First Chapter of Dead Space 2 and wow its a long one.
But first off a quick thing to mention. After thinking about it and seeing other people comment on it, I've decided to have this go into Dead Space 3 as well. But the way it will start will be different to how DS3 started.
Other than that, enjoy the chapter!
Chapter 13: Where Are We?
It was quiet in Yen Sid's tower, for not a word was spoken as they watched the portal before them. The visuals and voices that came from it were all that could be heard as Sora and Kairi's 'Mark of Mastery' played out before them. And they were powerless to interfere. Especially when the visual cut out.
"What happened!?" Donald quacks as he rushes up to it, only to run into a force field surrounding the Marker. Those in the room turn to the only person who knows what is happening but can only look in anger as the Master of Masters… sat in a reclining chair eating popcorn with a soda.
"What? Have I got something on my face?" He asks innocently, only to receive glares from all around. "Sheesh. Can't take a joke, can you?" He waves his head before standing up. "Alright, what do you want to know first?"
"How about explaining what the hell Sora and Kairi are fighting!" Riku asks with clenched teeth. "And why were Aqua and me there!?"
"Straight to the point. I like that." The Master replies before folding his arms behind his back. "As you heard, they are called Necromorphs. Beings who are the pawns of the Markers, and their true forms, the Brethren Moons. They are formed by the genetic code that the Markers store within them, turning any organic into the beings you saw. And I do mean any organic." He adds with a pointed look to Mickey, Donald and Goofy, causing the three to gulp. "As for the phantoms you saw, that is also from the Marker. To turn people into Necromorphs, it sends out a signal that drives anyone in its range into delusional pyscotory. The mass deaths you saw and heard are a part of that. That's when the genetic code works its magic. Of course, there are those who are too strong-willed for the Marker to work its magic on. So instead, it tricks them with other means."
"Such as phantoms of people they love and care." Aqua says with a faraway look.
"Bingo!" The Master exclaims happily. "Now, do you see why I have they going through this Dead Realm?" He looks around the room as they turn their attention to the Marker. "Oh, don't worry about that. Do you think I would be crazy enough to have an ACTUAL Marker in this realm? I may be mad and crazy from your point of view, but even I am not stupid enough to bring a real one here."
"Then explain to us what is happening." Yen Sid says with a calm fury, pointing to the empty portal. The Master looks at him with a tilted head before looking back at the portal.
"It's simple. We are jumping forward by a few years. Three years to be exact, so don't be surprised if your friends look a bit older than you last saw them." He replies, just as the portal begins to glow again. "Now then, it's time for the second act. I wonder how your friends will deal with this…?"
A dark void. That's all Sora and Kairi could see as they stumbled forward along a path, their eyes glancing back every few steps. They could hear something moving about the darkness but could not see it. Nor could they summon their Keyblades or even cast magic. It was as if they had never inherited anything from Ven or Aqua. All they could do was keep moving forward.
But soon, their surroundings changed into something familiar, yet hauntingly different. They found themselves in Radiant Garden, but instead of the festive air of restoration, all that was met was dead silence. The plants and trees were weathered and dying, the buildings gutted and crumbling. Even the sky had grown to a dusky orange, the same as they say on Aegis VII.
And then there was the blood. Streams of it run over the once pristine stone roads as claw marks litter the ground. The smell of death flowed through the air like smoke. The couple walk to the centre of the plaza, horror written on their faces, just as the cries of innocents scream from one of the alleyways.
The two of them rush to the sound, hoping to save whoever it is. But by the time they arrived, there was no one there. Only the signs of a one-sided struggle. Before they could mourn, the gurgled groans of a person echoed behind them. Turning, they are greeted by seeing several Necromorphs advancing towards them, hunger in their eyes.
Realising they were defenceless, the two rush into the alleyway to escape, the Necromorphs hounding them with each step. Running through the ruins of Radiant Garden, the two soon find themselves at the entrance to the castle. Only to find its doors barred shut. Turning around, they find themselves trapped as a hoard of Necromorphs approach them, their transformed friends leading the hoard. Trapped and without their Keyblades, they could only hold each other as the Necromorphs shambled towards them, as glyphs and screams filled their vision.
Until all that was left was a bright light from a flashlight filling their eyes.
"Are they waking up?" A voice asks as Sora can feel himself waking from whatever sleep he was in. A quick glance to his left showed Kairi equally groggy as two armed men dragged them out from some strange pods. Looking around, the dark room they were in was filled with similar pods while several more armed men and what looked to be a scientist looked at them.
"They are just waking from hibernation just now." One of the men replies, holding a Pulse Rifle in his hands. Just from the tone of their voices was setting alarm bells off in his mind, yet the fog of sleep was still hanging over him.
"Line them both up. Tison wants them taken cared of now." The scientist says as he looks over a data pad in his hand. The men say nothing as they force Sora and Kairi up against a wall before walking back a few steps. Then, they raise their guns towards them, blue lines appearing from the guns aimed straight at them. Even in the grip of sleep, they realised what was happening. But the shots did not come, for soon, a banging sound echoed behind the men, who spun around on a dime. The sound was coming from a vent, visibly buckling under sudden impacts before bursting open. The figure that appeared from it sent a cold shiver down their spines.
Walking from the busted vent, growling with hunger, was a black, enhanced Hunter Necromorph. But that was not its only feature, for its face had five glowing red eyes, while on its chest was an emblem neither Sora nor Kairi wanted to see in this world.
For on its chest was the emblem of the Nobodies.
"Open fire!" The leader cries as the armed men light up the Hunter. But their shots did nothing to the regenerator, who calmly approached them. Fear could be seen in them, even with their helmets covering their faces, as several screamed why it was not dying. The scientist tried to flee, but the Hunter did not let him, using a bladed hand to stab him through the chest before ripping the man to shreds.
