Chapter 14: You Failed, But It's Not Your Fault

NK trudged on a sea of corpses.

Everywhere she looked she saw bodies of the infected strewn everywhere mangled and butchered by her party beyond recognition. The ground ran red with cytoplasm oozing out from the fallen's mortal wounds, forming puddles that soon coalesced to cover the whole paved ground of the lymphatic road. Each step she took sent ripples of crimson ichor like she was walking on top of a sweat pool. The stench of death flaring in her nostrils made her want to vomit, but she endured the putrid smell.

This was what she wanted, this was what she needed to achieve redemption.

The stain on her honor for failing to stop the archtraitor's rebellion could only be cleansed with the utter annihilation of her enemies.

She stopped walking to look down on one dead infected KT cell missing her lower half. Her face was locked into a perpetual scream, with her unhinged jaw stretched to impossible proportions. NK stared into her pupil-less eyes, and she saw pure hatred and unfulfilled rage.

I will destroy you. She thought to herself. All of you.

This was the only path to redemption, this was the only way she could ever forgive herself.

And yet…

Despite the hundreds of slithered throats, smashed heads, and butchered bodies, the carnage she unleashed was still not enough.

Still. Not. Enough.

She checked her chronometer and, to her surprise, the battle only lasted less than five minutes.

Her brows furrowed with confusion. She could have sworn it dragged on for much longer than what her time indicated.

She started recalling each opponent she fought, noting each movement her enemy made before she delivered the kill.

She shook her head. It doesn't really matter. The battle might have stretched for eternity or have ended in a blink of an eye, it still didn't change the fact that she almost died without fulfilling her oath.

The cold rusting blade of the infected NK kissing the membrane on her neck still sent shivers down her back.

She should have died then and there. She should have died unredeemed and a failure despite her burning promise to atone for her mistake, but by the grace of the Consciousness, she did not.

Before her fallen counterpart could slither her throat, deliverance came donning the mantle of ghosts and vanquishing her opponent with the swift judgment of her cleaver-sword.

Once again she owed her life to her master and her retinue of elite battle maids.

Her knuckles curled into tight fists. Another blow to her honor, another debt she needed to pay.

"You're blaming yourself again," a low voice from behind called out to her.

She turned to look at the owner of the voice, and her expression immediately turned into a scowl.

"And of course, you just have to meddle with other cell's business?" She rolled her eyes with annoyance. MT stood in front of her drenched with red cytoplasm from head to boots. "What are you? An overly concerned macrophage?"

MT looked straight at her in the eyes without blinking. His expression had turned grim. "I've said it before, and I'll say it again… This is not your fault."

"And now you've started assuming that I'm blaming myself?" She crossed her arms. "What are you? An overly excited neuron? You don't even know what I'm thinking."

"I don't need to," he pointed a finger directly toward her face. "You're an open book. You're so easy to read."

A flash of red bloomed on her cheeks. She opened her mouth to utter a comeback, but no words formed in her lips.

"Well… I... " she brushed his hand away. "You're so annoying!"

"If it means reminding you to focus on the enemy instead of sulking around at the affront on your honor, then yes… I'll continue to-"

"Oh, would you just shut up!" she shouted. "I don't need you to tell me what to do… You don't have the right to tell me what to do!"

"Yes I do!" he shouted back. This time, MT didn't back down. He took a step forward so that he now loomed over the feisty Natural Killer. "I do have the right!"

"Yeah?" she challenged him. She trudged directly in front of him so that their noses almost touched. Their eyes locked in an intense stare. Both held their ground, both didn't blink. "By what right do you have to tell me on what to do?!"

"By right as your friend!" MT snarled.

NK's eyes went wide open. Her jaws slacked as she tried to process what MT just said. Once again, she could feel a sudden rush of cytoplasm rushing toward her cheeks, and she could hear her mitochondrion beating wildly.

In her mind, she already had a comeback for the annoying muscular Memory T cell. She would have made a scene and then remind him of his place, or she'd beat it deep into his nucleus. But for all the responses she thought MT would give her, it never occurred to her at all that he would blatantly tell her that she was his friend.

