hackGU: Return Chapter 10: Teaching, a .hack/sign fanfic

Whee…Chapter 10 of .hack//G.U.: Return. (Man this took forever! Writer's block SUCKS!)

Disclaimer; .hack, .hack characters, and anything to do with it doesn't belong to me. XP

Axel, Hikaru, Hunter, Kuroha, Ginny, Aurum and 'the Guild Master' all belong to Miffin. If you take them, feel her fiery wrath.

Denki, Eon, Koji, Shiruba and the plot belong to me. Don't take them, or feel Eon's fiery wrath.

Well, this is the first chapter that I've ever attempted to write on a lower version of Word… Y¬Y;; I want my other version back!!

(This one involves too much clicking!) (Plus, I have to fix all of the Dictionary words again…and add words and names like 'Hikaru' back in…what a pain...Not to mention, that I've now noticed that it catches even LESS mistakes, than the last version… ¬¬)

Also, thanks for all of the reviews! WHOO! 30 now! Good job! XD

Dusk Ado helped me come up with the first part of this chapter, so thanks, puko! XD (If not for him, I'd of STILL not even started this chapter…)

Yaaay! If you're still reading this, then congratulations! You've just opened up the tenth chapter of this fic! Welcome to chapter Ten: Teaching! Douzo!

Chapter 10: Teaching

The silence that permeated the air reached an unbearable level, and Eon had to speak, to apologize, to say something to break it, or she'd go insane!

"I'm sorry, Pi. I should have told you…" Eon said with her head down. Her eyes…or more so, her eye, looked at the ground before her. She dared not lift her head, to look at the Admin. She was just too…afraid…

Pi was speechless…almost.

"You...can't see through your right eye…?" She questioned, though this did not come to her by total surprise. She knew that she had seen something before that data vanished…and she was right.

"I have a 'retinal detachment'; I was taken out of school because of it. My parents thought that it was 'contagious'…" Eon explained monotonously. She had said this entire statement too many times for her to count, and it was getting repetitive. "And recently, someone's been trying to hack my character to get that information…but I won't let them see it!" She announced.

Pi's eye twitched... How could she still not know that it was herself, who was trying to hack into her character this entire time?! Somehow, somehow, she knew that she was being hacked, and yet…not by whom?! Then what was the point of the E-mail that she sent her?! A bluff?!

"Someone's been trying to hack your character…?" Pi asked, as calmly as she could…which she had to admit, was not easy.

Eon nodded her head hard.

"Y-yes…" She murmured, her ears flattened against her head.

Pi crossed her arms over her chest, before stepping around to Eon's right, and waving her hand in front of her.

There was no reaction. Eon just stood there obliviously, though her right ear twitched to the sound of the waving.

Pi withdrew her hand, before grabbing Eon by the wrist hard, with the other.

"H-huh?!" Eon whined, as Pi quickly dragged her towards the Warp Panel. "Wh-where are we going?!" She demanded.

"To the Serpent of Lore." Pi answered bluntly, as she opened up her Main Menu, and selected 'Short Mail'. She quickly typed in a blunt message, and sent it to all Epitaph Users, and Guardian Masters. Now was not the time to mess around. This was serious…

---------------------------------------Raven: The Serpent of Lore------------------------------------

It felt like a court room, to Eon. People starring at her, like she had committed murder; which she didn't… Gasps of shock, like she had done something unthinkable; was it really that bad…? And even the smart one, Yata, looked horrified. The only difference that Eon could see at the moment, between this and an actual court room, was that there was one tenth of the people, the room was almost completely black (fit more so for interrogations than court), the 'trial' was totally one-sided, and the fact that they were inside of a video game.

She grit her teeth hard. The last one was the worst part of it… The World was the only place that she could ever escape to; where no one would know about her disability…and yet, here she was, in the middle of G.U.'s 'court room'…

"Is this true, Eon…?" Yata asked strictly, his eyes narrowed behind his orange lenses.

Eon swivelled her head around uncomfortably, to face away from Yata, and the rest of the Epitaph Users to the best of her ability, before grudgingly nodding her head.

"It is…" She answered in a low mutter.

The Macabre Dancer's eyes narrowed even more, anger pulsing through him like venom. He moved so fast, that Eon had no time to react, before he grabbed her by the collar, and lifted her PC body into the air. He glared at her, with his dark eyes, before hoisting her as high as he possibly could.

"Why didn't you tell us?!" He demanded, shaking her once hard.

Eon let out a small grunt, as if in pain, but did not look at him. She allowed her PC body's eyes to wander away from the Guild's leader, and towards the monitors behind him. She couldn't face him like this!

Yata shook her hard once more, this time slightly swinging her.

"Why didn't you tell us?!" He asked again, the venomous anger on the tip of his tongue.

Eon's ears flattened, as she looked down at the ground. She pulled her lips apart, as if ready to speak, before realizing that she couldn't talk. Her mouth was completely dry. She didn't even notice it earlier…was she really that scared…? Not once did she ever hear of Yata getting mad at any of the other G.U. members…so why was he picking on her now?!

Another shake came from the Dancer, as Eon clamped her eyes shut. Even though this was a game, she could imagine the motion of moving back and forth; the force of the shaking, and the anger with it.

"Stop it!" Axel howled angrily, as he stepped forward, towards the two of them, before Kuhn held his hand out in front of him to make him stop. Axel starred at the Steam Gunner in shock, as Kuhn shook his head tiredly. Axel grit his teeth hard together, before turning to Hikaru, who was also starring at the sight, eyes glazed over in deep, contemplating thought. He looked like he wanted to help too…but knew that he couldn't at a time like this… It was up to Eon to defend herself…

"I couldn't!" Eon suddenly yowled, reaching up and grabbing Yata's wrist with both of her hands. She desperately began to pull at the arm, attempting to make it let go, but Yata held on tightly; determined for an answer. She was done feeling sorry for herself! The look from Hikaru told her it all. She was her only chance now! Only she could protect herself, and her place in this 'World'!