While the men tried to kill it, Sora and Kairi, feeling adrenaline filling their system, removing the last vestiges of sleep, fled from the room as they realised their hands were bound. Running into a corridor, they could hear the soldiers behind them screaming in pain as the Hunter tore them to shreds. The two of them fled into another room, panting with fear.
"Sora? Kairi?" A pained voice asks from their side. Looking at the source, they smiled in relief as Isaac, who was in a medical straight jacket like them, walked over to them with pained steps. "Glad to see you alright."
"Same to you, Isaac." Sora says, breathing deeply before noticing a slight change in Isaac. "Did you let your beard grow out a bit?" While Isaac couldn't see, the stubble he once had grew into a light beard. His hair showed no change but seemed less grey for some reason.
"I could ask the same." Isaac replies with a pained expression. "You two seem a bit older than the last time I saw you." With a raised eyebrow, Sora looked at Kairi and could see what Isaac meant as he walked closer. The two of them had gone through a height growth, now being on what they would say would be Riku's height. In contrast, Kairi's hair had gotten longer, reaching what she had before training with Merlin and Lea, if a little bit longer. Catching a glance at a nearby Mirror, Sora could see that his hair had grown out a bit, almost back to what it was like during his second adventure, and was now gaining a light stubble around his face.
"How long have we been asleep?" Kairi asks as she looks around, on alert. "That last thing I remember was escaping Aegis VII. After that, it's one big blur."
"I'm not sure, but I'm not going to stick around here." Isaac replies before moving forward, revealing his RiG was in the red. "There's a hoard of Necromorphs behind me. I barely managed to get out of there alive."
"We managed to escape ourselves, although our case was a lot more different." Sora replies as he and Kairi move to either side of Isaac, supporting him as best they can. "A bunch of armed men tried to kill us, only for a Hunter to appear from a vent."
"A Hunter?" Isaac asks with horror in his voice, to which the two nod. "Shit. Not even a minute awake, and we are already in deep trouble. Let's just focus on getting out of here first and out of these strait jackets." Not arguing with Isaac's logic, the three move out from what they could only assume was either a medical ward or an asylum.
Moving down the corridor and passing by a medical bed covered in blood, the three soon enter another passage with hospital beds strewn about. Standing in the room beyond near a bathroom were two armed guards watching guard. One of them turns around, spotting the three as they try to creep, raising his gun while alerting his friend. "It's them! Take them down!" He fires his rifle, barely missing them, until a sudden movement to his right alerted him to his friend's disappearance.
Sora, Isaac and Kairi only stood as they watched the soldier walk to where his friend was before looking up. Just as a fleshy tentacle swooped down and dragged him into the vents, followed closely by the sounds of bones breaking and his screams.
Quietly, the three move past the toilets towards the security station, avoiding the ventilation shaft where the two guards vanished. Only for the corpse of one of them to be dropped right in front of them, his ribcage ripped open and his limbs bitten off. Shaking their heads, they move past the unfortunate soul before a speaker above them comes to life.
This is Director Tiedemann to all project personnel. I want key subjects terminated, and the facility scrubbed. This is not a drill. Tiedemann out.
"Key subjects? What is he talking about?" Kairi asks as the three move on up a set of stairs towards an observation room.
"My guess is he means us." Sora replies as he uses his elbow to activate the door, seeing as though his hands are still bound. Entering, they are greeted by workstations littered with profiles and pictures of numerous people, none of which were them, thankfully. Yet the video ahead of them, of a doctor interviewing one of the patients, or subjects as he says, called Nolan Stross. Specifically, about his eye. Filing away that bit of gruesome detail and ignoring the other screens, the three continue moving down a service shaft before entering another observation room. Overlooking a room filled with tables and beds in pitch darkness.
As the three move forward, they don't notice a person hiding in the corner until it is too late, as a staff member jumps at them with a scalpel. Knocking Sora and Kairi down to the ground, with their RiG remaining in the yellow after they had woken up, he places the scalpel at Isaac's neck with a deranged look on his face.
"Patient Four…along with Patients Five and Six…I remember all of you…." he says with his sanity slipping. "Tiedmann said we…all key subjects…need to be eliminated…terminated…what's three more?"
"Come one, man. You don't have to do this." Isaac says calmly, yet his eyes show the fear he is feeling. "We can both get out of here. Just, just cut us out of these strait jackets." He tries to reason with him, yet the sadistic grin doesn't leave his face.
"No one's getting out of here alive. No one." He says as he lowers the scalpel towards Isaac's stomach. He closes his eyes as he awaits the blow, only to find, to his shock, the scalpel not ripping into his stomach but the straps holding his arms in place. When his arms are free, he backs away from the doctor standing next to the window with a grin on his face, yet regretful and saddened. "There's no escaping what I've done."
"Just calm down, buddy. Deep breaths." Isaac says as he keeps his distance from him, standing in front of Sora and Kairi. As the man seems to come back to his senses, he notices Isaac's RiG.
"You're RiG is red." He says as his eyes narrow before pointing to a locker behind Isaac. "There's a health pack and flashlight in that locker. Go ahead, take it." After getting a nod from the two on the ground, Isaac moves to the locker and opens it, seeing that it contains a health pack and flashlight. Picking up the pack and injecting it, he could feel his earlier wound from a Necromorph healing up. Not too green status, but orange was better than red. Picking up the flashlight, he turns back to the man with a resigned look on his face as he brings the scalpel to his neck. "Isaac, Sora, Kairi…We are going to burn for what we did to you…." And with that, he slices his neck open.
