By Sargent Snarky
A 'what if' sort of thing…
Summary: What if a system error occurred when Kite used data drain? This be my hypothetical answer… Duh. The game is over. But if this were real, what would happen to poor Kite? Needless to say, this'll be pretty grim.VERY IMPORTANT NOTE: I have completely rewritten this story from the second chapter onward. This is because I was not happy with how I'd written it… So, the plotline has changed from how it was going and all of that jazz…
Just so you know, this revision brings the story closer to what I had originally intended when I decided to make this more than a one-shot.
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…
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 n my mind, in my psyche, but at the same time, at another level, this is real.
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 the nothing. And then I wonder: Who am I?
That question becomes the fixation of all my thought as I struggle to find the answer. However, concentrating is difficult, and concentrating upon a specific chain of thought is even more so. An eternity passes, or maybe only a moment. Nevertheless, it seems like forever. And in that time, I just cannot find the answer… Only more questions…
Who am I? What am I? Why am I… like this? What is this?
Eventually, I give up trying to figure out for now and simply drift in this state of semi-existence. Then, an idea… I am in a non-place. A place neither here nor there… neither inside nor outside. A place in between.
But, that only gives rise to new questions.
Where was I before? Where is inside, and where is outside? How can I get to here or there?
(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 cup – more of a mug than anything else – held a black liquid known the world over as coffee. The smaller one – a shot glass – held 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. If it didn't…
She stopped that train of thought before it got anywhere. The only time despair was acceptable was when there was no hope whatsoever. And the only way there was never any hope was when one was pessimistic. Helba could not afford to be pessimistic. Realistic, yes, but not pessimistic.
The woman removed her glasses, rubbing both the bridge of her nose and her eyes. Then, she downed the shot of vodka, letting its container 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 based on the programming for a 'hide-out' (a rare item 'room' where one could hang out and/or store more items). 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, but her parents were asleep, so they didn't notice. However, both players 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 (Besides Elk, who had left after two hours due to a nagging parent) 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 two hours 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 words "Who… am I?"
( Kite's P.O.V.)
After a while, I can no longer keep my concentration upon my questions, and I all but forget them. Having nothing much else to occupy me, I drift into a sort of sleep. That is the only word that comes to me. The only word I can think of to describe it, but it doesn't quite fit.
It's rather strange that I can think of words, but I can't think of the name that is mine. Was mine. A name is merely a word to describe a thing? Or is it to define? Or… does a name become the thing it is? Could that be why I don't know mine? I cannot think of what I was, so I cannot think of what my name was. Is that the answer?
How I wish I knew… But, sleep, such as it is, takes me.
( Third Person P.O.V. – a hacker's basement)
Unfortunately, the email was extremely garbled, with only a few words coming through. But, that wasn't much of a problem for Helba. She ran it through a scanner program she developed to reconstruct corrupted text. After a minute or so, the message was clarified as much as possible. Helba's eyes skimmed swiftly through; it wasn't lengthy. However, it was from Aura, and that made it important. The message read as such (or at least this is what Helba was able to reconstruct of the garbled text):
" I --- help, maybe. ----- beware -- Cubia. Bring Kite -- Cruel Vindictive Scars. Hurry!"
A thoughtful expression on her face, Helba logged into The World and entered the room where Kite lay.
( (Omega) Server, The World )
"How would you two like to go out and do something that might help Kite?" asked Helba by way of greeting.
Blackrose and Balmung looked up with hopeful interest. Helba took that as an affirmative, so she continued, "Aura has sent me an email saying that she might be able to help. She asked that we bring Kite to Cruel Vindictive Scars. However, she also warned of Cubia, though I am unsure of whether it will actually make an appearance. It may, so you had best be cautious."
"What about your program?" asked Balmung.
"I think it would be best to see what Aura can do, first. Besides, I've only just finished it, and I need to check it for possible bugs."
"Let's go," said Blackrose, standing up. "You aren't coming with us, correct?"
Helba nodded. "I am not going with you. However, you do need to take Kite with you. Therefore, it may be wise for you two to also call in a third party member to aid you. Kite doesn't need to actually be in your party for you to take him."
"I'll call Wiseman," stated Balmung. "If he's on, then a wavemaster would be very useful."
"All right." Blackrose sighed and stepped over to Kite. She bent down next to him and put a hand on his arm. As usual, he made no response, or did he? The heavy blade was almost sure that she had seen his hand twitch. But, since he made no further movement, she discounted it. However, she did murmur, "Hear that, Kite? We're taking you to Aura…"
"Wiseman has just gotten on," said Balmung. "Heh. We've lucked out. He says he has insomnia, so he might as well accompany us. Our company will be so dull, he goes on, that it ought to work better than a sleeping draft."
Blackrose frowned, blinking over her shoulder at the blademaster. "Oh, that's so nice. At least it shouldn't be too difficult this time, as we've been down that dungeon before."
"You and Wiseman have. I haven't," said Balmung.
"I'll take my leave now," interjected Helba, bowing and then disappearing amid three golden rings.