Disclaimer: I do not own anything, I make no money or profit from this.
Chapter 9: Meeting at the Raven Guild
Royal Woods General Hospital
It was Saturday and Luna thought it was a good idea to visit Lincoln. As she entered the room she found not much had changed. The flowers that were on a nearby night table were starting to wilt, some more "get well" cards, and some new items with the cards. Other than that everything was the same. Lincoln was still asleep, still had all those machines on him. She grabbed one of the chairs near his bed and moved it beside him. She took a seat, grabbed ahold of one of his hands, and started talking to him.
"Hey bro, hope you're doing well" she said in a soft and caring tone. Part of her hoped he would respond, but he remained asleep. "Me and the rest of the fam are hanging in there, but we miss you at home. Lola, Lana, and Lily really miss you and want you back so much." She felt tears build up and wiped them away before continuing. "I try that game you're always playing, The World. I can now see why you were always playing it. It's so open and everything in it looks awesome. You can meet cool, colorful people and have amazing adventures. I still can't believe you and Clyde played with Sam, you've been keeping secrets from me haven't ya" she chuckled a bit. She tried not to think of his and others alter personas and focus on the good. "I kinda wish I knew sooner, maybe we could've played together. Imagine you, me, and Sam forming a party and exploring The World."
She smiled at the thought before she took on a saddened expression. "I know about what you're like in The World, you're Ace the Knight of Despair. You're also a famous Player Killer with your guild the Trinity of Chaos. I also know you were hunting another Player Killer named Tri-Edge and he is the one to put you in this state." Her hands squeeze her brother's hand tighter at the thought of someone hurting her family, before relaxing them again. "That's why I started playing The World. Sam told us about him and she is desperately looking for a way to help you and Clyde. I'm trying to help her find whatever to bring you guys back." She then put on a face of determination. "We now got the help of Ronnie Anne and maybe I can find more people in The World to help. I don't know if you can actually hear me, but keep on fighting cause we're going to find Tri-Edge and figure out how to bring both of you out of this."
Her eyes still showed her determination, but she had a more caring expression. "How about I tell you about what I 've been through so far in The World?" She asked happily. "While it's not that much, I'm sure you'll be impressed." So she started to tell him of her time within The World, never letting go of his hand.
Delta Server Mac Anu
While Luna was visiting Lincoln, Siren was on her way to meet with Kuhn. As she approached Mac Anu's @HOME, she saw Kuhn in front of it. He started to wave at her, but she ignored it. All she wanted was answers and didn't want to waste her time.
"Glad to see you've come" Kuhn greeted cheerfully.
"Enough pleasantries" Siren replied scowl. "You said you had answers and I might find info about Tri-Edge. I didn't come here to waste time I could be using to look for clues."
"All business as usual I see" the Steam Gunner said with a sigh. "It's not something that can be talked about in the open. First you'll need these." He then gave her Raven guest Key and she got a notification for a Member Address.
[You have received Kuhn's Member Address, do you accept?]
[YES] [NO]
"Why are you giving me your Members' Address?" Siren asked in confusion.
"You might need it" was his only response. Siren was completely, she would accept it for now and delete later if she needed to. "Alright, let's go inside and then we can talk." Siren said nothing and simply followed him inside.
Inside wasn't very impressive. The walls were a bland and stale color, gray tile floor, and a small set of steps that was attached to an elevated floor which led to a hallway to a room. light blue banners hung the wall and light blue rug, all had the same teal design with gold trimming around it. Large pipes were on the walls underneath the banners. There weren't any items and it looked like some sort of storage room. As Siren judged everything in and including the room, a familiar voice was heard.
"What is she doing here Kuhn?" A feminine voice asked in annoyance. Siren followed it and saw a familiar pink twin tails.
"Oh it the old woman again" the Adept Rouge said in an uninterested voice. She really did care about anything that wasn't about Tri-Edge or these Avatars.
"I told you I'm not old!!" She shouted, becoming enraged. She then turned her attention to the only male in the room. "Why did you bring her here Kuhn?"
"Well she is an Epitaph User" Kuhn replied in a relaxed tone. "We need all the help we can get and it's not like we can be picky Pi."
"But you know of her reputation right?" The player now known as Pi asked. "What if she uses her Avatar on random players? I don't care if she is a Chosen One, she can't be trusted."
