Disclaimer: Ok, I don't own .hack or anything from it save the characters
I have created. Bandai owns the rest.
PG-13: I could probably get away with PG, but not sure just how violent it might get later, so better to be safe.
Author's Comment: So you know, all areas mentioned can be reached in the game and are to a great degree accurate.
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Rain poured down from the night sky as Kite trudged closely behind Gardenia towards the dungeon entrance. Of all the types of weather and conditions, it was rain and darkness that he hated most. Not only were both very good at concealing enemies and other hidden items, but there was just something... ominous about the whole scenery that the two effects created.
The dungeon had been at about a 2 o'clock angle from the point of arrival, and Gardenia had taken off straight for it the second they'd gained their bearings. The only time they had stopped thus far had been to activate a symbol, which gave them a very nice yet wholly unneeded Ap Corv power up. It just seemed strange, the area was a Level 37, meaning that the mud from the rain was the only thing that would smear the shine on either of their boots, as the monsters would never get a chance. Gardenia could handle this herself no problem without his help, yet she had specifically said she wanted it. This was totally out of character for her.
Staring ahead through the drops of rain that splattered against his face, Kite caught signs of Gardenia's backside every so often, dodging a splash of mud from their boots disturbance of small puddles. While his recent incident with Ryoko, Natsume and Mycinity would normally leave him embarrassed or guilty to have this kind of view, but the environmental conditions left him simply glad that he could still see her at all, especially since Gardenia would most likely not wait for him at the Dungeon entrance if he fell behind; it wasn't her style. He had thought of simply moving up next to her as he was the faster of the two. There weren't many that could keep pace with a high level Twin Blade that didn't want to be caught, but discussing his problem just now with mud, rain and pitch blackness around them wasn't the ideal time. Something told him also that Gardenia knew this when she agreed to talk to him on the way.
Finally magical torches burning despite the rain could be seen ahead. The dungeon entrance. Kite took a big sigh of relief, inhaling a few raindrops as he did so causing a slight cough. As the light grew nearer though, Kite's joy dimmed. It was a monster gut dungeon, where you would enter what appeared to be a giant mouth to get into the dungeon who's interior resembled what he very much thought the beef stew he'd had for lunch earlier saw as it plummeted into his stomach. Well, save the sharp, toothy walls.
Awhile back he'd been in just such a dungeon when he came upon a party fighting a rather large dragon monster, the exact type he didn't recall, and one lash of the creature's tail had sent a ill-positioned Wavemaster straight into one of those walls, confirming that being impaled by a dungeon wall could kill a player. He was sure that if he spent enough time in dungeons like this they'd even invade his offline nightmares, not that he had online nightmares.
As they reached the cover of the dungeon's... upper jaw, Gardenia paused, turning to face Kite who had just entered the cover of the dungeon jaw himself. Taking a step forward, Kite looked up at Gardenia and began, "Gardenia, can I ask you-"
"Come, let's go." Gardenia then turned, Minerva in hand and began moving down the...tongue into the depths of the dungeon, Kite following behind. Entering into a long corridor, more like a throat than most would have desired, Kite set off with Gardenia at a nice trot deeper into the dungeon, wondering if he'd ever get a chance to talk.
As they exited the corridor into the first room, a magic portal activated just as they took their first steps in. A trio of Voodoo Goblins appeared, and two slashes and a spear thrust later they were gone. Neither even broke a sweat, unless the few droplets of rain still clinging to their hair and cheeks counted.
Four short rooms and five dead Headhunter Kings later the pair stood facing the stairs leading to the next floor. It had been a short floor indeed, and still only raindrops moistened their faces. Of course the rain outside and their current organic environment raised the humidity some, but it was quite tolerable. They hadn't been in it very long either.
Reaching the last step into the second floor, Gardenia slowed her pace and began to walk casually down the hall. Kite joined her, trying to think just how to approach her on this. Before he could though Gardenia said, "A flower blooms in its prime, showing its beauty in silence, but before it can say what it wants, the pedals have fallen off and no one wants to listen to a wilted stem."
