Warning: Character Death by suicide ahead.

Chapter 14

In which everyone tries to decipher what Delta had presented to Diana, and Sophia tries to convey to Phi what kind of person Delta is.

Her widened eyes take in the bloody corpse of Eric, and the strangely white liquid that covers Sean's smoking one. No . . . they can't be dead, she mentally cries to herself. She wants to move her eyes away from their bodies, but knows that if she does, her eyes will immediately fall onto the other corpse beside them.

Oh, Sigma! Diana can't bear to look at his dead body, at all, so she clenches her eyes shut. Tears fill her eyes as she thinks about the strangely fast, bubbling feelings she has harbored towards him. Since she meeting him at DCOM, and since he had made it a point to always avoid her during the conjunction, she had developed a bit of a crush on him. Now, however, she is certain she has been falling for him. She feels bounded to him by emotions she doesn't recall developing slowly — they've just always been there, since she has met him, only increasing in intensity.

And now . . . he's dead.

"Mom . . ." The word sounds like a reverent prayer falling off of Sigma's killer's lips.

Diana's eyes fly open and whip to the left to meet Delta's blank face. Her hands are in lightly clenched into fists that hover near her face, as she trembles in fear. "Y-You . . . you controlled Eric to shoot himself and the others," she stammers out, her lips quivering as she speaks. She intended to shout at him, ask him why he kept her alive and why he is calling her 'Mom,' but she somehow can't find herself to do so.

"Yes." His voice is even and calm, completely unfazed by what has just occurred. "I Mind Hacked Eric."

She tries her best to keep a poker face and suppress any cries that threaten to come out of her. "Mind Hack . . . ?"

"Yes," he answers again, adjusting those awfully red glasses of his, "I can control someone's actions by Mind Hacking them. It also gives me the ability to read minds. I would show you my Mind Hacking, but it does not feel right to control you, now, Mom. It — "

"Mom!?" she shouts, her hands now falling to her sides. "Why do you keep on calling me that!? I'm not your mom! I have not given birth to you, and you're certainly too old to be my son!" Her voice is stained with disbelief. Suddenly, she shakes her head. "No . . . Don't answer that. I don't want to know. Just tell me why."

"There are many why's that I am sure you'd like for me to answer. Which answer do you seek?"

Diana's hands ball into fists once more, though this time, they tighten to the point where her nails dig into her palms. "W-Why would you kill Sigma, too, Delta!?" she shrieks, feeling her hoarse voice tear through her throat. "What did he or any of the others do to you!?"

Delta only sighs in remorse. "Life is simply unfair; though, unfortunate, it was necessary." He speaks slowly, deliberately. "Sean and Eric have no purpose left to fulfill in this timeline. And as for Sigma . . . he, and Phi, too, are experienced SHIFTers; you, on the other hand, need to awaken your true powers."

"SHIFTers . . .?" she mutters to herself in confusion, recalling that Carlos and Sigma mentioned the same thing earlier.

He does not feel the need to clarify and continues on with his explanation. "That is why I had Eric kill Sigma — because, without him, you're on the edge, high-strung. It will allow for your SHIFT abilities to strengthen."

"No . . ." She feels her knees beginning to wobble. "Y-You . . . you're a monster!" she cries, sobs wracking her body. Her legs finally collapse beneath her as she falls beside Sigma's corpse.

She sees Delta wince — and though it satisfies her, a part of her wants to take back the statement — but then, he immediately retreats back to blankly staring at her. "You're right. I am a monster. I have become a monster, but it's a small price to pay for the world to be saved and for Delta to have his family."

She stops her weeping and sniffs. "W-What? What do you mean?"

"Do not think it didn't pain me to shoot Sigma or have the three of you executed from the vote at 13:30 in this timeline. You are all my family, too."

Diana's eyebrows furrow in confusion. "Are you disillusioned? We're not your family!" she denies insistently, as she roughly wipes her tears away, refusing to meet his piercing gaze.

He crouches down beside her. "I call you 'Mom,'" he murmurs softly, his voice crooning, "but you don't recall giving birth to me . . . doesn't that raise a question in your mind? If I claim that you are my mother, then who is my father?"

Diana's blue eyes that were narrowed into slits suddenly fly open in shock. "N-No . . . it can't be!"

"Indeed." He nods in confirmation. "Sigma is my father . . . and Phi is my twin sister," he states matter-of-factly.

She insistently shakes her head, refusing to accept his words. "No! No! That's impossible. None of the ages don't match up!" she protests, her outburst echoing in the computer dome.

