Hey readers,

Wow, look at that, a very recent chapter. LOL. It's cuz I already had it written out. We are now switching to Sassy Rina, which is way better than Depressing Rina. I think we can all agree on that.

Enjoy Rina being a badass in this chapter. ~

Previously:

The revving of an engine starts up again and I twirl around to find Ronald fly at us with the lawnmower. I release a panicky noise and grab my brother. I pull him into my side and Sebastian grabs the lawnmower by its sides as Ronald tries to force it closer to Sebastian's face.

"Why the hell does he even have a lawnmower?!" I shriek. Those aren't invented yet neither are fucking chainsaws. What is Heaven like to even have these?!

"If the administration gets wind of there being a demon on board..." Ronald trails off with a giddy look. "You betcha they'll be going 'aren't you just hiding the fact that you let that beast snatch all the souls away?' Dont'cha think that those kinda false accusations will get me into a lot of trouble? And I'll totally pass on any overtime, so won't you just vanish?"

o0o0o0o

Ciel grabs my hand abruptly and leads me toward the door Ryan escaped from. He glances back at Sebastian before we leave though, "We'll go on ahead! After you're done playing, hurry up and follow me!" he orders. Sebastian glances at us emotionlessly, "As you wish." he answers. Once Ciel heard it, he rushes out the doors and I run with him. We are met with a staircase eventually that goes all the down. It looks daunting if I am, to be honest.

We pace down the stairs. I wonder how far Ryan has gotten. I can hear the distant clang of metal from below. I hope Sebastian will be alright, fighting a grim reaper is no easy task. Ciel pulls out his pistol and holds it tightly toward the ceiling. "It would seem this Ryan person did not expect such an outcome." I comment softly as I follow behind him.

"Yes, which makes this mission even more suspicious." Ciel agrees. It's not long before we reach the last set of stairs. It's almost pitch black down here. "He sure runs fast." he points out afterward.

I hum in reply and stop midway as I hear someone approach from behind us. I stop mid-step and push Ciel against the wall. He was about to complain until he saw how serious I appear. I hold my sword out, ready to attack whoever it is. However, I pick up the familiar scent of flowers and I lower my weapon. What's Elizabeth doing here? Speak of the girl, she saunters down the stairs with a piece of dessert on a plate. "Elizabeth! What are you doing here?" I ask loudly.

"I saw you two run off, so I followed you!" Elizabeth responds. "Even though I told you to wait, Ciel, you just disappeared." she pouts. "Oh yeah! This is your cak—hmph!"

Ciel slams a hand over her mouth to shut her up. Her shrill voice is so loud. "I'm sorry but I can't be fussed with you right now. It's dangerous here so go back to aunt Francis!" Ciel orders her and starts to run off. I follow along at the ready. "Got it?!" he exclaims once more.

"Ah, Ciel, Rina!" she shouts, and we run off without her. We can't be burdened with her right now. Ciel ends up leading us to a bottom freight storage room. I grab a lantern and flick it to life. We nod at each other before Ciel leads us down the stairs. The stairs creak as they are wooden. My brother keeps his gun pointed forward, but I can hear a sudden shifting sound.

"Ciel, someone's down here with us." I inform and search around the area. My warning catches his attention, and he scans around us. "Where?" he asks.

I listen closer and I point in the general direction of the noise. He nods and we approach slowly. Coming around some wooden crates, Ciel points his gun at the person crouched on the ground. "Who is it?!" he shouts.

I shine the light on the person and Snake reels back with squinted eyes. I release a deep breath in relief. "T-Too bright. Says Wordsworth." Snake cries.

"S-Snake?!" Ciel cries in shock. "What are you doing here?!"

"The food was really good, so I thought I'd share it with everyone. Says Dan." Snake interprets with an innocent look.

"Aww, that's nice of you. ~" I coo at his cuteness.

"The cake was even better than the food." I hear behind us, and I barely registered Elizabeth's presence. I turn to look at her with a sigh. Why is this girl so attached?!

"I see," Ciel hums, not noticing her voice at first. He spins around suddenly in shock, "Lizzy!?" he exclaims.

"Come on. ~ Don't leave me. ~" Elizabeth whines childishly.

"Elizabeth, you shouldn't be here right now." I scold her.

She gives me her cute puppy dog eyes, "But I wanted Ciel to eat the cake...it's the cake with strawberries he likes so much. I even got the biggest piece for him." she pouts. She holds the plate out to us but it's empty. I tilt my head in confusion, "Did you drop it?" I ask.

"Huh?" Elizabeth utters, also confused. It's not until I hear distinct munching sounds from behind her. I freeze and focus to find another corpse. It's literally eating the cake. I feel my face pale and I react the quickest out of everyone else. I grab Elizabeth's arm and pull her toward me before it can even touch a hair on her head. She screams and trembles in my arms. I pass her to Ciel and grabs her without complaint. Ciel, Elizabeth, and Snake stand behind me and I raise my sword in defense.

The moans and groans from the corpse are absolutely disturbing. The darkness surrounds us besides the tiny bit of light from the lantern it provides. I hand it over to Snake really quick and he takes it at the ready. It begins to walk toward us, and I grit my teeth. I really feel like I am in a zombie movie right now. One of the B rated ones too.

"This isn't the one from just now!" Ciel observes. "There were more?!"

"It seems that way, yes." I notice the same casket from the other corpse from earlier I finished off. "Ciel, that casket is the exact same!" I point out and nod towards its general area which is behind the corpse which comes closer.

"The mark of the Aurora Society! Ryan brought another revived corpse?" Ciel says in shock. I rush forward before the damned zombie can get any closer to us. I stab it perfectly through the head, bringing my Midford training to life. I release my sword afterward and the zombie drops to the ground. I guess it's not exactly a zombie since it doesn't infect other alive humans. Weird.

"Snake, what are you looking at?" I hear Ciel say and glance at Snake in question. He points in a certain direction and his snakes slide up his arm. "That bird mark, there's a lot more over there. Says Oscar." Snake informs. I peer into the inky darkness, my night vision already activated since the stairs.

