Note: By now, you all know the title of this story and the disclaimer obviously applies to this chapter as much as the last chapters so I am not going to repost it.
Chapter 11: Sleep
A day later, in an office of the administration building in Mac Anu:
"Has she even stirred?" questioned Reki of Balmung as the two gazed at Tsukasa.
Balmung shook his head and sighed. "She's moaned once or twice, mumbling something I can't really understand, but that's all. I think that sword of the hacker did more damage than simply impalement. All we can do is wait."
The wavemaster known as Tsukasa was lying upon a small cot that had been placed within the room. Her skin was still deathly pale, though she didn't even have a scar where the wound had been. However, dried blood was upon most all of her clothing and it remained ripped and torn. When Kite, Reki and Blackrose had healed her, the wavemaster had slipped into a deep sleep from which they could not awaken her. Reki had received a reply from Balmung and quickly sent another message telling him of Demon Child's flight and their healing of Tsukasa. The assistant had also bade Balmung wait outside the dungeon instead of descending its whole length.
Then, Reki and Kite had carefully lifted Tsukasa and Blackrose had played a sprite ocarina, transporting them to the surface. Balmung was there, pacing back and forth. After much explanation and debate, the group had taken Tsukasa to the administration building where Reki had whipped up a quick cot mod and placed it in Balmung's office. They had then lain Tsukasa upon it and there she had remained throughout the rest of the day and night. Now it was morning and both Balmung and Reki were filled with worry.
Balmung started when there was a light chime and a blue envelope appeared over his head. The blademaster read the flash mail quickly and looked to his assistant.
"It's from Kite. He says that there is a player called Subaru who is wondering where Tsukasa is. Kite want's to know if it's all right to tell her what happened," murmured Balmung. "She was the leader of the Crimson Knights, was she not?"
"I believe so, sir," replied Reki. "Tsukasa mentioned her as one of her friends, It might be that Subaru has found out that Tsukasa is in a coma again and believes her to be here."
"That's what I think. I'll tell Kite to bring her here. Reki? Go and meet them at the door."
"Yes sir."
Just as Reki opened the door to leave, Tsukasa stirred and moaned something. It sounded like, "So cold… So dark… No…"
Then she fell silent and the male wavemaster sighed and left.
Several minutes later, Reki reentered the small room, followed by a heave axe woman with blue hair, blue top, skirt and small white wings. Kite came in directly after. Subaru saw Tsukasa lying comatose upon the cot and ran over to her.
"Tsukasa!" she called, shaking the other girl gently, though she knew in her heart that there would be no response.
Therefore, she was surprised when Tsukasa's hand twitched, her eyelids flickered and she moaned, "Subaru? Where are you? Where am I? It's… It's so cold…"
The heavy axe woman took Tsukasa's hand and said, "Tsukasa! I am here! Come back to us!"
Tsukasa shivered and murmured, her voice quieter, more distant, "Subaru… Help me! Don't leave me! Noooo…"
Then the wavemaster said something that the other couldn't catch what was said. Calling to Tsukasa once, more Subaru received no response. With sad, worried eyes, she looked back over her shoulder at Balmung, Kite and Reki.
"What happened?" she asked, worries so obvious in her tone.
Balmung, Reki and Kite explained as best they could. There were some obvious holes in their knowledge, but the players were confident that they would fill them eventually. As the tale drew to a close, they all turned their eyes to Tsukasa, still unconscious upon the cot. Coincidentally, or at least it seemed coincidental, she stirred at that exact moment, but only made an inarticulate cry of dismay.
"Do you think there is any way of wakening her?" asked Subaru.
"We've already tried an antidote, an anti-sleep spell, loud noises and a few other things," sighed Kite. "But she just won't awaken."
"What about that monster. Death, did you call it?" she questioned.
"It is still frozen," said Reki. "But I think whatever bond Tsukasa laid upon it is weakening. I think that it may become free again very soon."
"That is not good."
"No, it isn't," said Balmung. "But there isn't much we can do. Other system administrators as well as my self have attempted to delete the thing, but its program data is too well protected. They have also attempted to delete the field itself, but, again, it's too well protected."
"I see," replied Subaru, standing up and looking down at Tsukasa. "I don't know what I can do, but it seems clear to me that Tsukasa's mind is trapped in some dark dream. I think, and this is just a theory, that if we can find Aura, she might be able to help us awaken her."
"Yes," mused Balmung. "I hadn't thought of that, but you might be right. Kite, do you have any idea where to find her?"
"Well," said the twin blade after a long, thoughtful moment. "I know of a few areas where we might be able to contact her, but I don't know which area she would be in. I suppose we could try Bursting Passed Over Aqua Field. In any case, though, we should have one or two people stay here in case Tsukasa awakens on her own."
"I'll stay," said Reki and Subaru at the exact same moment.
Reki blushed slightly and pointedly looked at the floor didn't meet anyone's eye. Subaru simply gazed sadly at her friend. Balmung chuckled softly, but made no comment.
"All right, then," said Kite. "Balmung and I will go there. It's only level one, so it isn't like we will need help with any monsters."
"Let's go," exclaimed Balmung.
So, the blademaster and twin blade, waving farewell, left the office and headed for the chaos gate. Reki and Subaru looked at each other and then to Tsukasa.
"Let me get another chair," said Reki. "There's only the one at the desk."