"You couldn't…?" He asked, his fingers curling around the black collar tighter. "You couldn't tell us that you were half blind…? That you couldn't see anything on the entire right half of your body…?"

Eon bit her teeth together hard, before yanking once more.

"No, I couldn't!" She answered, now just as determined as the Guild Master. "If I did tell you, then what would you have done to me?!" Eon demanded. "Force me to sit out? Make me stay in this Guild forever? Possibly even kick me out of this game?!"

Yata's eyes narrowed, as he continued to glare up at her, but Eon didn't flinch, or even react. She had turned her blind eye to his expression; both figuratively, and literally.

"Of course I'd of stopped you from exterminating the AIDA!" He howled back, shaking her hard yet again. "Of course I'd of stopped you from going on any sort of G.U.-related missions! But do you know why?!" He demanded, angry wrinkles appearing around the base of his nose. "Because this job is the most dangerous in all of 'The World'! Do you not understand what risks you have, just witnessing the AIDA, nonetheless exterminating it?! Even Epitaph Users can become Lost Ones, Eon!" He yelled, before flinging her onto the ground before him.

Eon had no time to react, before landing hard on her back, in front of the Macabre Dancer. She glared up at him, ears folding behind her head angrily, as she bared her canine-like fangs at him.

"Of course I know." She answered bitterly. "But I don't care! I will play this game, no matter how dangerous it is; no matter what risks there are! And if Aura wants me to fight, then I will fight for her!" Eon explained, glaring up at Yata.

Yata clenched his fists together hard. How could she be so…so foolish?! Didn't he just explain that she could become a Lost One? Didn't he just say that it was dangerous?! It's hard enough making sure that all of the Epitaph Users stay in tact, nonetheless a half-blind child! So what if she had a Guardian?! What good would it do her if she ended up in a coma in the end?! Ovan was already gone! He couldn't risk losing anybody else to the AIDA!

He shut his eyes tightly, and rubbed the bridge of his nose, before looked back down at the girl. She hadn't even bothered to get up; only hoisting herself on right elbow. Did she really want to keep on fighting, even with the odds so against her…?

No…no thinking like that… Yata told himself. You can't put anyone else in danger…for their sake, as well as The World's!

Yata removed his hand from his face, before glaring down at the girl one final time. His decision had been made…if only rash, he wished not…

"Get up." He ordered strictly.

Eon grunted angrily, as she grudgingly obeyed the Macabre Dancer.

"What?" She asked, her eyes slit to the thickness of paper.

"Get out." Yata said bluntly. It was the only way that he could say it like this. He knew that they needed all of the help that they could get, but with one of the final three Guardian Masters being in Crystal Seraphim, and the other two's location unknown, nonetheless who they were…it was the best decision that he could make…

"What…?" Eon asked, lowering her guard somewhat. It came to her as shock, that he would just tell her go away.

"I said leave." Yata repeated. "You are no longer a part of Operation G.U.. If you are ever caught facing AIDA, or abusing the privileges that you have once held as a G.U. member, you account will be erased, and you will be kicked out of this game."

Eon's heart pounded hard, as the final words left his lips.

No…longer…? She wondered. But then…they don't need…or want me anymore…?

Tough luck, squirt. Shiruba said calmly, from within Eon's head. Looks like we got the boot from this hell-house.

Eon looked at the ground thoughtlessly, her eyes glazed, and her mind dazed.

No more AIDA…or no more playing…? Eon asked herself, as her legs slowly led her towards the door.

"I'll log out for today…" She whispered to no one in particular. This was too much to take in for the moment… The choice of battling the AIDA, which she promised she would destroy, and to never play again…or to break that promise, and never worry about AIDA, or the problems of The World ever again…playing the game like an average player…

This choice was one of the hardest choices that Eon had ever made in her life.

Axel slammed his foot into the ground, making Kuhn flinch in shock, before pushing past the blue-haired Steam Gunner, and up to Yata.

"You bastard!" He howled, clenching his fists at his sides tightly. "Why the hell did you do that?!" He demanded, his green eyes slitting in a way, similar to Ginryuu's.

"Axel!" Pi called angrily, but Yata silenced her with the wave of his hand. She let out an uneasy grunt, before stepping back into place. Yata had already lost his patience once today…something she never thought that she would see…especially within The World…

"What else was I supposed to do then, Axel…?" The Macabre Dancer asked, raising an eyebrow behind his tinted glasses. "Was I supposed to say, 'all right, I forgive you'? Or possibly, 'Here's your next AIDA-related assignment'…?"

Yata folded his arms across his chest tightly, as he narrowed his eyes at the Twin Blade. How could he never think before acting?! He seemed to be like Haseo, when he first used his Avatar, Skeith… Uncontrollable. If he had just told him sooner, none of this would have happened here today!

"If you think that that was what I was supposed to say, Axel, then I don't see how you can be such a good friend to that girl. You should understand how dangerous this job is, with or without a handicap!" He explained heartlessly. "She even admitted it herself, of having been in a coma once before! Do you truly wish for her to be put into one, yet again…?"

Axel bit his teeth together hard, as he flexed his fingers in and out of fists. He was seriously contemplating on what would happen if he hit the 'all mighty' Leader of G.U. right now... No one, no one questioned how much of a friend he is with Eon! Even if she had a handicap, she was still a person! To discard her so easily…ticked him off more than he could describe in words.

"You bastard…" Axel hissed again, before turning his back to Yata, and heading towards the exit of the Serpent of Lore; Hikaru following him at a normal, walking pace.

Yata turned his back to Axel as well, facing the monitors at the front of the room. His eyes scanned them quickly, noticing the little dog girl shakily save at the Save Shop, before logging out of The World. He couldn't help but feel a small pang of guilt. He never yelled. Not once could he ever remember losing his cool in The World. Not in R:1, nor any time in R:2 either…until today. He silently cursed. For all of G.U. to see him in such a…unsophisticated state, was like them seeing him with a second head on his shoulders!