Kite just blinked. "What?"
"Don't be like the flower Kite, express how you feel to people before it is too late."
Now that it was said, just how did he feel about all this, about all of them? He knew how most of them certainly felt, especially Mycinity, that was rather obvious, but what he wanted to say, how he felt, that was another thing. There seemed to be so many girls who suddenly wanted him, even if it was in an online environment, not at all like it was in the real world. Was that perhaps why he hesitated so much, he wasn't ready to handle something like this?
That was certainly an irony. Here he was, Kite, the bearer of the Twilight Bracelet, chosen to save 'The World' from this terrible viral threat and free the comatose victims, and yet he couldn't even handle a girl who really liked him, three for that matter. Then again, wasn't there a fourth as well? His heart felt like it would burst out of his chest as he thought and pondered that possibility, not even noticing the environment around him. Luckily two rooms of casual walking later, only a single Headhunter King had appeared, and Gardenia had dispatched with him with a single overhead slash.
Suddenly as he felt the strange magical presence, he looked up and his jaw opened as he saw the Gott Statue. It was here already, on the second floor? Talk about a short dungeon. The Mukuro inside wasn't anything new, and so here they were, finished with the dungeon and he hadn't even asked Gardenia a single thing.
Turning to face her, she looked at him for a moment, then turned back towards the entrance with a soft, "Hmph..." They were continuing down the next corridor anyway. This was definitely strange.
Entering the next room, a great square room, the Magic Portal within activated and a Sandhill appeared before them. No this one wouldn't go down in a single hit. Diving to the side with ease to avoid its attack as Gardenia went charging in, Kite Raised his hand and shouted, "MeJuk Kruz!"
From thin air tree branches suddenly converged on the Sandhill, striking it hard just as Gardenia's own slashes came in. This was more than enough to drop the beast, although the fact that magic had been required for such a quick kill was a compliment to the creature's power. Gardenia just turned south and walked towards the next door. He was running out of time, and it had to be now. Stepping into the next room, Kite said, "Gardenia, I need to ask you something."
Walking forward down the path towards another Magic Portal Gardenia knowingly replied, "Yes, I know."
She knew, but how? Obviously she knew he needed to talk to her, but that tone, it had been as if she already knew what he was going to ask. The portal activated now and a pair of Headhunter Kings emerged. Pausing for a moment, Kite and Gardenia glanced at each other, grinned wryly and charged in. Moment later, standing behind a pair of quite dead Headhunter Kings, Kite continued. "Gardenia, whatever happened to your fan club?"
Pausing for a moment, Gardenia just stared ahead, then replied in her usual calm voice, "I don't know. They were never really strong, and since I moved on to more dangerous levels that they couldn't follow me to, I assume they gave up, but who knows for sure. Why do you ask... Lord Kite?"
She DID know! Stunned for a moment, Kite just stood there as Gardenia moved on to the next door. Turning back, Gardenia smiled slightly and cocked her head. "Coming?"
"Oh... yeah." Kite then trotted to Gardenia as she was opening the next door into yet another great hall, where another Sandhill sat waiting.
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Leaning against the entrance to the dungeon at ï Chosen Solitary Gate, Mycinity sighed and looked across the doorway where not too long ago Kite had landed on Natsume, to where Barricade leaned against the opposite side. "Well that was a total failure, don't you think Cade?"
"Not necessarily My, I think Kite may actually come back. From his reaction I'm guessing he forgot to check the message boards was all, so this probably caught him by surprise."
Sighing, Mycinity shook her head. "I don't know Cade, I wanted it to be a surprise, but he didn't seem overly happy about it. If anything, I think he was kind of upset."
"That's where you're wrong My. Kite was just surprised was all, and didn't know quite what to do. I don't think he's used to that kind of attention, or recognition for that matter. Give him some time, and space too and he'll come around, accept this and all. If not, well then it was a good try."
Smiling, Mycinity nodded. "Yeah, maybe you're right. Thanks Cade, you're the best."
"Just don't go spreading that around to the others, will destroy my tough guy image."