Delta still maintains his poker face as he speaks. "This is all a story for another time. All I can tell you know is that it is, in fact, possible, but only if you take the transporter into account."

The transporter? Diana thinks in surprise to herself. Suddenly, she feels a lost memory — maybe not of this history, but of an alternate history — tugging on the strings of her mind. What is so important about the transporter that Diana can't recall? Is it possible that is Delta right in his twisted assertion that she and Sigma are his and Phi's parents? There is a version of them left behind when they transported their atomic data here. Perhaps —

"I know you have questions," he acknowledges softly, interrupting her train of thought, "but, right now, we have more pressing matters to attend. Come with me. I must show you something." He offers her a hand. She refuses to hold it, stumbling over her skirt as she tries to stand up without his assistance. Silently, he leads her to the lounge.

Diana immediately notices a change upon entering the big, wide room. Gone is the anagram Diana recalls seeing on the wall in the alleged Ward D, "When a curious hate oozes calamity." In its place, in the same crimson pain, are new words.

"Truth had gone" if sine dihe — when I lied to delta, of wry hog when wrenched.

Diana blinks. "I-Is that . . . another anagram?"

"You'd be correct. It's the final anagram of the Decision Game." Delta takes a step towards her. "A few minutes ago, when I told you that I had no more use for this history, I lied. There was one more thing I had to do, which I have now done . . . this anagram that I just have shown you will help to track down the religious fanatic."

"Fanatic? What fanatic?!"

"A religious fanatic who will spark a nuclear war and ultimately destroy the lives of 8 billion people — all of humanity." He speaks unwaveringly, without blinking, or showing any sign of fear or surprise. "My motives to release Radical-6 are not complex once you understand this: having Radical-6 kill 6 billion people, with a 75 percent chance that one of those 6 billion is the fanatic, is a much better outcome than having all of humanity wiped out."

"No!" Diana gasps, her hand immediately shooting up hover over her mouth. "Isn't there another way to stop the fanatic that doesn't involve all of those lives?!"

Since his frame is taller then hers, Delta looks down to smile slyly at her. "I'm glad you asked." His face then grows solemn. "Listen to me very carefully," he starts, as he places his hands on top of Diana's shoulders. Even through her sweater, she can feel how icy cold his palms are. "The timeline in which you win the Decision Game will always be the timeline where Radical-6 will not be released, and the fanatic roams free. You must remember this anagram and solve it, as it will hint at the his or her whereabouts."

Diana yanks his hands off her shoulders, as her eyes blaze furiously. "If you knew where to find the fanatic this whole time" — her voice rises as she speaks — "then what was the point of releasing Radical-6 in the other timelines?!" she shouts, taking a few steps away from him as her fists clench at her sides for the final time. "Why can't you figure it out!?"

Delta turns away from her as his face darkens. "I did not know, Mom. I've tried to solve it myself, but I cannot determine the meaning behind it," he confesses, as he fidgets nervously — it makes Diana wonder if it's because she unnerves him in the way a scolding mother would, or if he just doesn't like the idea of the unknown, with the anagram. "This came from the transporter on December 30th, the day before you were all brought here. I assume it has come from myself in the future where we stop the fanatic."

She gulped. "But, what does this all have to do with me?" she quavered, her tone of voice demanding but also resigned. "What am I to do with this information if you say that timeline leads to a dead end?!"

"You are right," he concedes with a sigh. "In this timeline, you can do nothing, really. All I ask of you is to remember this information, and what has just transpired in this timeline, when the time comes."

"How will I know when that time comes?! What if I can't remember anything?!"

"Forgetting is simply not an option," he argues softly. "I will come to help you remember, as well, but you cannot forget this timeline. Mom, you must understand. The lives of 6 billion rest in your hands."

Diana suddenly feels breathless as her throat feels itself tightening. "No . . . not 6," she weeps softly, with a cracking voice. "8 billion. The lives of 8 billion people."

"I suppose you are right . . . if something goes wrong, then all of the human race will perish." Delta places his hand hesitantly back on her shoulder as his face turns grim. "But rest assured, if it does, then it is my responsibility," he says firmly, his eyes piercing into hers. "You have no need to worry or feel guilty if it all does not work it out, you understand me?"

And with that, Diana's face crumples — she can no longer keep the angry front she has been putting up in front of Delta all of this time. "Y-You're going to take responsibility for my inability to remember?! Why?!" she shrieks tearfully. " . . . Why are you even doing all of this in the first place? How did you know to even do this?"