Coughing up blood as he gurgles and chokes, he falls back on the window before slowly sliding down as the light leaves his eyes. Signing at this, Isaac moves to help Sora and Kairi up before removing the straps on their arms, freeing them from the confines of the jacket.
"Finally!" Kairi exclaims as she stretches her arms. "That was starting to get uncomfortable."
"Well, these jackets are designed to restrain people, especially those who have lost their minds." Isaac replies as he looks over the flashlight. It's not the Plasma Cutter or Hammonds Rifle, but it'll do. Can't believe I lost his rifle, though…Sighing at losing his friend's memento, he looks back at the couple as they finish stretching their arms. "Think you can summon your weapons?" He asks, hoping that whatever happened to them in the three-year gap didn't do anything to them.
Thankfully, his fears were dashed as the two soon summoned their weapons, although they looked different from when he last saw them. Even as Sora casts a healing spell on them, it's refreshing winds whisking away his remaining fatigue and injuries, he couldn't help but admire their new looks.
Sora's Keyblade had more shaper edges, the long cylindrical shaft becoming more like the shape of a dual-bladed sword, while the crown shape at the end became more regal in design. A blue jewel was melded in the hilt, which he swore he could see through, connecting it to the blade. At the same time, angelic wings formed the two guards on either side of the handle while becoming less boxy in shape and more rounded. The token at the end still looked the same, but now with the addition of a crown on top.
Kairi's Keyblade had also changed in design. Following a theme with Sora's, it resembled a sword design, only in her case, that of a katana, with a slight curve along the edge. It was hard to spot due to more vines growing along the blade, while the flowers on the end stayed the same, albeit forming more of a heart shape than last time. The colours also stayed the same but now included a hint of purple at the end. At the same time, the guard, still in the shape of a heart, had more wave patterns extending from it, while what looked to be a palm tree and grass appeared in the sand part. The Charm remains a Paupu Fruit, but it now includes a heart.
"Those are some different-looking blades you have there." Isaac comments to the two as they look over them with awe. "Do thay have different names?" The two look at him before gazing back at their Keyblades, soft smiles forming on their lips.
"Yeah." Sora replies before holstering his new blade on his shoulder. "Mine is called 'Key of Destiny'."
"And mine is 'Destiny's Life'." Kairi finishes, holding hers with both hands.
"Well, can't wait to see what you can do with them." Isaac replies as he looks over the flashlight. "Sure as hell can't do anything until I find a better weapon. Or a Kinesis module so I can throw things at them." Not needing to be told twice, Sora took the lead while Kairi took the rear as the three left the room. Finding an elevator leading to the Patient Rec Room, they are interrupted by a sudden video call appearing before Isaac.
"Clark! Isaac Clark, is that you!?" A female voice asks as a woman with a blue shirt over a dark vest with blond hair appears on the call. "My name is Diana. I'm trying to rescue you…."
"Hold on a moment!" Isaac says as the three wait for the elevator to arrive. "What are you talking about? What's wrong with me, and why the hell is there a Necromorph outbreak here?!" He asks as memories of the Ishimura come flooding back.
"You're suffering from a unique form of dementia, Isaac. Something you contracted on Aegis VII." Diana replies as she looks to be furiously typing away at something on her end.
"How do you know about that?" Isaac asks, alarm bells ringing in his head. Somehow he could not trust this person who had suddenly called him out of now where. Being betrayed by Kendra does that to you. And judging by the looks on Sora and Kairi's faces, they were thinking the same thing. "And what about Sora and Kairi? Are they the same as me?"
"Sora and Kairi? I thought they were terminated last year?" Diana mutters to herself, forgetting the comm was open. "Regardless, that dementia will kill you, Isaac. But I have a cure for it if you can reach my location in time and get you to safety."
"Why should we trust you?" Kairi asks from the side. "You just admitted that Sora and I were supposed to be dead. How do we know you aren't part of the group who tried to kill us?" Her voice seemed to startle Diana for a second before she recomposed herself with irritation on her face.
"Because I'm not the one shooting at any of you." That was a good reason, but this was over a video call and not in person. Still, it was not like they had any other choice in the matter. Diana seemed to pick up on that as she uploaded a route into their RiGs before closing the call. Leaving the three of them in darkness as the elevator opened up into an abandoned hallway. No signs of life were present, only the mutilated corpses of staff and patients as the three entered the Rec Room. The darkened room soon revealed its secrets with the light from Isaac's flashlight and the soft glow from Sora and Kairi's Keyblades. Strung along the tables were matchstick models, each at different stages of building. Yet, all seemed to have a similar pattern.
"Don't these look like mini-Markers?" Sora asks as he looks at one of the models, its curving style with two spiked topes eerily similar to what they saw on the Ishimura. Isaac nods at Sora's observation, his eyes glued to a larger model at another desk as a sore feeling builds up behind his eye. Like a needle piercing his skin.
"I found an audio recorder." Kairi suddenly says as she walks over with one in her left hand. "I think it might have something on here that can tell us what was happening here."
"It's better than just wandering in the dark, so to speak." Isaac says, his unintended joke getting a few chuckles out of the two. "Let's hear what's on it." Taking it out of Kairi's hands, Isaac activates the recorder.
"Orderly TPS Report 1418: The recent realisation that the popsicle sticks were being constructed into Marker-like miniatures for over a year has led to a search of the unit for any other phenomena." The report states. "It appears widespread, with Marker forms being made from out of medication bottles, hypodermic needles, and even toiletry items like nail clippers and tweezers. The research teams have all been notified of the discovery."