From off in the corner a voice then said, "It'd most likely be better for all involved if he didn't come back." Mycinity and Barricade turned to see who had said it, and saw a strange Wavemaster dressed all in black moving casually towards them, stopping a meter or two shy.
"What's that supposed to mean, who are you?" She didn't know why, but something about this guy freaked Mycinity out, and made her dislike him, and, even if she wouldn't admit it, fear him a little too.
"Asking who someone is can be a powerful and dangerous thing, changing relationships and structures of power all together. After all, it was believed that for a mortal to know the name of a god gave that mortal power, because they could invoke that name, and thus the god through the name. The Hebrew god did not give his name for this very reason. Besides, who and what we really are rarely can be summed up by a simple name. As for what I mean Mycinity, I should think it would be obvious. Kite lives in a different world from the one you inhabit. What he can and must do are things you can not imagine, and following him around, distracting him from his true objective can only endanger yourself, and more importantly, his mission."
Barricade pushed off the entrance wall now and turned to fully face the Wavemaster. "And what mission is that, Blacky?" His hand had gone to the hilt of his sword.
Chuckling lightly with just a slight hint of melodrama, the Wavemaster grinned wide. "Just what do you think you can do with that little sword of yours Barricade? You wouldn't even be able to raise it against me. What Kite's mission is though is not something for you to know. Just remember, right now there are giants out on the playground, and if you're not careful, you might get hurt if you try to play with them."
Gripping the hilt of his sword even tighter, Barricade barred his teeth and spat out in anger, "Is that a threat?"
"No, just a warning, a piece of friendly advice even. After all, there are plenty of dangerous creatures in 'The World' and some are more deadly than others. Wouldn't want to have one of you wander into the wrong room and find that you're over your head...children."
Barricade's sword was out in a moment, but even as he swung in, the sword seemed to hit a barrier as a strange light engulfed the Wavemaster. Then without warning a pulse shot out from him knocking them both down onto the steps with the mere force of the shockwave. Grinning with a half- crazed gleam in his eye, the Wavemaster then said, "For your own safety, stay away from Kite, the bearer of the Twilight Bracelet." He was then engulfed in the golden rings as he warped away, leaving two confused players with rather sore behinds.
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Standing at a dead end of the southern-most chamber within the dungeon, Gardenia stared up at the wall as Kite walked up beside her. Glancing over at her for a moment, Kite then joined her in examining the wall. Moments in silence passed, then Kite said, "How'd you find out about the club?"
Without taking her eyes from the wall, Gardenia replied, "From the Message Board. You really should check it more often. The fan club thread seems quite popular."
Kite blushed lightly. Popular, that wasn't what he thought of himself as in 'The World' but then he never really gave much thought to it in the first place. It had always just been about saving Orca. "So, is that why you wanted me to come here with you, because of the Message Board?"
"No, I was asked to."
Looking over at that, Kite spit out, "What, by who?"
Gardenia didn't answer though, she just stood there as quiet and sturdy as a great oak. Minutes passed, then Gardenia, still not looking at him said, "Kite, you must do as your inner being tells you. If you spend too much time fearing the thorns of a rose, you can never appreciate its beauty. Think carefully, then act, and don't look back." With that she activated her Sprite Ocarina and warped out, leaving Kite there to stare at the wall and ponder.
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Author's Note:
Sorry this took so long, I've had a lot going on. One of my close friends busted her knee when she slipped on some ice, and I've been trying to comfort her. Add that to work and college, and time gets busy.
I have decided not to beat Quarantine until after I finish this story so as not to inadvertently put something in that Kite or the others shouldn't know. This also means that there are to be no remarks about what occurs in Quarantine in your reviews or I might not finish this story. I don't like having surprises ruined.
I know I didn't answer too much in this chapter, but I did raise a few questions you should be thinking about. Those would be, who asked Gardenia to talk to Kite, what does Liet know/mean in what he said to Mycinity and Barricade, and how do I think up all this crazy stuff.