If only this had never happened…

"Axel." He said, though he did not turn to face him.

Axel didn't respond, but stopped silently, and listened.

Yata remained silent for a long moment, to make sure that Axel was still paying attention, before continuing. "If I find you, or Hikaru, helping that girl fight the AIDA, or doing anything else that is G.U. related… I will not hesitate to erase her account for this game." He finished, a small lump in the bottom of his gut.

Could he really do that…? What if Shiruba didn't return with her account lost? What if she did return, but was lost to Crystal Seraphim…what if they were targeting her already?!

Axel made a small grunt of understanding, distracting Yata from his current thoughts and worries.

"Whatever…" He muttered, before exiting the Guild with Hikaru.

Yata grunted once, turning back to the remaining six Epitaph Users.

"You are all dismissed." He said bluntly. "Return to the Arena, and win some more WP Points. I will not be joining you."

Haseo nodded, before heading out, the rest of G.U. following him quickly; Pi following last.

"Master Yata…" She murmured, but Yata held up an arm, before turning back towards the monitors.

"I have…work to do..." He lied, beginning to type in random coordinates into the floating, transparent keyboard before him.

Pi was silent for a long moment, before finally turning towards the doorway, where Haseo was waiting for her.

"Let's go, Pi…" Haseo murmured, and with a slight nod, they left the Guild.

----------------------------------Offline: Ippikiookami Residence------------------------------------

Eon starred up at her ceiling unblinkingly.

To fight AIDA, or no…?

Those were the only words that continued to float in her head. No matter what she did, the thoughts wouldn't leave her. She had a choice to make, and couldn't rest until she figured something out.

She sighed impatiently, before shutting her eyes, and sitting up on the bed. She waited, then opened them once more, and looked at the nearly-empty room that surrounded her. The only colours in the pure-white room came from the navy-blue carpet, the small window just above her desk, too far for her to reach; now reflecting pale blue light onto the wall and desk below, and the few posters that Axel had got her years ago, of shows she did not know.

Eon blinked, before looking down at her palm. She squeezed it once into a fist, before opening it again, and examining paler skin turn back to its peachy-colour.

"Two choices, huh…?" She asked herself quietly, standing up, and looking at the desk in front of herself.

She furrowed her eyebrows slightly in deep thought, before turning to face door. She reached her hand towards the door handle, but instead of pushing the level-like handle, waved her hand through thin air.

Eon grunted uncomfortably. The lack of an eye affected more than just one thing. Her depth perception was off too…not that it was news to her…she normally missed the handle the first try.

After successfully turning the handle, and leaving her room, Eon walked out into a narrow hallway, then stepped down three short steps, into a small kitchen. She looked around for a moment, before finally seeing a small piece of paper left on the table.

Again…? She thought tiredly, slowly walking over to the table, and picking up the note.

"Be back late. Food in fridge. Mom."

Eon sighed tiredly. She almost never saw her parents anymore. She didn't even know where they worked anymore…and at times, even forgot their faces.

She ate a cold dinner of leftover rice, and spring rolls, before finally retreating back into her room; ignoring the knock on the door as she left the kitchen. It was probably Axel…not that she wanted to see much of anyone right now…

On in her room, Eon instantly stepped over to her desk and grabbed the back of her chair with slight difficulty, before sitting down on its cushioned seat. She reached over, halfway across the desk, towards her M2D; furrowing her eyes in concentration as she attempted to pick it up first try. Her hand missed. With a small sigh, Eon put her palm on the desk, and moved it across, towards the small contraption until her index finger touched it. With a small smile, she picked it up, and quickly placed it over her eyes. Even though she had been offline for little more than an hour, she already missed the game. 'The World' was addicting; she had to admit it.

She reached to her left, and with a little less difficulty, picked up the one-handed controller, and held it ready. She quickly clicked the directional button to the right, and saw that there were no new E-mails…or at least ones that she wanted to read, and flipped over a few more times to the Forums page. Eon flipped through some of the Posts randomly, not bothering to read full sentences, and skimming only until she saw something that looked interesting, only to find that it was nothing more than a rumour. After an half hour of useless, rumour-only posts, she finally gave up on finding anything worth-while doing for solo-quests, and exited the Forums page (After reading an interesting post about Zelkova going on a Chim Chim hunt…). She then flipped back a few times, letting the cursor hover over top of the large 'The World' symbol for a matter of seconds.

Her heart beat abnormally fast.

She blinked a couple of times, attempting to figure out if it was the right thing to do, going back into the game before Yata had calmed down (Saying that he would calm down at all…she could no longer predict what the Macabre Dancer was thinking, like she could do with some other players…).

Finally, Eon decided that there was no point in fearing entering The World. So long as she stayed away from AIDA and the Crystal Seraphim, Yata and the rest of G.U. had no reason to bother her.

-------------------------------------------The Eternal City: Mac Anu----------------------------------------

It took a few seconds for the game to load, before Eon was surrounded by the dark graphics of the Mac Anu Cathedral. She looked around wearily for a long second, to be absolutely sure that no one in G.U. would pounce on her for not telling them her secret, before allowing her guard to drop, and exiting the building.

She held her arm up to her eyes, as the bright sun of the sea-side city blinded her; slowly walking across the connecting bridge to the central Area. She allowed a small, almost faint smile upon her lips as she lowered her hand. This city was so beautiful. Could she really give it up, just to keep a promise that she made to herself, and an AI…?

"Come one, come all, to the Shop Acorn!" A familiar voice called, catching Eon's immediate attention, as she looked down the stairway, towards a short, chubby beastman, and his green clad friend.

"Come and get your merchandise here!" The green one called cheerfully; a large smile across his face. "We sell Weapons, Armour, Healing Items, and even Alchemy Materials!"

