( I am not typing out the disclaimer again. You know full well that I don't own more than copies of the games and whatnot, so you can't go flaming me for that )

Chapter 12: No Time for Recuperation

Tsukasa opened her sad gray eyes and immediately closed them against the light. It wasn't that it was all that bright, but simply that her eyes had yet to adjust to it. After a moment, she opened her eyes again, slower this time, and gazed about. She found that she was lying down in an office of sorts, upon a cot that was low to the ground. Seated in two chairs next to her were Reki and Subaru. They had not yet realized that she had awakened. Tsukasa could barely contain her relief and joy at simply seeing her friends.

Reki glanced at her face and shock appeared on his as he met her eyes. "You're awake!" he exclaimed.

Subaru, too, looked up and smiled, breathing a sigh of relief. "Tsukasa!" she said. "We were so worried about you!"

The wavemaster smiled and tried to sit up, but found that she had no strength to do so. Tsukasa managed to push herself up a few inches, though, before she collapsed back upon the cot.

"Don't do that," scolded Subaru. "I don't think you are fully healed yet. From what I've heard, you've been through a lot and deserve, as well as need, a good rest."

"You don't have to speak," said Reki. "Just rest for now until Kite and Balmung get back. What's the matter?"

Reki and Subaru gazed at their friend in puzzled astonishment as Tsukasa began to cry, the tears sliding down her cheeks, though she had closed her eyes. The wavemaster shook her head slightly, but continued to weep. She didn't sob, but merely let the drops slip unheeded from beneath her lids.

A moment later, the door opened. Kite and Balmung entered. They looked considerably relieved when, upon glancing at Tsukasa, she opened her eyes and gazed back. Kite decided that the eyes now had a dimmer look to them than before, as if a shadow still lay upon their owner.

"You're awake, then?" said Balmung.

"Aura…" murmured Tsukasa, closing her eyes again. "She brought me back…"

"Back?" questioned Kite. "What do you mean?"

Tsukasa didn't respond.

"Tsukasa?"

The wavemaster whispered, almost to softly for the other's to hear, "There is a place of absolute darkness. Not simply lack of light, but liquid shadows that sap the warmth from any there."

A shudder passed through her frame. Then Tsukasa continued, "So lonely there… So cold… I… I don't want to talk about it. Then Aura came… And I found myself here once more…"

Kite and Balmung looked at each other.

"Aura said you were in a place of despair," murmured Balmung, thoughtfully. "And that when she found the entrance, she would be able to find you."

Tsukasa nodded weakly. Then she did not stir, save to shift herself to a more comfortable position upon the cot. A moment later, she had drifted into a deep, healing sleep, where her dreams were full of light and warmth and were, altogether, pleasant.

Her friends watched her for a time, anxious looks on their faces. However, her face was relaxed, calm and restful. She did not murmur in her sleep, nor did she even stir. Therefore, Reki, Balmung, Kite and Subaru left her to sleep. The four stepped out of the room to discus things.

"We saw Aura at Bursting Passed Over Aqua Fields," said Kite. "She told us about Tsukasa, then said that the reason Tsukasa is needed is because one who is a part of the World, but not governed by the programming. Aura then told us that Death is soon to be free again. 'Even as Tsukasa awakens, so, too, shall Death and he will attack with a vengeance.' That's what she said."

"Then we need to do something quickly!" exclaimed Reki. "He will just have broken free and somehow I don't think that he will require much time before he can gather his strength and begin to attack the system and any players in his way!"

"But Tsukasa is the only one who can stop it," interjected Subaru. "And, as you saw, she is still recovering. I very much doubt that she will be fully healed for some time."

"Time is of the essence, though," commented Balmung. "Unfortunately, there is no time for recuperation. I must go now and prepare. Reki? I will need your help."

"Yes, sir," said the wavemaster.

Then, with a wave on the part of Reki, the two vanished amid golden rings. Kite stared off into space a moment, then focused upon Subaru.

"You were once leader of the Crimson Knights, right?" he asked.

"Yes," replied the heavy axe woman.

"Do you think it would be possible for you to alert as many as you can? I think we'll need all the strong player help we can get."

"Yes, I think so," murmured Subaru. "Do you think I should post about it on the board? I have to leave for a bit, but before I do, I can post. That way you won't have to log out."

"Please do that," said Kite. "I'm going to contact my friends and I know that my friend Minstrel, who is a rare item fanatic, is bound to have at least a dozen more people she can get to help. Problem is, she has a toddler at home and rarely logs on. However, I do know other people."

"Right," Subaru nodded. "Do you want everyone to meet later today or something?"

"Hmm…" muttered the twin blade. "Yea. Have everyone meet around Mac Anu's chaos gate. In the post on the board, though, just tell people to email me. And, above all, make clear the danger of Death. We told you what he looks like, so also put a description on the post. Um…"

"I've got the picture," she said. "Well, then, I've got fifteen minutes before I must leave, so I'll use that time to email and post. Good Bye, Kite."

With that, three gold loops rose from the floor and she was gone, leaving Kite alone. The twin blade glanced into the room where Tsukasa slept, then sighed and gently shut the door. Kite turned and left the building, going to the chaos gate where he would meet his friends. Then, he began to go down his list of friends, starting with Blackrose.

