By Sargent Snarky
A 'what if' sort of thing…
Summary: What if a system error occurred when Kite used data drain? This be my hypothetical answer… Duh. The game is over. But if this were real, what would happen to poor Kite? Needless to say, this'll be pretty grim.Oh, and since I've decided, for random reasons of my own, to have this occur during the fight with Macha, I'm altering one thing about the events preceding it: Elk is able to watch the entire battle… He's just on the sidelines.
VERY IMPORTANT NOTE: I have completely rewritten this story from the second chapter onward. This is because I was not happy with how I'd written it… So, the plotline has changed from how it was going and all of that jazz…
Just so you know, this revision brings the story closer to what I had originally intended when I decided to make this more than a one-shot.
IMPORTANT NOTE: The computer I used to usefor internet access died. Well… not all of it is dead. Just the hard drive. -.- Which is one of several reasons why it's taken me so gosh darn long to post anything. Also, that's why I haven't left anyone reviews in a while, too. Or answered emails. Or… anything. xX -sigh- But, at least I have a legitimate excuse! Which is.. our hard drive ish kaput. Which reminds me… I lost all of my bookmarked sites and a good deal of my documents. –cries- ;; nooooooo!
Disclaimer: The only things I own are copies of the games, the anime and the manga of .hack… Oh, and I downloaded the trailer for the new game. And I stole Kite's hat. Otherwise, I own nothing in the way of .hack / franchise…
One more little note: SQUEEE! They finally released AI Buster in English! And… I got a copy and read it! So… now I understand a bit more of the backstory of certain things in Legend of the Twilight, especially, not to mention a bit more of how The World actually functions. And what the One Sin event really was! Yay!
One final note: I have discovered an anime/manga series that just plain ROCKS! I love it! as much as, if not more than, .hack. S'called Chrono Crusade. –steals Chrono from the anime/manga and hugs him- Such a sweet, cute, little, dangerous, devil demon thing!
Chrono: -is choking due to my hug-
Me: Hey! You're face now matches your hair! (which is purple)
Anyway, on with the story:
(By the way, I edited this chapter a bit, but otherwise it is the same as my original chapter for the original version of this story.)
(Oh! And if I'm violating the F.F. rules somehow, will you please WARN ME before reporting me so I can take the old version down! Because I am not posting the same story twice… Really! I'm not! Once you read the later chapters of either one, you'll see. I've been reported twice now for things (and had two stories taken down, one of which was a one-shot for FFX/X-2… And I really liked it!) that I didn't honestly realize were not allowed, or that I'd messed up on. And, well, it is particularly irksome because the least someone could have done was email me before reporting me. People /do/ make mistakes, y'know. Aaanyway, I'm particularly fond of this account and would hate to see it banned. Right… Back to the subject: On with the story!)
Part I – CorruptionElk stood pressed against a lump of 'rock' at the edge of the floating island, crimson eyes wide, filled with turbulent emotions as the battle progressed. Half of him wanted to leap in front of the creature that had been Mia and take the blows for her, defend her. Half of him wanted to curl up in a ball and cry, or run away. He'd always been good at running away, especially in the real world. But he could do neither.
His horror, fear, and worry rooted him to the spot, and the boy could only stare in shock, body trembling. In the real world, he barely held onto his controller; his hands shook. In The World, his hands were clenched tightly about his staff. His eyes followed the progress of Kite, Blackrose, Balmung and the sixth phase Macha around the island.
The flurry of attacks delivered by the three warriors (minus Kite on the occasions he stepped back to heal his allies) seemed to barely effect Macha. Despite the players inflicting their strongest attacks, the phase was unfazed. (XD Sorry.. couldn't resist) Elk didn't see how the constant pounding did any good, but who was he to say what would and would not be effective in fighting a phase? After all, Kite and Blackrose were the ones to have fought and defeated the first five phases.
Suddenly, it seemed as though something about Macha had snapped, for she snarled, wincing, the expression upon her face suddenly pained, and somewhat worried. Elk, of course, could neither see nor sense that the protection against data draining had been stripped away from Macha. Only Kite could. Then again, only Kite really needed to.
