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damned_lounge2008-10-30 02:36 pm
whohitreset.livejournal.com) wrote in damned_lounge2008-10-30 02:36 pm
Entry tags:
Oktoberfest 08' Entry, One for Every Letter by Lauren
Title: One for Every Letter
Author:![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
laverinth
Betas: Allie, Tad
Word Count: 5017
Rating: PG
Characters: Near, Matt, Brooklyn, Mello, Artemis Fowl, Misora Naomi, L, Wally West, Allelujah/Hallelujah Haptism, Vlad Plasmius/Masters, Tsumugiya Ururu, Kira Izuru, with mentions of Usopp, Harley Quinn, and Ichimaru Gin.
Summary: The Head Doctor sets up a special event for someone who's been finding out a bit more than they should. It's all a game, and you've just lost it.
Notes: This fic is illustrated. Scrolling down before reading may result in spoilers. (Just sketches, though. Sorry I don't have anything more fancy.) I also apologize for the randomness of this. The idea's been in my head for ages, though I had to shave a bit off to fit the word limit.. >_>;
As it happened every night when the sun went down, the voice of the Head Doctor could be heard over every intercom throughout Landel's, his friendly daily demeanor gone and replaced with the true face of the Institute. Tonight, however, it appeared that there was to be a new surprise in store for his patients - and wouldn't that got over well?
"Good evening, everyone," came the voice. "Tonight I will be more than just a friend to take heed of. I will be your teacher. You are all so slow to learn.
"Tonight we learn what happens when you stick your nose where it doesn't belong. You wanted to see what I'm capable of? Well, here's a taste. I do hope you enjoy it." Then, as usual, the intercom shut off and all the doors unlocked at once.
--
As Mello stood and prepared to leave, his radio suddenly came to life. He froze, remaining inside his room while casting a quick glance towards his roommate, who watched him suspiciously. Only his radio had made a sound. What could cause L to overlook the dangers of contacting him so soon?
"Mello," said L's voice in a tone that didn't allow much room for argument, "I need to see you immediately."
The hell?
With a grumble of great disapproval, the blond quickly exited his room. There had to be an empty one nearby. People were already taking cautious steps out into the hall. Before he'd responded or could even find a better place to talk from, it sputtered to life again. "Mello," said L. "I need you in the central hallway."
"I'm coming," Mello responded hastily. "This isn't the best time to be using these." For the moment, his worry over others finding out about their communication methods overshadowed the nagging thoughts about the strange broadcast and what it might entail. It wasn't until he reached the main hall and saw the open doors of the sun room that he realized he might have made a mistake.
It was too late by then.
--
Artemis Fowl the Second was changing into his more preferred attire when, halfway through pulling his shirt over his head, he suddenly stopped. As Haku asked him what was wrong, the boy heard a weak voice in the back of his mind. It was hard to understand, the words garbled. Schuldig? he thought back, immediately worried.
Please... sun room...
--
Matt didn't remember leaving his room.
Suddenly he was sitting in the hallway, clutching his head as it pounded with a slowly fading headache. The pain was almost completely gone by the time he realized someone was helping him to his feet. "You okay?" the someone asked. "I think we ran into each other."
Nodding, Matt then glanced around the hall. He wasn't far from his room - still within the same block, actually. The young man that had helped him was mildly familiar - taller than he was, with white hair. (Why so many unusual colors among the patients? Was brown that bad?) He might have seen him leaving the area before. "I'm fine. Thanks."
There were a good many people out and about now that Matt had a better look of things. Some of them appeared to know where they were going while others were out of it, moving in a sort of daze. The young man he'd run into had noticed this as well.
"I'm not really sure what's going on," he admitted. "There was the announcement over the intercom and then this. Some people seem fine, but..." he motioned around, as the situation spoke for itself.
Right. Zombie city. Except not nearly as creepy and with a good deal less rotting flesh. Kinda like the toddler-friendly version.