"Oh...my...God..." I mutter as a bunch on caskets hang in a line. There's so fucking many! "What the hell!" I shriek in horror. "How am I supposed to fight an army of them!?"

The caskets begin to shake, and I can hear them inside making a racket. The straps that keep the lids closed on the caskets snap on many of them. I feel my face pale in a panic. This is beyond my skills! They all slowly start to climb out and I take a few steps backward. I turn around and look at my brother. "Find a high place for cover, all of you!"

"What about you?!" Ciel shouts and pushes Elizabeth back.

I glance back at the zombies, realizing I need to fight for my life for once. I might be underestimating myself, it's not like they can really kill you without using their mouths. I sigh and grab the skirts of my dress. I literally rip my skirt off but until it's halfway above my knees. I take off the first layer of my dress. I rip off all the material that will simply hinder me including my corset. I am left in my shift mostly. The zombies come closer and I pull my hair up into a makeshift ponytail. I glance at Ciel seriously, "I'm going to protect you as best as I can."

He stares at me wide-eyed and I watch as Elizabeth grabs Ciel's elbow, "Come on, Ciel! Rina can defend us; I know she can."

Ciel keeps staring at me but he lets Elizabeth pull him away. I nod in determination and face the oncoming undead army quickly approaching me. I raise my sword and shift my feet into the proper fighting stance. I dash forward and strike the first one in the head. It falls easily but the zombies simply walk and trip over the body. One done and I don't know how many to go. I take a deep breath and basically start to kill the ones closest to me. My stamina is not the best right now. Suffering from not getting a wink of sleep and Sebastian freaking breaking my heart into itty bitty pieces really gets a girl down.

I clench my teeth and try not to throw up again at the horrid smell emitting the air. I jump up at stab one in the head and blood splatters on me. I jump off the falling body and quickly make my way to another one. The amount of times I must dodge their teeth is endless. After one wave, more begin to appear from the back. "Oh, come on," I mutter as I huff harshly. I blow a strand of hair out of my eyes.

I hear a gun go off and I whip my head toward the sound it came from. I find Ciel, Elizabeth, and Snake on top of multiple stacked boxes, high up in the air. He looks at me with a nod and I smile thankfully. I concentrate once again on the zombies and continue my assault. For some reason, I'm more disgusted now than terrified. Something inside of me takes a small pleasure at seeing the massacre erupt around me. What the hell is wrong with me? I must be more twisted than I thought. I smirk at that thought and find some sort of energy within me to speed up my attacks.

My muscles are slowly beginning to ache though. I haven't had this much exercise for some time now. I may train every day but it's nothing like this. Ciel continues to fire his shots and I hope he does not shoot me by accident. That's the last thing I need right now. I stab another zombie through the head; however, my sword becomes stuck. I begin to panic and try to get my sword out of its head. But the body falls forward slightly making it heavy. "Shit!" I swear and try to yank it out with all the strength I have leftover. But it won't fucking budge.

The zombies start to enclose on me, and I think I hear Ciel shout my name. I 'tsk' loudly and back away from my trusty sword. I can't let myself become crowded by them; I'll die that way. Where the fuck is Sebastian when you need him?! I take more steps to the wooden boxes where my brother sits and everyone else. He reaches down, offering me his hand with a panicky look, "Rina! Hurry up and get up here!"

I reach for his hand, but I realize he's not going to be able to pull me up by himself. I weigh more than he does. "God damnit," I snarl and begin to climb the box. The zombies come closer and begin to naugh on the boxes once I am stable on the lowest one. I start to panic again, and I peer back up at Ciel, "Give me your gun!" I shout at him.

"It doesn't have any more bullets!"

"Jesus Christ, just give me the bloody thing!" I screech at him. He tosses it down and I manage to catch it. I take a deep breath, as the hoard below me tries to break the thing keeping us all up. The best I can do is bash their brains in with the handle of the gun. I gather my strength into my right arm and start to do as I thought. Attempting to bash their heads in works for several seconds before one almost chomps my hand off.

"How do you expect that to work exactly?" Ciel asks from above, watching me with an exasperated gaze. I feel a tick mark pulse against my temple, "DO YOU HAVE A BETTER PLAN?! HM?" I shout at him, my body shaking.

He sweat drops and leans back to avoid my pissy glare, "No, ma'am..."

"Son of a bitch!" I shout when I realize the gun isn't sharp enough to do some damage to at least half of them. I grab my shoe next and set the gun down on the box. My stupid feet are killing me anyways from running about down there earlier. I try to kill them with my heel, but it all ends in vain when one of their teeth scrapes against my forearm. I scream and hold my now injured arm. Why are my ideas so dumb?! This hurts so much!

"Rina! Are you okay?!" Ciel yells down at me, his voice full of concern.

"Yes! I'm totally fine, most definitely." I cry out sarcastically. This is pissing me off more than anything. I just want these damn things to die. I glare down at them maliciously and my neck warms up oddly enough. "Sebastian! Get your ass down here right fucking now!" I roar with irritation.

Right on cue, a bunch of silver knives flies toward some of the zombie's heads. I notice his dark approaching figure in this dim as hell storage room. "You called, my lady?" he asks almost in a mocking way. "My, my, what a mess you are."

I feel my face heat up in anger, "Don't play jokes with me right now! I've had it up to here tonight and even further with you!" I snarl at him. "Kill these fucking things this instant!"

I can find his cocky-fanged smirk from across the room. He inches forward before stopping suddenly with wide eyes. The zombies continue to dig into the box, and I hear it creak with our weights combined. "Sebastian! Don't just stand there like an idiot!"

His face becomes emotionless again, "I do not take order from you, my lady—"

"Sebastian, just listen to her and get rid of the corpses!" Ciel cuts him off with a booming voice.

Is it then, Sebastian bows with another smirk, "Yes, my lord." he answers. He rushes toward us, but mainly the zombies crowding the boxes. "It's not very stylish but if it's just destroying their heads is enough..." Sebastian trails off, his smirk increasing in size. He jumps up after and quite literally grabs the head of the nearest zombie. "Then I guess," he says loudly and slams the head down on the ground with a vicious look. It splatters gruesomely, "this is the fastest way!"