He slipped out of the room and Subaru retrieved the seat from behind the desk, placing it next to the small cot. Reki returned then with another chair. He set it next to Subaru's as she sat down in it and held Tsukasa's hand.
"Dear friend," the axe woman murmured. "Where are you? Why can you not return?"
Though the sword had been removed, a horrible agony worse than even being data drained continued to fill Tsukasa's senses. She was only vaguely aware of what Demon Child said and of falling to the floor, into a pool of her own blood. The wavemaster didn't register the fact that her body curled itself into a ball, nor did she register that her friends were bending over her. She coughed once, the jerk of pain pulling her back to full consciousness, but only for a moment before she began to slide towards darkness again.
Suddenly, a soothing white light, accompanied by gentle warmth pierced through her darkness and Tsukasa felt the pain ebb and vanish. Her eyes flickered open for a moment and she saw Reki, Kite and Blackrose clearly before her consciousness was dragged into depths of darkness. The wavemaster struggled with whatever was pulling her for a moment, but gave up for she had no more strength with which to fight.
For a long time, Tsukasa's mind plummeted in a fog of numbness. It was a long moment before she realized that it had stopped falling and come to rest in a place of absolute gloom. The wavemaster opened her eyes, but could see nothing. She knew her eyes were open, but there was nothing. It wasn't merely a lack of light, but seemed to be liquid shadows pressing about her. Puzzled, Tsukasa tried to move, but found that it was very difficult. Even moving her fingers was a struggle. With a defeated sigh, she gave up and simply let herself drift through the shadows.
Where am I? Why is it so cold? She wondered with a shiver.
An hour passed, or maybe it was only a few minutes. Tsukasa was not sure for time seemed different here and what might have been ten minutes seemed twenty. The wavemaster decided that this darkness, this eternal cold, this numbness was worse, somehow, than the pain. She felt so alone, so lost. Vainly, the wavemaster cried out, screaming for somebody, anybody to help her.
I'm dead, aren't I? But, if I'm dead, then have I been sent to hell? To some eternity of lonely torment? Why?!
"Why?" she moaned. "I'm so cold! Please, anyone help me!"
Tsukasa tried to focus her mind upon her friends, but she found the memories slippery and hard to grasp. The wavemaster tried all the harder out of desperation. After another long period of time, Tsukasa had managed to bring fragments to mind, nothing from the real world, but only images from the World and her friends therein. With those happy memories came dark, horrible ones that only served to increase the wavemaster's misery.
Suddenly, just as she felt herself begin to slip into a deeper realm of shadows, Tsukasa felt, or thought she felt, the light brush of another's hand against hers. She tried to grasp that hand, but could only twitch her fingers. Then she heard a voice. That voice! It was the voice of a friend, of a dear friend.
"Subaru!" screamed Tsukasa, as loudly as she could, though the words seemed to come out as a barely audible moan. The wavemaster opened her eyes wide, straining to see in that deep darkness. "Where are you? Where am I? It's… It's so cold…"
Tsukasa thought she heard Subaru call back, but the words came to her as if from a great distance. "Tsukasa! I am here! Come back to us!"
"Subaru," moaned the wavemaster. "Help me!"
The feeling, the touch was dissipating, fading back into the nothingness of before.
"Don't leave me!" cried Tsukasa. "Nooooo!"
Cold surrounded her once more and it seemed chiller, darker than before. The wavemaster sobbed, shuddering violently against the cold. Now, more than ever, she felt loneliness and a despair that filled her whole being. The girl had been alone before, but she had posses a tiny ray of hope that another would come and pull her from her darkness. Now, however, that ray was extinguished as she plummeted to new depths of blackness.
In this new level, she felt a pull trying to tear her soul apart and let it dissolve, drift into oblivion. At first the wavemaster fought against the call, but gradually, Tsukasa began to contemplate letting herself drift into nothingness. The idea soon began to appeal to her. That way, at least, she would no longer feel anything, be it despair or hope. However, just as she began to let go of herself, the wavemaster felt a new light, a new ray of strength above her. Reaching for it, Tsukasa felt another presence.
"Aura," she breathed and suddenly, the liquid shadows melted and the wavemaster was able to move, able to see, though the darkness continued to cling.
Aura smiled and reached out a hand to Tsukasa. "Come. You are needed."
Author stuff:
Well, then... I fixed what I wanted to fix in this chapter and here you are!
REVIEWERS:
Kitty: Thanks!
Ranma-chan2: Hi! Yay! You have been reading my other chapters! -broad grin- I do indeed have another fanfic that I posted yesterday. Tsukasa gets drunk in it, I might warn you... Just go to my userlookup and find the link there..
Kitsunia : THankies for reviewing once again! Dark chapters are always fun... And thanks for reviewing my other fanfic in which Tsukasa is drunk... I had fun with that... :)
Speaking of which:
Tsukasa: -staggers in from other fanfi- -hic- Sake ish good! -collapses upon floor-
Me: Oh dear...
Tsukasa: -twitch- -falls asleep- -snores-
Me: Tsukasa is going to have one hell of a hangover...
Other stuff :
Chapter 12 is on its way, don't worry...
and my random thought of the day: Since Tsukasa is a girl, during SIGN do you think she ever got PMS? I know her character design is that of a guy, but that was just a random thought I had. In your reviews, put whether you think she got PMS or not... please?