"Yeah!" The chubby one called, a smile even larger than the green one's on his lips. "All collected by our famous Guild Master, Haseo!"

Eon blinked, surprised, before finally realising where she had seen the two of them before. She narrowed her eyes angrily. These were the two that were convinced that she was a 'Noob' when her level was Date Drained! How did she even manage to forget their faces?!

She slowly began to descend from the steps, until she finally noticed that their shop was almost completely empty. All of the passer-bys seemed to ignore them, and carry on with their business elsewhere, or just plainly avoid eye-contact and leave.

It was about then that the chubby one's ears flattened sadly, as he took his seat behind the counter, and the green one slowly sat beside him; both looking equally depressed. This must have been happening for a while…though Eon knew nothing of it. She never paid attention to the shops, and bought all of her items from Vital Vista and NPC's. Even in the days of the 'TAN', she never truly paid them any attention, or did any business with them. She didn't like large Guilds…

She narrowed her eyes suspiciously, before approached the two of them slowly.

She didn't like the looks of things, whether she was a G.U. member or not, and obviously couldn't ignore them at a time like this! It seemed to her that even Haseo, their Guild Master didn't know what was going on right now! He never mentioned a thing around her, or any other G.U. members to her knowledge…

"Erm…hi…!" Eon greeted awkwardly, as she lifted her arm up to wave, though it's elbow-up remained glued to her side.

The beastman jumped up instantly, overjoyed with the fact that some player was talking to him, before turning to the green 'Silibus'. (As his character name read.)

"Hello!" 'Gaspard' greeted her, his tail wagging wildly. "Welcome to Shop Acorn! How may I help you?!" He asked.

"Erm…" Eon murmured, unsure of what to do. Deciding against just plainly asking out 'where is everybody', she opened up their shop menu and looked over their goods. After a few seconds, she decided it would be in both of their interests to buy something…even if she didn't normally buy Guild-shop goods. "So…how much are your Healing Potions…?" She asked as politely as she could. She was never taught manners…not that she saw that as a bad thing…

Gaspard looked to Silibus for a moment, obviously in 'Party Chat: Whisper', before turning back to her.

"300 GP!" He answered cheerfully, though Eon could sense that it was forced.

She gave him a dumbfounded look.

"That cheap?!" She demanded. "How can you make a profit lowering the prices to almost half of NPC prices?!"

Gaspard flinched back in shock, before turning to Silibus one more time. The taller boy was quiet, before nodding to the beastman, as he lowered his head sadly.

"Well, you see…ever since the 'Crystal Seraphim' team has shown up in the arena, people have just stopped buying here…" He explained.

"It's like the players' way of cheering." Silibus explained, a small touch of coldness in his voice. "They believe that that team will be able to win the 'Warrior Palace Tournament', and choose to buy there, in Saal Haku, instead of here. They think that they will become the next 'Team Haseo'…"

"So they now ignore us all over again…" Gaspard finished, looking at the ground sadly, hugging his large tummy.

Eon slowly nodded; her temper boiling under her skin. How could these players be so cold hearted and stupid?! She grit her teeth together hard in the real world for a long instant, before finally allowing herself to speak to them.

"How can they do that…" She murmured, sickened by their 'logic'. "Who cares who wins, or becomes famous?! It's just a stupid Tournament! Ignoring certain shops like this is stupid!" She said coldly.

Gaspard nodded his head hard.

"Y-yeah!" He sniffed, "I never even get to see the smiling faces of players anymore, now that they don't come her anymore!" he explained, before moving his large hands to his eyes, and beginning to cry.

Silibus crouched down to his height, and began to attempt to comfort the beastman, before Eon's patience finally snapped. She slammed her fist onto the crate-like counter hard, making the two of them look at her instantly, before lifting her hand back up. (And shaking it in the real world, for accidentally doing the same thing on her desk…)

"Those jerks are going to pay…" She murmured coldly, as the two of them looked at her, confusion in their eyes. She allowed herself a small, toothy grin, before looking back down to the beastman. "How about we make a deal? I give you 700 GP for every Healing Potion in your stock…so…29400 GP for the 42 that you have…and in return for your kind offer…" She murmured, her grin widening. "I'll get my team to help beat the pants off of 'Crystal Seraphim'!" She announced, gaining multiple sudden stares from all of the passer-bys. It was not every day that someone was foolish enough to announce that they would beat 'Crystal Seraphim' in broad daylight anymore…

Gaspard and Silibus starred at her, dumbstruck, before the beastman finally launched himself over the counter, (at a pretty good speed to boot, for such a short and chubby guy…) and glomped Eon around the waist; nearly making her fall over.

"O-okay, y-you can get off now!" Eon croaked, beginning to try to push the Tu Tribe member off of herself, but he clung on tightly.

"Th-thank you so much!" He wailed. "That's the nicest thing that anyone's done for us, since Haseo beat Kestrel in the Demon Palace Tournament!" he explained through sobs.

A large sweat drop appeared on Eon's head, as her cheeks turned a pale shade of pink in the real world. So many people were watching her now…

"Y-yeah…" She murmured, finally managing to push him off. "But Haseo won't know about this, got it…?" She asked, putting her index finger to her mouth in a 'shh' position. "Got it…?"

Gaspard nodded his head rapidly, as he quickly ran (or more-like waddled) back to the opposite side of the counter once more to join Silibus, who was beaming as well. He quickly wiped the tears from his PC body's eyes, before quickly handing her the Healing Potions.

"That will be 29400 GP please!" He said with a large grin on his face.

Eon couldn't help but smile back, as she accepted the item from the beastman. It felt good to be helping someone out for once…

-----------------------------Lumina Cloth: Warrior Palace Tournament------------------------

Haseo's Twin Blade ripped through his opponent like paper, as he turned to face the final remaining threat to them, and their victory.