I feel a blush warm my cheeks at how well he demonstrates his power. Holy fuck, that's hot no matter how fucked up it is. The look on his face makes my heart speed up but I barely register the feeling. I'm not going to deny I'm a freak anymore. Because whenever Sebastian is like this, I feel the opposite way any sane person would. I don't know why I am like this, but it's tiring to push its way. So, I accept this feeling. I guess women would call it being turned on. He literally dances across the corpses and kills them one by one with a gleeful expression.

He starts to laugh menacingly as if it's fun to do this. My blush increases in heat and I raise my own bloodied hand to my cheek. Oh dear, I'm so far gone. I don't feel like myself right now. I feel over thrilled and almost want to join him in this blood bath. I didn't like it so much before I thought, but that tiny bit of thrill I still remember how it felt. I feel a smirk spread across lips and a small chuckle flies past my lips. It's deep and lovely, I think.

I jump up from the boxes and literally soccer kick one of the zombies heads off. I laugh loudly at the sight of it as flies across the room. "Rina?!" I hear Ciel gasp, but I ignore it. I'm a bit lost in my head right now.

"Sebastian! ~" I call out and he glances at me with that demonic twinkle in his eye. I almost fall over at such a look. "Give me one!" I exclaim with a wide smirk; it makes my cheeks hurt. For some reason, he decides to do as I asked. He literally kicks one toward me. I giggle and punch it in the side of the head. I hear it crack harshly from my brute strength and it falls to the ground. The pool of blood around me feet enchants me a little suddenly. I've never seen so much blood in my life. I can see my reflection in it. My hair fell out of its ponytail at some point and it's all around me in a nappy mess. There's blood splatter on my face too.

Who am I? I wonder briefly because I do not who it is that stares back at me currently. She's pretty scary looking though. I barely register the silence in the background. I raise my hand up and flex my fingers numbly. I feel like I'm about to pass out, my adrenaline is leaving my body. I can feel the pain from the bite mark sting. I'm a literal walking disaster. I shake off all residing feelings of bloodlust off. My eyes are heavy with exhaustion already. My legs feel like lead too. I raise a weighted hand to my head and comb my hair back with my fingers.

"I'm done, young master." I hear Sebastian say with a high-pitched voice for once. It sounds joyful in my opinion. I frown at my actions, what the hell did I just do? I felt super weird, that wasn't really me, right? But I recall enjoying the blood bath. I cup my hand over my eyes as my breathing speeds up. My nails bite into my skin as I try to get a grasp on myself. This isn't like me...but why aren't I making excuses defending my actions?!

I grit my teeth at the thought, I don't even feel human after what I just did. I can hear the blood shifting around, like wet rain puddles. "Rina, what the hell were you thinking?" Ciel calls out from behind me, he sounds angry. I hang my head lowly, not having an answer for him. He does not like that of course and grabs my wrist but I pull away instantly.

"Leave me alone." I utter. I need to concentrate on myself. If I don't I might fall apart right here, right now.

He ignores me and grabs my wrist the second time. He forces me to turn his way and I avoid his gaze. "Rina, tell me what was running through your head! You were like a—" he cuts himself off and bites his lip, looking away.

"Like a what?" I ask, tearing up at what he thought of.

"Nothing. Forget it." he snaps back. I wince and force my wrist out of his grip. I can literally feel Sebastian slide next into the conversation next to us. I refuse to even look at him, too ashamed of my actions. What I did was horrifying, under context. "My, she reminded me of something very similar to myself for a second there. ~" I hear Sebastian's voice mock.

I stiffen, not thinking he would state such a thing. I can feel his humor from here. Normally, I would like his praise but not now. I'm not sure how I should feel being compared to him. I hear Ciel sigh and I peer down at him, "You were more like a beast." Ciel glares at Sebastian, looking a bit pissy.

Sebastian smirks, his demonic eyes flashing once again tonight. "I'm sorry...it was an emergency." Sebastian responds cockily.

"You don't look sorry." I manage to grind out. His humored gaze flickers back down to me, his smirk twitching. "Neither do you." he bites back.

I glare heatedly at him, "Fuck you."

He glances toward the corpses that lie at our feet. "Also, their bodies seem to be much softer than a regular human being." Sebastian comments offhandedly.

I stare at them as well, "I noticed that as well. I'm assuming due to the stages of decay. They are presumably very weak."

"But why are there so many of them on this ship?" Ciel questions thoughtfully.

"I think—" Sebastian pauses before taking out a set of knives and tossing them to his left. I hear an 'eek' sound from the distance and stare into the inky void. Well, would you look at who joined us. "...it would be good to ask him." Sebastian states. "Ryan Stoker!"

Sebastian saunters up to him as Ryan cowers against a set of boxes. Snake shines the lantern light in that general direction for everyone else. "I-It's not like that! That was incomplete salvation...and I didn't plan on reviving them in such an unhealthy state!" Ryan informs us with a nervous tone. Sebastian grabs Ryan from behind and detains his arm with a fake smile. "Please listen to me! I'm in a hurry and ow...!"

"No need to be hasty," Sebastian says and tightens his grip on the man's arms. "There is plenty of time until we reach New York, so we'll listen to your story leisurely."

"Wai-Wait a second!" Ryan cries.

"What? What is it? I already cleaned them all up so—"

"It's not that!" Ryan shouts. "This ship has the latest gigantic boiler with a reciprocating steam engine installed at the center. This place is divided into two sections, the boiler separates them."

"What of it?" Ciel asks.

"In other words, this ship is divided into a front and stern. There are two freight storages!" Ryan explains further.

I sigh heavily and reach up to pinch the bridge of my nose, "You mean, to tell us, there is another room filled with these damned things."

"Yes, but ten times as many as there are here." Ryan adds on. I stare at the man, as an explosion of irritation fills my tired mind.

"Ten times as many?!" Ciel shouts in disbelief.

Silence permits the air and I take a long deep breath in through my nose. I smile flakily with a small laugh, "Well, we're all fucked."