"People making Markers out of anything they got their hands on? Just what is this place?" Isaac asks as he rubs his head. The only thing this has given them was more questions than answers. Was everyone here affected by the Marker in some form or shape? Did they make any mini-Markers? And why were Sora and Kairi held in a different spot from Isaac? It was then that the audio file started up again.
"Urgent update: While going through the area for Marker related phenomena, something else was also discovered. Constructs built not in the shapes of Markers but of Keyholes instead. Research teams have been notified about the second set, but a question now comes. Why are they different?" And with that, the comms go dead.
"Keyhole-shaped constructs?" Kairi asks, her face paling. "Dear light. Sora—"
"I know, Kairi." Sora replies with a grim look. "It sounds like we've been hit differently than the rest. I wouldn't be surprised if the Marker wants us to find a Keyhole so I can invade our universe and start spreading there."
"All the more reason for us to get the hell out of here and find out if we are suffering from a Marker-induced dementia." Isaac says as he begins to leave the room, followed closely by Sora and Kairi. Until they heard the muffled sound of a vent breaking. Dismissing their keys and shutting off the flashlight, allowing themselves to hide in the dark, the three look up to the observation room, where a hulking form soon appeared.
It was the Hunter from before, the Nobody symbol etched into its chest. It looks down into the room, like a predator looking for its prey, before grabbing the doctor's dead body and dragging him away.
"Damn." Isaac breathes softly as they quietly leave the room into another hallway, wheelchairs left abandoned around them. "That was the Hunter you saw?" he asks, receiving a pair of slow nods. "As if the one on the Ishimura was bad enough. That one has the face of the Hive Mind and that weird emblem on its chest."
"That's a Nobodies emblem." Sora says as they approach one of the only working doors at the end. "Remember what we told you back on the Ishimura?" Isaac nods, remembering the headache he had gotten from listening to their tale. Now one of their foes was here, in the body of a Hunter no less. Well, at least he knows what is hunting them now. Doesn't make it any better, though.
Entering through the door, they find themselves in a shower room, water dripping from their heads. Seeing a light glowing at the far end, the three walk over to it before Isaac suddenly stops in his tracks, hand on head. All the while, a ghostly voice echoes in his mind as an invisible pressure builds up before vanishing just as quickly as it arrived.
"You okay, Isaac?" Kairi asks as they move up to him. Isaac shakes his head to remove the webs building in his mind before refocusing his sight on the two.
"I'm not sure." He replies honestly before glancing around the room they entered. It was a simple cleaning space filled with tools to clean the showers. But what stood out to Isaac was a small hatch at the end of the room. "Looks like we are in luck. We can use this maintenance hatch to move through the vents."
"Are you sure, Isaac?" Sora asks. "If the Necromorphs attack us in there, we won't be able to do anything."
"That's a risk we have to take. I'm not staying here while that Hunter is nearby." Isaac replies sternly before opening the hatch. To his surprise, the hatch opens while recognising him as an engineer of CEC. If that was anything to go by, he should still be able to access something if he wasn't deleted from the system. As for the maintenance shaft, the space inside was only big enough that they could crawl on their stomachs, but nothing else. Isaac hops into the tunnel, sighing to himself before crawling his way through, Sora and Kairi right behind him.
"Is this what all engineers have to do, Isaac?" Kairi asks as they crawl through the vents, the soft glow of lights streaming from below.
"Well, not all of us." Isaac replies as he crawls around a corner, spotting the exit ahead. "But sometimes, we are required to enter these shafts to reach certain areas in ships, stations or colonies. Not glamours, but it certainly helps cut down on time."
"At least we can avoid those soldiers who are after us." Sora adds. "Why are they even after us in the first place? What is it about us that makes us 'Key' subjects?"
"Not sure." Isaac says while trying to shrug. "But if we find one, let's try and ask them. I don't know about you, but I don't want to be left out of the dark any moooore!?" Isaac suddenly screams as the vent below him gives out, dropping him into an operating room with a body hanging in the air by Kinesis. "Dang, that smarts…" he says as he steps up, Sora and Kairi joining him shortly after seeing him fall.
"Well, what now? That hole is right in front of the hatch leading out." Kairi comments as they look up. Isaac grunts in frustration before looking at the control panel next to the table. Quickly looking between it and the table, a plan hatches into his mind as he walks over to it.
"I might have something." He says as he pulls the screen off. "If I'm right, this terminal should have a Kinesis module. If I can remove it and add it to my suite, it should allow us to get out of this room." He glances at the couple before smiling apologetically. "Sorry, but it looks like you'll be missing out." The two shrug at him before he gets to work. He gets shocked once as whatever time they spent here had dulled his skills a bit, but soon he had removed the unit, deactivating the tale as well.
But before he could try it, the sound of vents breaking beyond the sanitation glass shot their heads up. Fearing it was the Hunter, they readied themselves for an escape, only to sigh when they saw it was a couple of Slashers in hospital gowns. Sora and Kairi nod at each other before waiting for the Slashers to break the glass wall. The moment they did, they threw their Keyblades into a Strike Raid, severing the arms of the Necromorphs before they could charge at them.
"Glad to see we haven't gotten weaker." Sora says as their Keyblades return. He was thrilled he wasn't hit by a depowering ray again like what happened the last three times. Wait, four times.
"As am I." Isaac says as he uses Kinesis to grab a metal pole from the table, holding it like a javelin. "Until I can find a weapon, I'm going to have to use these or the bone spears from the Slashers." The two nod before following Isaac to the elevator at the far back, taking it up to the second level. While the lights were on downstairs, it was as dark as the rec room upstairs. Only the tiny emergency lights could be seen.