"I know who she is, maybe better out of the two of us," Kuhn replied in frustration at his colleague's attitude. "But what choice do we have? Leave her alone and wait for her to go on a slaughter when her Avatar awakens?"
Siren stayed silent throughout their conversation, listening for any slip-up's that might happen. While she wanted to attempt to defend herself, she didn't care what these 2 thought of her. She just wanted answers from them, not be their friend.
Soon Pi stopped talking and put a hand to the side of her head, as if she had an earpiece. "Yes, she is here" she started to say. "What? Alone? Are you sure?" She then looked at Siren. "Master Yata wants to speak with you." She then gestures towards the hallway. Siren getting understanding, she did as she was told and started to go towards the hallway.
It was a fairly long hallway and was devoid of anything. Siren was curious to see how this "Master Yata" was and what part he played in all this. That Pi woman thought very highly of him and she was the first person to tell her of her "hidden power". She hopes this new person will give her some new information, because all she got from the other 2 was "Epitaph User". She finally entered a fairly large empty room. As she walked further in she saw a small set of stairs that went to a slightly raised floor, the walls are empty, and a Serpent of Lore on the back wall. A platform started to descend above the raised floor, she then saw someone standing on top of it with a floating orb in front of them. It was a dark-skinned and powerfully built man. He wore a Buddhist kasaya like robe, which leaves his lower legs and most of his chest bare. His body, including his face is decorated with various wave tattoos and his appearance is topped off with a pair of red tinted sunglasses.
"Welcome to the Serpent of Lore, Siren." The new person started, his voice was deep but gravely. "It took a long time to get you here. I've been waiting for you."
Siren sized up the person in front of her before examining the room. "So you must be Yata" she said offhandedly while still looking around. "So this is an administrator only area? I've heard of these places, but wasn't sure if they existed." She then looks at him with a smirk. "Are you sure you can let a regular player like me in here? Won't your bosses get mad at you Mr. Admin?"
"It's nice to meet you, though that is weird for me to say," he replied, completely ignoring her questions. "I've been watching you and your guildmates for quite some time." Yata then held a hand to the orb and hologram screens covered the walls beside them. On the screens were recordings of Siren, Jack, and Ace. They showed different times of the 3 of them within The World.
Siren looked around and wasn't surprised that she and the others were being watched by Admins, she just shrugged it off and waited for him to continue. "There has been a development in The World that defies the system parameters" Yata continued on. "One of the effects, or perhaps I should say targets, is the variety of phenomenon manifestations in The World. You yourself have experienced one of these developments. The forced formatting of your character data."
"Look I don't care if you or someone else was spying on me" Siren said with a scowl. "How does learning any of this help me?"
"A bug that is not a bug" he replied, confusing the Adept Rouge. "Ideally that kind of phenomenon would never exist in The World. But as you can see, it indeed does exist. Our overall designation for this phenomenon is AIDA."
"AIDA?" She asked, confused at the new information.
"For now, none of the general users of the game know anything about it." Yata continued his explanation. "This is somewhat to be expected at its current level. However, you have already encountered it and you have seen first-hand the sort of threat and danger it possesses. You have seen it and experienced it yourself."
"Tri-Edge" Siren spoke out with a venom laced voice.
"The name of the skill he had used on you is called Data Drain by us," Yata explained.
"Data Drain? I've never heard of a skill like-" she was interrupted by Yata.
"You already understand what I'm referring to," his explanation continued. "That Tri-Edge is a phenomenon that defies system parameters."
"Are you telling me Tri-Edge is AIDA?" Siren asked, hoping to finally get a lead.
"Perhaps, we cannot deny that possibility," Yata replied, finally answering one of her questions.
"Well how did this happen?" Siren screamed, starting to get frustrated. "What have you and other Admins been doing? Have you even been investigating is problem?"
"Investigating a bug that's not a bug is difficult," he replied calmly. "Likewise, we are also investigating what happened to characters like Ace and Jack, as well as their players." Siren's eyes widened, but she stayed silent. "We would like to try and understand what the connection is between an online PK and a player becoming comatose. Before this little problem of ours has time to become public knowledge."
"Of course you're trying to cover it up, but aren't you a little too late?" Siren scowled, glaring at the administrator. "How many people are already comatose? Not to mention Jack's and Ace's family filing a lawsuit. It's already public knowledge to the community of The World, it's only a matter of time the mainstream media put the pieces together. It's your fault Ace and Jack are in a coma!"