He was a tall, thin, human-Blade Brandier…but also well trained. Already, he had taken out both Atoli and Sakubo twice alone, not to mention nearly taking out Kuhn with a powerful 'Devastation Sword' tech attack.

Haseo grit his teeth together hard, as he sized him up; the Brandier doing the exact same thing, as they slowly circled each other. Haseo's crimson eyes quickly flashed to a darker, bloodier shade, as he let out a loud howl, and flung himself at his opponent quickly, ripping out his scythe as he did so.

As if expecting it, the Brandier, held the guard button tightly, as Haseo's weapon and his made contact, pushing him back a bit, just an inch from the barrier, before he stopped moving back, and held his position with Haseo's in a lock. He grinned sadistically. He knew that the rest of Haseo's party couldn't help him right now! He knew that Haseo was the only thing keeping them together right now! All of G.U. was unnerved by Yata's sudden mood swing, and haven't had time left to recover! He should have chosen a weaker opponent to face…

Pi was busy healing Kuhn slowly with continuous Repth spells, only pausing long enough for her tech bar to fill once more to cast, and Kuhn was currently resurrecting Atoli, as Endrance was Sakubo. Haseo knew that they were doing their best right now…but he couldn't help but wish that they'd speed it up a notch; this Brandier was already beginning to push him back!

"Is the 'Terror of Death' losing his touch…?" The tall Brandier asked smugly, as Haseo was slowly pushed back another inch.

He grit his teeth hard.

"Dammit…" Haseo murmured between his clenched jaws, pushing the Brandier back with all of his might. "I won't lose!" He howled! Haseo quickly pushed hard one last time, before jumping back, and whipping out his Twin Guns, shocking the Brandier.

He allowed himself a small grin.

"What…? Though that I only had two weapons?!" Haseo demanded, before he used 'Justice' on the Brandier, shooting him high into the air, and finishing with a Double Trigger.

He fell to the ground lifelessly, though Haseo knew that he must have been cursing his name as soon as the final Hit Point vanished from his screen…not that it mattered to him. They were now one step closer to fighting Crystal Seraphim. That was all that mattered.

As soon as Haseo exited the Arena, the Message finally came.

'Congratulations Team Haseo! You have currently gained enough WP Points to enter the Warrior Palace Tournament's final ranking!' It read. 'You will be contacted for your first match, in the B-stream via E-mail. Thank you for participating in this event.'

Haseo allowed himself a small grin.

Finally…we made it! He thought, as he turned to the rest of the Epitaph Users behind himself.

"We did it." He informed. "We finally made it into the ranking!"

Kuhn silently punched the air, before letting out a victorious howl of delight, and wrapping his arm around Pi's shoulder, who quickly pushed it off and bent it behind his back hard.

"O-okay Pi! Th-that hurts now…!" He whined, as the Tribal Grappler began to pull harder, making him slowly lose more HP.

"Hmph. I'll admit, you were pretty good, Haseo…" Saku murmured defiantly. "But you're still nowhere as good as Master En! He even resurrected me, while you were busy playing with that Brandier!" She explained coldly.

Haseo let Saku's comment slide, as he turned to face Atoli, who was clutching her hands together tightly.

"Th-that means that we just need to beat the rest of the teams in the ranking to face them!" She explained cheerfully. "This is wonderful, Haseo! It's just like before!"

Haseo nodded, as he slowly turned towards the stairway of the Arena, before noticing a small, silver-haired dog girl quickly approach the registration counter. He couldn't help but gawk as Eon finally finished her registering, and turned in their general direction, also mildly surprised at seeing them as well.

She stepped up to them calmly, after gaining enough nerves to approach her previous 'co-workers', and gave a small wave in greeting.

"Hi." She said bluntly.

It took a few seconds for the word to process in Haseo's brain, before he finally greeted her back with another simple 'hi'.

"Why are you here?" Pi asked strictly, finally releasing Kuhn from her death-grip. "I thought that you logged off for the day."

Eon shrugged tiredly. "I did. Whoever said that there was a limit to how many times I can come back online though…?" She questioned, her eyes flashing to a playful yellow shade. "I just came back on a little while ago."

Pi glared at Eon hard.

"You didn't answer the question of why you're here!" She explained angrily.

Eon sighed once more.

"Is it not obvious, Ms. Pi…?" Eon asked, grinning. "I'm here to win some more WP Points for Team Shinigami. How else will we enter the tournament's ranking with only fifty points…?"

Kuhn gapped at her.

"Your team already has fifty points?! How long have you been doing this?! What's you doubled team?!" He demanded.

Eon giggled a tiny bit.

"For the first one, we've been doing this for only two days. It's pretty easy to gain WP when you have a renowned PKer in the party." She said, allowing a canine tooth to stick out of her mouth. "And as for the double…? We don't have one. I'm even going solo for today." She said, her grin widening.

Haseo narrowed his eyes.

"Don't kid around. There's no way that you can beat five teams by yourself!" He stated, remembering her disability.

Eon scoffed angrily.

"You think that I can't handle my own in there…?" She asked, her eyes slitting. "Do you all really think that I am nothing more than a dead weight?!" She demanded. Eon barred her teeth angrily at the six of them, as she clenched her fist tightly. "I'll show you all then, if you want to watch." She finally said, as her anger began to diminish. "I'll beat the five teams in a 'Survival Match', with no help at all! I won't even call Shiruba, like those cheaters in Crystal Seraphim!" Eon yelled, as she stomped into the Warp Panel behind Kuhn, and teleported into the waiting area.

-------------------------------------The Eternal City: Mac Anu: The Serpent of Lore-----------------------------------

Yata didn't need the E-mail to see that Eon was serious about showing her 'true power'. He had been watching the monitor with her on it, ever since she had entered The World. Did she truly think that she was safe from his eyes…? He could see the entire World with the Serpent of Lore!...so why say something as foolish as 'I'm going to beat Crystal Seraphim' in public?!