It was not long until three more Slashers broke through the ceiling either. One, however, soon found itself pinned to the wall, courtesy of the pole Isaac had, while the other two were met by fire and ice. As they moved around the room, they could see the desecrated bodies of staff workers and patients scattering the floor as images of the Ishimura flooded their minds.
But this was not the aftermath of an outbreak. They are currently IN one if the constant evacuation announcement was anything to go by. They could only hope there were no civilian structures nearby.
Walking through a short hallway, this one with Necromorph corpses surprisingly, they soon entered another operating room. This one with a patient still strapped to the table, very much alive. "Thank god! Someone heard me!" He says in relief as the three enter the room. "Please, get me out of this! Those things missed me, but they'll be back, I know it!"
"Calm down. I'll have you out in a moment. Sora, Kairi, can you keep watch while I deal with this?" Isaac says as he walks up to the control panel. Sora and Kairi nod before taking up position next to the door as Isaac deals with the surgical tool. But the moment he saw the familiar three blue lines, he changed his tactic. "A plasma cutter! That will come in handy." He says as he hacks the workstation, bringing the cutter over to him. Taking it off the arm, he attaches it to the flashlight, jury-rigging it into the same cutter he used back at Aegis VII. Not a perfect one, but it will get the job done.
"If your done standing around, can you PLEASE get me out!" The man cries impatiently. Isaac chuckles nervously before walking over to the table and removing the restraints. "Thanks, man. I don't know about you, but I am out of here!" he says before rushing out of the room, ignoring the three's cries to stop.
He soon wished he had, for the moment he was out of the room, a Slasher dropped in from above on top of him. He didn't stand a chance as it tore into him, tearing his head from his body. Reacting on instinct, Isaac opened up on the Slasher, tearing its arms off as it fell to the ground. "Damn it. Why didn't he just wait?" Isaac asks as he looks at the poor man's body. Sora and Kairi cast a sad glance before noticing a couple of power packs nearby. Most likely for the cutter during operations.
"Hey Isaac, there's a—" Kairi begins to say as she holds up her left hand. Only to suddenly initiate a Kinesis grab, pulling one of the power packs towards her as she and Sora look on in surprise. "H-How did I do that? I don't have a Kinesis module, and yet…." Isaac, for his part, gave off a look of shock before a slight grin formed.
"Looks like all that time using Kinesis has given you a magical ability similar to it." Isaac says as he folds his arms. "I wouldn't be surprised if you could do the same, Sora." Looking at his left hand, Sora turned to one of the other power packs before raising his hand while thinking of pulling the pack to him. Sure enough, as the Kinesis activated, he could feel a drain on his magic, a minimal drain. The moment he grabbed the pack, the drain stopped.
"That's, going to take some getting use to." Sora says as he gives Isaac the pack. "The drain is small, so it won't be hard to adapt to it." He then folds his arms and adopts a thoughtful face. "Do you think it's the same with Stasis?"
"I don't know." Kairi says as she puts a finger on her cheek. "Stasis works a lot like stop magic, so it could be that since we know stop magic, we would form a magic-like stasis. Then again, Kinesis and Magnet are similar, so I could be wrong."
"Well, we'll find out later." Isaac says as he looks over his weapon, a small smile forming as the weight settles in his hands. "Let's focus on getting out of here. And see if we can get something other than these strait jackets." After taking a brief moment to look for more plasma packs in the room and killing a Slasher still tied to a gantry bed, the three leave the room into a sanitation area, with sinks and x-ray scans dotted about.
Moving through silently and stepping over the dead bodies of patients, they soon enter a connecting hallway, with several deceased security personnel next to the door leading to the Waiting Area.
"Whoever these guys were, they didn't stand a chance against the Necromorphs." Sora says as they enter the Waiting Area. A scorched body lay in the centre next to a glass table and wheelchair, while the corridor to the left had collapsed and was engulfed in flames.
"No one does." Isaac says sadly as they enter the right corridor. "How can anyone prepare for a parasitic foe who can only be killed by dismembering them? It goes against everything that soldiers are taught." The couple looks at Isaac as they walk through the corridor, examination rooms on either side as another collapsed hallway stands ahead of them. It was then that the fire systems decided to activate, as the sprinklers and heavy gas activated, smouldering the fires while drenching the three. While also plunging them into darkness as the lights fail.
"Sora. Remind me to take a proper bath when this is all over." Kairi says as she looks over their drenched clothes. "I'm begging to have it with all these sprinklers." Sora was about to reply when the sound of vents breaking drew their attention. From the vents, three Slashers charged towards them. While Isaac removed the legs of one of them, Sora and Kairi decided to see just how sharp their Keyblades were now.
Swinging them at the Necromorphs, they were not surprised to see them slice the arms of the Slashers, but while last time they felt some resistance when they swung, this time their Keyblades seemed to just glide through them like they were air. They could only wonder who they would be against Heartless, Nobodies and Unversed.
With the Necromorphs dealt with, the three cut through a small room, bypassing a hole in one of the corridors. Inside, they overheard a guard's comm about them struggling to deal with the Necromorphs as they re-enter the Waiting Area. But the sounds of heavy steps beyond the cratered hallway caused the three of them to hide.
"Shit. That Hunter is still looking for us." Isaac whispers as they head down the corridor, the sounds of a vent breaking echoing behind them. "We need to get out of here now. Let's just hope Diana's path is still open." Nodding in silence, the three soon reach a door leading to the Upper Lobby. But the moment they entered, the entire situation changed.
Alarms were blaring as the entire room was stuck and a reddish-orange hue, emergency lights spinning widely. Walking into the room, and eyes peeled for any Necromorphs, they were surprised to see another patient near a set of stairs, motioning them to follow.