Speaking of which, the twin blade leapt back, far enough away from the phase that her physical attacks would not reach him. Sheathing his weapons, Kite lifted his right arm above his head for a brief moment, activating the bracelet, before dropping the arm level with Macha and parallel to the ground. For support, his left hand was braced against his right arm.
Only now that the bracelet was activated, its prongs glowing and expanding to form a wide 'wheel', were Elk, Blackrose or Balmung able to see it. The two latter moved out of the way to avoid being caught by the bracelet's deadly powers.
( Kite's POV )
"Data Drain."
I hold my wrist out, the bracelet shifting and expanding. I feel the telltale jerk of the data drain commencing. I have grown used to the twinge of fiery pain lacing my arm, and I do little more than grimace. Static crackles around myself, and around Macha, making my vision distort and scramble just a little through the neuro goggles. The strange, colored ribbons of light and data come shooting out of the bracelet, slamming into the phase with a shattering sound.
Usually, a strange broken, scrambled sphere appears around the object of draining, collapsing upon itself as the remaining data is rewritten. The odd ribbons return to the bracelet, and it, too, collapses upon itself, disappearing from sight, though I know it is still there. Then, depending a bit on luck, and a bit on what I've just drained, either a virus core or a random item will be made of the drained data. If it's a phase, like this one, then a segment of Aura's data is likely to result.
But this time… This time none of that happens…
Sudden burning wrenching pain assails me – pain like nothing I've ever felt before! It feels as though every fiber of my being is on fire. I cannot help but scream in agony. Through an unfocused haze, I am dimly aware of seeing the bracelet go nuts. The normally orderly 'rays' are garbled and twisted, many of them snaking around me, piercing me, binding me, encircling me. Some are still connected to Macha, who, although in pain, has a triumphant gleam in her glowing eyes.
Two words in blood red flicker across my sight: SYSTEM ERROR…
...Damn it! Goodbye World… Goodbye me…
Vaguely, I see the messed up sphere collapse upon Macha, although it looks somehow different than every other time, leaving behind a collection of rocks in the vague shape of the phase. But, the significance of that framework doesn't register as the fire turns to icy needles.
I am unable to move, neither in the game, nor in the real world. The pain, oh! The pain… When will it stop…? God, the pain…
I get the point that I am about to die… Or at least be thrown so far into catalepsy that I'll be as good as dead. So… please, can't the pain end? Can't the shredding of my being as the bracelet to which I am attached destroys itself and me hurry up?
I am no longer aware of the screams tearing from my throat, no longer conscious of my body in the real world – though in a detached sort of way, I know that I am ridged in my desk chair, yet shuddering and screaming – no longer able to comprehend what is happening to me. It feels as though my very being is slowly being shredded, starting first with my physical body, then with my soul… Somewhere in the back of my mind, I hear a cackle of glee… a woman's cackle of glee. Morganna's…?
Once again, I am dimly aware that the bracelet is glowing, active, but the parts jerk, crooked, garbled. As fire is added to the needles once more, electrical sort of blue lightening runs over my body, stemming from the bracelet and dancing around me, taking delight in my agony.
I hear voices as though from underwater. Whose are they? What are they saying? Why… Why can't they make the pain stop?
Oh god… Why won't it stop? Why won't it stop!
Eternity passes in which I know nothing but fire, ice and lightening, each vying for dominance over my senses. Each breath of air sends wracking agony through my body.
I am tired… so tired… Why can't I just sleep? Let the darkness take me… How can my body endure such endless anguish and still exist? Or does it still exist?
Vision blurred almost beyond recognition, I see bits and pieces of data flaking away. I see that the bracelet still exists, albeit in a strangely garbled way. It feels as though two forces are fighting, and my body just happens to be the most convenient epicenter.
The strange, crackling sphere formed about me, I suddenly realize, comes not from the bracelet, but from something else… Something trying to protect me… But what? I… can't remember… I can't… think… too tired…
I am aware of my body collapsing, both in the World and at my desk chair, but I feel neither. I'm caught in the twilight of between, and am swiftly hurtling towards darkness. I 'see' my body lying lifeless upon the ground in the World, and I 'see' my body, my real body, lying upon the carpet, nuero goggles just a few inches away, my glasses also a short distance from my head, probably bent by the fall. A chill numbness settles over me, but it is almost as bad as the pain. No energy. No scrap of life remains within either of my bodies. Yet, something refuses to let me sleep.