The Macabre Dancer rubbed the bridge of his nose tiredly. He was still unsure of what to make of this entire mess. He had to admit, he was wrong to yell…and wasn't even sure if kicking her out of G.U. was the best idea in the first place…but he really had no other choice…or at least, no other ideas.

Why did he have to yell…? Why did he have to lose his cool?! He didn't even know that he had a temper until today! To lose it on a ten year old child…was humiliating! He, of all people, should have kept his cool, and look at where it had landed him now! Confused, and unsure of his next move! He couldn't simply go up to her now and ask her to rejoin G.U…and he couldn't just erase her account from the game, and risk losing Shiruba for good!...so what else could he do?! To his eyes, she was free as a bird, within 'The World'…

Yata sighed tiredly. How could he let this happen to himself? He had been beating himself up for it for the past two hours. It was just so unlike him…that it sickened him!

The sound of a buzzer distracted him, as he looked back up at the monitor, seeing that the fight had begun already, and Eon was quickly weaving through six players carefully, avoiding all attacks to the best of her ability. She was always moving her PC body around, so the right was protected by the side of the barrier, or she would turn every few seconds to face another fifty degrees to cover in the blind spot.

Yata furrowed his eyebrows in interest. He had to admit, he'd never actually seen her fight head to head with anyone…he only ever saw her fight against the AIDA with Shiruba, which was completely different. She was like a totally different person on the battle field, than on a mission, or speaking with other G.U. members. She actually seemed…reliable, and self sufficient.

A Blade Brandier quickly went down, as Eon used her 'Raising Beast' technique on him, before quickly jumping out of an Edge Punisher's way, only to be hit by a powerful, Vak Don spell. She quickly recovered, ignoring the small chunk of missing Hit Points, as she flung herself at the Shadow warlock viciously. To him, it just seemed like an honest mistake, for her to be hit by that attack…as it would seem to the entire Arena audience. Who would know that she was half blind, with such a good, moving strategy, to fill in the blind spots…?

The Shadow Warlock went down instantly, as Eon swiped at her with her claws aflame. She instantly turned to face the Edge Punished once more, who had just entered her blind spot a moment earlier. She wouldn't let him get her… She quickly did a back flip towards the barrier, landing about an inch from its blue flames, before quickly dashing towards him with all of her might.

"I'm not going to lose!" She howled, as her eyes slit, and ears bent backwards, angrily. She quickly ducked underneath his broadsword, before igniting her claws once more. "Blazing Tiger!" She howled, going into a rampaging series of scratches at his torso, chest, and legs.

The Edge Punished went down as if he was nothing more than a mere doll to Eon's claws, as she turned to face the remaining four competitors. She was panting, both in the real world and online. She couldn't help it. This was a hard fight, and she had to admit it. She may have gone over her head to try to take on five teams straight…but seeing their terrified expressions told her that she had them working just as hard as she was! They didn't have a Harvest Cleric with them, Eon noticed. Their only 'healer', was the Brandier that she took out before, and chubby Tu Tribe member in the back; also another Shadow Warlock like she had defeated only moments earlier.

She grinned, already coming up with her new plan of action.

The Tu Tribe guy goes first…then the secondary leader, the beastman Partizan. He's slow, and easy enough to take. She thought, still panting; her eyes (Or eye) scanning over them every time she took a breath. She couldn't let them sneak up on her. Her Hit Points were at half, and a decent strike would take her out. She narrowed her eyes as she looked over them again. They don't look like they have any resurrecting items OR magic…lucky for me…but to be safe, I'll need to take out the physical attackers first, then leave a Warlock to give me time to heal…

Eon suddenly dashed towards the backlines of her opponent's set up, easily moving past the Partizan, and then his tall, Adept Rogue friend, who attempted to skewer her with a long, pole arm-like weapon. She smiled as she leap-frogged over the third Shadow Warlock's head, and flung herself at the Tu Tribe warlock; her eyes flashing to a dangerous gold.

"Take this!" Eon howled loudly. "Aero Flash!"

Eon's silver wings suddenly whipped out from her back, and set aflame instantly; her body glowing a light silver colour. She quickly flapped her wings twice, forcing herself higher into the Arena's air, before suddenly slapping them shut in front of herself, right into one another. Several flaming feathers flew from the wings, and towards the shocked Tu Tribe Member, slicing through him like a hot knife through butter. A few of the extra feathers wheeled themselves around like Chakrams, and flew towards the Adept Rogue and Partizan, who were barely able to avoid them, as Eon quickly landed on her feet.

"Had enough…?" She question, a sadistic smile on her face. "Or do you want more…"

The Partizan roared at her angrily, as he charged, his weapon in front of himself and ready to pierce, but Eon had planned for him to do so. She quickly back stepped, and began to hop away from him, as if skipping backwards, as he chased her blindly.

And they called ME the blind one… Eon thought sarcastically, as she suddenly lunged forwards, catching the Partizan off guard, and slashing up at his chest.

The Partizan grunted, but his defence was high enough to leave only a small dent in his Hit Points, enough to ignore and slash out at Eon, who went flying across the Arena, and into the barrier hard.

"UGH!" She cried tiredly, as she fell to her knees. "D-dang it…" She murmured, seeing her health now in red. "I…I can't lose...!"

A small grin weaved itself onto Aqua's lips, as she watched the match from behind the seats of some overly enthusiastic players; now placing bets on the kid, and the team below. It wasn't just the players in front of her that were paying close attention to the match. The entire Arena was starring down at Eon. Watching her every move. Her every attack, block, dodge…her every mistake. Even the foolish G.U. Members, little more than two rows above her, had failed to notice her presence this entire time! How pathetic…were they really a threat to them?!

