By Sargent Snarky
"Down once more to the dungeon of my black despair,
Down we plunge to the prison of my mind,
Down that path into darkness deep as hell."
Down
Once More,
Phantom of
the Opera,
sung by
the Phantom
And the story gets grimmer. I actually have a purpose, though, in this seemingly senseless attack on Kite. After you've read it, I'll explain a little bit, k? Because I'm not going to explain some of this stuff in the story, since that would just clog it up.
Kite: -shakes his head at the quote- … That's it. I'm leaving.
Me: Hey! Come back here.
Kite: -just ignores me-
Me: I'll give you a happy ending in this one, I promise!
Kite: -is dubious- How can I trust you?
Me: -shrugs- Because the reviewers are watching us, and they were hold me to my promise.
Kite: hmm…
Me: Look. Now that I've written part two, I'm pretty sure this'll turn out all right for you.
Kite: Oh really? Tell me the rest of the story, and maybe…
Me: All right, but not with the reviewers watching…
(Time passes in which I record nothing of our conversation)
Kite: Oh. But why do I have to go through all that?
Me: Because Morganna's a bitch, not me.
Tsukasa: Both of you are!
Me: Hey! When did you get here!
Tsukasa: -shrugs-
Kite: -sigh- Well, I suppose if it ends like that, it's not too bad. Can I have my memory wiped at the end, though? Y'know… by one of the Men In Black?
Me: No.
Natsume: That would be copy-right infringement.
Tsukasa; Uh.. no it wouldn't. Not if Snarky put a disclaimer, and so long as she didn't market this story.
(Me: Where the hell did Natsume come from! O.o)
Natsume: Then what would it be?
Tsukasa: -sigh- It would be a cross-over. And Snarky doesn't do cross-overs. –looks at me- Do you?
Me: No, not really. A random insane idea that had me cracking up a couple weeks ago involving Harry, Ron and Hermione getting accounts in The World, and then randomly getting stuck in Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time was about the only cross-over. No, for your information, I am –not- going to be making a story like that. I was just letting my mind wander, and those happened to be three things I was thinking about at the time. Another such crossover I've thought of was Samus Aran (from Metroid, for you losers who have never played any Metroid game. I've played (and beaten) the First and second Metroid games. Ever. Unfortunately, I have no GC –starts crying- so I can't play the new ones) in her cyborg suit thing meeting Sora from KH, who randomly winds up on Zebus and helps her take down Mother Brain before locking the keyhole just in time for the planet to explode. And then the both of them wind up on the world of Moogles… O.o Scary thought, no?
Tsukasa, Kite, Natsume: O.o? O.o… … … You're weird.
Disclaimer: The only things I own are copies of the games, the anime and the manga of .hack… Oh, and I downloaded the trailer for the new game. And I stole Kite's hat. Otherwise, I own nothing in the way of .hack / franchise…
And I'd like to thank Twilight for being my beta for this story!
The story:
Part II - Deeper
(Kite POV)
I'm floating… floating… eternally floating. Floating in a thick liquid of darkness. I open my eyes and see… nothing. But then, a fleeting vision, an impression of actions and events passes before my eyes. I am, at some level, aware that what I see exists only in my mind, in my psyche, but at the same time, at another level, this is real.
I see myself as if watching from another's body. It is a strange sensation to see yourself from outside your body… Somehow, I know this isn't death. I'm not dead. But I'm as good as dead… Distantly, I wonder why I'm not dead. By rights, I ought to be…
But that thought drifts on as I watch myself.
I'm floating in the darkness, alone in a void. Then, a few feet beneath me, a small glow forms and spreads outwards, the darkness ripping away to reveal a floating island in the midst of a dreary gray brown sky riddled with patches of raw data. The island itself is flat on top, but along the edges and below, it is jagged and rough. The island appears merely to be made out of assorted rubble. For reasons I cannot explain, the island seems so familiar to me. But, why?
The glow has vanished and my body is left there, floating alone above that island. My eyes are open and lifeless, staring straight ahead, my pulse is slow and barely there, a flutter at most, and my breathing is shallow and ragged, but I am most strongly aware of the pain, even though I seem not to actually be in my body now. I am covered in raw data patches, and, in places, there are holes, as if someone had splattered acid across me, and the acid drops remained, slowly eating away at me. That's what the pain feels like, at any rate. Since the pain is constant, I grow accustomed to it, and I can ignore it. It's almost as if it is no longer existent.
Why am I here? Why is this place so familiar?