Slowly, I am forgetting myself as the numbness spreads. And yet… I recall things. I 'look' at an object in either the real world or in The World and I recollect the name, and perhaps the purpose. I 'see' my mother come running into my room, followed closely by my father. I 'see' Blackrose, Balmung, and Elk gathered around me, trying to heal me with potions and spells, and I know who they are, I think, but… who am I..?
The tangle of voices still seems to come from a great distance away, but I can't muster enough concentration to decipher them… I do not care. It takes too much effort to think, to know, to care. Why can't I sleep? I am so tired…
Finally darkness… The blessed darkness comes…. But… As it falls, somehow… somehow I whisper an apology…
Because… I… failed…
Sleep… Now comes sleep… I can rest…
And yet it is not rest… The two sides… I can still feel them fighting, though I am too far gone, now, to feel the tearing pain… Instead, I dream it.
( Third Person POV )
Balmung and Blackrose watched as Kite initiated the data drain, both of them standing far enough away from Macha so as not to be accidentally hit with one of the after effects, which sometimes followed. Glitches, they supposed. It was still a morbidly fascinating thing to watch their friend employ Data Drain. Still, the two remained ready to go back to attacking the thing that would result from the rewritten data of Macha.
They never knew when the creature would be weak enough for data draining. Only Kite seemed to know when the protection was down and the data drain would be effective. Then again, only Kite had the bracelet, and only Kite's character data had been almost completely rewritten upon the activation of this strangely powerful item.
Blackrose stirred uneasily as the data drain commenced. Something… something wasn't right. No, something was definitely wrong, although she couldn't put her finger on it. Her bad feeling was confirmed when the bracelet suddenly flickered greenish in places, as if it was infected with the data bug, and Kite let out a scream of pain. Not merely a shout as if he'd been burned, or the yelp he used to let out when he was still getting used to the bracelet and its effects. No, this was a scream. A scream of agony.
"Kite!" cried Blackrose, running towards him, Balmung barely a pace behind her.
Elk, too, began to move towards Kite, but stopped when the data drain abruptly broke its hold upon Macha. Surprisingly, the stone framework began to crumble, one section of it glowing softly as it disintegrated. Elk thought he saw a flicker of purple beneath. With another anxious glance at Kite, Elk ran over to the shattering Macha. To Mia.
Meanwhile, Blackrose and Balmung skidded to a halt several feet from Kite for random threads from the bracelet crackled out, striking the ground, or flicking into the air around the boy. A bit of a shell had formed around the twin blade in places, some of the small polygons a sickly green, others blue. Brightly (if strangely) colored ribbons from the bracelet snaked around Kite, binding to him, while others seemed to pass straight through him, and still others jerked wildly about. The bracelet itself was discombobulated at best; its normally orderly ring of polygons was disordered, and the 'prongs' were crooked, many of them bent and some of them broken entirely. It seemed to be disintegrating, consuming itself.
Kite continued to scream, and it was obvious to both Blackrose and Balmung that the twin blade was in great pain, but there was nothing they could do. Blackrose made an attempt at a healing spell, but it had no effect. Instead, lightning-like strands of something began to shoot out from the bracelet, many of them snaking through Kite's body.
"What the hell is happening to him?" cried Blackrose, frantic.
Balmung shook his head. "I… don't…"
However, the question was shortly answered when Helba's voice crackled in their ears. It was fuzzy, and disrupted, but it was still a transmission.
"What (fizzle) going on? (fizzle)" she asked. "A strange (fizzle) of data. Something won't (fizzle) observe."
"It's Kite!" began Blackrose, voice panicked. "When he data drained the phase thing, his bracelet got all messed up, and… and… Can't you hear him…? What can we do! What the hell is wrong with him? Why is the bracelet like that?"
There was silence for a moment (well, silence from Helba, anyway). Then, her reply came back a bit clearer than before, and it sounded genuinely worried. "This is not good. (fizzle) Data corruption. There's been a system error with the bracelet. (fizzle)"
"Wha-? What does that mean?"