"Isaac!? Isaac! Come on, come on! They're after us!" He says in a panic before rushing down the stairs. The three chase after him, avoiding the blood on the stairs while Isaac yells to him, asking who is chasing them. He could only think of those strange men they encountered, but who were they working for!?
Warning: Security lockdown. Hospital bulkheads are closing. Please stand clear.
On second thought, those could be left unanswered until they got out! Sprinting down the stairs and rushing through the lobby, they could only watch in horror as the doors closed before them, just as the patient they were following managed to get under. He turns around to them, but with shock and horror written on his face. Just as the doors begin to close, he tries to speak to them. "I'm patient eight! Don't you remember?" He asks as the doors close fully, sealing them from their exit. Grunting in annoyance as their escape is cut off, Isaac activates a comm channel to Diana.
"Diana, your fucking route didn't work. There's a security lockdown!" he says into the comms, frustrated at the situation. On Diana's end, she replied with frustration and confusion.
"I told you to hurry! How did you miss it?"
"Look, we can talk about how we missed this all day, OR we can work to find another way out." Sora cuts in before Isaac can reply. "In case you have forgotten, there's an outbreak here!" Diana doesn't respond immediately, as though she hadn't expected Sora to be there.
"R-right. Right. I'll work on finding a new route. Just hold on until then!" She replies before ending the call, just as several Slashers break through the vents around them. Not wasting time, Sora and Kairi freeze them with ice as Isaac uses Kinesis to rip the blades from them before launching them at the others, impaling them to the walls. Soon, all was quiet as the emergency lights died down, allowing an eerie calm to flow over the room.
"Everyone okay?" Isaac asks as he replaces his pack. Sora and Kairi nod back at him, their RiG's full, before walking over to a reception desk with doors on either side. Beyond it lay another door leading back into the hospital, but it was their only way forward so far. Just as they entered it, Diana reopened a comm channel.
"Alright, Isaac, I've gotten you a new route." She sighs deeply before continuing. "Listen, we don't have to be friends. But, like it or not, we're stuck together. Tiedemann's your enemy, not me."
"Alright, fine." Isaac replies as the three enter the door beyond reception. "So where the hell are we? And how did another Necromorph outbreak happen?"
"You're on Titan station, orbiting Saturn." Dianna reveals, shocking Isaac to the core as his eyes grow wide. But just as Dianna tried to talk about the outbreak, static fills the comm before cutting out completely. But Isaac wasn't worried about that. He was more concerned about WHERE they were.
"Saturn!? We are orbiting SATURN!?" Isaac yells, startling the couple. "Who in their right mind would think of starting an outbreak HERE of all places!" He smashes a holographic panel next to him as he breathes deeply in anger before calming down.
"Isaac, what's wrong?" Sora asks as he and Kairi look at Isaac with worry. "Is Saturn near something important?" Breathing through his nose before exhaling, Isaac turns his gaze to the couple. Anger was still in his eyes but under control.
"Yeah. Yeah, there is Sora." Isaac replies as he moves forward, checking his improvised weapon. "Saturn is in the same system as Earth. Our homeworld." It was then the two understood while he was so mad. "Sure, Earth is a good distance away, with Jupiter, an Asteroid belt and Mars between it and Saturn, but for it to happen even in the same system is too close."
"Meaning that Earth is at risk of suffering from an outbreak." Kairi summarizes as she pails. Isaac looks at her before nodding glumly. No one could say anything else after that as they made their way to a Triage Room. Stepping inside and passing by the body of another unfortunate victim, they enter a room filled with pods lying on their sides. Yet the soft blue glow from one drew Isaac's attention as he walked over to a panel next to one. "What's up, Isaac?"
"I think I've found a Stasis Module to use." He replies as he tears off the panel before messing with the wires. "Least I'm hoping there is one…." While he messed with the cables, Sora walked over to the gate control in the centre of the room. Pressing it, he saw it open up a door at the far end, but as he tried to enter it, a scanner activated and scanned him, closing the door just as quick.
"Okay…" He says as he walks back to the others. "Don't think it will let us pass. Either because we are not staff or we are patients." Kairi looks over the door with a pondering look as she looks at her left hand. It was a stretch, but if they had developed magic similar to Kinesis, could the same be said of Stasis? Well, nothing ventured, nothing gained. But before she could test it, The sounds of electrical sparking echoed from the pod Isaac was at as he ripped a Stasis Module from it before attaching it to his arm. But no sooner did he do that than a Slasher bust from one of the vents before breaking into a full-blown sprint.
Too fast for Isaac to raise his cutter in time.
But just as it leapt towards Isaac, Sora and Kairi raised their arms towards it, their instinct trying to use Stasis, like back on the Ishimura. To their surprise, the blue glow of Stasis shot from their hands and impacted into the Slasher, while the drain on their mana felt as though they had cast fire or blizzard. Isaac didn't let the opportunity go to waste as he unloaded into the Slasher, removing its limbs with the precision of a surgeon.
"Well, that answers that." Isaac says as he looks at the couple with an amused look. They chuckle nervously back at him, still amazed that they had somehow managed to do that, as Isaac let out a burst of Stasis at the open door. Sprinting through to the other side, they soon enter another medical wing, only to find a medical worker crawling out of a room. As he did, a torrent of what looked to be acid and a person throwing up flew all over his back, as he groaned in pain before he collapsed to the floor as his back charred and broiled. "What the hell?" Isaac says numbly as the three walk to the entrance. Inside, they saw the perpetrator doing the same thing to a nurse, only spewing the horrid gunk down her throat.