At one end of the island, the air ripples, each tiny wave flickering with colors as though coated with an iridescent sheen. And then, through a soft glow, eight creatures appear. Six of them are familiar, but why…?
As I gaze from one to the other, names come to me, but nothing more. The first one is the most humanoid of all the creatures, and it carries a queer red wand. Skeith.
The second one seems to be a large piece of dark stained glass. It seems abstract, forming more of an ornate wall than anything else. Innis.
The third one looks like a honey-locust leaf stem, all the small leaflets spreading out from the central core. Magus.
The fourth is a strange mask. In fact, it is much more of a mask than the abstract second. This one's openings truly form a face, with one great wheel serving as its right eye. Fidnell.The fifth is actually two faces, but they are joined by some inexplicable force. They whisper to each other as if scheming. Gorre.
The sixth is the only feminine one among them. She is rather pink in color, though a seducing figure from the waist up. At her waist, however, she spreads like a skirt, an octopus with all its legs fused together. Her eyes glow maliciously from a delicate face, and her hair flies behind her in tendrils. Macha.
The seventh is a weird, twisted stone snake impaled twice upon a walking stick. There really is no other way to describe it. Though it has no familiarity to me, a name comes nevertheless. Tarvos.
The eighth and last is a great eye. No, many smaller eyes whirling around this greater eye. Half of each eye is red, half white. And there are no pupils, but perfectly round irises, each containing a strange design. Like the seventh, this is not familiar. Still, I know its name. Corbenik.
All eight of them stare at my body, each one portraying malevolent eagerness as much as their respective forms allow. And yet, they are waiting for something. A signal, perhaps?
Suddenly, each one freezes, as if listening to something. A wicked smile curls Macha's lips. Gorre (both of his faces) grins, showing all of his teeth. The eyes of Corbenik all cease their swirling dance, fixating upon me.
Somehow, I know this is going to be bad. It's going to hurt a lot more than the constant acidic burning.
The creatures begin to move towards me, but a bright light flashes around my body. When it dissipates, a transparent, yet still visible spherical barrier has formed around my body. The creatures glare at it for a moment, then come forward anyway. They form a loose circle around my body. They look at each other, as if deciding something. Then, Skeith comes forward. He doesn't really step, but he floats. He lifts his staff into the air, then drives the pointy side hard against the barrier.
At the point of impact the shield glows white, and tiny ripples of white form around it. However, the stave does not penetrate. Nevertheless, I feel a small shock of pain. The breath of my body catches at the prick. Otherwise, I do not stir.
Skeith presses his full strength against the wand, hoping to pierce the shell. I cry out softly, weakly, and Skeith presses harder. The sphere gives a little, then flashes and Skeith is sent backwards into the circle.
A moment later, I find myself back in my body, no longer watching from afar. The burning is still there, and I still cannot move. I still stare straight ahead without really seeing.
Suddenly, all eight phases send a barrage of attacks against the shield, and my eyes slide shut, a low moan – the only sound my vocal chords seem capable of – falling from my lips as a series of small jolts assail my senses. For some sick and twisted reason, this brings me a little back to myself.
I am able to open my eyes, turning them to gaze weakly at the eight creatures, or at least the ones within my limited vision. I have no strength for anything, and even the small effort of moving my eyes is difficult, much less turning my head. Seeing my pathetic state, the creatures laughed. Or was it really them laughing? No… it couldn't be them for it was only one voice, yet it came through them.
The dark, slightly insane cackle comes from a female voice, of that much my hazy conscious is certain. It grates harshly upon my ears, sounding cold and humorless, yet it derives pleasure from my pitiful condition. The voice speaks, though at first I am unable to understand, though I can tell from the tone, she – the owner of this voice – sounds comforting, cajoling, and commanding. It has not the hard sound of before, though indeed the same voice, but soft and coaxing. But it has no meaning. I cannot concentrate upon the words now.
She seems somewhat frustrated now, as I exhibit no response. I think she orders the monsters to attack again, and they do so. I groan, closing my eyes against the glare of the shield as it absorbs most of the blows, and sends much of the force ricocheting back. And then it stops. Warily, I open my eyes once more, and am greeted by the same sight I had before closing them. And the voice speaks again. This time, I am able to catch her words.
"My dear," she murmurs. I can just picture a sickly sweet smile accompanying that voice; a smile, which, upon given proper incentive, could turn sour with barely any effort on her part. "You are tired. Oh so tired…"
Yes. I am tired. Oh so very tired, but something refuses to let me sleep. I wonder, vaguely, if it might be her.