"This has turned unpleasant, indeed." Sebastian agrees partially. "Do you think 'unpleasant' covers it?!" Ciel shouts at Sebastian. "Even one of those monsters is a hassle. Just imagine ten times this!"

"That would mean at least a quarter of the guests on this ship are dead by now. Assuming they broke free already and around the same time these ones did." I input.

"So basically, this ship is already infested with them." Ryan simplifies with a sweatdrop.

"Sebastian, go ahead and take my aunt and the others to a safe place." Ciel instructs him. I almost forgot about them; I hope they are alright.

"What are you doing to do?" Sebastian asks.

Ciel takes out his gun and begins to reload it, "We'd just be a burden. I also have a gun and Rina has her sword. We'll be okay for a while."

"Hey, I thought you didn't have any more bullets?" I note with a frown. Ciel looks at me, "I forgot there was another mag in my back pocket."

I facepalm, "Good to know I will ask you next time in such dire situations."

Ciel turns back toward Sebastian, "Come back as soon as you're sure they are safe!" he orders.

Sebastian begins to take off in a dash, "Certainly." he says and is gone in a flash. I notice a large python is wrapped around Ryan, probably Snake telling his friends to help. Ciel turns to look at Ryan with a dangerous gaze, "Well then," Ciel states and pulls the slide part of the pistol back. He aims it at Ryans temple, and he shrinks under it, "How about telling me everything?" Ciel offers a starting point. "And be brief, because I'm not very patient. First, how should we deal with them?" he asks first.

"Eh?" Ryan utters.

"There is no way you decided to transport something so dangerous without any kind of insurance," Ciel says. "Isn't there another way to stop them aside from smashing their heads?"

"We-Well there is one..." Ryan admits although hesitantly. "There is a device that allows you to render the patients subjected to complete salvation inactive again, by exposing them to special supersonic waves."

"This sounds much like science fiction." I comment under my breath. "Am I living in a story?"

"And where is it?" Ciel asks, not hearing me mutter utter nonsense to myself. "In my room, in first class." Ryan informs right after. "Take me there." Ciel instructs.

"A-Alright..." Ryan agrees. "There is a freight elevator in the boiler room. We can use that to go upstairs." he suggests.

Ciel nods and helps Ryan up but keeps his gun pressed against his back. I walk over to my sword and it takes multiple tries before I can yank it out of that corpses head. Afterward, we all follow Ryan silently and I look back at Elizabeth. She appears down and lost in her thoughts. "Lizzy," I whisper and she peers up at me with wide eyes. I smile softly at her, but she appears uncertain. My smile falters slightly and I tilt my head in confusion. "Are you okay?" I ask her.

"I should be asking you that," she replies with a worrisome gaze. "I've never seen you fight like that, Rina."

My eyes drift off and I return facing forward, "I'm sorry..." I apologize. "I've never been like that either, forgive me for my crude actions."

She grabs the back of my torn-up shift, "You don't need to apologize. Just be careful next time, okay?" her sweet voice says.

I nod once, trying to calm myself down. Not to mention, stay alert. I'm falling asleep as we walk. I rub my eyes tiredly. "I have another question." Ciel states suddenly and I perk up at that. "How can corpses move?" he asks Ryan.

"We implant a special device in the dead's brain that generates a weak electric current. This way we can send signals to the various parts of the body and they recover the healthy physique of when they were alive, basically—" Ryan explains.

"That's enough." Ciel interrupts him halfway. "Do you really think you can resuscitate people? I'll change my question. What is the purpose of carrying these guinea pigs to America?"

"I can't tell you that." Ryan says sternly.

"I see," Ciel hums. He moves the gun to press it against Ryan's ear and pulls the safety lock off it. "I reckon you want me to pierce your ears." Ciel threatens.

"Wha—!" Ryan gasps. "Wait, wait! If you shoot me, you won't be able to use that device!"

Ciel sighs and shakes his head. He presses the gun closer to Ryan's ear in the process, "You're right. It's annoying, but I guess we'll have to stick with smashing their heads."

"A-A certain company bought our complete salvation technology!" Ryan shouts in a panic, scared Ciel really will shoot him regardless. "A certain company?" Ciel presses in question.

"Y-Yes! It's called 'Osiris'. Rumor has it that they're developing a new drug." Ryan informs us.

I hum in thought, finding the name rather peculiar. My brother does not seem to care much though. We eventually reach a metal door within a few minutes. I can feel the steam and heat practically leaking through the door. I fan myself, not enjoying it. "It's in here." Ryan gestures to the door with his head.

Snake walks forward and opens the door for us. We are all met with a gust of heat which makes all our hair fly back a little. My face feels lightly roasted. "Snake, take your snake off Ryan. It will go smoother if we pretend to be his comrades." Ciel orders and explains.

"Alright. Says Webster." Snake replies and the snake slithers off Ryan on command. "It's so loud!" Elizabeth cries beside us, covering her ears.

"Uh, Ciel, don't you think I look suspicious enough as it is?" I ask him, gesturing to my clothes. I'm quite literally covered in dried blood. He pales slightly while examining me. He takes out a handkerchief, "Lean down." he orders me.

I do as he says and begins to wipe at my face. He scratches at it gently until he finally pulls away. "It's off your face."

"While that's good and all, what should I do with my clothes?" I ask again. He thinks for a moment before looking at Snake. "Snake, do you mind giving Rina your jacket?" he asks.

Snake blinks widely for a second before slipping it off him, "I do not mind. Says Dan."

He offers it to me, and I smile kindly at him, "I appreciate it."

I wrap it around me and secretly wish this was Sebastian's jacket. I frown sadly at that and slip my arms through the holes. It dangles around me, reaching above my knees. Perfect fit dare I say. Ciel nods approvingly, "Better." Ciel states.

I play with my hair, trying to appear somewhat decent. A worker suddenly approaches us however, "Hey! Passengers shouldn't come here!" he exclaims.

Ryan smirks abruptly, "The complete flame in our chests!"