"Brooklyn. Robin."
A new voice spoke up from the small crowd and, unlike the other patients, this one was moving towards them. Before Matt could say anything, the white-haired patient addressed him as "Nate." and he fell silent. It was only right that he keep the alias Near wanted, especially as he'd been thoughtful enough to keep Matt's. (And this was going to bother him for the rest of the night, he was sure, even though Near most likely wouldn't ask for anything in return for keeping it secret. It would bother him less if he did.)
Brooklyn, as it appeared the other man was called, glanced over at Matt as he was addressed, obviously unaware of any connection between them. (Not that this was surprising. Near was hardly the most social of individuals.) The boy didn't wait for the two of them to become acquainted with each other. "Good," he said simply. "You're conscious."
A lock of hair was twirled casually between Near's fingers as he continued. "Whatever's causing this seems to be originating from the direction of the sun room, but I haven't been close enough to see for sure. The pull isn't incredibly strong, as it requires no more than a nudge to break someone out of it." At this remark he looked to Brooklyn, who couldn't help an embarrassed expression. Before Matt could make anything of this, Near added "I suspect Brooklyn knocked you out of it, Robin?"
"I just wanted to see if it would work," Brooklyn admitted quickly, causing Matt to rub at his head some. So that's what they called running into someone nowadays, was it?
"Normally I wouldn't suggest getting close to something as potentially harmful as this is, but I'm curious as to what's going on and we might have more luck figuring it out as long as we're not under its influence." The finger that had become entwined in Near's hair was pulled free, causing the lock to spring back into place. "Would you accompany me, Brooklyn?"
"Yeah, sure. I'd like to get down to the bottom of this myself."
Matt wasn't surprised to see that Near already had others working under him. The option of learning proper self-defense might not even be open to him, as he imagined it could take him months to get into any sort of decent physical shape. He was also aware that Near had just left the option open for him to pass up on this venture if he wished - which he was tempted to do. He'd just check in with Kenshin (if he hadn't been drawn out as well) and leave this mess to the more suited. However, if he did that and Near ended up finding out something particularly useful, he was going to regret it for some time. Now he wasn't Mello; he didn't have the same desire to show the smaller boy up, but that didn't mean he enjoyed seeing him get ahead.
And Near knew this, damn him.
"I'm in too, I guess," he muttered, "but I suggest we not hang around if things get too hairy, yeah?"
"Agreed," said Near. With that, the three of them headed off.
The way to the sun room was easily navigated and free of danger, which sent off warning bells for everyone present but not enough to keep them from continuing on just yet. What did stop them in their tracks was the fact that the doors to the sun room were open and there was at least a small amount of light coming from inside. Brooklyn drew out his weapons as they neared, taking the lead while Matt brought up the rear.
They entered the room cautiously, but nothing happened until they'd gotten several feet in, at which point a couple familiar voices spoke up as one. "Welcome, friends. I'm glad you could make it."
Freezing in place, the three of them found themselves being approached from either side. On the right was Artemis Fowl, hands in his pockets and stance casual. To the left was Mello, chocolate bar in one hand while the other had a gun pointed right at Near. Both were dressed as they would have been in their own world and both wore similar blank expressions. "It was good of you to come," they went on, again speaking as one, "but I don't need all of you."
The sight of them speaking in tandem was giving Matt another headache, and he wasn't totally convinced that he wasn't dreaming the whole thing.
Near's eyes had narrowed. On the foreheads of each was a letter corresponding with their first names - Mello an M and Artemis an A. The way they spoke as though they were one person insinuated that another was pulling the strings in some sort of grand puppet show. Not the Head Doctor, however. No, the letters were in a familiar script and the implications of this were very troubling. Before he could ask what they meant by not needing everyone, a metal ring about the size of a bracelet came flying through the air and attached itself to Brooklyn's wrist.