"Why not let yourself drift into oblivion?"
Look lady, I would if I could. However, I am too weak to say so. Somehow, though, she knows this already. And she proceeds to say so, her voice gentle and lulling – the sort of voice you use to get a kid to fall asleep as you read a bed time story.
"You can't. I know this, and it is because she won't let you."
"Who?" I croak out, voice barely existent.
"Aura, my dear. She created the barrier, and the barrier is what won't let you sleep. Destroy it. Just let it drop, and I can promise you sleep."
"How?"
"Simple. Just let it drop. Concentrate upon it, and you will feel it. Then, tell it to drop. Push it away, and it will fall without any more pain."
For a few long moments, I consider doing as she says. Oh, how I long for the darkness again! But, something in me rebels at listening to this voice. Something tells me that the barrier is a good thing, and that Aura is trying to save me rather than hurt me. A vague impression tells me that the woman to whom the voice belongs twists the truth, or tells only part of it.
I cannot shake my head. Therefore, I whisper, "No."
This enrages the voice, and I feel her hatred, her anger pressing down upon me. The sheer concentration of fury frightens me, and I whimper in fear. I try not to, but it can't be helped.
For some reason, I find myself looking to either side of me, and what I see brings a sickly horror to my mind, though I cannot remember why. Each phase I see had formed a glowing ring of polygons. One wears it as a bracelet, whereas it merely floats before another. Each ring snaps open at the same time, and a strange aura collects before each of them. The rings are charging. For what, I do not remember, but I do know this will be beyond horrible.
(Third Person P.O.V. – a hacker's basement)
Helba worked as swiftly as she dared in constructing the program to aid Kite. Time was of the essence, not only for just Kite, but for The World. With the seventh phase on its way, to be followed by the eighth… The World was in chaos. Data corruption was everywhere. Even in the rest of the world, across the networks, things were not going well.
The generic, they blamed it upon hackers, such as Helba. But Helba, of course, knew better. And now all hopes to salvage The World, to rescue the players lost to The World, and, of course, to save Kite, rested upon Helba's shoulders. Therefore, though it was so late that one could call it morning, and though she'd had no sleep, she worked ceaselessly.
Two glasses rested next to one of her many keyboards. One, more of a mug than anything else, held a black liquid known the world over as coffee. The other, a smaller one, more of a shot glass than anything else, held a bit of vodka. An odd combination, certainly, but Helba was entitled to her idiosyncrasies, and the vodka relaxed her, while the caffeine in the coffee helped her to maintain concentration.
She stared at the just completed program, written out partially in programming languages designed especially for the web, but mostly in the specific data language of The World. Part of it was like a virus itself, part like a firewall, part a 'seek-and-destroy' program for cleaning out data corruption, and the rest a hodgepodge of her own creation. She desperately hoped it would work.
The woman removed her glasses, rubbing both the bridge of her nose, and her eyes. Then, she took a swig of the vodka, emptying the glass. She let it clank back to the table as she replaced the spectacles over her eyes. She could have worn contacts, yes, but she preferred glasses. They didn't dry out her eyes, and she didn't need dry eyes, considering the amount of time she spent staring at one of many monitors.
As she moved, her joints cracked, and she let out a sigh. The woman was about to stand up to stretch a little, just to relieve some of the tenseness in her muscles, but a soft chime from another monitor stole her attention. An email. But from whom…?
( Third Person P.O.V. – Omega Server, The World)
Kite's digital body had been moved from the main streets of the Net Slum version of Lia Fail to a building Helba had created somewhere. One could only access it if one had permission, so privacy was ensured. Although it was nearing two A.M., players still ran hither and thither in the streets, some from countries where it was afternoon or late morning, others merely night owls.
However, for Blackrose and Balmung, it was truly 2 A.M. and they were quite tired. Blackrose wasn't even supposed to be on now. However, both knew that neither of them would have been able to get any sleep this night/morning anyway. They sat alone with Kite in the small room.
The place had been furnished sparsely, though several rugs covered the floor. Kite's body rested upon a cot against the wall. Other than the cot, the only furniture was a table and two chairs in the center of the room. Blackrose sat upon one chair, head upon arms upon the table. Her garnet eyes were riveted upon Kite. Balmung, however, stood, leaning against the wall by the door, his eyes staring at the floor, arms crossed across his chest.