"Shall not be extinguished by anyone! We are..." the worker replies intensely. I sweatdrop as they both do strike the same pose. "The Phoenix!" they chant in sync.

I'm embarrassed to be surrounded by people like this. Ryan smiles and steps toward the man, "Would you let me use your elevator, my friend?" he asks.

"Okay, who are they?" the worker agrees and asks. Ryan gestures to us, "They are comrades as well, right!"

We all sweat drop and do the stupid pose, "The Phoenix!" we shout together. We lower our poses and Ciel turns around with a red face. I pat his back, "It's okay, we all feel the same, Ciel." I murmur.

The worker smiles, "Here in the back!"

Before any of else could follow along, the floor begins to tremble, and we all lose balance. I accidentally fall onto the ground with a yelp. The shaking is so violent, it rattles my bones. The screams of fright around the boiler room can be heard as well. Eventually, it stops after a few moments. I stand back up but my whole body feels like its vibrating. "What the hell was that?!" I shout in question. I search around the room and don't find anything odd.

"That shock just now, what was it?" Ciel also ponders out loud. Suddenly, a shaking sound can be heard again, and we all look around in confusion. That's until the ceiling bursts open quite literally and a flood of water rushes in. Everyone screams again and the water makes me feel cold, pushing me against a wall nearby due to the force. My arm throbs as it's still injured, my cut burns from the saltwater. I grip it with clenched teeth and a loud alarm starts to sound throughout the boiler room.

"This alarm means...the watertight doors are closing!" a worker shouts. I feel my face pale and I get up as quickly as possible. I search around for everyone and find Elizabeth struggling to get up out of the water. I rush over to her, "Elizabeth!" I call out and she whips her head in my direction. "Rina!" she shouts back. I run as fast as I can over to her and grab her arm, lifting her up all the way. I literally drag her towards the rapidly closing door. I spot Ciel on the other side along with Snake, "Rina! Elizabeth!" Ciel cries for us.

The door is about to close, and I let out a shout of frustration. I watch as Ciel slips out of one a worker's hands who was holding him back from coming over here. He ducks his head and crouches his way toward us in a sprint. The door closes just as he exits, and he huffs loudly. "You idiot! Why did you come back!" I bark at him.

"I wasn't going to leave you guys here! I'm promised to protect the both of you!" Ciel reminds me. I sigh loudly, "Dear Lord, why are we always so fucked?!" I growl at kick the wall beside me.

Ciel sweat drops and grabs Elizabeth's hand. He looks at the door, "Snake! You guys go on ahead!" Ciel shouts loudly.

"I can't leave you behind! Says Emily." Snake shouts back. I search around for a place to exit and eventually find a duct in the wall. It looks big enough for all of us to fit in. I tap Ciel's shoulder and point up at it. He looks at that way and notices it as well. He faces the door again, "Don't worry! We'll escape via the duct!" Ciel tells him.

He drags Elizabeth through the water toward a small stairwell that leads up. I follow along, not wanting to be left behind. By how fast the water is leaking inside, we need to be swift. "Your friends can't be soaked in the cold water for too long, right?!" Ciel asks Snake. "Go!" he instructs him.

"Smile! Missy! Keats will guide you through the duct! We'll meet up again later! Says Emily." Snake shouts once more. "We'll definitely see you later!" I assure Snake and follow Ciel up the stairs.

"Hurry!" Ciel rushes me. I scowl at him, "I'm going as fast as my legs can carry me, you little shit!" I snarl, not in the mood for his demands.

He still has the nerves to roll his eyes. What a brat, let me tell you. We come to the duct and I climb up as I am the tallest out of three of us. I take the screen off which covers the duct and I throw it onto the floor. "Okay, we need to go." I urge them.

"Lizzy, take off those clothes," Ciel instructs her. "N-No." Elizabeth rejects with a horrified look.

"Don't be stubborn you can't wade through this with that kind of skirt on!" Ciel yells at her.

She backs away, "No way! I want you to think of me as cute until the end!" she cries.

Ciel grabs her by the arms and turns her around. He forcibly rips the back of her dress apart. I gasp at such indecent behavior. Take about rude, lil' bro. "Ciel!? What-Why?!" Elizabeth shrieks. "No..."

"If you die, you will never be able to wear any of the clothes you love again!" Ciel shouts at her sternly. "It's all over when you die! All of it!" he screams almost desperately. I stare at him in surprise as he huffs, obviously worked up about it.

Is...Ciel afraid to die? Or is it...he does not want to watch more people he loves to die? I frown at the thought and observation. It makes my heart quake either way. "I-I'm sorry," Elizabeth stutters and falls to the ground, holding her clothes to her chest. She eventually let's go and the front of her dress falls. Ciel sighs and kneels, shedding his jacket for her. He wraps it around her next, "I'll ask Nina to make you a new dress next time. Much nicer than the one you're wearing today...so please."

I smile at the heartwarming moment. Look at him being so caring for once. Elizabeth shakes her head slightly, "No, Ciel. I'm sorry for being stubborn." she apologizes.

"I'm sorry I was so rough on you too."

"Alright, lovebirds. How about we hurry and get the hell outta here?" I suggest and smirk at the cuties before me. The two of them blush at the nickname I gave them. Elizabeth shuffles forward all the while putting her arms through the holes of Ciel's jacket. "Must you tease us, Rina." Elizabeth pouts a little.

Suddenly, Ciel starts to cough and I send him a very concerned look. Is his asthma acting up again? "Ciel!?" Elizabeth and I shout in sync.

He clears his throat, looking a bit pale, "I just choked on some water, hurry up and climb!" he tells us.

I can tell he is lying, plain and simple. I don't trust his judgment on his own health considering what happened at the circus. I get inside the duct first, figuring I should lead us. It's a bit of a tight squeeze for me. My hips are a lot larger than I wished they were right now. I think Elizabeth climbs in after me and Ciel is the last in the line. I don't even know where to go from here on.

"Ciel, where should we go?" I ask, my muscles are already aching from crawling in this position.

"Just keep going straight for now. Let me know when we come to a crossroad or something." he replies. My injury burns intensely but I suck up any tears that wish to spring forward. We need to get to safety before I can even think about tending to it.