For a moment, the white-haired man simply stared at it in surprise. Then he curled up on himself as he was hit with the pain of transforming back into his true form. As it began, Near and Matt automatically backed away from the scene.
All it took was a glance towards Matt and the two of them were immediately headed back the way they'd come in. Their way was blocked, however, by another figure - this one female. Naomi Misora, Near recognized, and on her forehead the letter N.
"I see," said Near.
Trapped on all sides, Near and Matt could only wonder what the controlled patients planned to do with those they didn't need (get rid of them being the most likely answer). In a thought slightly detached from the situation, Near wondered if perhaps they should have gotten there sooner. At least then they might not have just been extra letters. He only wanted one of each, he realized, and their positions had already been filled.
Before any of their brainwashed acquaintances could lay a hand on them, however, they were swept up in a gray blur and removed from the room.
"Well that was close," said Wally West as he took a moment to catch his breath. "Good thing you two are both lightweights or that would have been a lot harder."
A glance around revealed that they'd been deposited in one of the waiting rooms. Their savior sat in one of the chairs against the wall, bent over and probably not ready to do another dash like that until he'd had a fair sized breather.
"Thank you," said Near.
"Oh yeah. Don't mention it." The man waved off the apology. "You're not the first person I grabbed out of there anyway." He jerked a thumb to his right and only then did the two of them notice another figure in the room. He'd been quiet, and the room was dark enough that he was easily missed. his right shoulder had been bandaged - injuries from gunshot wounds, Near noted. Likely Mello's doing.
Upon realizing that their attention was on him, the man gave a small wave. "Allelujah Haptism," he said by way of introducing himself. An effort to sit up straighter caused him to wince.
"If you're trying to figure out what's going on out there, he might be a better person to ask than me." Wally got back to his feet, giving his legs a stretch and performing a few warm-ups. "It's foolish to go in the sun room right now."
At this comment, Near nodded. "It is. But we've learned a lot from doing it." Matt said nothing, having come to his own conclusions but waiting for the inevitable explanation.
"Like what?" asked Wally. "That you can get brainwashed if you get too close?
Near shook his head. "Incorrect. If that was the case then you wouldn't have needed to rescue us. The brainwashing is limited." The young man looked around for something to demonstrate his point, and soon had grabbed hold of a magazine from a nearby stack. He flipped it open to a page with a fair amount of large text and then began tearing out individual letters, setting each aside once it had been removed. "Only one patient corresponding to each letter is needed. Anyone else is just excess and set for elimination. Allelujah," Near pushed a letter A away from the others, "when you went into the room, Artemis Fowl was already taken. He is the young man in the suit. Is this right?"
Allelujah nodded.
"Then you were unneeded, as the letters are chosen based on the given name and not the surname." Next to the A he added a B, M, and then N. Brooklyn. Mihael. Naomi. Perhaps it had been the gargoyle's folly to choose a name for himself. If he hadn't, and he'd remained nameless, would he have been immune to this? What about the Death Note? Thoughts for a later time. "So they attacked you. If you could give me a run-down of anything you saw once I finished here I would appreciate it."
He received another nod from the injured man as he continued to carefully tear letters from the magazine. One of each. "We also know who the main puppet in this ordeal is."
A large L joined the smaller group of letters.
"Who's that?" Wally leaned over to watch Near work.
"L. Just as it says. From the same world as myself, Nate," he pointed at the N, followed by the M, "and Mail over there."
"OI!" Matt protested loudly.
"He doesn't go by that name, but it's enough," Near went on. "He'd rather you call him Robin."
Matt swore under his breath but said nothing else in argument.
Near didn't know L's real name, but L would be L. No one else would be assigned that letter.
"The lettering on the forehead is one giveaway. It's of the same style that both he and I have used to represent ourselves. But that in itself isn't quite enough." He put a finger each on the B, M, and N. "Of the patients currently under his control, most are those he already had some connection to. Easily roped in. And then there's the message over the intercom."