Well, I hope to get the next chapter out sooner. I do have midterms soon though, so who knows.
PG-13: I could probably get away with PG, but not sure just how violent it might get later, so better to be safe.
Author's Comment: So you know, all areas mentioned can be reached in the game and are to a great degree accurate.
-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-
Rain poured down from the night sky as Kite trudged closely behind Gardenia towards the dungeon entrance. Of all the types of weather and conditions, it was rain and darkness that he hated most. Not only were both very good at concealing enemies and other hidden items, but there was just something... ominous about the whole scenery that the two effects created.
The dungeon had been at about a 2 o'clock angle from the point of arrival, and Gardenia had taken off straight for it the second they'd gained their bearings. The only time they had stopped thus far had been to activate a symbol, which gave them a very nice yet wholly unneeded Ap Corv power up. It just seemed strange, the area was a Level 37, meaning that the mud from the rain was the only thing that would smear the shine on either of their boots, as the monsters would never get a chance. Gardenia could handle this herself no problem without his help, yet she had specifically said she wanted it. This was totally out of character for her.
Staring ahead through the drops of rain that splattered against his face, Kite caught signs of Gardenia's backside every so often, dodging a splash of mud from their boots disturbance of small puddles. While his recent incident with Ryoko, Natsume and Mycinity would normally leave him embarrassed or guilty to have this kind of view, but the environmental conditions left him simply glad that he could still see her at all, especially since Gardenia would most likely not wait for him at the Dungeon entrance if he fell behind; it wasn't her style. He had thought of simply moving up next to her as he was the faster of the two. There weren't many that could keep pace with a high level Twin Blade that didn't want to be caught, but discussing his problem just now with mud, rain and pitch blackness around them wasn't the ideal time. Something told him also that Gardenia knew this when she agreed to talk to him on the way.
Finally magical torches burning despite the rain could be seen ahead. The dungeon entrance. Kite took a big sigh of relief, inhaling a few raindrops as he did so causing a slight cough. As the light grew nearer though, Kite's joy dimmed. It was a monster gut dungeon, where you would enter what appeared to be a giant mouth to get into the dungeon who's interior resembled what he very much thought the beef stew he'd had for lunch earlier saw as it plummeted into his stomach. Well, save the sharp, toothy walls.
Awhile back he'd been in just such a dungeon when he came upon a party fighting a rather large dragon monster, the exact type he didn't recall, and one lash of the creature's tail had sent a ill-positioned Wavemaster straight into one of those walls, confirming that being impaled by a dungeon wall could kill a player. He was sure that if he spent enough time in dungeons like this they'd even invade his offline nightmares, not that he had online nightmares.
As they reached the cover of the dungeon's... upper jaw, Gardenia paused, turning to face Kite who had just entered the cover of the dungeon jaw himself. Taking a step forward, Kite looked up at Gardenia and began, "Gardenia, can I ask you-"
"Come, let's go." Gardenia then turned, Minerva in hand and began moving down the...tongue into the depths of the dungeon, Kite following behind. Entering into a long corridor, more like a throat than most would have desired, Kite set off with Gardenia at a nice trot deeper into the dungeon, wondering if he'd ever get a chance to talk.
As they exited the corridor into the first room, a magic portal activated just as they took their first steps in. A trio of Voodoo Goblins appeared, and two slashes and a spear thrust later they were gone. Neither even broke a sweat, unless the few droplets of rain still clinging to their hair and cheeks counted.
Four short rooms and five dead Headhunter Kings later the pair stood facing the stairs leading to the next floor. It had been a short floor indeed, and still only raindrops moistened their faces. Of course the rain outside and their current organic environment raised the humidity some, but it was quite tolerable. They hadn't been in it very long either.
Reaching the last step into the second floor, Gardenia slowed her pace and began to walk casually down the hall. Kite joined her, trying to think just how to approach her on this. Before he could though Gardenia said, "A flower blooms in its prime, showing its beauty in silence, but before it can say what it wants, the pedals have fallen off and no one wants to listen to a wilted stem."
Kite just blinked. "What?"