0o0o0o0o

I am so fucking tired; I might pass out mid-crawl. I think we've been crawling around in this duct for about forty-five minutes. We even had to crawl up at one point! I'm sort of in a daze so when the scent of food hits my nostrils; I blink awake as my stomach rumbles.

"Does anyone else smell that or am I going crazy again?" I ask.

"Smell what?" I hear Ciel ask.

I crawl a bit faster and find a screen facing downward (below us). "There's a screen here!" I shout with excitement. This means we can finally get out!

"Are there corpses down there?" Ciel huffs. I get closer and peer through it, I don't see any. I crane my neck back to look at him, "Not that I see."

"Okay, let's open it." Ciel decides. I nod in agreement and push on the damn thing. "Ugh, it won't budge—!" I release a yelp and fall through the duct opening. I squeeze my eyes shut automatically assuming I'm about to kiss the floor. However, I don't feel anything. I peek an eye open and gasp when I find Sebastian smirking down at me, "My lady, it would be best to be more careful from now on." he reprimands.

I feel my face flame up and I struggle in his arms. "L-Let me down!" I stutter and he chuckles a little. He sets me down far more gently than I expected from him. Sebastian stares up at where I fell, and I spot Elizabeth and Ciel peering down at us.

"Are you three injured?" Sebastian asks and helps Elizabeth down first. She smiles, "Ciel and Rina protected me, so I'm fine."

I smile at that and my arm decides to pulse in pain again. I release a low hiss and inspect my wound. "I've been injured." I sigh out.

Ciel comes down from the duct next and walks over to me, "Why didn't you say anything sooner?! Is it bad?" he asks.

I shake my head, "I think I'll be okay; it stings like hell though."

Ciel frowns and Sebastian takes a step closer to me. "My lady, would you like for me to dress it for you?" he asks and holds out a strip of white cloth. I don't question where he got it from. I hold my arm out to him with a light blush, "If you don't mind." I mutter.

He smiles slightly and starts to do as he suggested. I stare at him suspiciously. One minute he wants to pretend like we don't know each other and another minute he acts as if he cares. What the hell, dude?! I can't take this much happiness and heartache at once! Make up your damn mind already. "What about my aunt and others?" Ciel asks abruptly.

"They are unharmed," Sebastian replies and ties my makeshift bandage. "I tried to guide them to a safer place, but they said they wanted to rescue the other passengers..."

"That's just like my mother! If they're all together they will be fine. Thank you, Sebastian!" Elizabeth smiles.

"Not at all," Sebastian states kindly and he double knots my bandage before taking his hands away. Ciel sneezes abruptly and I can only assume from the cold wet clothes we are all currently drenched in. Sebastian slips off his jacket, "Young master, please wear this."

"I'm fine." Ciel says with a croaky voice. I glare at him, already knowing better. "Stop lying and put his jacket on." I hiss at him. Ciel sweat drops but ignores me temporarily. "I'd just get caught up in the tails." he excuses.

"But if your body remains cold your cough will—" Sebastian insists.

"Don't mention that now." Ciel says in a low voice so Elizabeth won't hear. I blink, forgetting only Fenian had this kind of problem; his twin brother did not show these kinds of symptoms. "Certainly." Sebastian understands and side glances at Elizabeth. Sebastian gathers us close together and starts to lead us toward the exit, "Well then, the lifeboats are being prepared as we speak. Let's hurry to the de—"

The sound of a chainsaw greets my ear suddenly. I whip my head upward and gasp as a circle is carved out of the ceiling. Sebastian notices about as quick as I do, and I catch sight of his demon eyes flashing. He literally smushes all three of us together and jumps back with us in his arms. The ceiling crumbles and leaves a smokescreen. I cough and my eyes tear up from the debris a little. I notice a flash of red and realize who it is. Great, even Grell is here, how lovely.

"Found you. ~" Grell says with an insane smirk. "Hottie."

"You're—" Sebastian startles, not anticipating Grell's appearance as well. "Grell Sutcliff!" Ciel calls out his name.

Grell smiles and tries to do some sexy pose he most likely envisioned to look better outwardly. "Yes! Long time, no see, Sebas-chan!~" Grell practically moans. I get the goosebumps at how shrill his voice is. "It must be fate for us to meet here. ~" he sing songs.

I can feel Sebastian's irritation plague the air around us. "It's just a coincidence." Sebastian reasons sanely.

Grell blushes and begins to flounder about. I can see a bunch of hearts literally bouncing off him. "Ah! So cold! That side of you is lovely as always. ~" Grell moans again.

Ronald sighs in the background. I barely even noticed him! "Ah man, he found him. Please don't forget about the souls, okay?" Ronald says.

"Ronald! Please tell me sooner when Sebas-chan's around! I would have put more effort into my makeup!" Grell huffs and puffs.

"I didn't tell you because that's exactly what I thought you'd say..."

I turn toward Sebastian, "Shall we escape now?" I whisper to him. He raises a hand and leans closer to me, "That would be best, yes." he agrees as we take advantage of the grim reapers distraction.

I tap the two youngsters' shoulders and point to the exit. They both nod and we start to make a dash for it. "Anyway, you—" I hear Grell say behind me. "Ah!" he voices loudly. "Wait up there!" he shouts and not long after, he appears at our side. Sebastian anticipates this and grabs all of us somehow in the nick of time. "Will you? ~" Grell finishes and I watch him tear through the floorboards of where we once stood. He jumps away from Grell and sets us back down once it is safe. "Setting my body one fire than neglecting me, how mean."

"Please refrain from catching on fire by yourself." Sebastian bites back coldly. "We need to hurry on, so could you please open the way?"

"And if I say no?" Grell counters and takes a step toward all of us.

I can feel Sebastian's irritation increase tenfold and I sweatdrop. "I'll have to use force." Sebastian says darkly. I shiver at the threat, finding his voice attractive either way.