"About someone sticking their nose where it didn't belong, right?" Allelujah's question had Near nodding. He arranged the letters into a partial pyramid with L on top.
"If there's anyone in this Institute capable of getting into its true secrets, it's L." The thought caused Near to smile somewhat (in a way Wally found absolutely creepy). If L had truly come to his senses again, it would only make sense that those in charge would want to find another way to break him.
"Well, I'm not sure who you mean, but there was definitely someone else in the room." Figuring Near had about finished, Allelujah spoke up to add his own insight. "They were near the back, sitting on a sort of high platform that isn't usually in the sun room. As far as I know, they were fairly quiet and unmoving, but I'm willing to bet it was the person you're referring to - at least the one in charge."
Near turned his full attention to the injured man. "This person you saw. Was he sitting with his legs pulled up like this?" He imitated L's style of sitting from what he'd seen while at the Institute.
Allelujah shook his head. "I couldn't see him well enough to tell. Only his eyes - like a cat's reflected from a torch* beam." While he was speaking, he began pulling out something that had been tucked at his side. "I was more interested in this at the time. It was glowing then, but it's stopped now." Having retrieved the item, he set it in front of him. It appeared to be the hilt of a sword.
At least to most. "That's an interesting blade," said Near. "How did you keep it hidden away like that?"
Three pairs of eyes turned to look at him in confusion, and the boy frowned back at the attention. He'd missed something, and he didn't enjoy that feeling.
After a moment, Matt asked "What blade? It's just the hilt?"
"That's all it is," Allelujah nodded, "and all it was when I found it."
Near continued to frown, staring at the item on the floor. To his eyes, there was more than a hilt. A blade of what might at first look like illuminated glass but at second glance could well be made of formed light stuck out from the hilt. There was no need to question whether the others were playing him for a fool. Their simultaneous reactions had been enough proof against that. Once again, he wasn't liking the implications of this. He held out his hand. "Allelujah, may I see it, please?"
The wounded man seemed hesitant, but he did as asked. Once it was in Near's hands, the blade became visible to everyone. This was made obvious by the mirrored looks of surprise.
Then Matt burst into laughter, having to turn away and cover his mouth with one hand.
As Near had thought, whoever had set this up, whether it be the Head Doctor or L, had planned it so that the weakest among them had the means to come to everyone's rescue. He could hardly blame Matt for finding the situation hilarious.
"Well," said Near as though it wasn't a death sentence, "I suppose we'd best get moving."
"Are you serious?" Matt began, calming somewhat. "You can't-"
"What's your name?" Near ignored his childhood acquaintance for the moment and looked to the Flash.
"Wally West."
"You should stay here. We don't know if that letter is already taken." The letter W in particular could be harder to find a match for, and the double use of it would be especially tempting. "I thank you for your help again."
"Hey, wait! I can't just sit around here and-"
"Please." Near was already standing. Matt was hesitant to follow, but if the other two weren't capable of coming along then he was the only option. With a long sigh, he stood and prepared to go as well.
All plans were temporarily derailed, however, as the moment Near opened the door he had to step aside to let another body come flying through. The body belonged to a semi-conscious teenage male who fell against the back wall and lay still. Near closed the door quickly, but it was too late. They'd already been seen.
Everyone rushed to the back wall as the door was thrown off its hinges. Allelujah, unable to move out of the way fast enough due to his injuries, gave a pained cry as he was hit head on with it.
The figure looming in the hallway was smiling, but the letter emblazoned on his forehead showed that he was still being puppeted. Perhaps being away from the center of things allowed the patient to retain some of his personality.
This man's letter was V, and he hovered about two feet off the ground, skin blue and hair dark with a lighter stripe down the center. Vlad Plasmius waved a glowing hand at the other assembled patients. "Scurrying around like rats," he said. "This is cute."
