Update Feb 2014: Ch51 of ASAS has original drafts of the first scene of this chapter, if you wanna check 'em out!
Chapter 135: No Way to Live
Demyx whistled as he roamed the halls of the World that Never Was. Why was he roaming the halls? Oh, the usual; trying to avoid people, putting off work, nothing new.
Thud!
Demyx jumped slightly. He stood still for a second, hoping the thudding wouldn't be danger and come his direction. When it didn't, he slowly peeked around the corner to see what it actually was. He was surprised to find Axel pinning Vexen – a Vexen Replica, Demyx corrected himself – to the wall.
"You aren't telling me something!" Axel said. He had one of his chakrams at the Vexen Replica's throat, and he didn't look very happy.
What's his beef? Demyx wondered, ducking back around the corner. It wasn't often he saw Axel angry – though he hadn't seen Axel on a frequent basis as of lately. Axel was always off doing other things; apparently, threatening people.
Maybe I should go, Demyx thought. I wouldn't want to interrupt… this.
But what if what they're saying is important? a part of him nagged.
And what am I going to do if it is? Tell someone? I'm not a snitch. It's best if I just stay out of this…
He was about to head off when he realized that heading back the way he came meant he'd be walking back in the direction of the Grey Area. Going back there meant he'd be told to get to work. And the only other direction he could go was currently blocked by Axel and that Vexen Replica.
Hmm… go do work? Or risk getting involved in something that I think I'd rather not be involved in?
"That wasn't the question I asked!" Axel shouted.
Well, if I stay here, I think I have a reason for slacking off, Demyx thought slowly, as he peeked around the corner again. Axel looked angrier than ever, though the Vexen Replica didn't seem fazed. Eavesdropping on this conversation is reason to not do work, right?
Sadly, he couldn't quite hear what the Vexen Replica said in response. All Demyx heard were the words "file" and "updated recently", which, out of context, meant absolutely nothing to him. Actually, they just meant absolutely nothing to him. He wasn't entirely computer-savvy.
"What if I can get around that problem?" Axel asked.
Demyx grimaced. He was now lost. What problem were they talking about?
Maybe eavesdropping wasn't a good idea…
The Vexen Replica laughed. "I suppose you can get around the lack of access to the Main Computer then, too!" He said this as if it were a joke.
Demyx wasn't sure what Axel did next – he'd hidden behind the corner again – but it must've been threatening, given the Vexen Replica's response:
"You won't kill me." Demyx was impressed by how calm the Vexen Replica sounded. "If this brilliant plan of yours is going to work, you need someone who knows how to use the Program, and you aren't going to hunt another one of us down. If there even is another one of us. Master Vexen didn't just give the knowledge of his Program to any Replica."
"Can we do it or not?" Axel said after a moment. He still sounded angry.
Demyx let out a long breath. He'd hate to be in the Vexen Replica's place right now. He would've cracked already if he had been – he'd never been good under pressure. Not for the first time, Demyx couldn't help but think that he was glad he wasn't involved with the Replicas and their Program any more than he had to be.
"And if the file wasn't updated recently?" Axel asked.
Demyx frowned. What file? He'd missed what the Vexen Replica said before Axel's question. But hadn't the Vexen Replica mentioned a file before…?
"Well… it depends on how much the file is missing," the Vexen Replica replied slowly. Demyx couldn't hear what he said after that; his voice had gotten extremely quiet. Demyx strained his ears, but to no avail; the only words he heard made absolutely no sense to him. More technical mumbo-jumbo.
"I do," Axel said.
He does what? Demyx wondered. Out of context, the statement seemed so absurd. And he couldn't hear what the Vexen Replica said next. This Vexen Replica clearly had a habit of speaking very quietly. Demyx wasn't sure what was going on, and was about to look around the corner to see when he heard the distinct sound of a dark corridor opening.
"C'mon, then." Axel's voice. He sounded much happier than he did before. The Vexen Replica must've cracked and given him the information he wanted. "We're going to see the boss."
The Vexen Replica's reply was clear this time: "We're – what!?"