"The bracelet malfunctioned due to data corruption. (fizzle) data draining monsters (fizzle) the bracelet and Kite to become infected (fizzle) Now, it's destroying (fizzle)."
"Huh! You mean the Kite's infected with the data bug! What the hell! Helba! Can't you do something?"
" (fizzle) Get him out of (fizzle) back to the Root Town. Hurry, or (fizzle) nothing I can do."
Blackrose looked at Balmung, then at Kite, around whom data and random protrusions from the bracelet crackled. Though now hoarse, the screams still came…
Meanwhile…
The stone had completely disintegrated, and Mia floated there, eyes open, though barely so. Elk caught her in his arms as she drifted towards the ground. He held her gently as she looked up weakly.
"Elk," she whispered. "Tell Kite… Thank you…"
"Mia! Mia, no! You can't die. You can tell him yourself!"
Mia smiled faintly. "Elk…"
"Mia!" Elk clutched her tightly, tears welling in his eyes. He cast the strongest healing spell on her, and it seemed to help just a little, but not enough.
Her golden eyes glimmered, then slid past Elk towards Kite, widening somewhat. She shook her head weakly, as if in denial. "No…" she whispered.
Elk glanced back at Kite, and his eyes, too, widened. "What… what's happening?"
Mia murmured, "The corruption… The bracelet… It's killing itself, and Kite."
"What? Mia! Don't go!"
Her eyelids slid shut. "Elk… Good bye… Go… go help Kite."
"Mia!"
But she was gone. Elk fell to his knees, still holding Mia. He gasped through his tears as her body suddenly became small golden lights, which pressed closely to Elk, before drifting into the air and vanishing. He stared at where the motes had been for a long moment before shakily getting to his feet.
The wavemaster had just turned back towards Kite when the twin blade's muscles seemed to finally unlock, and he collapsed upon the ground, screams dying with a low moan. The last sound he made was a nearly inaudible murmur, but they could not catch the words.
The strange shell and the bracelet shattered, leaving the twin blade lying in a rather disturbing state upon the ground. His digital body was covered in raw data patches, much like those adorning the corrupted fields, and in places, there seemed to be jagged gashes, as if the data there had been torn away. One such empty bit, fringed with bits of raw data, formed a gouge in Kite's shoulder. Another area was upon his face, part of his jawbone and cheek upon the left side. More 'missing areas' were scattered about his frame, including a rather large one in his side, but all of them need not be described.
Blackrose left out a soft sob as she ran over to the boy, falling to her knees beside him. "Kite," she moaned. "Oh… Kite…"
As Elk and Balmung stood over her and Kite, Elk noticed that Kite's eyes were not closed. Rather, they were wide, the pupils dilated and staring straight ahead at nothing, and they were empty. Lifeless. It frightened him that a gaze could be so… vacant. Elk knew that Kite was still alive (or at least his avatar was) by virtue of the twin blade's ragged breathing, but…
Blackrose lifted and held Kite's hand, despite the raw, ragged data patch ringing his wrist, and creeping up the hand. Kite didn't respond. He didn't even twitch. The heavy blade, her garnet eyes brimming with tears even in The World, looked up at Balmung and Elk. Balmung nodded, murmuring something about following Helba's instructions. Then, the three of them warped out, bringing Kite with them. They reappeared at the chaos gate of the net slum root town.
Helba was there, her expression one of true concern. Lios was there, too, looking horrified and somewhat guilty, though the situation was hardly his fault. In the real world, he looked at his scans of the area (Omega) Cruel Vindictive Scars, and he noted that the surge of data had not yet returned there. Instead, it was undetectable. Something told him, however, not to stop watching that area.
Other players who were Kite's friends and allies gathered around the chaos gate, too, minus a few who could not be there, such as Gardenia, Mistral and Nuke. Some of them were grouped together, talking softly, but they all fell silent and turned towards the newly arrived.
Blackrose's soft sobbing was the only sound for a long moment in which Helba, Lios, and most of the players stared at Kite. Then, Balmung broke the silence.
"Helba, Lios," he said, voice taut. "Is… is there anything you can do?"