"Don't be like the flower Kite, express how you feel to people before it is too late."
Now that it was said, just how did he feel about all this, about all of them? He knew how most of them certainly felt, especially Mycinity, that was rather obvious, but what he wanted to say, how he felt, that was another thing. There seemed to be so many girls who suddenly wanted him, even if it was in an online environment, not at all like it was in the real world. Was that perhaps why he hesitated so much, he wasn't ready to handle something like this?
That was certainly an irony. Here he was, Kite, the bearer of the Twilight Bracelet, chosen to save 'The World' from this terrible viral threat and free the comatose victims, and yet he couldn't even handle a girl who really liked him, three for that matter. Then again, wasn't there a fourth as well? His heart felt like it would burst out of his chest as he thought and pondered that possibility, not even noticing the environment around him. Luckily two rooms of casual walking later, only a single Headhunter King had appeared, and Gardenia had dispatched with him with a single overhead slash.
Suddenly as he felt the strange magical presence, he looked up and his jaw opened as he saw the Gott Statue. It was here already, on the second floor? Talk about a short dungeon. The Mukuro inside wasn't anything new, and so here they were, finished with the dungeon and he hadn't even asked Gardenia a single thing.
Turning to face her, she looked at him for a moment, then turned back towards the entrance with a soft, "Hmph..." They were continuing down the next corridor anyway. This was definitely strange.
Entering the next room, a great square room, the Magic Portal within activated and a Sandhill appeared before them. No this one wouldn't go down in a single hit. Diving to the side with ease to avoid its attack as Gardenia went charging in, Kite Raised his hand and shouted, "MeJuk Kruz!"
From thin air tree branches suddenly converged on the Sandhill, striking it hard just as Gardenia's own slashes came in. This was more than enough to drop the beast, although the fact that magic had been required for such a quick kill was a compliment to the creature's power. Gardenia just turned south and walked towards the next door. He was running out of time, and it had to be now. Stepping into the next room, Kite said, "Gardenia, I need to ask you something."
Walking forward down the path towards another Magic Portal Gardenia knowingly replied, "Yes, I know."
She knew, but how? Obviously she knew he needed to talk to her, but that tone, it had been as if she already knew what he was going to ask. The portal activated now and a pair of Headhunter Kings emerged. Pausing for a moment, Kite and Gardenia glanced at each other, grinned wryly and charged in. Moment later, standing behind a pair of quite dead Headhunter Kings, Kite continued. "Gardenia, whatever happened to your fan club?"
Pausing for a moment, Gardenia just stared ahead, then replied in her usual calm voice, "I don't know. They were never really strong, and since I moved on to more dangerous levels that they couldn't follow me to, I assume they gave up, but who knows for sure. Why do you ask... Lord Kite?"
She DID know! Stunned for a moment, Kite just stood there as Gardenia moved on to the next door. Turning back, Gardenia smiled slightly and cocked her head. "Coming?"
"Oh... yeah." Kite then trotted to Gardenia as she was opening the next door into yet another great hall, where another Sandhill sat waiting.
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Leaning against the entrance to the dungeon at ï Chosen Solitary Gate, Mycinity sighed and looked across the doorway where not too long ago Kite had landed on Natsume, to where Barricade leaned against the opposite side. "Well that was a total failure, don't you think Cade?"
"Not necessarily My, I think Kite may actually come back. From his reaction I'm guessing he forgot to check the message boards was all, so this probably caught him by surprise."
Sighing, Mycinity shook her head. "I don't know Cade, I wanted it to be a surprise, but he didn't seem overly happy about it. If anything, I think he was kind of upset."
"That's where you're wrong My. Kite was just surprised was all, and didn't know quite what to do. I don't think he's used to that kind of attention, or recognition for that matter. Give him some time, and space too and he'll come around, accept this and all. If not, well then it was a good try."
Smiling, Mycinity nodded. "Yeah, maybe you're right. Thanks Cade, you're the best."
"Just don't go spreading that around to the others, will destroy my tough guy image."