Aqua's eyes shined as she watched Eon narrowly dodge the final Shadow Warlock's spell, and then narrowly escape from the long spear of the Adept Rogue. To take on a challenge with little or no chance of success…? She had to admit, sounded just like herself. Maybe that was what drew Guardians to their Masters. The will to take on anything, no matter how big or small.

The dog-girl had finally regained her will to fight, as it seemed, as she flung herself rashly at the Partizan again; narrowly dodging his drilling lance, and kicking up at his face, sending him flying into the barrier, just as he had sent her before. She quickly followed after him, moving in a zigzag-like pattern, to confuse the Adept Rogue that she knew was following her. Just as she finally reached the Partizan, she suddenly jumped into the air, extending her wings to glide backwards, away from the two players as they collided; the Adept Rogue instantly killing his companion with a powerful tech attack, meant for her.

Eon easily landed on her feet, turning another fifty degrees to see the Warlock suddenly cast a large red circle towards her. He was too late! She easily avoided it, and threw herself into another series of zigzags until the spell wore off, just in time to block against the Adept Rogue once more.

The audiences' cheer filled the air at the spectacular performance, as Eon continued to hold her own against the two remaining opponents; now both running low on MP, as the large monitor indicated, behind the stadium.

Aqua's grin widened. Maybe this kid really could make it through this match; though it was very unlikely that she would survive against any others afterwards…

Eon's panting increased as she looked from the Adept Rogue, to the Shadow Warlock, now readying a new spell for her. She grit her teeth hard in thought. She couldn't get the Warlock to cast a spell on the Rogue unless she charmed or confused him…which she couldn't do…and the Rogue was faster than she expected; always running into her blind spot at a moment's notice, and narrowly missing her. It seemed like he found her weakness…

Eon bit her lip hard in the real world, as she contemplated her next move. She still needed healing, though the Healing Potions that she gained from Gaspard wouldn't do much help, ever with her Boost Candle equipped, doubling item effects. She couldn't cast a spell, or the Adept Rogue would clobber her before the casting was finished, and use a powerful tech attack, as he did in the previous match…so what was left…? Run like a chicken with its head cut off…? No, that would just waste her time…not to mention make her look like a complete idiot to the thousands of eyes now starring at her.

Eon gulped hard, suddenly noticing just how many people were looking at her. The crowd was cheering harder and louder than she had ever heard before, in any of her matches with Team Shinigami. People were calling her name loudly, and others waving their arms wildly.

She smiled.

There's no way that I'll lose to these guys. She promised herself. I came to win, and I WILL win!

That's the spirit, brat! Shiruba mused. For actually gettin' into the game, I'll give ya a lil' pointer… See that Adept Rogue…? Just because he's fast, doesn't mean that he has any defence to speak of. One decent attack and he'll go down.

Eon blinked hard, for once grateful to have Shiruba in her head, before flexing her claws once, and charging at the Rogue.

Haseo starred in disbelief.

How had she lasted this long without any healing or support spells?! It just wasn't possible to him! She was half blind! There was no way that she was doing this alone!

He listened to the crowd cheer loudly around him, as they all rooted for Eon to finish this, with her sudden, rash charge towards the Adept Rogue.

Was she crazy?!

Her Hit Points were next to nil! Once false move, and she could end up terminated, just like the rest of the teams before her! He knew this team! He'd seen them fight more than once before, as his team waited for their own matches to start. They would pick off the weak players, and allow themselves to slowly be picked off like this, leaving him to work as their final sweeper on stronger teams…not that he really believed Eon to be that strong…just lucky…

"She's pretty good, isn't she…?" Atoli asked, watching the match next to Haseo.

Haseo grunted in response, unwilling to say either 'yes' or 'no'. He just didn't get how she wasn't dead yet…was she hacked? Lucky? Maybe it was fluke…?

"Haseo…?" Atoli asked, making him slowly look up from the fight below, and to her. "Why are you frowning…? Do you really think that she's weak, just because of her eye…?"

Haseo hesitated to answer. He had no idea how Atoli would respond if he was truthful, or even if he lied.

"I don't know." He finally muttered, crossing his arms over his chest. "I just don't see how she lasted this long against this team…"

Atoli nodded her head slowly, before turning back towards fight. Her large burette tilted over her head in a way, that it shielded her eyes from Haseo's view, as the long cord dangled lifelessly before her.

"You know, you didn't think that I was weak, when I lost my hand to the AIDA." She stated quietly. "You were one of the few people that actually cared…it was people like Sakaki…that thought that I was the weak one…" She explained.

Haseo starred at her. He couldn't tell what she was feeling right now; her voice was almost emotionless.

"Atoli…I…" He murmured, unsure of what to say in a situation like this.

She quickly looked back to him, with a large smile across her face. Forced or no, Haseo couldn't tell as well. Sometimes, that's what sucked about being in 'The World'. You could never truly tell how others felt, with only the graphics of the game…

She allowed herself a small giggle; almost inaudible with the cheering of the crowd.

"I guess that's what makes me able to understand her situation." She explained, leaning back on her heels. "Just because she can't see, doesn't mean that she can't fight, or play in The World like anyone else. I think, that she might even see more in 'The World' than any of us do."

Haseo starred at Atoli for a long moment, unsure of what she meant, before finally looking back to the fight wordlessly. For some reason, he felt that Atoli was right, even if he didn't understand the true meaning to her words.

It was now or never. Eon viciously flung herself at the Adept Rogue, who pulled out his pole arm to block against her claws, just in time.

"Heh…think you're pretty good, to go up against us alone, huh…?" He asked, their position locked tightly, as the Warlock behind them began to cast a strong water-based spell. "Don't think you've one yet kid…no one has defeated us yet! So you really think that we'll let a solo brat beat us?!" He demanded.

Eon allowed herself a small, smug grin.

"I dunno…I doubt you'll let me win…so I think that I'll just beat you fair and square." She said, before suddenly twisting her claws around the pole arm, and hopping up on top of it.

