.hack//LIMINALITY Fan Fiction / .hack//SIGN Fan Fiction ❯ .hack//CHECK ❯ Truth ( Chapter 28 )

Chapter 28 // Truth

. . .

"I just wish I could have done something. The more I think about it, the more I'm certain that none of this had to happen. When you got back, it was like one calamity after another. First, you broke that news to me. Then, this project came up, and it looked like it would solve all of our problems. Well, to you, at least. I told you not to join that project, but you did it anyway. You were so adamant about it, it almost seemed as though you were forced into it, or something. Things were looking up at first, but then, it happened. The Deadly Flash. The scientists all said that shouldn't have happened. The 'Ducks' and 'Goose' were unaffected. So, the question becomes 'why did it happen?'"

. . .

JackSprat: start from the beginning.

591NDash: we were in the same unit as Saint.

Excellence: he was the "black sheep" in the unit.

591NDash: Yeah. Everyone else in the unit was like family. Except him. He didn't seem to care about what happened to the others, or even about following orders.

Excellence: all he cared about was getting the hell out of there.

Excellence: One night, he sneaked out of camp Me and Dash followed him.

591NDash: That's when we were ambushed. I was lucky. I only caught a piece of shrapnel in my butt. Excel was shot multiple times.

Excellence: But, Saint...

591NDash: Due to the injuries he sustained, he was unable to have kids. We were able to fight off the attackers, but I'll never forget what I saw. Looked painful

Excellence: Poor guy was shouting "Dash, Excel! It hurts! It hurts like hell!"

SexyTiff2509: Why was he calling you guys by your player names?

591NDash: Oh, we actually used our callsigns as our player names.

Excellence: Ahem!

591NDash: Well, long story short, our injuries got us off of active duty.

Excellence: Unfortunately, at the time, they were looking for "volunteers" for some projects.

591NDash: Turns out, that fateful night we were injured, Saint was going AWOL. Since we followed him, they decided that we had gone AWOL too.

Excellence: So, rather than go to jail, we "volunteered".

JackSprat: Blackmail?

591NDash: is an understatement.

591NDash: The projects were code-named after waterfowl.

STANspark: I've been wondering why that is.

Excellence: Waterfowl are adept in two elements, water, and the air

JackSprat: So, your two elements became the real world, and the internet.

591NDash: Well, yes. But, Goose was to be adept in two completely different elements.

Excellence: Life and Death. If only for a short while.

SexyTiff2509: So, what about Swan?

591NDash: I was getting to that. Swans are beautiful creatures. They swim beautifully, and they fly with great grace.

591NDash: This was part of the concept. What all They do, they do it all well. Full spectrum birds, if you will.

591NDash: What better code for what would theoretically be the ultimate full spectrum warriors?

JackSprat: I see... So, what happened?

591NDash: Well, not long afterwards, the Deadly Flash hit.

Excellence: We were okay, for some odd reason, but Saint... He fell into a coma.

591NDash: We started beta testing Fragment, and much to our surprise, there was a player character named Swan, so we partied up with him.

Excellence: Fragment became "The World", and a whole mess of incidents happened there.

591NDash: Yeah, but he was always missing during the constant server resets.

Excellence: before he started playing on some Pirate server, he had become interested in some kind of poem.

STANspark: The Epitapfh of Twilight?

Excellence: Er... Yeah.

591NDash: He disappeared to some private server not long after the last reset.

JackSprat: So, how do we beat him?

591NDash: Beat him?

SexyTiff2509: He's killing people...

591NDash: And?

Excellence: It's not our problem.

STANspark: WHAT?!

JackSprat: How is that? If he goes on another spree, your butts are lightly toasted.

Excellence: He couldn't Data Drain us when we ran into him a couple of months ago, so we're safe.

JackSprat: Well, that was a couple of months ago. He's somehow modified the ability. HE CAN GET ANYONE.

591NDash: Pfft. Yeah, right.

STANspark: You're welcom to go to wherever he haunts nowadays and find out. Hope you have good funeral coverage.

591NDash: You're bluffing.

SexyTiff2509: Try us.

Excellence: =_=

Excellence: Fine. I'll tell you what I do know. Our hacker was able to get this info before he mysteriously disappeared.

Excellence: Swan has 10000 HP. Knock that down, and he's out of the game.

591NDash: No one's ever done that.

591NDash: Ever.

. . .

A woman looks into one of the booths, and screams.

. . .

JackSprat: Uh-oh. From the sounds of things, we gtg.

SexyTiff2509: Later.

STANspark: Thanks...

. . .

Tiffany got out of her seat, and tiptoed to the edge of her booth.

Jack, peering over the top of the booth, whispered, "What do you think you're doing?"

"Getting out of here.", replied Tiffany.

"You'll get spotted immediately if you try to sneak out like that.", whispered Jack.

Danny walked into Jack's booth. "He's right...", Danny mentioned.

Tiffany looked at them, and asked, "Well, what do we do? We have to get out of here now!"

"No need.", said Jack, "We'll just leave when they start evacuating the building."

A woman stood in the middle of the cyber café, "Everyone may I have your attention please. For your safety, we will have to close now. Please file out of the front door. Thank you."

Everyone began to walk out.

. . .

Tiffany stopped in front of a hotel, and Jack and Danny got out. Jack looked over at Danny, and said, "You have reservations here, too?"

"Huh? No. I just show up. Around this time of year, there aren't many tourists, so I can get a room just about anywhere...", replied Danny.

"I see..."

"I'll come by tomorrow.", said Tiffany.

"Er...", Jack reached into his pocket, and retrieved some cash. "Here. For the gas used. From both of us. Thank you."

"Huh?", replied Tiffany, "It's a favor for friends. It's no problem, really."

"You sure?", asked Danny.

"Yeah.", answered Tiffany, "Besides, our friend Danny is going to rent a car tomorrow." She smiled.

"The engine murmurs, right?", asked Jack.

"Yeah. That's why I don't use it often.", replied Tiffany, "It could break down at any time, really."

"Drive safely.", said Danny.

"I will.", Tiffany pulled off. "Bye."

"See you tomorrow."

"Bye."

Jack and Danny walked into the hotel. "So, what movie have you been working on, lately.", asked Jack.