There was no trick or any traces of deception on what he'd said. It was the truth, and she had no words to counter him. For a moment, her mind went completely blank, unable to respond.

"Ara? What is with this intense atmosphere I feel emanating from you two?" a soft, curious voice called out to both to them.

Almost like clockwork, both stepped back, immediately breaking up their locked gazes, as they pretended nothing had happened.

NK blinked a couple of times before raising her head to look toward the newcomer and saw a maid in an ashen grey dress, her lips curved into a beaming smile.

"I trust everything is well?" Lady Macrophage queried.

"Uh y-yes, milady, there's nothing wrong," NK blurted as she forced out a chuckle.

The battle maid nodded before turning her attention toward the muscled Memory T cell.

"All's good milady, we were just having a 'friendly' chat," MT responded in a low, tired voice.

Lady Macrophage held her smile. "Both of you have grown up so fast. Why I still remember like it was still yesterday when both of you were training so hard to pass your physical exams back in the Thymus Academy."

Both immune cells stared down on the floor as they shifted uncomfortably from where they stood. None dared tried to add anything to the battle maid's reminiscence for fear of divulging more embarrassing tidbits of their younger selves.

Lady Macrophage didn't seem to notice the awkward silence suffocating the mood in the air as she continued. "Though I must say, MT-kun, I'm pleasantly surprised to see the former Naive T cell who keeps on crying to become such a successful and strong Memory T Cell."

MT's face burned hot red with embarrassment. He curled his hands into tight fists just to steady himself. "Uh, that was… That's already old news, milady… I'm… I'm already matured and stronger than I was before."

"Yes, I most certainly agree." The leader of the macrophages concurred. "I'm very proud to have been one of your instructors albeit it was only for a short time."

MT's lips formed into a smile as he felt genuine kindness in her words. "T-Thank you, milady."

Then, something frantic blurted out on one of the side pockets of his trousers. MT quickly fished out his hand-held radio which was spouting out static.

"Uh, please excuse me, milady," he bowed his head in apology as he started to step away from her. "I need to take this,"

Lady Macrophage gave him a nod before turning her gaze toward her former apprentice. "And as I've said before, NK-chan, you have grown to become such a strong and independent cell."

"Uh yeah, sure..." NK shifted even more uncomfortably, hating every second of her being the topic of the conversation.

"And I'm so proud to see you being able to stand your ground against this regrettable onslaught of our former comrades."

"Don't be," she blurted out and immediately cursed herself for uttering it out.

Lady Macrophage tilted her head into a questioning look. "You fought splendidly against a fight between your peers and-"

"How could you say that?" NK interrupted her. "I… I lost that fight! You, you have to muddy yourself and intervene just to save my life! I didn't fight splendidly at all!"

Lady Macrophage stared at her former apprentice. Her lips curved to form a subtle smile as she waited for NK to continue.

"I failed, milady," she finally confessed the feelings of guilt that had tormented her these past few days. "As a hunter, I should have found this rebellion beforehand and stopped Lady Em from ever reaching to this point. I failed, and this is my fault."

"There is no way to have stopped my first apprentice from rebelling," the older phagocyte added. There was no trace of any bitter resentment in her voice, not even a hint of regret. Instead, she sounded almost fascinated by her successor's betrayal. "It was Em-chan's choice to rebel… It was the destiny she chose."

"Even still, I should have found traces of her infection!" NK countered, this time more forcefully. "Milady, I'm… I'm a fail-"

But before NK could finish her sentence, Lady Macrophage wrapped her hands around her, hugging her tightly, pressing her chest on her face. NK's master moved so fast she didn't even see her coming.

As if acting on instincts, NK tried to yank herself away, but the elder battle maid pressed a hand on the back of her head that kept her on her place.

"There, there," Lady Macrophage cooed as she stroked her fingers down her raven black hair. "It's alright."

NK gritted her teeth as her vision started to blur. She didn't deserve this… She didn't deserve the kind words of her master.