Meanwhile, Tsukasa stirred and awoke, sensing something was wrong. Opening her eyes, the first thing she did was look around. She was alone. A part of her was grateful for the solitude affording her the time to think. However, another part of her shivered, thinking of the horrible loneliness of the blackness.

With a sigh, the wavemaster slowly pushed herself to a sitting possession, wondering what exactly had caused her to awaken. Letting her mind wander about, Tsukasa gradually came to the conclusion that something happened to the seal upon Death. She didn't know exactly how she knew, but Tsukasa was certain beyond any doubt that the program was free now.

Deciding to heal herself a little more before getting up, Tsukasa murmured, "Repth."

A sudden pain assailed her head, causing the wavemaster to cry out. The pain vanished, leaving Tsukasa shaken and holding her head. With a moan, she realized that Demon Child, though he could not actually control her actions, he could limit them. It seemed that he had either expected her to escape from the darkness or he simply was cautious. Either way, he had managed to block her from accessing spells.

"Guess it's just potions," she murmured to herself, bitterly.

Carefully, Tsukasa edged off of the bed and slowly stood up. She remained still for a moment, then slowly took a step forward. She stumbled, but managed to stay upright. Glancing down at her outfit, tattered, torn and stained with much blood, Tsukasa sighed.

"What a sight I must be."

Besides wondering where she could get new clothing, Tsukasa also wondered if it were possible for her to get a new staff. It would be useful, not only as a possible weapon, but it might aid her in accessing spells once more. Still contemplating such things, the wavemaster slowly made her way out of the room, down the hall, down one flight of stairs and out of the building. She stumbled down the cobble street, immersed in her thoughts so that she didn't really pay attention to the incredulous stares given her by other players. It was only when she had passed over the main bridge that she snapped out of her reveries and then only because Kite, messaging and awaiting his friends, called out to her.

"Tsukasa!" he cried running up to her. "You should be resting! What are you doing?"

"Something isn't right," she said, her voice distant and thoughtful. "I… I need to find something and I need to find it soon… Before Death attacks."

"Where is whatever you are looking for and what is it?" he asked.

"I… I do not know," she replied, focusing her weary eyes upon him. "Not yet, anyway."

Kite gave her an odd look and was about to say something else when he heard his name called behind him. Spinning around, he saw that it was Blackrose, followed though at a distance, for they had warped in a few moments later, by Elk and Mia. The twin blade waved to them and the three hurried over. Tsukasa followed Kite's gaze to the others. She knew Blackrose, but the other two were strangers to her. However, when she looked at Mia, she gasped, eyes wide with astonishment. Being connected with the World much more than any other player, Tsukasa could see things others couldn't such as Kite's bracelet. Now, she saw flash across her vision a brief image of Macha.

Blackrose smiled warmly at Kite and the twin blade grinned back. "Well, I'm ready," she said before Elk and Mia had stopped running towards them. "Where is this monster thing, anyway?"

"I'll talk about that when everyone is here," said Kite.

"Hey Kite!" exclaimed Elk with his usual cheery smile. He turned his brown eyes from the twin blade to the other wavemaster curiously, staring at the bloodstains and rips curiously. He also wondered at the character design for it was extremely similar to his.

Mia, too, said hello, but her expression was clouded with worry. She looked at Tsukasa and gasped in surprise herself, though not because of the wavemaster's clothing, but because of a similar reason as to why Tsukasa had gasped upon seeing her. Mia seemed to hear a voice, as did Tsukasa and they both looked each other in the eye then nodded.

"I see," murmured the purple cat player. "So that's what I've been feeling. You're Tsukasa?"

Tsukasa replied, "Yes."

At that moment, Sanjuro and Moonstone warped in. The two ran over to the small cluster of their friends. Moonstone said nothing, but nodded to his fellow twin blade. Then he turned his 'gaze' to Tsukasa. One would think that he wouldn't be able to see with the crimson blindfold he always wore, but Moonstone seemed to be able to look at things just the same.

"Hello," said Sanjuro. "Who's this?"

"This is Tsukasa," said Kite, in response to Sanjuro's question. "Tsukasa? This is Sanjuro, Moonstone, Elk, Mia and you already know Blackrose."

"So, what did you call us for?" asked Elk, still staring at Tsukasa, his expression still full of wonder.


Author stuff:

And that, my friends, is what I call an abrupt ending! Weee! I just didn't feel like having a chapter wildly longer than my other chapters, so the discussion and events in Mac Anu are being split! fun!

Kitsunia: Yes... A story about Tsukasa's PMS would be funny, but I'm not gonna be the one to write it... It was just a random thought I had. How do you long in, by the way? Anyway, thanks for reading meh chapter once again!

LiuBei1986: -blushieness- thank you very much!

other stuff:

Yea... For those of you who don't already know, P.M.S = Pass My Shotgun. (actually, it stands for something else, but you can ask your mother about it. She'll know )

Tsukasa: urg... -wakes up rubbing her head- uggg... I feel like crap... ow... -head hurts-
Me: That's why you don't get drunk. It's called a hangover. -grins-
Tsukasa: Shut up and leave me alone! -still clutches her head, curling herself into a ball- I know you're gonna make something bad happen to me soon.. I know it! -she groans softly and curls herself into an even smaller ball-