightened his posture as he turned to face Kite, a haunted look in his emerald eyes.
His lips parted, allowing for one word of confession. "Yes."
Stolls turned away, feeling Kite's eyes on him, sensing the judgment he knew was imminent. The banging of a gavel echoed through his memory, his mind's eye recalling faces of men and women he once knew. He had long since given up trying to justify his actions; it had always been about the money. Money he didn't need, money he didn't even want, not really.
(I got greedy, simple as that.)
He leaned over the railing and gazed into the eyes of his reflection on the water, watching as it shimmered and twisted in the wake of a passing gondola; he almost didn't hear Kite as he stepped closer, his voice jarring the Wave Master out of his reverie.
"Dean," called Kite, causing Stolls to turn and face him. The look on Kite's face bore no hostility, no malice, no disdain.
His blue eyes showed that he understood, his expression soft and compassionate.
Dean smiled to Kite's player, offering a quick nod. "Let's go," he said simply.
Together, they turned towards the broadway once more, and headed for the Save Point, where BlackRose stood, apparently trading with another adventurer.
Stolls eyed the Heavy Blade curiously. "So, what's her story?"
"BlackRose?" asked Kite. "To be honest, I'm not so sure. She said she was new to The World, too, when I came in, but... she got mad when we encountered a Data Bug. Said something like, "It's you, I'll kill you!" and started attacking." Kite scratched the top of his head, pushing his cap further down against the mass of sky blue hair. "She helped me a lot while I was trying to find out about Aura and Skeith... she even came with me to stop him."
Stolls nodded. "Sounds like a good friend if I ever heard one."
"Yeah," said Kite with a smile. "She is."
Stolls glanced over at the Twin Blade, noticing a distant look in his eye; he followed his gaze straight to BlackRose, and a grin slowly crept across the Wave Master's face. "You like her?" he asked, keeping his voice quieter than usual.
He swore he saw Kite blush before he turned away, both players coming to a stop. "Well..." he mumbled, his stance becoming more guarded, more cautious; he slid his left foot behind his right, leaned back, and brought both hands before him, wringing them nervously.
Stolls got the message. "You should ask her out sometime, man."
Kite's eyes widened. "Uh??" he half-grunted before following with a stammered, "I-I don't know, what if..."
A shake of the head silenced him. "She likes you, Kite, I can tell. She'd have to to stick by you through all this, if even half of what you told me is true."
When Kite said nothing, Stolls continued again. "Sometimes, you just have to forget about the 'what ifs'." He smiled. "Let's leave it at that. C'mon."
-
The field changed once more. Mac Anu faded into distant memory as the rings fell before his eyes, drawing him into a wide, barren field.
Closer examination surprised all three as they discovered how empty the field was; devoid of all but dusty, gritty earth beneath them, the field stretched off into the horizon and beyond, without a single tree, rock, or other distinguishing feature to break the monotony. The air lay eerily still, highlighting the complete lack of any ambient noise; above them hovered a clear night sky, though neither moon nor star served to light it.
BlackRose cocked her head at Stolls. "Are you sure this is the right place?"
Stolls carefully scrutinized his surroundings, eyes searching for something, anything out of place. "Delta, Zero Optional Spire. This is it, all right..."
"Those keywords aren't normally visible to the players," came Shinji's voice, heard only by Dean. "Took a little trial-and-error to allow access."
Stolls nodded. "Right... this isn't a regular field. Supposed to be Admin only; guess they forgot to decorate."
"It wasn't locked, either," said Kite. "Do they even know about this?"
"No idea." Stolls shook his head. "Clearly, they didn't remove it... or couldn't. Somebody left it open." He narrowed his eyes. "And those guys seemed to know... damn, maybe they're expecting us?"
"Well, there's no turning back now," said Shinji. "Let's get this done and get out of here. The firewall should be due north of where you're standing right now."
Stolls idly chewed his lip. "Okay," he muttered, gazing up at the starless sky. "And which way might north be?"
A slight shuffle of movement caught his attention; he watched as Kite produced a Fairy's Orb and held it up. The orb vanished in a flash of light, and Kite blinked twice. "Well, there's no portals," he said, relaying the information.
"But... wait."
"What is it?" asked BlackRose.
"There!" he exclaimed, pointing in a direction Stolls could only assume was north. "There's something this way."
Stolls squinted towards the horizon. "I don't see anything. Let's get a closer look."
Together, the three moved in the direction Kite had pointed. Stolls swallowed hard, the featureless environs putting him ill at ease; if not for Kite and BlackRose, and the sound of boots colliding with dry earth, he wouldn't have known whether he was moving or not.
Kite slid to a stop, eyeing the air curiously. "It's around here somewhere... almost like a portal, but different." His brow furrowed, obviously puzzled. "Faint."
BlackRose frowned. "I can't see a thing."
"Me neither," said Stolls in assent.
"It's right in front of you," said Shinji to Stolls' player. "It's like a gate, have Kite hack it."
The Wave Master nodded. "He says the firewall's right here, that must be what you're sensing. Can you open it?"
"I'll try."
Kite stepped forward, hands raised, experimentally probing the air, as if searching for something. He came to a stop after two steps and flattened one of his hands, palm out, bringing the other around to brace it.
A flash of light split the sky, startling Stolls; BlackRose watched Kite intently as translucent crystalline shards formed in a large ring around his wrist. The shards began to spin, waves of force causing Kite's body to tremble and twitch. More bursts of light ripped through the field, briefly causing every color present, in both field and character, to switch to its polar opposite; Stolls watched, shocked, as his vision doubled, giving the impression of a hall of mirrors.