The teenager who'd fallen, a lanky boy with an oddly long nose, began to sit up with a groan. The front of his uniform was scorched. "Y-you should just be glad... I've gone easy on you," Usopp got out before flopping back down. Near made note of the fact that there was already a letter U. Vlad laughed and was about to advance, when the broken door went flying back at him.
Allelujah was standing, the hair that had been falling to one side of his face now covering the other, the eye that was visible now a bright gold. Hallelujah ignored his wounded shoulder and relatively useless arm, glaring at Vlad. Picking up a chair, he prepared to throw that as well while matching the half-ghost's grin. "What are you waiting for?" he asked Near without looking at him. "I'm sure that sword's good for something.
Near had already been watching Vlad carefully. A ring, like the one that had attached itself to Brooklyn, was visible on the man's arm. The main difference from before was that now he could see something coming off of it. A glowing chain was attached to the ring, losing visibility about a foot away from where it was connected. This chain, he supposed, had to lead back to the source - to L. And of course the whole chain wouldn't be visible, because then it would be too easy to sever. There was no other explanation for the sword, then, but to do just that. Therein lay the problem, however. Near would have to get right next to his target. This could be a difficult task for someone far better at combat than he was.
Just as he'd decided what needed to be done, his body moved on its own.
With a cry of shock, Near found himself dashing towards Vlad with the sword at the ready. The man was surprised and prepared to shoot that odd glowing material at him. Hallelujah threw a chair as means of distraction, but it went right through him. Miraculously, the small young man managed to dodge the shot anyway, moving swiftly. When Vlad realized how close he was getting, he threw up a shield. The downward strike Near made with the sword went right through it, as well as the targeted chain. Vlad and Near then both fell to their knees at the same time - one from the loss of his abilities and one from pure exhaustion. L's heir was not built to move that way.
Matt was at his side the moment after. "What the hell was that? That was incredible!"
"I have to get to L," Near said, panting as he stood. They'd have to take the matter directly to the source, as there was no way he was going to be able to fight off each minion individually.
The now de-powered Vlad Masters stood up and brushed himself off. "Who do I destroy for this outrage?" he grumbled, hoping to tag along to find out.
"No one," Near answered simply. "Stay and see to the patients you beat up. The less we send in there, the better."
Vlad didn't appear pleased to be hearing this at all, especially not from someone Near's size, but he began heading inside the room anyway.
But it appeared that just as they stopped one brainwashed patient, another took his place.
"Enemies must be destroyed," said a small girl that had just stepped out of the sun room. Here, it seemed, was the missing U. Looks might be deceiving, but it was hard to believe that someone so minuscule could cause any real damage. This must have been Hallelujah's opinion, at least, because he ran straight at her. He was obviously quite surprised, then, to be flung bodily to the eastern end of the corridor. With her attention thus focused on the other man, however, Near was able to get close enough to sever the chain without too much difficulty.
Once she came to her senses, Ururu began running towards the man she'd just thrown, hoping she hadn't done too much damage.
Near didn't have time to pause. He and Matt kept moving, straight back into the sun room. There they expected to be greeted by more brainwashed patients, but found only a single man in the regular Landel's uniform. He appeared to be watching something with mild curiosity, and as they joined in watching they were rewarded by the sight of one of the rings flying towards him - only to stop before it reached him and go flying back.
"What's going on?" asked Matt.
The man, blond and somewhat sad looking, turned to them and shrugged his shoulders. "I'm not really sure. Every so often one of these things appears and then goes away again. It's been happening on and off all night."
Frowning, Near considered what this might mean. "What's your name?" That would be the biggest clue, given that the man responded truthfully.
"Kira Izuru."
At this, Near's eyes widened ever so slightly and Matt muttered "...It's not even his given name."
"We have to move now," the white-haired boy said quickly. "If he wants Kira that badly, everyone will be in trouble once he gets a hold of him." If a brainwashed Yagami Light were to have control of the Death Note while L was in this state, anyone not assigned a letter could have their very lives at stake.
"Excuse me," asked Izuru. "What's going on?"