Though he seemed to remain cool and collected, albeit tense, his eyes held great worry, fear and pleading. Lios shook his head.
"I… don't…" he began, but fell silent, unsure what he could say.
Helba seemed to be studying something, probably a data analysis. She shook her head, then said, "No… Not much, anyway… He's beyond help… It's highly unlikely Kite will recover, though not impossible. The chance is, however, slim. If Aura was here and unhindered by Morganna, then she would be able to help, but… she isn't."
Blackrose let out a soft moan, and her sobbing increased.
"Wha… what the hell happened to him?" stammered Marlo. The normally freaky 'tough' guy's eyes were wide, his expression shocked.
"System error," explained Helba with a sigh. "You all know about the bracelet Kite possesses, and its ability to data drain, so I need not explain that. However, the nature of the data drain is such that the wielder absorbs a fair part of whatever data is rewritten. For Morganna's phases, they absorb the energy, power and assorted other things from the players and their character data. Kite, on the other hand, absorbs merely some of the data. Most of what is absorbs is rewritten into an item, by virtue of modifications made by Aura.
"Nevertheless, some of it enters Kites' character data. Sometimes, this excess data includes part of the corruption. Given time, the safeguards Aura gave to Kite work to eliminate the harmful and unnecessary data. However, when Kite data drains many things in a row, especially things with high corruption rates, corrupted data builds within his data, and spreads some of the corruption as well. Kite is continuously infected, as it were.
"Those of you with him when he's data drained things might have noticed that random glitches occur on occasion. These are generally a result of the excess data. But, as Kite's infection rate rises, the glitches become more frequent and generally worse because Aura's safeguards try to prevent too much corrupted data from being absorbed. Therefore, there is more excess data to cause problems.
"Apparently, when Kite data drained Macha, his infection rate was already extremely high, whether from a lot of data draining, or from something else, I do not know. Anyway, the data drained from Macha was enough to completely corrupt Kite's data, and the data of the bracelet. Therefore, it malfunctioned. It… broke… And it began to consume itself. Since Kite is its bearer, he too would be destroyed."
"But… why isn't he destroyed, then?" asked Elk. "He's still alive…"
"Aura. Aura's safeguards and protection," said Helba. "The book that became the bracelet completely rewrote Kite's character data, as Blackrose and Balmung were witness to. And when it did so, it layered protections on Kite. It's because of those protections that this pigheaded fool" – she gestured to Lios – "could never delete Kite. It is also because of the protections and additions that Kite couldn't be data drained, either. Data drain could be executed on him, but it would have little effect other than damaging him, and maybe inflicting status ailments. You might have noticed in battles with the phases that, although they might use their ability to data drain upon one of you, you wouldn't fall into comas. Aura managed to somehow extend that protection to anyone in Kite's party it seemed. Anyway, this protection against deletion or data draining is all that keeps Kite from dying, or, more likely, falling so deeply into a coma that no chance of awakening. The remnants of the bracelet (probably aided by Morganna) are still trying to delete themselves and Kite. The protection Aura gave to him is fighting against that, trying to bring him back. As long as neither side gains any leeway, Kite will remain like this."
"So, why can't you design some program to help Aura's protections?" asked Lios.
Helba frowned. "I never said I couldn't. I could, but it's extremely risky. The program might help, and might bring Kite back to us, or it might have no effect. Or, worst case scenario, it unbalances the sides, allowing for complete deletion."
"You've got to try!" said Balmung and Blackrose at the same time.
"Yeah!" agreed Marlo.
"You must," said Wiseman.
Rachel, Terajima Ryoko, Moonstone, Sanjuro, Natsume, and Elk all voiced their concurrence, as well.
"He hasn't given up on us, so we shouldn't give up on him," stated Blackrose.
Helba smiled faintly. "How did I know you'd say something like that?"
Author's Notes:
Do note that I am also posting Chapter 2 and possibly Chapter 3 of my rewritten stuff. Chapter 4 is about a third to a half done, and it is likely to remain that why for a while, as School is starting quite soon.
But, I know, I know... this chapter is pretty much the same as chapter 1 for the original version. The reason is because the first chapter is the only one I liked.