Kite grunted, loudly, as another flash of light restored both color and vision. Stolls tried to step forward to help him, but BlackRose held an arm out, stopping him from approaching.
"What's going on?!" shouted Stolls as he pointed to the air before Kite. "Is he okay?"
"He'll be fine!" BlackRose yelled back. "Trust me!"
Kite grit his teeth. "Almost... got it..."
One last burst of light rocked the area, causing the entire field to vanish instantly. Ground and sky disappeared from around them, leaving all three standing in an empty field of white. The sole noise to be heard was of Kite panting, his beating heart almost audible to his companions.
"What the..." muttered Stolls as he whirled about, eyes scanning the brilliant void.
"Kite?" asked BlackRose after a quarter-minute's pause, tentatively stepping up to him and touching a hand to his shoulder.
He jumped for a moment, startled, before turning back to face her.
He nodded. "I'm fine," he answered, letting out a short sigh. "I... think that did it."
Stolls gave a sidelong glance at Kite. "Were you able to open it?"
"I think so... it was a lot like a gate, but..."
"Dean!"
Stolls turned to face his companions. "One sec," he said before turning his attention elsewhere. "What's up?"
He heard the grin in Shinji's voice. "I'm in!"
"Yes!" shouted Dean. BlackRose and Kite peered curiously at his avatar, bringing him back to The World. "We're in," he explained, a smile forming on both of his faces. "Nice job, Kite. Shin, let's get the data and get outta here."
"I'm on it." Keys clattered, a chair creaked. "Starting download... okay. It'll take about five minutes; don't leave, the field might reset if you do."
"Got it." Stolls raised both arms over his head, leaning onto his toes as he stretched. "Mmm... says it'll be five minutes. Might as well get comfy."
Murmurs of agreement came from the other two; one by one the party sat on the undefined, invisible ground.
"So, what do we do next?" asked Kite.
Stolls leaned backwards, propping himself up on his arms. "Well, for starters we find out just what this stuff is. Like I said, I don't think it's accounting data, it just doesn't add up." He tilted his head back, gazing up into nothingness. "Of course, we also need to get the goons off our back. With the data, maybe we can force them to cut a deal."
"They tried to kill you," said BlackRose. "What makes you think they'd try to deal?" After a second's pause, she added, "And aren't you supposed to give that to the company that hired you?"
Stolls nodded. "First, despite all appearances, they're corporate; I know these guys, they'll bargain if they think we've something to bargain with. Second... we're mercenary." He lightly tensed his hands, pressing them against the intangible ground. "If our employer lied to us, then I won't feel too guilty about selling Cyber Connect's own data back to it."
Dean closed his eyes, feeling their combined stare upon him. "Look, it's not as simple as good guys and bad guys. This isn't about honor, or morals, or justice, or any of that." He sighed, deeply and slowly. "I'm sorry... me, Max, Shin, we're all in this for the money. That's what it's all about." His head lowered, his shoulders sagged again, his already deep voice growing darker, heavier. "That's all it's ever been about," he finished, his voice nearly a whisper.
"We're thieves," said Dean softly.
A long silence followed; Dean could hear the faint movement of skin, hair and cloth as Kite and BlackRose exchanged questioning glances. Beyond The World, he heard Shinji's slow, constant breathing, cool and collected as ever.
The breathing stopped, plunging Dean into total silence. He lifted his head and opened his eyes. The Heavy and Twin Blades peered at him, somewhat surprised at his sudden movement.
"Shin?" he called. "Everything all right?"
The voice that answered bore only superficial resemblance to the hacker he knew. "You've got company," came the high-pitched, almost squeaky voice that Dean knew meant trouble.
Additional noise reached his ears: the rushing of air; clinking of armor and a weapon; two startled gasps, followed by two sets of feet scrambling away from his position.
"Dean, look out!" shouted Kite.
All of his instincts and reflexes instantly switched from 'off' to 'high' as Stolls leapt back and away from the circle they had formed; he moved quickly to his feet and glanced at the shadowy form which descended on the spot he had been sitting in less than a second before.
His eyes went wide. His jaw dropped. He stammered, loudly, in disbelief as he took in the face of his attacker.
"Max," he muttered; the long-haired, olive-eyed Long Arm immediately turned to face him, spear at the ready, loose blue garments flowing dramatically about his muscular form.
The eyes the Long Arm stared at Stolls with weren't his own. Neither was the voice he spoke with. "Protected sector compromised," said Tamon, his voice sounding as three of varying pitch and depth. "Tagged entities Zero, One, and Three identified."
The voices brought a memory from the depths of Dean's mind and showed it to him in triplicate. "Delphi," muttered Stolls in recognition, speaking with obvious hesitation, as if attempting to escape the Long Arm's penetrating gaze, "Shinji, how much more time?"
"One minute, thirty seconds," came the quiet reply.
Stolls narrowed his eyes, staring hard at the hawkish warrior. "All right then."
"Warning: theft in progress," said Tamon as he stepped forward, his voice a cold, deep baritone.
"Suggestion," he began, his voice now a high falsetto, "tagged entities Zero, One, and Three are responsible."
"Action: termination of tagged entities is desirable," he finished in his final voice, a lifelessly insidious monotone.
Stolls brought his wand around before him as Tamon readied his spear; a slight twitch tugged at the Long Arm's lips, one that looked remarkably like the beginnings of a smirk to the Wave Master.
"It is so," said the voices as Tamon leapt at Stolls, spear held high.
- End of Chapter VIII