Grell smirks his toothy grin, "That's fine. I don't mind you getting a little aggressive. ~"

I immediately get turned off the minute Grell says that. Okay, must he really ruin my mood? "Well then, let's have a deathmatch that's even hotter..." Grell continues and does some weird-ass pose. I don't even care anymore but I presume a defensive position in the case. "... then a romance love!"

"Who is he?!" I hear Elizabeth shriek in terror. I sweatdrop at her question, "A pervert, and not just any kind of pervert, he's the highest caliber! A peeping tom!" I tell her. Sebastian gets defensive as well in front of us and I admire his strong tense back. I think I'm turning into a pervert too.

"I'm afraid it might be contagious, so please step back and stay away from him!" Sebastian adds on. I snort at that, realizing how late that response was. "What if I told you it's true?" I ask Sebastian, most definitely humored. I can't help but feel happy knowing we are getting along again. I'm not sure how long this will last though.

He tosses me a side smirk, "Then I suppose it must be." he responds.

"That's rude!" Grell's shrilly voice interrupts us. He takes a step forward, appearing a bit infuriated. He raises his chainsaw toward Sebastian who raises an arm in response. "I'm just honest about my feelings!"

I grab Elizabeth and Ciel, pushing them away before an accident really happens. Grell quite literally charges after Sebastian with the intent to kill. However, Sebastian deflects in a flash and tries kicking him instead. But Grell comes back with his chainsaw and Sebastian has no chance but to dodge. He flies toward the wall and lands on it in a squat. Grell jumps in his direction with his chainsaw raised, ready to slash Sebastian. However, Sebastian dodges again and escapes easily.

But Grell ends up slashing the window and my eyes widen, "No!" I yell but it's too late. Water rushes in through the crack Grell created. We all shout in surprise as it hits us slightly. I grab Ciel and Elizabeth, pulling them underneath me. I let the water hit me instead, it hurts but not as bad as I thought it would. I hear Sebastian shout my brother's title, but I keep my eyes squeezed shut. I don't need salt water in my eyes, thank you very much.

Eventually, the water pressure gets stronger as the crack grows. I am pulled out from under my feet at such force. Ciel and Elizabeth follow along, all of us tumbling in the waves of seawater. I cough harshly as I accidentally swallowed some and it went down the wrong pipe. I try to sit up when the water is no longer pushing me. I shiver violently at how cold the water is. I peer around and find Ciel coughing next to me. I huff and puff heavily, my limbs shaking from the cold. My teeth chatter together as my body tries to warm me up. I reach toward Ciel and pat his back gently. He continues to cough and sniffle loudly.

"Ciel..." I murmur in concern. He is trembling even more than I am. I pull him into a brief hug from behind and he does not refuse the action. I try to warm him up with my body heat, hoping it will work. Ciel looks around frantically suddenly and I follow where is head points to. "Lizzy!" he shouts in fear. I notice a whole crowd of corpses coming her way. I clench my teeth together in horror. She isn't moving!

"Elizabeth!" I call out to her. She twitches slightly when I do. Ciel tries to get up but he cries out in pain. "Ciel, what's wrong?!" I ask.

His hand travels to his leg, "It's twisted." he grinds out. I gasp at how mangled it looks. I realize it's all up to me to save her. I stand up on shaking legs, I feel like I'm about to faint though. I slap my hands on my cheeks, trying to stay awake.

"Lizzy! Get up!" Ciel shouts at her again desperately. I travel over to where she lies as she struggles to get up on all fours. I don't know where my sword went but I notice some decorative ones hanging right next to Elizabeth.

I march over to it and yank one out of the mantle. Elizabeth begins to panic and falls back down noticing the mob making its way toward her. She crawls backward, her green eyes shaking with fear. I bite my lip, really trying to muster any leftover strength I can spare. I can hear Ciel scream Elizabeth's name again, and I hear the roar of the lawnmower going off next to us. I can only assume Sebastian is trying his best against two grim reapers.

I glance down at Elizabeth, hoping she will agree to what I must ask of her. "Elizabeth!" I shout her name and her tear-filled eyes meet mine. I grab another sword off the wall and hold out the handle toward her. "Fight with me." I order her.

Her eyes widened incredulously, staring at the blade I offer her. I notice the mob getting closer in the corner in my eye. She does not respond but simply stares at the sword. "Elizabeth! Please!" I beg with a sob. "I can't do this alone!" I cry out. I can't do this by myself. I don't know if I have enough strength for that.

Ciel starts to shoot at the mob with whatever bullets he has left in his pistol. I wait for her response, hoping she will take the damn sword. She's a fucking prodigy, better than I'll ever be. Come on, girl, you got this! I cheer in my mind. "The bullets are—" I hear Ciel shout in disbelief. I can only assume his gun got jammed due to the water inside it.

I still wait patiently, knowing she needs to make this decision herself. I know what she is capable of. I need my partner. "Let us fight together, Lizzy! Like old times!" I continue to persuade. The mob closes in around us and she starts to cry on the floor with a sad smile. I know she finally came through. She glances at Ciel one last time, "I wanted you to think I was cute until the very end." Elizabeth croaks.

"Rina! Lizzy!" I hear Ciel's scream penetrate the air and I take a deep breath when he is out of my vision. I stare down at Elizabeth with determination, "Ready?" I ask her. She nods with a solid look in her eyes and grabs the sword out of my hand. She lurches forward and pierces a corpse in the head with a yell. I do the same, I copy her move with a different corpse. I hear Ciel gasp in surprise and I can feel Sebastian's burning gaze on us.

She switches her focus to the next corpse, and I smirk at her concentration. The best and my most favorite version of Elizabeth has appeared for once! I laugh and end the corpse's lives with her. Her skills are much more graceful and beautiful. She tried to do her best to remain as beautiful as she fought. I mean, that's what her style is. I call it grace. However, my style is more brutal and flashier dare I say. I take care of the other side and she runs along the walls. Slashing and dicing the corpses. They begin to fall over one by one. I join her next after killing some on the ground and run along the walls taking care of the other side of the hallway.