For what felt like a minute, both didn't move from their place. The older phagocyte continued stroking her apprentice's hair even though it only made NK feel even more guilty.

"Milady, I…"

Then Lady Macrophage muttered something in her ear that made her membrane crawl.

"You are right NK-chan, you failed horribly in your duty," Lady Macrophage whispered cooly.

NK's face turned ashen white. Again she tried to pull away from her master's grip, but she realized she couldn't move.

"Ah, ah, ah… We are not done yet, NK-chan," the elder battle maid sang cheerfully despite the dire meaning behind her words. "Allow me to part some wisdom to you, you wretched worm… There are only two kinds of cells that I despise in this forsaken world… The first are those who are unwilling to grab or even search for their own given destinies and the second are those who committed the sin of failure."

NK didn't dare utter a sound. She didn't even dare breathe and risk her master's anger. She'd heard tales of Lady Macrophage's wrath, but she always assumed them to meant of her savagery in combat. She never thought her soft-spoken mentor was capable of this form of subtle terror.

"You failed, NK-chan," the elder battle maid repeated. "And you are correct, failure is a sin that can only be atoned in death be it yours or the enemy."

NK pushed herself to muster enough courage to respond. "I-I understand, milady and-"

"No, you don't." Lady Macrophage immediately cut her off. "You may be right about failing, but you are wrong to say this is your fault."

Then, NK sensed the touch of her master's hands had eased. She could now move away from Lady Macrophage's embrace but decided to remain still.

"Please do not err in thinking this heresy is somehow your fault." the older phagocyte continued. "If you must bare your hatred on one individual, then aim it solely on Em-chan, my brightest and most beloved apprentice."

NK's cytoplasm boiled with raged at the mention of the archtraitor's name. For the past few days, she followed the trail of the traitors only for it to suddenly run cold when it ended on an alleyway full of desecrated corpses of dead immune cells that were sent ahead of her to investigate the reports of a viral infection. Many of those lying on the ground, with their organelles bulging out from their membranes, were colleagues and friends of hers back in the Thymus academy.

Finally, NK moved away from her master's embrace, taking a step back, as she straightened herself to stand in attention. This time, her eyes burned with renewed purpose. "I swear to you milady, by my life, I shall offer you the head of Lady Em."

"You will do no such thing," Lady Macrophage smiled, showing off her immaculate white teeth. It was not a friendly smile nor did it contain any of its usual warmth and assurance. "Anyone who does will be my enemy, and I shall visit such destruction on him that he will rue the day he took away my kill."

NK gulped realizing once again she'd spoke out of turn.

"Em-chan's head is mine." the elder battle maid's lips widened into a sinister grin. "I will be the one to end her. It is my destiny."

NK inhaled deeply before nodding. "Understood milady. I shall atone for my failure with the cytoplasm of our enemies, but I shall leave the head of the archtraitor to your pleasure."

This time, Lady Macrophage's smile softened into the usual one that radiated kindness instead of despair. "I expect nothing less from you, NK-chan."

"Milady!"

Both turned to look at Memory T cell who appeared visibly shaken. Sweat dripped down his forehead, and his shoulders rose and dropped each time he breathed. On one of his hands, he held a radio that kept on spurting chittering static.

"Yes, MT-kun? What is it?"

"It's… It's terrible!" the muscled lymphocyte exclaimed, his nostrils flaring. "I just received a report from the Thymus… The Thymus has…"

"Just spit it out MT," NK snarled, a tinge of irritation coated her voice. "We don't have all day!"

MT ignored her barb as he drew in a deep breath before bellowing. "Thymus HQ is under siege! Dendritic cell has turned traitor and is now besieging the Thymus HQ!"


A/N:

Sometimes I'm more afraid of characters that are always smiling than those who are always angry. Now we finally see where Lady Em got her serial-killer smile from. XD

Anyways, I'm back! Well, that was a long break from my fanfic. Don't worry, I'm still writing this fic, it's just that I was 100% working-mode for the whole month of February and it took me the whole month of March to bring myself back to writing again.

It's so nice to be writing again!


Revision History:

- Originally published on March 31, 2019