.Hack Relapse A .Hack fanfiction by Renfro Calhoun
Disclaimer: Project .Hack and attached characters/concepts belong to Bandai and Cyber Connect.
Notes: Happens during Outbreak. Parentheses are thoughts, brackets are text or writing. Still can't get the 'at' marks or backslashes to show up for some reason, so until further notice e-mail domains will be denoted {like so}
I would like to take this time to point out the inherent dangers of cute things. For example, the Tonberry, of Final Fantasy renown. Deceptively adorable, in a Star Wars' Jawa-ish kind of way, but that itty bitty knife is really, really powerful, as my poor FFXI Hume white mage has recently discovered.
This is a public service announcement brought to you by the People Who Never Escape Death (P.W.N.E.D.)
Chapter 26 – Technical Support
--------------------------------------
Kite watched in fascination as the expression on Lios' face changed, subtly, from mild confusion to significantly less mild disdain. His eyes bounced left and right as he read something unseen to Kite or BlackRose, text logs and conversations the Twin Blade had sent him.
His thick eyebrows narrowed, and he was obviously clenching his teeth behind his scowling lips. Without look at the teal-haired warrior, he asked, "Is this everything?" in a surprisingly calm voice that belied his appearance.
"It's everything we saw," said Kite.
For a second, Lios' eyes darkened even further; his face fell, the anger seeming to melt away to a more melancholy emotion. He sighed deeply, eyes closed and head gently shaking back and forth. "What the hell were you thinking," he muttered, far too quiet to be addressing either of them.
BlackRose threw Kite a look, then faced Lios. "Well?" she asked, hints of impatience in her tone.
He opened his eyes, staring at nothing in particular; Kite guessed he was reading a line from the log again. "If this is accurate," he began, "then... then..." He stopped, swallowed, and cleared his throat. "My god... Seijiro, what on Earth have you done?"
"Lios?" Kite asked tentatively, noting that the administrator's voice carried far less authority than he had ever remembered.
"If this is accurate," he tried again, "then it means he knew all along where Harald was, and where he is now. And perhaps even why Morganna is trying to destroy 'The World'."
Kite looked up at him expectantly. "So what are you going to do?"
Lios matched Kite's stare with one of his own. "There's nothing else to be done here. I suggest you leave for the time being."
BlackRose recoiled slightly, blinking twice. "Excuse me??"
"You've found out all you need to know," said Lios curtly. "It would be best if you looked no further into the matter for now."
"So we should just butt out, is that what you're saying?" accused the Heavy Blade, balling her right hand into a fist.
The administrator turned his stare to BlackRose. "You have a job to do," he said, traces of command returning to his voice. "And so do I," he added, almost as an afterthought. "I will handle the matter from here."
With that, Lios began to gate out. Just before the rings completely enveloped his body, he muttered, "My... 'thanks' for your assistance."
Barely a second after he had logged out, the swordswoman let out a long- held groan of annoyance. "Rrrgh... who does he think he is?!"
"It's all right," said Kite, facing his pink-haired companion. "At least we're both okay, and maybe this will help them figure out what went wrong before."
She gave a small sigh, either unwilling or unable to challenge the statement. "I guess so... well... maybe we should get going, anyway. It's getting kind of late."
Kite nodded. "Yeah... do you want to log out here?"
BlackRose looked up at him, a curiously soft look to her eyes. "Actually... can we head back now? I know where the boat is, it'll only take a few minutes." There was a slight tremor to her words that might have been anxiety.
"All right." He smiled, issuing the auto-follow command once more. "Lead the way."
Hiroshi reached blindly forward, setting his controller on his desk as Kite followed BlackRose's every step. He watched her lead them both through the twisty, mazelike passages, a decided confidence to her walk that assured him she knew where she was going.
Idly, he pressed his hands together and wrung each of his fingers, feeling somewhat tense and cold from holding the controller for so long. From his current point of view, his eyes were set straight ahead, right into the back of his partner.
True to her word, she led them to the tiny pier, where the NPC boatman was waiting. Spotting them, he looked over and waved, smiling cheerfully. "Ready to go back?" he asked.
Taking control of himself, Kite smiled back and nodded. "Let's go."
The two hopped gingerly into the boat, taking their seats on the bench as the pilot also sat down and began rowing. The small craft lazily drifted away from the pier and up the canal, wooden oars splashing as they cut into the water and propelled the boat forward.
Sitting next to BlackRose, Kite recalled their prior excursion on the boat, and instantly felt a warm rush of color in his cheeks. The same part of him that wanted to hold her again, as he had before, was also frozen in place, once again afraid that his actions would be unwanted, or that he would create the wrong impression, or any one of a hundred ways he imagined it would go wrong.
He almost didn't notice that she wasn't moving at all. Tilting his head, he called her name.
