Alasis

People have accused me of rushing through life. I accuse them of being complacent and not having any resolve. I rush through this Tower as quick as I can for my goal. Some people take decades off before choosing to advance, but I just think that they don't have a spine. I try to rush through this Tower, but sometimes you have setbacks. Sometimes you fail a test.

There was a depressed atmosphere as we straggled back from the testing arena having just failed it. The whole test was to our disadvantage, but Kryst still blames himself for not having thought of a better strategy. In a way, everyone blames themselves. Nal-Kae think he should have flown, like that would have accomplished anything. We were in a Zahardamned jungle, and any attempt to fly would have resulted in him being shot down by the other team. Oh, did I mention they had fucking camouflage? Seriously, how cheap was that?

Nathan isn't saying anything, and he just went straight to his room to sulk. He probably thought that he should have burnt down the whole jungle instead of letting them win, but I personally prefer my skin where it is, not turned to ash and blown around the testing arena. Hanaki's disappointed as well. He's off in his room, but for a different reason. He doesn't want to let the "Blood Assassin" out.

He really does my head in, that kid. How in the world did his schizophrenia get that bad? It pisses me off a lot that he's like that. If he could just control his power, he'd be as powerful as one of the members of the Ten Great Clans. How the hell do I tell him he's the Blood Assassin? And why doesn't he want to own up to having all that power?

Anyways, Kryst just checked with his Lighthouse and we have to wait another 2 months before we can take the test again. Which pisses me off. I know that some other teams have to wait longer to their test, but compared to the 10 days we had to wait for the test we failed, well, I'm just pissed off.

I wondered if other teams would take me and Hanaki. I was plenty strong, and we could easily disguise his ability to decay as an ability to strengthen his body. He could block the strongest punch just by decaying the air around his hand. I'm pretty sure we could find other teams in need of frontliners, and people who we could team up with just for this floor. Teams never usually lasted long, because they were just made up of people who banded together purely for themselves. They'd work together for one floor, and disband on the next, looking for stronger teammates. That was just how it was. Of course, you did have those strong teams with the top E-rank regulars who stuck together, but that was just because there wasn't anyone stronger to choose.

And then you had our team. We still didn't have a name yet. That was another source of noise and amusement, along with Kryst. Cosmos wanted The Insane Psychopaths, on account of having Nathan and Hanaki in our team. Kryst drew the line at putting the famous Blood Assassin as our mascot. Laesa said she wanted Nal-Kae and his Playmates, but I'm pretty sure that was just to wind Kryst up. There's no way Kryst or Nal-Kae would let her do that. When I asked Nathan he thought and said, "Something simple, like... the Evil Curse of the Volcanic, Blazing, Red-Hot, Super-Torches." I had looked at him thinking he was serious, but his lips twitched and he snorted. Wasn't it great how everyone suddenly had a sense of humour.

Anyways, I'd gone over to Hanaki and told him the plan. I didn't think he'd have a problem with it mainly because he didn't usually care about anything I did.

Boy was I wrong.

He sent out this huge wave of whatever he usually emitted around us. The bed he'd been lying on crashed, the wooden frame rotting and the sheets tearing apart like tissue papers. I quickly backed into a wall, which was a mistake. It had been weakened too and I crashed over into the other room while I started bleeding profusely. Under the influence of Hanaki's decaying aura, blood thinned and one cut could mean death. I usually wasn't worried as I could strengthen my body to neutralize it, but the wave he'd shot out was just so strong that it completely nullified whatever I strengthened.

Awkwardly enough, the room I'd crashed into was Nathan's. We put the two of them in adjoining rooms because they both liked to retreat there and brood. He was looking at the two of us, cradling a fiery baang in his hand. If he shot it out at me and burnt me, I would kill him. Of course, Kryst would probably do it first if he saw the hospital bills, but I'd kill him again. Thinking about it, he'd probably kill me when he saw the damage I'd done to the house.

I looked over into Hanaki's room, but he wasn't there. In his place was another hole in the wall, where he'd obviously run out. Yeah, Kryst would kill me. Luckily, he was out for some reason and I wasn't going to be around when he got back. Hopefully I'd find Hanaki and come back after he'd found out about the mess and had some time to cool down. I ran over to the hole and jumped out, wondering where the hell Hanaki went.

I walked through the residential district, trying to sense Hanaki. I was normally able to do so, but it was hard in a crowded environment. That, and Hanaki had gotten a lot better in controlling his power. Damn. I jumped to the top of the nearest building, like that would help. Hanaki didn't stand out physically, it was only when you got close to him that you found something was off about him.