When Demyx looked around the corner, they were both gone. He debated for a second what he was going to do next. He figured the right thing to do would be to tell someone about what he had just heard. But Axel had just dragged the Vexen Replica to go see Xemnas… for some reason…
Looks like the important people are going to hear about it whether I tell them or not, Demyx thought, smiling to himself. That meant less work for him to have to do. He resumed his roaming.
xxx
Namine had already shut her door before she realized there was someone else sitting in her room. On her bed. Looking bored.
A Larxene Replica.
Namine pressed herself against the door and quickly fumbled for the doorknob.
"Oh!" It seemed to take the Larxene a moment to notice her. "Oh, sorry, I'm not—You don't have to do that. I'm not here to hurt you or kidnap your anything, promise. Also, shoot. It occurs to me this was a terrible way to carry out this plan. Unless… Have I already thought that? How long have I been here…"
A vague look entered her eyes, and she blinked a few times.
Namine stared. She wasn't sure if she should believe this Larxene? But there was something… off, about her. Namine kept her hand remained on the doorknob, though. Just in case.
"What's going on?" she demanded. "Why are you here?"
"Well," the Larxene began, but then stopped. She shook her head, scowling. "No, hang on, I absolutely mucked this up. So uh… bye, maybe I'll see you later." She waved and got to her feet, no doubt preparing to leave.
But then she stopped. Staggered. Her face scrunched up with pain, eyes squeezed shut. She stood there for a few moments, cursing under her breath. It looked like her knees might give way any second.
"What- What's…?" Namine began, not really sure what to say. She took a step forward, preparing to steady the Larxene, though she'd hate to do so. Good news: the Larxene sat back down before Namine could get close enough.
She felt a little guilty about not wanting to help, though. As much as she hated Larxene herself, and as horrible as most of her Replicas were, they weren't all terrible. And this one clearly seemed to be in pain, which was kind of disconcerting. What was wrong? And why, of all places, had the Larxene come to her room?
The Larxene took a deep breath, and then she groaned.
"I'm dying," she said, voice sharp.
"Wh- what!?"
"I made a really dumb mistake and thought to myself 'ah yes, a virus that causes a slow and painful death, that'd be a wonderful thing to make'—forgetting that I always manage to catch every single virus I write! Ugh!" She sat hunched over, clutching at her forehead with one hand. If Namine had to wager a guess, she'd guess it hurt.
Something in what this Larxene said sparked recognition in Namine, also. She remembered something 7 had said, a while back. About viruses.
"Wait… Are you R?" she asked.
The Larxene threw her free hand up in exasperation. "Oh, so 7's mentioned me, then!" she said, not sounding entirely happy about it. That counted as a yes, Namine supposed.
"Uh, yeah," Namine said. Remembering what else 7 had said, she continued: "Hey… I don't, um, really understand what's going on but—Hasn't 7 managed to deal with all the other viruses you've written? That's what he said, anyway."
"He can't fix this one," R answered, bitterly. Under her breath, she added something that sounded like I made sure of that.
"Then… why are you here?" Namine asked. "Actually, like, just in general. What are you doing in my room?"
"Oh, I was hoping I could talk Riku into killing me!" R said, brightly.
Namine felt her stomach bottom out.
"What."
"Well," R continued—there was only the slightest edge to her tone—"I figured death by Riku would be significantly better than, uh, the slower, painful, excruciating death that's on its way to claim me within the next month or so."
Namine's mouth moved for words, but she couldn't find any, thoroughly horrified by this turn of events.
R clucked her tongue. "Yeah, really mucked this one up," she sighed. She got to her feet again, and didn't stagger this time, though she did still seem to have some trouble with it. "Look, don't worry about it. I don't even need you, I just need Riku. I don't know why I came here first…" She trailed off here, but continued quieter, to herself: "I mean, not thinking clearly, probably. But it's so hard to think clearly… so hard to think at all…"
R sighed and moved to leave the room, but Namine stopped her. That was easy, because she was still standing right in the doorway.