She twitched, and then glanced at him blankly. "Uh?? What is it?" she asked with noticeable haste.
Concern etched into his face, he turned his body to face her. "Are you okay?" he asked softly.
"I-I'm fine," she stammered, looking away. "I was just AFK for a second."
"Are you sure?" Kite pressed, unconvinced.
"I said I..." she began to repeat herself, but the strength drained from her reply almost instantly. She inhaled deeply, and exhaled slowly, as if steadying herself. After a half-minute of silence, she said, "I... could feel it."
"What do you mean?" was Kite's instinctive query.
"Back there, during the fight... the gun," she explained. "I could... feel it. Like it was real." She fidgeted uncomfortably, looking over at him once more. "When it went off, I could feel the heat... but it was so cold."
He watched her closely, his eyes fixated on hers. "Really? You mean you..."
"Yeah," she cut him off, if meekly so. "I-I-I've... never held one in my life. And then when... it just happened so quickly, when I picked it up." She paused long enough to swallow, loudly. "It just felt real."
Kite got her message loud and clear. That was the final wall between the game and real life; that wounds didn't hurt, things had no smell, feel or taste, and they knew they were still connected to a terminal somewhere, and could always log out if things got too dangerous.
The gun had taken her past that wall, if only for just a moment.
"It's not like Data Drain," she continued. "That hurts too, but it doesn't happen in the real world..."
(But that was a lot closer to home,) he thought, finishing the sentence she left hanging.
She let one hand drop over the side, her fingers just skimming the surface of the water, seeming to relish in her inability to sense it without her eyes and ears.
The red figure in the corner of her eye moved, and before she could face Kite again, he had reached out and taken her other hand in his. The leather glove curled around her palm, squeezing it reassuringly; his lips, smiling gently.
"You saved us," he said warmly.
She stared back at him; he grew a little uncomfortable from her lack of response, tempted to pull his hand away. Instead, he kept talking, motivated by some alien impulse to make her feel better. "I... don't know exactly what happened here tonight," he admitted, "or even if it's over just yet. But I know I couldn't have done it by myself. I wouldn't have even thought to try that."
Sensing her mood was lightening, he thought back further. "And I wouldn't have even known about this area if not for you. He... or it, might still be there, wandering." Widening his smile, he added, "Looks like I owe you again."
The corners of her lips were tugged upward, and at last she squeezed his hand back. "I'll put it on your tab," she remarked jokingly, a short giggle serving to punctuate the comment.
Replying with a smiling emote, he scooted a little closer, as before. He unsuccessfully tried to fight down a blush as he released her hand, lifting his and draping the arm over her shoulders.
There was no tension, and almost no awkwardness. Her response was fluid and natural, if somewhat bashful; she slid in even closer and curled an arm around his back, gently clutching a handful of his red vest. Eye contact broke, and instead they gazed in the same direction, watching as the buildings flanking the canal slowly drifted by.
Positive he was still blushing, Kite slowly relaxed, body going limp as he leaned back against the side of the boat, BlackRose using his shoulder for a similar purpose. He let out a sigh, more than content for perhaps the first time in recent memory; maybe even happy, if only a little.
She mimed his action, exhaling gently and letting her eyes droop shut. Though he could no longer see her face, he swore she was smiling, a thought that caused him to smile as well.
In common with their earlier ride, this one ended too soon for their liking. Reaching the main broadway of the aqua capital, the pilot guided the boat towards the nearest mooring and secured it.
Reluctantly, they disentangled and clambered out of the boat, setting food on sturdy ground and immediately stepping to the side as another party approached the boat.
"Well, I guess I'm calling it a night," said BlackRose, clasping her hands behind her back.
"Yeah, me too." Kite threw his arms up, arching his back as he stretched. "I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"
She nodded. "Tomorrow. See you later!" With a wave, she gated out, familiar golden rings encircling and masking her body as she faded away.
"You too," he replied to empty air.
The party now empty, he leisurely climbed the steps near the weapon vendor; arbitrarily, he wandered onto the bridge spanning the canal, and leaned onto the nearest railing, gazing out at the sunlit, lively metropolis before and around him.
His hand clenched the railing, firm and solid under his hands, and felt a tinge of regret that the boat ride wasn't longer, if only by a minute or two. Regret quickly fell away to another emotion, one almost as foreign to him but decidedly more pleasant.
A press of a button conjured up the required menu, and he quickly found the logout command. 'The World' quickly vanished, replaced by an all- encompassing nothingness, which itself went away as he reached up and pried the headset free from its perch.
Sitting alone in his room, before a glowing login screen, Hiroshi smiled happily.
-
From: FMoritsu {admin.cc.net}
To: SeiTan {mailserv.net}
Subj: Harald
I know.
Come to my office. Now.
- End of Chapter 26