I land at the end of the hallway with a huff. My adrenaline is slowly running out, I'm shocked I have some left. I charge forward with what is left of it and twist up. I kind of catapult into the air and slice all the heads of the corpses off. I grin giddily at the sight once more, wondering why I contain such blood lust. But it's nothing like before with Sebastian, I wonder why. As I land back on the other side, all the corpses behind fall like a domino. I glance at Elizabeth and find her finishing off two corpses that appeared behind Ciel.

I smile proudly at the sight, "Good girl." I murmur to myself. I watch as Ciel continues to gape at his fiancé. But he didn't know she was this badass, huh? I wipe the dripping blood off my cheek as it tickles my skin slightly. I sigh as I am once again, covered in blood. Lovely.

I notice how Elizabeth turns her attention inside the room where Sebastian is fighting Grell and Ronald. I panic slightly and rush over to her. "No! Wait, Elizabeth!" I shout but she is already dashing inside. I turn the corner and find that Sebastian already stopped her midway by trapping the tip of her sword with two fingers clenching against it. "My lady, no further." Sebastian pleads. She stares up at him in wonder. "Sebas...tian." she mutters in a daze of sorts.

Sebastian proceeds to get on one knee and puts a hand to his chest. "To have forced a lady to go through so much trouble. I have failed as a butler. I am deeply sorry." Sebastian apologizes.

I saunter slowly into the room and come to her side. "Thanks for the apology. I'm pretty tired because you simply aren't fast enough." I mock slightly, in the teasing mood. I put a calming hand on Elizabeth's shoulder.

He smirks at me and tightens his glove, "My lady, you should consider this as a much-needed exercise."

I tilt my head in confusion, "But I exercise almost every morning..." I hum in thought. He turns around and I can feel his humor leaking off him in waves. It's not until then do I really think about what he meant. It doesn't take long. "You asshole! Are you coming me fat?!" I shriek at his back in irritation.

He glances back at me with a teasing look in his eyes. "Who knows, but I shall take it from here. As I am sure you need your rest."

I growl in my throat, knowing his perfect ass is right. Sebastian presumes to get into a fighting stance and Grell smirks, readying his chainsaw again. "I guess my entrance was ruined...well, whatever, let's continue!" Grell says.

"Wait! Sebastian!" Ciel calls out suddenly and Sebastian stops in his stop as ordered. "We have no time to worry about those guys! Ryan holds the key to everything in this case. Follow him!"

"Whaat?" Grell questions, seeming a bit lost and less hostile. "Wait a sec, you. You mean that if we put the screws in that guy, we can learn about these walking corpses?"

Ronald strolls up behind Grell and shows him his notebook. They search it together, "Senpai, look." Ronald says and his eyes stay focused on one spot in the notebook. "I see," Grell hums. "Indeed, we have no time to waste."

We watch as Grell and Ronald jump back up to where they first came from. They stare down at us, "It's too bad, but we'll have to leave it at this for now, Sebas-chan! ~" Grell sing songs with a regretful look. "I'll wrap you in the red of roses next time for sure. ~ Bye. ~" he moans the last bit and blows him a kiss before taking off with Ronald.

I gag at the scene, "So disturbing." I utter.

"We should hurry as—AH!" Ciel shouts in pain and all of us rush toward him. "Young master!" Sebastian calls out and we all stop by his side.

Sebastian leans down and inspects Ciel's injured leg. I frown a little, "How bad is it?" I ask Sebastian.

"It's quite swollen." Sebastian analyzes.

"Oh no!" Elizabeth cries. However, she suddenly turns around and gets down on one knee before Ciel. She places her hands around her back as if she were about to carry someone. "I'll carry you on my back!" she insists.

We all stare at her in shock, I certainly did not expect her to do that. "What?!" Ciel cries.

"Lady Elizabeth," Sebastian says, "I'll take care of that..."

She freezes temporarily and slaps her hands on her reddening cheeks. "Ah! That's right. Yes. Oh no, I...I," Elizabeth rambles, too embarrassed to say a full sentence. She begins to tear up and her lip wobbles. Oh no, she's going to cry. I sweatdrop as big fat teardrops leak from her eyes. Ciel and Sebastian watch with wide eyes, not sure what to do. "I'm the scary kind of girl Ciel hates!" she sobs loudly and rubs her eyes.

"What?!" Ciel shouts in shock, not expecting her to say that either. "What do you mean by that?"

"But before, you said you don't want a strong wife, didn't you?!"

"T-That was in the past. And anyway, I should be the one apologizing right now." Ciel rebukes, seeming unsure.

I briefly wonder if the real Ciel said that. I watch as Elizabeth leans forward, "Then, you will take me as your wife? You won't hate me?"

"I could never—" Ciel pauses and looks at Sebastian in the corner of his eye. His face becomes as red as a cherry. I share a look with Sebastian and his eyes flash their demonic color. He raises a hand to his mouth as a loud 'pft' flies past his lips. I snicker harshly, holding my stomach as I do.

"W-We don't have time for this! Let's go upstairs already!" Ciel yells in embarrassment.

"Even the young master can't help himself in front of a young lady, huh..." Sebastian observes, holding back more chuckles in the process.

"Especially his fiancé. ~" I tease as well.

His face turns even redder, "Shut up you two!" he snarls. Sebastian picks him up in his arms, carrying him like a baby almost. "Well then, let's go." Sebastian agrees with his smirk is wide.

"Bastards. Stop laughing already!" Ciel shouts at the both of us.

"But your mortification and embarrassment are too funny." I state with a chuckle. But I stop once I hear footsteps come closer to us as they splash in the water. "Smile! I'm glad you're ok. Says Oscar." Snake calls out, coming closer to us.

"Snake!" I shout back, happy to know he is fine. "Where's Ryan?" Ciel asks afterward.

Snake stops in front of us, huffing slightly from the run. "I'm sorry, he managed to get away. Says Emily." Snake apologizes.

"I see," Ciel sighs. "In any case, let's meet up with the Marquis for the time being." Ciel decides.

"Yes." Sebastian agrees and begins to lead the way to the Midford family. We all follow along, but my steps are slow. I'm fucking exhausted, man. But I know one thing keeps repeating in my mind, this ship hit something. What is it?