Delta sighs and shakes his head — as if he is the parent and she is the child. "I told you, I'm doing this to save the world. I was told that I would have to do all of this to ensure my family could live in a happy future."

He was doing this all for her, Sigma, and Phi? But Sigma and Phi are dead! How are they all supposed to live happily? And then Diana remembers what he said about SHIFTing . . . it will definitely come into play somehow.

She looks up to him and sniffles, feelings of maternity and sadness washing over her as she reaches up to clutch his hand on her shoulder. "Who . . . who left such a heavy burden on you, Delta? And why you?" Why does it have to be her son?

The grin he flashes her is sardonic and sad. "Like I said, life is simply unfair. I only say it so often because I've lived through its injustice." His smile turns genuinely happy as he gives her hand a gentle squeeze, and then lets it go, taking a few steps back.

She wants to hug him, but also wants to walk away from him wordlessly — instead of acting on any of her feelings, she chooses to quietly stand still.

A few minutes pass in silence — for Diana, those moments are extremely uncomfortable. "What happens now?" she then questions, in a voice that has now lost life and purpose.

"The X-Door is open — Sean managed to open it before Eric shot him," he informs her in a monotone. "You may choose to leave, or stay in this facility; you are free to do whatever you see fit." He turns away, beginning to walk towards the hallway to the Quantum Computer Done. "My work here is done. I see no more use for this timeline."

Diana, on her own accord, follows him into the dome. She wants to ask him what will he do now, but before she opens her mouth, her eyes catch the shotgun lying next to Eric on the ground. Beguiled, she kneels down to pick up the gun.

I see no more use for this timeline, his words echo her mind.

With a newfound determination, she brings the weapon's muzzle to her chin, exactly as Delta Mind Hacked Eric to do. As she pulls the trigger, she feels her consciousness yank itself out of her body, and hears his voice cry in agony.

"Mom!"

.

"Diana's right. It's an anagram," Phi declares, as she places her hands on her hips, squinting at the scrap of paper Diana has written on.

It's 3AM in the morning, but no one can find the will to sleep, with the exception of Sophia, who is sleeping in Phi's room. As of now, everyone else has gathered in Carlos and Maria's room. Diana sits at the long desk, twiddling a pen between her fingers, and biting her bottom lip nervously. Sigma and Phi stand on either side of her, trying to decipher the anagram she has written on the notepad provided by the motel. Mira sits on Carlos's bed with Sean and Aoi, while Maria, Carlos, and Junpei sit on her bed. Eric broodingly stands in the corner closest to the door by himself.

Their group has grown from ten people to fourteen.

"Are you positive, Phi? The way this was written . . . it can also be a hidden message."

"Of course, I'm absolutely certain of it. Diana wrote 'sine dihe,' here, but it's actually spelled, 'sine die,' without that 'h.'" Her eyes flit to Sigma's. "In the timeline of the AB Project, when Sigma had to prepare the anagrams, he misspelled a word on purpose in one of them. The anagram was, 'Memento Mori, if the nineth lion ate the sun.' The word 'nineth' had an unnecessary 'e' wedged between the 'n' and the 't.' He had done this because an 'e' was left over after he made the anagram."

"So, you're saying that Delta did the same . . .?"

"Like father, like son, then," Mira points out with a wry smirk.

"And what does 'sine die' even mean?" Maria wonders softly. Her voice holds a childlike innocence — after all, she was not even a teenager when she fell into the coma. So, Phi has to remember she is speaking to a woman with the mentality of a pre-teen.

She wracks her brain to phrase the words a little simply, but not in a way that would make Maria feel uneducated, and then speaks. "It is Latin for 'without a day specified for a future meeting,'" she informs. "Usually, they use the phrase when adjourning court."

"B-But, but, 'Truth had gone!'" Junpei suddenly exclaims, slamming his palm against the desk in front of him. He looks at Clover and then his fiancée, who sits with Clover on the couch, with crazed, desperate eyes. "Akane, 'Truth had gone!' How the fuck did he know that!?" Carlos winces a bit at Junpei's use of the word, "fuck," and resists the urge to cover Maria's innocent ears, but she looks pleased to hear that no one is holding back on her account.

"Is he maybe omniscient?" Clover probes.

Akane, who has now walked over to Junpei, to sighs wearily. "I . . . I-I don't know." Her fingers run through Junpei's hair in comfort, trying to calm him.

Carlos frowns in thought. "He told me to ask you guys about that and the Second Nonary Game."

Aoi scoffs as he plops down on the couch next to Clover — he was starting to feel uneasy sitting near the Heart Ripper. "That fucker is probably trying to just rub in our faces that he knows everything."

