CHAPTER 46: CLOSE EVERY DOOR

As Jill laid unconscious, she recalled a certain memory from what felt like so long ago. In actuality, it was at the start of the Night Raven semester, less than a month from when she made Hallowgrim. She had met Ortho only recently during the Starsending Ceremony, and after that, she was called in to see Ignihyde dorm for the very first time.

But it was far from a pleasant visit…

"Grim, I can't believe you picked a fight with Mr. Trein's cat!" Jill hissed.

"Look, Lucius started it!" Grim snapped from within her arms.

"Doesn't matter who started it," Jill said. "Don't think I'm gonna bail you out of every problem you cause! This is why Azul was able to extort you through taking that picture!"

"Extort is such a harsh word," Azul said from in front of the duo. "It's just a business transaction. We're almost there…"

He opened the doors to the Ignihyde workshop, a vast room full of technology that seemed straight out of a sci-fi film. Everything was white and sleek, but what caught Jill's immediate attention was Ortho. He was lying on his back on a metal table, his chest open and his eyes closed as if he was asleep. Idia was in his labwear, just like Azul, and nearly jumped when he saw the visitors.

"Azul? Geez, where were you?" Idia demanded. "And why did you drag the cringe twins along?"

"Hi, Idia," Jill said dryly.

"Azul threatened us," Grim grumbled. "Never even explained what we had to do."

"Well, it's more of a Grim-sized job. Jill is merely supervising," Azul said, nodding to the girl. He then took Grim out of Jill's arms and held him before Ortho. Azul and Idia started speaking in very technical terms that Jill couldn't translate, but basically, Ortho needed an upgrade. There was a very specific part in his chest that needed to be removed for a better version. But it was so small and compact, not to mention surrounded by other parts, so Grim would have to be the one to do the swap. It reminded Jill of the game Operation, just on a much larger scale.

"I didn't know that Ortho was so… complex," she mused. In hindsight, if humans had all sorts of organs that worked together, it made sense that machines did too. "What's this glowing thing?" Jill pointed to a small bluish light in the upper-right corner of Ortho's chest.

"That? Don't touch that, whatever you do," Idia warned. "That is Ortho's core chip. I can recreate any part of Ortho with ease… except that one."

"It's that important?" Grim gawped.

"To put it in newb-speak, it's the chip that makes Ortho, well… Ortho," Idia went on. "His old memories and knowledge are in there. It's… one of a kind."

"Thankfully, that's not the part we need to remove," Azul said. "Grim, wait for the signal…"

In the end, Azul walked away with a very expensive robotic heart of sorts. Grim had his blackmail erased, and even got a can of tuna for his effort, though of course he griped that he didn't get more. When Jill shrugged and admitted it was a fair deal, Grim whined even more.

"Jill… hey, Jill…"

"Stop complaining, Grim…" Jill sighed.

"Jill, c'mon! Wake up!"

"…Huh?"

Why did I remember something from so long ago…?

Jill snapped her eyes open. She was in the seat of the Chariot, with Ace Trappola watching over her worriedly. Jill sat up and rubbed her head, looking around. Everyone else was in a cluster around Idia Shroud, who was looking quite grave indeed.

"Well, do it already!" Vil's voice snapped. Wait, was that Vil? It sounded older…

"Alright," Idia said. "Game, Set, Match… Gate to Tartarus…"

There was a loud groaning sound from below, and the two halves of the great stone door finally met. The greenish light faded away, and the air became much cooler.

"It's over," Jill said, weak with relief. She tried to move out of the Chariot, but she was still a bit dizzy. Ace caught her and helped her on her feet.

"Thanks, Ace," she breathed. "Feels like a miracle."

"I wouldn't say 'miracle'," Ace said. "Even if it paid off this time, you gotta stop doing these boneheaded stunts." And he gave her a swift peck on the cheek.

Jill hugged him back, then noticed that most of the attention was being placed on Idia; everyone was making furious demands at all the things that Styx had to fix. Idia's voice was quieter than usual without his phone as a shield, but he seemed to be agreeing to everything and apologizing for all the harm he caused. That was a good sign.

But where was Grim? She looked around worriedly until she saw a familiar dark figure away from the circle.

"Grim…" she mumbled, moving closer.

The direbeast finally growled and shrunk down, becoming the Grim she knew and loved. "Ugh, that wasn't fun," he complained. "What took ya so long, Jill? I can only hold myself together for so long!"

"Always complaining about something," Ace said, shaking his head.

"Grim, what got into you?" Jill asked. "Did you think you could take on that Titan all by yourself?"

"I dunno what I thought," Grim said. "I was tryin' to get a couple things, actually… it just came to me. One of them was Idia's magestone, which Leona already took from me. The other is… well, this." He picked up a small bluish device that resembled a comb. It looked familiar, but Jill's memory was hazy, and she wasn't sure if this thing was that core chip from all those months back. Ortho had so many parts that it could be any of them, but she pocketed the device just as a keepsake.

"Ortho's gone, isn't he…?" she asked sadly.

"Yeah, he is," Deuce said quietly, breaking away from the circle and approaching the first-years. "Vil dived in to save Grim, and the Titan saved Idia at the last second… but we weren't able to save Ortho. Tartarus was just too powerful for us to handle alone."

Jill took a second to process this. The Titan did serve as Idia's Phantom, so maybe there was an emotional connection. But Vil saving Grim? Why did Jill have to fall unconscious for the cool stuff?!

"Vil!" she called out. "Thank you so much for saving Grim! We owe you so much!"

"Hmph, you should be grateful." Vil finally turned around. "It cost me quite a bit."

And then Grim and Jill finally saw the elderly man that Vil had become. The papery skin, the white hair, the hunched frame, the way that Vil had to hold Jill's dorm weapon like a cane…

"Vil… you look awful!" Grim cried.

"Grim, this is the worst time to be rude!" Jill chided. "Vil saved your life! That's a beautiful act!"

"That's right. Show Roi du Poison the proper respect!" Rook agreed in a huff.

"It's fine… I know what I look like," Vil said quietly. He was flanked by Epel and Rook, who were sadly helping him stand on his feet.

"Vil…" Jill's eyes pricked with tears. It wasn't fair. To be drained of all youth just like that… looking at Riddle and his now-white hair, Jill feared for his mortality too.

"C'mon, we're all leaving this hellhole," Leona announced. "Styx got everything back online, so we'll use the Chariots."

Jill nodded and got back into the nearest Chariot. She couldn't wait to see the surface again, but what would be waiting up there? Would things ever be alright again?

Idia did not spare Jill or Grim even a passing glance as he was escorted up to face his punishments.

Author's Note: Jill's memory comes from Azul's Labwear Vignette, where MC could do little but watch as everyone else did the hard stuff. Poor Jill isn't technologically gifted, but at least she can recognize shiny things to a degree.