The two had kept their constant vigil, not leaving Kite's side since… the incident around eight hours ago. Other friends had come and gone, but the only one who'd stayed more than a half an hour at a stretch (Besides Elk, who had left a couple hours ago) was Moonstone. He had stood by the wall, silent for three hours. Then, he had spoken the most Blackrose or Balmung had ever heard him say.
"Kite is an excellent friend. Please heal. I cannot stay."
And then Moonstone had left, with Blackrose and Balmung staring after him. That had been one hour ago. Blackrose had left briefly, though she stayed logged in, to make herself some tea. And Balmung had done the same, save for, in his case, he snagged some soda.
Throughout this time, Kite had not stirred once. His breathing remained shallow and ragged, and he did not even blink. He seemed to be in a trance, or at least sleeping with his eyes open. The dead-eyed gaze frightened Blackrose more than she'd say. She'd grown so used to his bright, cerulean eyes full of hope and energy. To see them dull and dim was jarring.
Despite her lack of sleepiness, Blackrose found herself nodding off when finally the boy stirred. Kite didn't do much, but he moaned softly, whispering something inarticulate. Both Blackrose and Balmung snapped their attentions to the twin blade. Kite shivered, and groaned once more.
"I… think he's dreaming," said Blackrose, looking at Balmung. "That's a good sign, isn't it? Isn't it!"
Balmung looked unsure. "I… do not know."
Blackrose sighed, turning back to Kite. His lips moved, forming one word. Then, a few moments later, another. Finally, he croaked out the word "no."
And then, a relatively drastic change occurred. His eyes widened, and he was shaking. Traces of fear showed in his eyes, hints of a dark terror. He whimpered. Blackrose got up from her seat and came over to him. She sat down next to the cot and reached out, taking Kite's hand. He didn't respond, at least not to that.
The boy's breath caught in his throat, and even more dread filled his eyes. Then, his lids snapped shut and he cried out, hands clenching tightly. He seemed to be trying to hold something back. A vestigial trace of the bracelet flickered at his wrist, the ghost of it doing more than enough to increased Blackrose's worry.
And then, he screamed…
( Kite's P.O.V.)
Ribbons of light in many colors, flanked by random flickers of data, come shooting out of each ring. They slam into the barrier with a collective shattering sound. However, though the barrier cracks into many thousands of pieces, it does not break… not yet. Though the energy from the rings crackles around the barrier, it does not break. I do not let it. I can't let it.
I don't know why, but I am certain that if I give in and let the shell crumble, something very bad and very painful will happen, most likely followed by my death. Now that I think about it, I'm almost certain that was the sleep to which the voice referred. The sleep of death.
I… I can't hold it much longer. But I must… But.. no… I just do not have the strength.
As if time has slowed down, I see the barrier fragments split apart, flying outward with a shattering sound even greater than before. Time returns to normal speed, and the strands of light produced by the rings converge upon me.
I cannot help but scream as the same burning, tearing force I'd been ignoring increases a hundred-fold. Why? Why does it hurt so very much? Why can't everyone and everything just let me die? Let me sleep? Oh god, I'm so tired.
Despite the agony, I finally slip unconscious, returning to the darkness, though I do not think I die. At least not yet. As I fall, however, I feel something torn away from me, but what? My mind is made of cotton and I cannot think. Sleep… I sleep. I am sleeping.
Sleeping contentedly without dreams.
( Third Person P.O.V. – a hacker's basement)
Helba's eyes skimmed swiftly through the email (which seemed to have no sender); it wasn't lengthy. As they read, however, they widened, then narrowed, a low snarl of a curse escaping her lips.
"Damn you, Morganna," she hissed, following it up with another few maledictions.
She was about to log back into the World and upload her program when another chime sounded. Uttering another oath, Helba flicked her eyes to the screen, seeking the sender of this accursed interrupter. It was from Balmung. Well, she didn't even need to bother reading the title, much less the contents to have a good idea of what it was about. Ignoring the email, she logged into the World, her personal character avatar appearing in Net Slum, as per usual.
A few deft movements across the keyboard, and she had begun to upload the program. Another few dances of long, thin fingers and the hacker was at the door to just outside the building in which Kite lay. Standing there, if only for a brief moment, she could hear his cry of agony. As she moved to open the door, it died down to a low moan, which fell silent.