Near said nothing, already beginning to move ahead, but Matt decided to offer a short warning. "Those rings are trying to attach themselves to another Kira and if they did it would be bad. We'll leave it at that."
The shinigami's eyes narrowed and he turned back towards the center of the room as another ring went flying towards him. Before it could turn around, he grabbed a hold of it. He was yanked forward a couple feet as it tried to return, but he managed to keep hold. "Is that so?" Slowly, and with much effort, he began trying to slide his own wrist into it.
Near had paused now to watch. Was this Kira trying to force the issue? Could he make it accept him even though he wasn't the person it was after? For a moment, this looked to be the case as the ring suddenly snapped into place. Yet almost immediately after, the man cried out and brought a hand to his forehead while staggering back. It wasn't the letter K that appeared there, but four smaller letters - carving their way deep enough that blood began running down Izuru's face: F-A-K-E.
The two others didn't stick around to see the ring crumble into dust.
There was some sort of struggle happening further back in the room. This, most likely, was what had kept the other brainwashed patients away from them until now. As they got closer, however, they were once again noticed.
Brooklyn swept down from a perch on the second floor balcony, but Near was ready for him by the time he'd gotten low enough. Gliding, he'd said, not flying. So there was less maneuverability. When the gargoyle's chain was cut - done before he'd even touched down - he crashed and rolled to the side. The transformation back into a human didn't look comfortable, and Near honestly pitied him for having to endure it twice in one night.
Nest was Harley Quinn with a giant hammer, followed by Ichimaru Gin (at which point Matt began running in the opposite direction and nearly got stabbed for that bit of cowardice before Near took care of things). At this point, the poor heir to L had to slump to the ground again. Their target was almost reached, but his body couldn't take much more crazy stunts and jumping around. His breathing hadn't been regular since they'd left Izuru.
The pedestal Allelujah had mentioned was in sight now, and at its base was Mello and Artemis. They turned as one as Matt and Near approached them. "Back again?" they said. "You should leave me in peace."
Neither of the other two young men paused, though they divided themselves between the two patients - Near to Mello, Matt to Artemis. While certain that dodging bullets was going to practically kill him, Near was also certain that Mello would naturally want to focus on him more, making it easier to keep their attention divided.
Unfortunately, Matt wasn't lucky enough to have a magical sword enhancing his somewhat pathetic natural abilities. It was thus that a somewhat bruised Allelujah, trailing along after the two, was treated to a long, doppler-esque cry of "aaaaaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAaaaaaaaa!" as Matt went flying past him. The young man connected with the wall next to the sun room doors, sliding down into an unconscious heap. The Gundam pilot shifted his attention to the wounded man, hoping Near would be all right on his own.
By now Mello's chain had been severed. Knowing the gun would soon disappear as well, the blond quickly fired one last shot towards Artemis, taking the boy by surprise and allowing Near to take care of him as well.
"You shot me!" Artemis cried in outrage while he sat on the floor and held a hand over his now bleeding arm.
"You can thank me later." Mello smiled as he was reverted once again to the Landel's gray, firearms vanishing. He then turned to glare at Near as he made his way up the pillar. So his rival had the hero role. Later, he might have a better opportunity to be angry about it.
There were foot holds up the odd monument. One might think this was how L had gotten up, but Near was more willing to believe that the other man had been placed atop it without having to climb at all. The footholds were for the rescuer. In fact, this whole scenario had been set up to allow Near a somewhat easy victory. From the start, L had been calling for help. Allowing Allelujah to get away with the sword, allowing Wally West to rescue himself and Matt - he had no doubt that L could have stopped any of these things. He'd been meant to get this far.
And sure enough, once he'd climbed the few feet necessary, there was L.
He was sitting the same as always, though his arms hung down - weighted by huge, thick bracelets from which all the remaining chains were attached. Like those on the brainwashed patients, these also extended only a foot or so before vanishing. L's eyes glowed a solid white, his hands and feet claw-like and skin tinged a sickly gray. The product of his puppetry, it seemed.