From off in the corner a voice then said, "It'd most likely be better for all involved if he didn't come back." Mycinity and Barricade turned to see who had said it, and saw a strange Wavemaster dressed all in black moving casually towards them, stopping a meter or two shy.
"What's that supposed to mean, who are you?" She didn't know why, but something about this guy freaked Mycinity out, and made her dislike him, and, even if she wouldn't admit it, fear him a little too.
"Asking who someone is can be a powerful and dangerous thing, changing relationships and structures of power all together. After all, it was believed that for a mortal to know the name of a god gave that mortal power, because they could invoke that name, and thus the god through the name. The Hebrew god did not give his name for this very reason. Besides, who and what we really are rarely can be summed up by a simple name. As for what I mean Mycinity, I should think it would be obvious. Kite lives in a different world from the one you inhabit. What he can and must do are things you can not imagine, and following him around, distracting him from his true objective can only endanger yourself, and more importantly, his mission."
Barricade pushed off the entrance wall now and turned to fully face the Wavemaster. "And what mission is that, Blacky?" His hand had gone to the hilt of his sword.
Chuckling lightly with just a slight hint of melodrama, the Wavemaster grinned wide. "Just what do you think you can do with that little sword of yours Barricade? You wouldn't even be able to raise it against me. What Kite's mission is though is not something for you to know. Just remember, right now there are giants out on the playground, and if you're not careful, you might get hurt if you try to play with them."
Gripping the hilt of his sword even tighter, Barricade barred his teeth and spat out in anger, "Is that a threat?"
"No, just a warning, a piece of friendly advice even. After all, there are plenty of dangerous creatures in 'The World' and some are more deadly than others. Wouldn't want to have one of you wander into the wrong room and find that you're over your head...children."
Barricade's sword was out in a moment, but even as he swung in, the sword seemed to hit a barrier as a strange light engulfed the Wavemaster. Then without warning a pulse shot out from him knocking them both down onto the steps with the mere force of the shockwave. Grinning with a half- crazed gleam in his eye, the Wavemaster then said, "For your own safety, stay away from Kite, the bearer of the Twilight Bracelet." He was then engulfed in the golden rings as he warped away, leaving two confused players with rather sore behinds.
-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-
Standing at a dead end of the southern-most chamber within the dungeon, Gardenia stared up at the wall as Kite walked up beside her. Glancing over at her for a moment, Kite then joined her in examining the wall. Moments in silence passed, then Kite said, "How'd you find out about the club?"
Without taking her eyes from the wall, Gardenia replied, "From the Message Board. You really should check it more often. The fan club thread seems quite popular."
Kite blushed lightly. Popular, that wasn't what he thought of himself as in 'The World' but then he never really gave much thought to it in the first place. It had always just been about saving Orca. "So, is that why you wanted me to come here with you, because of the Message Board?"
"No, I was asked to."
Looking over at that, Kite spit out, "What, by who?"
Gardenia didn't answer though, she just stood there as quiet and sturdy as a great oak. Minutes passed, then Gardenia, still not looking at him said, "Kite, you must do as your inner being tells you. If you spend too much time fearing the thorns of a rose, you can never appreciate its beauty. Think carefully, then act, and don't look back." With that she activated her Sprite Ocarina and warped out, leaving Kite there to stare at the wall and ponder.
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Author's Note:
Sorry this took so long, I've had a lot going on. One of my close friends busted her knee when she slipped on some ice, and I've been trying to comfort her. Add that to work and college, and time gets busy.
I have decided not to beat Quarantine until after I finish this story so as not to inadvertently put something in that Kite or the others shouldn't know. This also means that there are to be no remarks about what occurs in Quarantine in your reviews or I might not finish this story. I don't like having surprises ruined.
I know I didn't answer too much in this chapter, but I did raise a few questions you should be thinking about. Those would be, who asked Gardenia to talk to Kite, what does Liet know/mean in what he said to Mycinity and Barricade, and how do I think up all this crazy stuff.
Well, I hope to get the next chapter out sooner. I do have midterms soon though, so who knows.