By the Guardian! I was tempted to kick the ground in frustration, but I didn't want to risk breaking the roof. It was enough to pay for the house we were living in. I sat down and clenched my fist in frustration. What did I say that set him off?

I thought for a moment, but was interrupted when Laesa stood above me. I jumped up and turned to face her, asking "How did you find me?"

Laesa let her Lighthouse hover in front of her as an answer. She could find Hanaki as well. I started to ask her, but she cut me off. "Why did Hanaki run off?"

I shrugged. "I really don't know. I was just talking about finding a new team to climb up faster, and he went crazy."

Laesa smiled slightly, "Crazier than he already is?"

"So you do see it too, it's not just me?" I asked. For so long they'd acted as if Hanaki was normal, that I wondered if they really knew what Hanaki was feeling inside. It was a good thing that Hanaki was treated normally, but I still wondered what would happen if he went berserk. "How do I tell him it's just in his head?" I asked. Maybe Laesa would know how to knock sense into Hanaki."

Laesa's smile didn't waver as she sat down with her legs dangling over the edge. "You can't. If he denies it, then what can you do? There's nothing stopping him from just denying what you said as well."

That wasn't what I was expecting, and I thumped the ground in frustration, leaving a small crater where I left my hand. "So what do I do? Let him continue on as a delusional schizophrenic?"

"Do you know why Hanaki persists in this act?" Laesa asked. I joined her on the edge of the building and looked down at the regulars and residents go about their everyday business. When I didn't say anything, Laesa said "It's because he doesn't have the strength to face up to what he's done."

"So how does he get this strength?" I asked acidly. "Train harder?"

"I don't know if that was sarcasm or not." Laesa said. "He needs to know that he can rely on us for his strength, that he doesn't need to do it by himself."

I snorted, "Good luck with that. He's even more anti-social than Nathan." That sounded harsh, even to me, but then again, I wasn't in the best of moods. I wondered if Laesa would take offence and leave, and realized with surprise that I didn't want her to leave. Did I really want to leave this team?

"Of course he's starting to rely on us." Laesa said, "Why did you think he ran off?" I turned towards her and saw that she was looking at me with a wan smile. She wasn't sad, or amused, or mad; she was just accepting. When she saw I still didn't understand, she continued "You told him that he had to leave us. Of course his emotions went out of control. He doesn't want to leave us."

I stared at her, then leaned back and thought. If what Laesa had said was true, then he did want to stay with this team. "How long until he starts to drop this stupid facade?" I asked Laesa. "I don't have much time."

She looked at me curiously. "That's right. Why did you want to switch teams in the first place? We've got decent people if strength's what you're looking for."

In retrospect, me wanting to switch teams just to gain some months was such a petty reason. I didn't want to say such a shameful thing outright, so I just said "I don't have much time. I need to get to the top quickly."

Luckily, or maybe unluckily, Laesa understood. At first she didn't say anything, then she asked "Why would you go to such lengths just to climb the tower a couple months early?"

I didn't want to tell her, but at the same time I did. I just hated lying and not telling this team. Did I feel so much loyalty and kinship towards them now? I'd never felt this way towards any team. Of course, I'd been soloing since the 13th floor, but still, I'd never wanted to belong to any team. Even asking to be accepted into this team on the 21st floor was just another way for me to climb quicker.

"What do you know of the Bloodmadder family?" I asked. Laesa looked a little confused, but her eyes gleamed in slight understanding. "Only that their children refuse to admit being his offspring because of their notoriously short lives. They live in shame because of the decisions their father made."

I nodded heavily. "And sometimes they die." I hadn't thought about the past often. I only used it as fuel for determination and drive. I didn't like reflecting on anything, let alone the past. Laesa had a talent for drawing people out. Either that or I was just bursting to tell someone. "My mom never told me or Alvaron who our grandad was. She told us to keep our physical strength a secret, or else people would come take us."

She smiled slightly in nostalgia of the games they would play as a whole family to cover up their abnormal abilities. "The other village people knew we weren't from around here, but they took us in. They were normal residents, and they had short life spans. And my mom had the shortest one of them all."