He could hear shouts below- no doubt other puppets come to help their master now that Near had reached him. L himself didn't move. Perhaps his arms were simply too weighed down for him to actually defend himself. Or perhaps he simply had no desire to.
There wasn't much to think about now. Near was worn down, every breath difficult. His arms felt much like L's must have, difficult to lift from his sides. Ignoring the bracelets completely, Near plunged the sword straight into L's chest.
For almost a minute, there was nothing, just the two of them staring at each other. The blade did no physical damage - in fact there was no visible would where it entered the man's body. Then the light faded from L's eyes and the chains fell away from his wrists, dissolving into nothing. The fighting that had been going on below came to a stop.
And the loudspeaker came on: "There now. Wasn't that entertaining? A complete waste of an evening as well, I'm sure. I was amused, at least. Maybe you all have learned something."
Then the night ended, and Near had never felt more played.
--------
* "torch" because a) Zalia is British and b) if Allelujah's main language isn't English, Matt and Near are both Brits and would probably hear it as torch anyway (Yes, I felt the need to explain this.)
In regards to the passage of time, I played on the theme of it moving differently depending where you are or how many people you're threading with - just like what happens in the game itself. This is why so much had already happened before Brooklyn, Matt, and Near arrived, and why there were several more turned patients after their discussion in the waiting room.
I love you, Allelujah. I would like to apologize to Hallelujah's pride.
Also, Kira Izuru has only just been accepted into the game, but I couldn't pass up the opportunity to use him. ^^; I hope his mun doesn't mind.
Author:
laverinthBetas: Allie, Tad
Word Count: 5017
Rating: PG
Characters: Near, Matt, Brooklyn, Mello, Artemis Fowl, Misora Naomi, L, Wally West, Allelujah/Hallelujah Haptism, Vlad Plasmius/Masters, Tsumugiya Ururu, Kira Izuru, with mentions of Usopp, Harley Quinn, and Ichimaru Gin.
Summary: The Head Doctor sets up a special event for someone who's been finding out a bit more than they should. It's all a game, and you've just lost it.
Notes: This fic is illustrated. Scrolling down before reading may result in spoilers. (Just sketches, though. Sorry I don't have anything more fancy.) I also apologize for the randomness of this. The idea's been in my head for ages, though I had to shave a bit off to fit the word limit.. >_>;
As it happened every night when the sun went down, the voice of the Head Doctor could be heard over every intercom throughout Landel's, his friendly daily demeanor gone and replaced with the true face of the Institute. Tonight, however, it appeared that there was to be a new surprise in store for his patients - and wouldn't that got over well?
"Good evening, everyone," came the voice. "Tonight I will be more than just a friend to take heed of. I will be your teacher. You are all so slow to learn.
"Tonight we learn what happens when you stick your nose where it doesn't belong. You wanted to see what I'm capable of? Well, here's a taste. I do hope you enjoy it." Then, as usual, the intercom shut off and all the doors unlocked at once.
--
As Mello stood and prepared to leave, his radio suddenly came to life. He froze, remaining inside his room while casting a quick glance towards his roommate, who watched him suspiciously. Only his radio had made a sound. What could cause L to overlook the dangers of contacting him so soon?
"Mello," said L's voice in a tone that didn't allow much room for argument, "I need to see you immediately."
The hell?
With a grumble of great disapproval, the blond quickly exited his room. There had to be an empty one nearby. People were already taking cautious steps out into the hall. Before he'd responded or could even find a better place to talk from, it sputtered to life again. "Mello," said L. "I need you in the central hallway."
"I'm coming," Mello responded hastily. "This isn't the best time to be using these." For the moment, his worry over others finding out about their communication methods overshadowed the nagging thoughts about the strange broadcast and what it might entail. It wasn't until he reached the main hall and saw the open doors of the sun room that he realized he might have made a mistake.