Helba rushed past Balmung to the boy's body. Checking another monitor, she gritted her teeth. Still not completely loaded. Damn it! She had no time… And it might already be too late…
Author Notes:
I am fast in updating stuff when I have little to do. –grins- Another long chapter, no? Including the stuff at the way beginning, this chapter is nine pages. Muahaha… At least I'm not up to twenty page chapters yet. Although…
But, as I said… The seeming randomness of the eight phases, Kite's cluelessness, Helba's cursing at Morganna, the emails, why Kite is the way he is… they all have a purpose… And I'm not going to tell you what that is! Buahaha!
As it is, I'm pretty reluctant to explain the bits I'm going to explain now, since you guys might either feel I'm stating the obvious, or it my ruin a little bit of the suspense…
Oh well. That can't be helped. Buahaha!
Well, first of all, a honey locust is a type of tree, a couple of which happen to grow in our yard. In the fall, when the seed pods fall off, if you collect them and dry them, they make cool rattles. Anyway, their leaves do look rather like Magus… O.o
The creepy woman's voice that Kite hears is indeed Morganna. Ok? If you haven't seen .hack/SIGN, you haven't heard the creepy woman's voice. And you don't know what I'm talking about. Yes, Morganna has a voice, but she doesn't bother talking to Kite in the games, it seems. In the anime, she talked to Tsukasa and Sora, and Mimiru, Subaru and Aura heard her when she was yelling at Tsukasa for the last time. I know most of you already know this, but I had a couple people ask about the random voice in Fragments… Same voice, different situation.
No, Kite isn't in two places at once, exactly. Well, I take that back. His real body and his digital body are in two different places, but his digital body is only in one place… sort of.
The bits from Kite's P.O.V. are almost, but not quite dream sequences. You'll understand later. It has to do with Kite being sort of suspended between reality and the game. Like, he's not completely inside the game, but neither is his mind in the real world… He's in the gray area in between.
Yes, he's inflicted/ infected with the data bug. Thus, the random data patches. And this also interconnects with and is related to a bunch of other stuff.
Yes, there's a little bit left of the bracelet.
No, Aura can't do much because she's still not completely put together. She needs the last segments of her data. Which Kite has… I think..
Yes, Cubia probably will pop up.
Yes, I do actually have a plot.
No, there won't be much more Kite-torture. I'm only including the bits here because they're semi-necessary to the plot and it's fun and interesting to write Kite's thoughts out. Especially in the delirious, not-all-there state he's in.
No, I'm not revealing anything else now. Keep in mind, that some of the above mentioned things are subject to change at my whim, and the whim of the characters. I'm serious when I say they do what they like sometimes, despite careful planning on my part.
Anyway… Onto my review replies!
To All Reviewers: Yay! I'm getting reviewed! It seems I have a bit of a reputation, now, since there's a fair number of you who've read my other .hack / fanfic.
If you guys have any ideas for where to go with this, don't hesitate to tell me; I'm pretty open to suggestion. In fact, some of my better ideas are not my ideas at all… but yours… adapted by me.
Angelyoshi4444: Yes. It is a long chapter. And this one is long, too. I'm going for long chapters right now, and I don't know why. It means you guys get more per update than before…. Oh yeah. I remember that episode. I was thinking about that episode when I wrote this, actually. Your favorite? Hehe… I liked it, too. Um… Because Kite deals with pain relatively well? Kite: That's a lie! You're just a sadistic bi –I shove a bar of soap in his mouth- me: Watch your language. Ahem. Sorry about that. Thanks for being my first reviewer!Xeno: Yup. I'm continuing. Hope you like it!
Twilight Memories: Ahem. I'm continuing it. I'll certainly take that into consideration, but keep in mind that even if I do introduce a corrupted version of Kite into this, I am in no way making a G.U. fic. We don't even know –why- Kite looked like a zombie, or why he was data draining the PKer. Ergo, how can I even begin to presume? Oh, and here's another cliffie for you!
Demondog17: Thanks a lot. Hehe..
Senkai-Ninja: Well, in the game, "System Error" flashes across the screen and… you get a game over… Like what happens if all party members die. And that, to me, seemed boring and unrealistic. Thus spawneth this story. Thanks, by the way!
Twilight: My beta! -hugs- What? Discombobulated rawks…. Angst… my anti - drug.. XD Yes, there will be a lot more interaction from other characters in this one. Just not in this chapter. Next chapter or two, there ought to be plenty from other characters. No Tsukasa in this one, however. Hehe. Umm… I'm able to use water colors without killing myself with a brush.. and I can make recognizable pictures.. but I never said I'm good. Er… Link: That's supposed to be me? –is looking at my picture – and what the heck is up with all those fairies? In the middle of a field? Err.. yeah…