"Um, hang on," Namine said, mouth dry. She held her hands up in front of her, mind spinning for ways to stop R from getting any further. There was nothing she could do if R formed a dark corridor, but until that point, she felt like she should try.
R raised her eyebrows, looking down at Namine. She was annoyed, but the look of it barely reminded Namine of any other Larxenes—it wasn't a cruel look, it didn't evoke the feeling of being looked down upon like a bug.
"I really would like to avoid hurting you," R said. "So, please—"
There was a knock on the door behind Namine.
"Namine?" a voice called. Riku's voice.
"Oh no," Namine whispered.
"Oh perfect!" R said.
Riku opened the door then, and Namine cursed. It probably wasn't a good sight—the way it looked like R had backed her into a corner and all. She just hoped Riku had the sense to notice she wasn't scared. She just hoped Riku listened to her.
"Hey—!" Riku began, but Namine backed up and threw her weight into him, pushing him back, back out of the doorway, back into the hallway, back, back, away from R. She wasn't just going to stand by and let this happen.
"Riku, she's not here to hurt us," Namine started explaining, as rapidly as she could. "She's not here for me, she—"
"So!?" Riku demanded. His hand tightened around her arm, likely getting ready to move her out of the way.
"Hey, good to see you," R said, pleasantly. "I'd like to die."
"THAT CAN BE ARRANGED!"
"Riku, no, hang on," Namine stammered.
By this point, Riku had moved so Namine wasn't completely blocking him anymore, standing more next to her, one hand still on her arm. He scowled down at her. "What? Why not?"
"Are you not made just the slightest bit uncomfortable by someone asking you to kill them?" Namine asked, scowling right back up to him. "I don't care if it's a Larxene! It'd be different if she'd done something, I guess, but—"
"I can do something," R offered.
"We need to get 7, Riku," Namine said, suppressing a groan and ignoring R, figuring that was the best course of action here. "I think he can help? And I'm pretty sure she's not going to actually cause us trouble."
"Literally everyone I know would argue otherwise on that," R said, one finger held up. "I mean, I'm the person behind every terrible virus outbreak we've had, and, maybe you weren't there for those, but I think most people would agree having me gone would solve a lot of problems."
"What about 7?" Namine argued, rounding on R. "Do you think he'd agree?"
"I mean I've been a major pain in his ass for the past three years, so probably."
"I don't believe that."
Namine'd only heard 7 speak of R a few times, but it had been with… a fondness, of sorts. At the very least, he hadn't spoken with any kind of extreme dislike. It was enough to go out on a limb, in her opinion—and the mention of 7 definitely seemed to make R's resolve falter, a little bit.
"Namine," Riku said, but Namine shushed him and pushed him backwards a little again. He didn't resist her, which was a good sign.
"No, I'm not letting you do this," she said firmly. "I'm not letting either of you do this! Riku, listen, we need to get her to 7. I think it's important."
"7 CAN'T FIX THIS!" R screamed, and an anger entered her eyes. She made a motion that caused Riku and Namine to flinch reflexively—except, no lightning came. Not even a spark. R glared at her empty hand, and then cursed violently. "Oh just great! I forgot I couldn't… even—!"
Her words cut off short, and she swayed, sinking to her knees.
Recognition sparked in Riku's eyes, like he'd seen something like this before. He suddenly looked uncomfortable. And there was… something else, in his eyes. Something harder to place.
Namine eyed R again, swallowing. It was very, very strange to see a Larxene, of all people, on the ground, in pain like this. It was hard to watch, too.
"We need to get her to 7," Namine said.
Riku scowled much like the last thing he wanted to do was help, but Namine stared him down, and finally he relented. "Okay, well, I don't want to leave you alone with her, so you go get him."
"I don't want to leave you alone with her," Namine argued. That seemed like a recipe for disaster!
She and Riku stared at each other for a long moment, in a silent battle of wills. Finally, Riku gave in.
"I guess we'll just drag her there," he grumbled.
That only barely seemed like a better idea, but it would have to do.