Yata remained silent for a few seconds before speaking. "I'm afraid that's not true, it's not our fault they became comatose after the incident. The one that injured them, as well as the one who leveled you down, is Tri-Edge. Isn't that correct?"
"That's true, but you should've stopped this before it even started!" Siren screamed, her frustration starting to boil over.
"Are you suggesting that we should've shut down the game entirely after the first incident?" Yata asked calmly. "I don't believe so. After all, the key that is needed to solve the riddle of AIDA, Tri-Edge, and the comatose players, is right here in this game, The World. We share a common interest."
"Are you telling me to cooperate with you?" The teal Rouge asked, starting to calm down. "Why would you want my help? For that matter, why should I help you?"
"It's simple" Yata started to reply, his voice never changing. "The only thing we want from you, Siren, is the power hidden inside of your character. Your character was especially created by CC Corporation for their past project."
"Wait, that makes no sense?!" Siren screamed in confusion. "How did a regular player get a hold of a character that was a CC Corp project? What did you even mean by power hidden inside my character? Is my character somehow special?"
"That's correct, you are a Chosen One" Yata replied, ignoring a majority of her questions. "Characters like yours are known as Epitaph User. Kuhn and Pi are also Epitaph Users as well. At this point the only ones capable of combating AIDA are you Epitaph Users."
"So in other words…" the Rouge started smirking while crossing her arms. "...You want my help debugging the game, right?"
"As I made it clear earlier, we want nothing more than to contain these unruly phenomena" The Administrator replied. "The only thing that can do that is in fact the Avatar."
"These Avatars are the titans Epitaph Users summon, right?" She asked, thinking about what she learned. "But how do I use this Avatar? I've never used something like that before."
"That's because your Avatar hasn't awakened yet" the Macabre Dancer answered.
"So then I just need to learn how to use the Avatar" Siren started to mutter to herself. "If I learn that, then I should be able to go against Tri-Edge." She then returned focus back to the Admin. "So if I work with you, you'll help me use this Avatar?"
"Of course, it would be quite troublesome for us if you could not" he answered, still calm and emotionless as they first met.
"Alright, I'll help," Siren responded. "However, just so we're clear, I'm only helping to save Ace and Jack. Also I won't take orders from anyone, I don't care if you are an Admin or not. You need my help and if you could've done something without my character, you would've already done it."
"Wait!" A feminine voice shouted from behind Siren. Both players looked and saw Pi running into the room, she stopped beside Siren and addressed Yata. "It's dangerous to let a player like her gain that kind of power!"
Yata stared at her and remained silent. "Looks like he doesn't agree with you old woman" Siren snarked with a smirk, looking over to the Twin Tails. She then started to walk out of the room, leaving the 2 players alone.
As she walked into the entrance, she saw Kuhn standing there waiting for her. "So I heard you joined G.U." he said with a smile. "Glad to have you with us." Siren just stared at him with an unamused expression. "The guild name we use, Raven, is just a front" he started to explain, thinking Siren was confused. "What our group is really called is G.U., I heard it was a name for a CC Corp project or something."
"Whatever, I don't care," Siren replied with a shrug and an eye roll. "So how do I awaken my Avatar and summon it?"
"Unfortunately I don't know how to awaken you Avatar, it just does so on its own" the Steam Gunner replied awkwardly, scratching the back of his head. "As for how to use your Avatar, that's not easy to explain. It might be better to just show you while out adventuring. Wouldn't you agree?"
"Fine whatever, let's go" she replied, annoyed at not getting any real answers. "It doesn't matter which Area, right?"
"Well, that's true…" he started to answer slightly nervously. "...Unfortunately I've got an appointment to keep. I'll be sure to contact you later for a time to meet up." He then ran out of the guild without saying anything.
"Whatever, I just try to figure this out on my own" Siren said to herself, she then left the guild as well.
Royal Woods General Hospital
Luna meanwhile was finishing her visit with Lincoln. "...That's all we know so far" Luna said, finishing telling him what they learned about The World, Tri-Edge, and coma victims. "Me, Sam, and Ronnie Anne will do whatever it takes to help you and Clyde. Your strong little bro, you need to keep fighting and remember, you got the Grim Reaper looking for a way to help you." She gave his hand one more squeeze before leaving his room.
Once outside his room, she wiped away some tears that built up before leaving the hospital. On her way out, she ran into the McBrides who were there to visit their son. She made small talk with them before leaving and headed home.