Her face darkened and she kicked the corner of the building they were sitting on in preocuppation. Some bricks would have fallen down on the ground if Laesa hadn't held them up with her Lighthouse and deposited them on the roof. Alasis smiled at Laesa in thanks, and continued. "I was ten and my brother, Alvaron was seven when she died. It was normal. Her body just stopped working. It was like she was succumbing from old age, even though she was only in her early thirties. She kept on saying sorry at the end, saying how it was her fault we were doomed to die. I still didn't get it at the time, but she told me our grandad was Bloodmadder."

Alasis was surprised to find that the memory still hurt, even though it had been 8 years ago. She held back tears as she said, "Those were her second last words. Her last ones were for me to take care of Alvaron." She looked up at Laesa and said heatedly "And that's why I have to go up. I have to get to the hundredth floor and get the Guardian to change the contract he made with that fucking coward of a Clan Head. Get him to find some loophole or some way I can take care of Alvaron. My only hope is that Alvaron got chosen to climb as well, or else he'll be dead in another decade or two. If he does get chosen, then I have a maximum of a hundred years to get to the hundredth floor. That's why I don't have time. Every second counts, and I'd rather go to hell than letting my brother die!"

I realized I was shouting, and had destroyed a little more of the wall we were sitting on. There was a small pile of concrete that Laesa had levitated to the safer part of the roof. "Sorry" I said, embarrassed at how easily I'd lost control.

Laesa didn't say anything for a while, and I was afraid that she'd get up and leave me. Why was I afraid of leaving? I'd done it plenty of times before, why should I be afraid now? Then she spoke "You have to choose between Alvaron and Hanaki."

The words struck me like nothing had. I almost fell off the roof. "Wh-what do you mean?" I asked. "What do I have to choose?"

"Whether to rush on for the sake of Alvaron, or spend more time with us for the sake of Hanaki." Laesa replied, "I get why you're rushing, and don't mind if you keep on rushing past us. Just don't expect to be able to help Hanaki at the same time."

I still didn't get what she meant, and she rolled her eyes "To help Hanaki, you need to spend time to let him trust you explicitly, and trust others explicitly. Only then will he be able to drop the concept of the Blood Assassin; because he knows he has others he can trust."

"But that will take time" Laesa continued, cutting me off, "If you want to rush off and leave Hanaki to go back into his own insane little world, then go. None of us can stop you. But don't expect to be able to help Hanaki while rushing off after Alvaron."

I was angry. I didn't know what to do, or what to say. I was just so confused and guilty. What should I do? What could be done? I realized I had gotten up without realizing it and was now pacing the roof. I made to stamp the ground, but was held up by Laesa's pressure field. My leg still moved, but the roof remained unharmed. She laid an arm on my shoulder and pulled me into a hug. I told myself it was because of the pressure field exerted on me that I didn't pull away. "You don't have to choose now." Laesa said. "Hell, you don't even have to consciously choose. Just know that we'll support you the whole way."

I stumbled back, not knowing what to do or say. I just stood there in a daze. I couldn't see clearly and was unsteady on my feet. I was aware of tears running down my face, and I hated myself for showing weakness. Laesa smiled again. "Come one, I thought you wanted to find Hanaki."

"You know where he is?" I asked, suddenly alert. How did she know?

"Hanaki's where he wants to be." Laesa said, "and he always will be."

When we got back to our quarters, Kryst was glaring at me. "Care to explain?"

I looked over and saw Hanaki slouching in the corner. He seemed to be normal, but it was weird how he was over by Kryst. Did he want to separate himself from me?

"Um, Hanaki..." I trailed off. I didn't expect Kryst's response. "Yup, he told me how you destroyed half of our house."

What? Then I looked at Hanaki and realized why he was staying away from me. That little... I turned to Kryst, and said, "Can I just say that Hanaki did it all?"

Kryst's pissed expression didn't waver, but that said it all. I turned and saw Hanaki slouch away back to his room, and to everyone else it would have looked like nothing had changed; but, I saw his smile before he turned, and knew that he was grinning at the prank he'd played on me. There'd be hell to pay for it on my part, because when Kryst started on something, he wouldn't stop, but at that moment I couldn't help thinking what a perfect apology it was. No solemness or seriousness, because that was Hanaki all the time. He played some stupid prank on me like a friend would prank another friend. He did it to tell me that he was treating me as one. And I knew Laesa was right. Hanaki was right where he wanted to be.

OK, sorry this was a little late. I found this chapter a little harder to write, because this was about both Hanaki and Alasis. Hope you all enjoyed it. Next chapter will head in the more comical direction. 'Till next time!