As it tossed the nurse to the floor, it turned its sights on them, revealing its form. Its skin was chalk white, and its hands elongated into three claws. While one of its legs still had skin, the other had completely peeled off, revealing the muscles and bones underneath, while it hung from the back like a cape. Its chest was gone, showing off the interior as its lungs pulsed and glowed a horrid yellow.
Realizing just what was in those lungs, Isaac opened up in the feet of the new variant while Sora and Kairi through their Keys at it, chopping the arms off. And just like the others, it falls silent after giving one more belch.
"Fantastic. Another variant to be wary of." Isaac groans as the three enter what now looks like a morgue, just as another of the new ones saunters in like it owns the place. It soon found itself aquatinting to the floor by a Gravity blast from Sora. "From now on, if we see any Pukers, we take them out first." While Isaac readied himself to move, Sora and Kairi gave him a 'look' at the name.
"Puker? Really Isaac?" Kairi says. "I know we haven't been very original when naming these variants, but Puker?"
"You got a better idea?" Isaac asks in return. The two look at each other before shrugging in resignation. They didn't have a better name, no. With that, they leave the morgue before coming to an elevator leading to a place called Patient Care. "Just why did it have to be in a hospital, of all places?" Isaac asks as they enter the lift. "Didn't they care about anyone here?"
"All of this is giving me Xehanort vibes." Sora says. "Having a secret area where they held people affected by the Marker? Recording tests and keeping them on ice? It's like what Kendra said, people really want to have Markers."
"But nothing good will ever come from having them." Kairi points out as the lift starts up. "We saw that on the Ishimura and Aegis VII. And now it is happening again here. Why don't people ever listen?" No one had an answer to that question until suddenly, the lights went out, plunging them into darkness. The only lights within the lift came from the backs of their RiGs before the screens around them turned to blue static.
Soon, a dark and twisted song began to play, one that Sora and Kairi recognised from when they first came to this realm. But then another figure appeared in the lift. With wide eyes, the three stared in shock as the body of Nicole appeared in the shadows, white light streaming from her eyes and mouth as static echoed from her. Blood could be seen over her white skin and clothes as she continued to stare at them, Isaac in particular. Suddenly, Nicole's body lurches forward, screaming at them as orange glyphs flash before their eyes before vanishing and leaving them in the elevator, its doors open and power restored.
"What was that?" Sora asks as the three exits the lift, eyes darting around the room. Inside were balloons, gifts, and what looked like a baby stroller while blood littered the floor.
"I think that was a sign of the dementia the Marker gave us." Isaac says with a grim look. "If what Diana said is true, then we are on borrowed time. Let's move." Heading towards the East Wing, they soon come to a room with a glass window of the station. Or rather, a whole city skyline. But while under normal circumstances, it would be a fantastic view, the crack in the glass and fire next to it said otherwise. Apparently, fate thought so, too, for the fires soon came into contact with flammable gases, exploding and breaking a fist-shaped hole into the window.
But it was enough to start sucking the air out of it at an alarming rate, dragging anything not tied to the floor. Luckily, Isaac was pulled into a table that was welded to the floor while Sora and Kairi stabbed their Keys into the floor to hold them down. But the suction was proving too strong as it slowly dragged the couple towards the blow window.
Why hasn't the emergency shutter been activated yet! Isaac screams as he looks at the gaping hole before noticing an emergency button at the top. Of COURSE, it's designed like that! Raising his cutter while struggling to keep a grip on it, he aims at the button before firing. The moment he did, the shutters activated, sealing the room and preventing the three from being cucked out to space. "You two okay?" he asks as he steps away from the bed. Sora and Kairi rose from the floor, shaken but alive, as they turned their gaze to him.
"We're fine. Thanks, Isaac." Sora says as the two breathe deeply. "How many times is that now you've saved us?" He asks jokingly, getting a chuckle out of Kairi and Isaac.
"I'll tell you when we get out of here." He replies as Kairi casts a healing spell on them. Even if they didn't take damage, it was better to be safe than sorry. Exiting the door to their left, the three soon enter another service room. But this one had something that they hadn't seen in ages.
"A store! Finally!" Isaac says in joy as he walks up to it. Sora and Kairi are close behind. Stepping up to the store, it greeted him before updating itself to a CEC loadout. Scanning over, Isaac could only sigh in relief as an Engineer suit was ready for use. Without hesitation, he clicks it as the back of the shop opens. Stepping inside, he couldn't help but grin as the doors closed in front of him as the store grafted the suit to him.
Stepping out, he grins in satisfaction as he looks over the suit. It was the same as the level three suit he had on the Ishimura, albeit with brighter colours and a few hints of gold on the arms. Cracking his neck, the helmet activated before covering his head, and the lights on the face plate light up as the suit comes online.
"Now that's a better look." Sora says as he and Kairi smile at Isaac. He chuckles as his voice reverberates within the helmet before stepping away from the store. Stepping up, Sora and Kairi repeated the process like Isaac, yet came out differently. Instead of armour, they exited in clothes based on what they worse before coming to this realm. While Sora wore a long sleeved shirt and trousers, Kairi sported a short-sleeved shirt under her dress, along with a longer skirt and black leggings.
While other parts of their clothing stayed the same, along with their necklaces, they now sported armoured shoulder pads, coloured in the armour they wore on the Ishimura. While Isaac gave the two a confused glance, the couple merely smirked at each other before hitting the armour on their shoulders. In a flash of light, they were donned in the armour they wore on the Ishimura, while the Stasis bar and RiG lights missing.
"Holy hell." Isaac says, gobsmacked. "How did you do that? There's no way your clothes could fit under that, let alone your hair Sora!" He blurts out before catching himself, only for the couple to laugh at him.
"This is Keyblade armour, Isaac." Sora replies as he calms down. "Remember what we told you it can do?"