The Adept Rogue had no time to think, as the spell came flying their way. As soon as it found its target, water erupted from underneath Eon and himself, like a tsunami.

Eon allowed herself a small, triumphant giggle, as she jumped off of the spear, and towards safety, as the Rogue was swallowed up into the water; his body fading into nothingness as he vanished from the arena.

"Five down, one to go…" Eon murmured, turning to the final Shadow Warlock.

The Warlock seemed to shrink away from her, as she stood up to full height (still being about a foot shorter than the tall warlock) and turned to face him.

"Any last words…?" She asked, as the Warlock's legs began to shake violently underneath him.

Eon's eyes flashed gold, as the slit one final time.

"I thought not." She said, before suddenly dashing at him, and easily finishing him off with a long combo of clawing, kicking, and punching.

The Warlock fell to the ground lifelessly, as the audience seemed to become silent. Eon looked up around herself. Everyone stared at her in shock and awe, before suddenly erupting into the loudest cheers that Eon had ever heard in her life!

"And there you have it folks! The unstoppable Team 'Silencer' has just met its end to the reaping claws of Team Shinigami's soloist, Eon!" The announcer wailed into the mic, nearly falling over his desk as he leaned closer to get a good look at the short girl.

Eon's cheeks turned light shade of pink once more in the real world, as the crowd began to call her name over and over, before the screen finally came up, reporting how well she did, and asked her if she wished to continue.

After a long, contemplating moment, Eon finally selected 'no'. She had had enough excitement for one day…any more, and she was sure she'd have a heart failure! Besides…she already just gained twenty WP Points from this team alone!

-------------------------------------The Warring City: Lumina Cloth: AIDA Server-----------------------------------

As soon as Eon exited the Arena, she knew that something was wrong. Maybe it was because there were no players present…or possibly since it was eerily silent, for the 'Warring City'.

Then again, there was the fact that the graphics were continuously flashing, and the city had inverted colours everywhere. The sky was a bright yellow, and the normally dark city was coloured in light, blinding shades of yellow, pink, and green.

Yep, that was probably the one…

Eon stepped slowly and carefully, before suddenly noticing that she was no longer playing the game, like before. She was in it. There was no controller. No M2D…not even a 'log out' command.

She shivered hard, as she began to move her head around fifty degree angles, like in her previous fight. For some reason, fifty degrees worked best for her… Ninety took too long to perform, and anything below forty-five was too short, and didn't fill in enough space for such a wide blind spot.

She stepped carefully, and quickly, as she looked in every-which way. Her ears heard nothing. No static, with the strange, fizzing graphics. No cheers, like she would normally hear…not even the breathing of anyone nearby. She could sense that someone was following her. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end, and her tail remained stiff, no matter how much she tried to move it.

Her eyes narrowed.

"Who's there?!" She finally called, wheeling around, only to see no one, yet again.

Eon grinded her teeth together hard, as she slowly turned once more, before beginning to step down the now bluish steps. The hair on the back of her neck still stood on end, and she could do nothing more than walk. This place was now so alien to her, she noticed, as she turned towards the back alleyway. The normal dark colours were what made this place seem more…realistic, and even now, being stuck in the game itself…it just didn't feel right.

She jumped down three steps at a time, before landing easily and gracefully at the bottom, before taking another cautious look around. She could see nothing, yet again, from the curve in the wall, all the way to where she was standing now.

Her ears flattened, and her eyes slit.

Somehow, she could feel that someone was waiting for her down here…though who, or how she knew, she didn't know. She slowly began towards her destination; stopping every few seconds, in case some sort of trap was a step a head, or someone would jump out…but nothing happened.

Why am I so nervous?! She demanded, as she took a step closer to the wall, just to be a little more cautious. This just isn't like me…!

Isn't it obvious, brat…? Shiruba suddenly questioned, shocking Eon. She had completely forgotten that the Guardian was with her… It's because yer senses are adapting to the game. Do you REALLY think that you can beat AIDA, just with willpower alone?! No…even those bastards in G.U. have had their senses sharpened into the game…though they probably don't sense it at all, unlike you guys do. She explained.

Eon nodded slowly, as she attempted to understand what the giant dog meant, before continuing on.

Every step made her stomach churn more and more uncomfortably, until it was almost unbearable. She could tell that whoever it was that wanted to see her, was up ahead…and that they weren't good news to boot… She could feel her heart beat quickening, as she approached the back area of the Arena.

Thump, thump, thump!

It was so loud and hard…

She took another step.

Thump thump, thump thump!

She almost fell over in shock as she felt its beat nearly double.

Okay, calm down! She told herself mentally, ignoring her Guardian's loud snickers from within her head. Whatever…WHOEVER it is, they can't be that bad! She told herself, as she took the final step, revealing the large plaza.

Her heartbeat nearly stopped, as she starred in disbelief at the one that had forced her into this creepy, reverse town.

"Hello." She said, her silver eyes half shut as she gave Eon a large, toothy grin, showing her pointed canines. She turned around to look a the dog girl before herself, pushing a red bang out of her eyes, as she pulled out a fan, and held it before herself, threateningly.

"I've been waiting."

This. Chapter. Took. FOREVER! NRRRGGG! (Foams at the mouth) I finally gave up at trying to do this at home (With a million distractions) and just finished it at school. (With a slightly higher version of Word…) This took me waaaaay longer than I would have hoped, considering how long I had off, for thinking about it! Jeez, BAD ZERO YASHA! (Hits self with a frying pan)

Okay, now that that's over…what did you think…? I like cliff hangers…though it's shorter than I thought it would be… Eon sure showed them though, didn't she?! Who said that the blind were useless?! They need a lesson from Toph (Belongs to the creators of Avatar: The Last Airbender) and Stray! (My blind archer! Isn't he cool…? (z))

I hope that the next chapter will be up in half the time that it took me to write this chapter…so until then, have fun, be merry, and review! XD XD See ya!