"Wait, guys," Diana interrupts. "Can you please explain the Second Nonary Game to us, please? If Delta mentioned it, it has to be of relevance, somehow, right?"

So, Aoi, Clover, Akane, and Junpei quickly explain the Second Nonary Game to him and the others. They talk about its purpose and quickly also talk about why the First Nonary Game was integral to its cause. They also describe how the morphogenetic field was important played a big role in both games, and how Junpei was able to save Akane's life.

"As for 'Truth had gone,'" Akane begins to explain, "it was a clue I transmitted to Junpei towards the end of the game, so that he could ultimately open the coffin Clover's brother, Light, was in, and get past the number 9 door."

.

It is nearly dawn when everyone returns to his or her own rooms. The only reason why they decided to leave in the first place is because Eric claimed that talking about the Second Nonary Game is getting them no where and gruffly declared that he didn't want to listen to this bullshit anymore, and was going to bed, urging Sean to come with him. Carlos — after seeing Maria sneak in a yawn, too — suggested then that everyone should try to get some sleep and reconvene for brunch.

Phi quietly crawls into the bed her older self occupies, careful not to jostle her awake. She breathes a sigh of relief when she successfully curls up under the covers without disturbing her grandmother, and closes her eyes to try to sleep.

"I was beginning to wonder if you intended to sleep at all tonight."

Phi's eyes fly open, and she shifts her head to make out her Gran's face in the slight light of the sunrise. "You haven't slept?"

Sophia sighs. "After worrying for so many sleepless nights about Delta having a hand in your sudden decision to participate in that Mars Mission, how do you expect me to fall back into the routine of sleeping so easily?" she whispers back hoarsely.

Phi frowns back. "I was meaning to ask you about him, actually. I know that you grew up with him and all, but don't you realize how horrible he has become? He trapped us in an underground bomb shelter. You even just said it yourself: you were worried that Delta would come after me and use me for my SHIFTing."

Sophia nods steadily, though a little bewildered by what Phi is trying to prove. "Yes, I understand, Phi. You told me all of this already in the car ride here. What he has done is horrible."

Phi wrenches up from the bed and twists her body so she can reach for the lamp's switch. Light illuminates the room as she turns to look at Sophia's — who also sits up from her sleeping position — composed face. "If you understand, then why were you being so nice to him?!" she demands angrily.

"Well," Sophia starts slowly, "why would Delta transport here after SHIFTing if his job was done?"

Phi's nostrils flare. "Because he's a selfish bastard who wants to continue living for as long as possible, especially now, since we're all working to eliminate that fanatic!"

"Phi," Sophia scolds, and suddenly, it feels so strange to Phi — she is being reprimanded by her older self. "Come on, you are more than capable enough to come up with something smarter and more sensible than that. Think again, Phi, and think reasonably . . . If he were being selfish, he would have transported further into the future, where you all would have already tracked down and stopped the fanatic — but he didn't."

Phi stays silent.

Sophia continues on. "Actually, it might just be that it's because he appeared tonight in his younger form, but seeing and talking to him again reminded me of the Delta I loved and grew up with. He may be a bit of an asshole, but he's not evil, Phi. His thinking has just always been too extensive for the ordinary mind to grasp, since it transcends their way of thinking."

"Say what you want, but I won't forgive him for what he put Sigma and Diana through. Especially Diana." Phi grits her teeth and balls her hands into fists at the explicable rage she feels towards Delta.

Sophia sighs. "He believes that sacrifices are required for the greater good. In this case, the biggest sacrifices affecting the both of their mental states. So, obviously, I don't expect you or them to forgive him. Hell, I am very pissed at him for trapping you all in the Decision Game. I don't know if I'll be able to forgive him for that, either, but, all I ask is for you to understand him."

"Hmph." Phi crosses her arms over her chest and looks away. "Not all of us grew up with him, so we can't really understand him."

"Try," Sophia urges softly, as she grasps Phi's hand and squeezes it gently. "He's your brother, too, you know. Now, get some rest, Phi, and think about what I've said, please."

Whew, I'm so glad this chapter is over with! Coming up with that anagram was hellish, in all honesty. And, no, don't worry, I won't make you go off and try to solve it yourselves . . . well, I mean you can if you would really like to, but all will be revealed in a few chapters!

Also, I don't know if any of you have caught a... misunderstanding, or inconsistency, of sorts, in this chapter, that a character does not realize and corrects. If you can figure out what the problem is, you can fill in the big holes of some of the explanations that have been presented thus far in the fic. ;)