"Yeah, I do." He says, with a hint of jealousy. "Guess you won't be having to worry about air anymore. But what about your vitals? Without a RiG on your back, how will we know how you're doing?" The two glance at each other before looking back at Isaac, their nervous gaze behind their helmet.
"We won't." Kairi says bluntly. "I don't think we even can activate comm channels either." Isaac hums to himself as he glances over the nodes in his suit. To his surprise, it was all filled up.
It must be the nodes from back on the Ishimura… He thinks before closing the panel, looking back at the couple. "Well, don't worry about comms. I'll handle that. And even though I can't see your vitals, I won't have to worry about you when we are in space. That takes a load off my mind." He comments as he sees the door beside them, an alert above it warning about a vacuum beyond. "Let's get moving. We're almost out of the hospital." Not arguing, the three leave the room and enter a void. Beyond them, visible through the giant hole before them, lay a large sprawling city. The room they were in looked like someone had detonated a bomb, with metal exposed and charred black.
Deciding that whatever caused this could still be around, the three quickly made their way through before arriving at what could be called a large hall. A glass roof sprawled overhead as pillars shot up from the ground. And at the far end lay the smoking remains of a small ship.
Welcome to Titan Station Emergency Care Wing. Due to the evacuation order, all services are currently suspended. All physicians and staff are ordered to report to their assigned evacuation craft.
"Only physicians and staff? What about the patients? Or their families that were visiting?" Kairi asks, angry at the announcement. "How could they abandon the people they are supposed to help save!?"
"You can probably thank Tiedemann for that." Isaac replies as he scans the window. "Titan Station, huh? Just our luck…."
"You know about it, Isaac?" Sora asks as he gives Kairi a one-arm hug. Isaac nods at Sora before returning his gaze back to the skyline.
"Yeah, I do. Titan Station, or the Sprawl as it is more commonly known, is built into the remains of Titan. One of the moons of Saturn and the sight of the first planet cracking. It is large, housing over a million people in public and government positions." Isaac says as he walks towards the destroyed craft. "The public sector, where we are now, is located on a ring surrounding the Government sector, on the shard of Titan. Just how many people are going to die from this?" He says with deep sadness. Sora and Kairi walked up and pat him on the arms until the sound of metal being rushed under a significant weight drew their attention to the crashed ship.
Lumbering over it like a gymnast was a giant form of a Leaper, with glowing sacks on its arms while it stood on its arms and tail like a tripod. He roars at them as a long blade-like tongue snaked out of its mouth before it leaps towards the three.
The trio split as the new variant leaps at them, landing just where they were seconds prior. Not giving them a chance to breathe, it swings its bladed tongue around like a sword at Kairi, who ducks under the first swing before casting Reflect for the second.
As it recoiled from the block, Isaac blasted it with a shot of Stasis, slowing it down as Sora threw his Key in a Strike Raid, severing one of its arms off as it tore through the yellow sack on its arm. Just as the Stasis began to wear off, Kairi did the same, throwing her Key at the remaining sack and removing the second arm from it.
Without either of its arms, the Necromorph fell to the ground as its bladed tongue swung wildly around. Until Isaac shot at its head, silencing it for good.
"Glad that's done." Sora says as the three regroup. "Something tells me it would have been hard to deal with if you didn't hit it with Stasis Isaac."
"Yeah, those sacks would have taken more than a few rounds to destroy." Isaac replies. "So let's chalk this up to a joint win, like with those Brutes."
"Speaking off, what shall we call that?" Kairi says as she motions to the dead Necromorph. "I'm thinking of Tripod since it walks around on three legs. It's a better name than Big Leaper." She looks at Sora, who chuckles slightly at her hidden look as Isaac shakes his head.
And she questioned my name for the Pukers… Glancing around and seeing no other Necroes approaching or sight of that Hunter variant, Isaac opened a comm to Diana. "Diana, we're out of the hospital. Now can you answer a few questions that we have?"
"Alright, alright. I'll answer what you want. You've waited this long, I suppose." She replies, although there is a feeling of irritation in her voice. While Isaac was annoyed at her response, he hid it. Right now was the time for some answers.
"Alright, first off, how long have we been here? And Second, what the hell was Tiedemann doing with us? Or the other patients, for that matter. And why can't we remember anything?"
"Three years." Diana replies, shocking the three, especially Sora and Kairi. They suspected they had been here for a while, but three years? Just what has been going on back home? "Tiedemann found you floating in space near Aegis VII and brought you back here for study. Same with all the other patients. As for your memory, it was due to the Marker. It imprinted a self-replicating signal in your brain. The longer you're awake, the more the signal spreads. It's killing you, Isaac!"
"Shit." Isaac mutters to himself as he punches a nearby column. "Can you cure it?"
"Only if you get to me in time! There's a tram station just beyond the apartment blocks. Get moving!" And with that, she ends the call as Isaac's waymarker points them to a small door at the far left of the room.
"Going on a Tram, huh? Feels like we're back on the Ishimura." Sora says as they walk over to it, even though his thoughts lingered on the fact they had been here for three years.
"Look on the bright side, Sora." Kairi says as they enter a service tunnel, trying to keep her mind off that fact. "At least we're not rushing over to fix a part of a ship under a time limit." That was something they would not deny.
But even so, something told them that this would not be easy, for five red eyes glared at them from above before vanishing into the shadows.
So yeah, Sora and Kairi are three years older, their Keyblades have evolved and they are now starting to get Keyblade Armour.
Originaly, i was not going to age them up, but after thinking about it, i decided to change my mind. As for how the Marker effected them, I'm sure you can guess from that Audio Log.