It was too late by then.
--
Artemis Fowl the Second was changing into his more preferred attire when, halfway through pulling his shirt over his head, he suddenly stopped. As Haku asked him what was wrong, the boy heard a weak voice in the back of his mind. It was hard to understand, the words garbled. Schuldig? he thought back, immediately worried.
Please... sun room...
--
Matt didn't remember leaving his room.
Suddenly he was sitting in the hallway, clutching his head as it pounded with a slowly fading headache. The pain was almost completely gone by the time he realized someone was helping him to his feet. "You okay?" the someone asked. "I think we ran into each other."
Nodding, Matt then glanced around the hall. He wasn't far from his room - still within the same block, actually. The young man that had helped him was mildly familiar - taller than he was, with white hair. (Why so many unusual colors among the patients? Was brown that bad?) He might have seen him leaving the area before. "I'm fine. Thanks."
There were a good many people out and about now that Matt had a better look of things. Some of them appeared to know where they were going while others were out of it, moving in a sort of daze. The young man he'd run into had noticed this as well.
"I'm not really sure what's going on," he admitted. "There was the announcement over the intercom and then this. Some people seem fine, but..." he motioned around, as the situation spoke for itself.
Right. Zombie city. Except not nearly as creepy and with a good deal less rotting flesh. Kinda like the toddler-friendly version.
"Brooklyn. Robin."
A new voice spoke up from the small crowd and, unlike the other patients, this one was moving towards them. Before Matt could say anything, the white-haired patient addressed him as "Nate." and he fell silent. It was only right that he keep the alias Near wanted, especially as he'd been thoughtful enough to keep Matt's. (And this was going to bother him for the rest of the night, he was sure, even though Near most likely wouldn't ask for anything in return for keeping it secret. It would bother him less if he did.)
Brooklyn, as it appeared the other man was called, glanced over at Matt as he was addressed, obviously unaware of any connection between them. (Not that this was surprising. Near was hardly the most social of individuals.) The boy didn't wait for the two of them to become acquainted with each other. "Good," he said simply. "You're conscious."
A lock of hair was twirled casually between Near's fingers as he continued. "Whatever's causing this seems to be originating from the direction of the sun room, but I haven't been close enough to see for sure. The pull isn't incredibly strong, as it requires no more than a nudge to break someone out of it." At this remark he looked to Brooklyn, who couldn't help an embarrassed expression. Before Matt could make anything of this, Near added "I suspect Brooklyn knocked you out of it, Robin?"
"I just wanted to see if it would work," Brooklyn admitted quickly, causing Matt to rub at his head some. So that's what they called running into someone nowadays, was it?
"Normally I wouldn't suggest getting close to something as potentially harmful as this is, but I'm curious as to what's going on and we might have more luck figuring it out as long as we're not under its influence." The finger that had become entwined in Near's hair was pulled free, causing the lock to spring back into place. "Would you accompany me, Brooklyn?"
"Yeah, sure. I'd like to get down to the bottom of this myself."
Matt wasn't surprised to see that Near already had others working under him. The option of learning proper self-defense might not even be open to him, as he imagined it could take him months to get into any sort of decent physical shape. He was also aware that Near had just left the option open for him to pass up on this venture if he wished - which he was tempted to do. He'd just check in with Kenshin (if he hadn't been drawn out as well) and leave this mess to the more suited. However, if he did that and Near ended up finding out something particularly useful, he was going to regret it for some time. Now he wasn't Mello; he didn't have the same desire to show the smaller boy up, but that didn't mean he enjoyed seeing him get ahead.
And Near knew this, damn him.
"I'm in too, I guess," he muttered, "but I suggest we not hang around if things get too hairy, yeah?"
"Agreed," said Near. With that, the three of them headed off.
The way to the sun room was easily navigated and free of danger, which sent off warning bells for everyone present but not enough to keep them from continuing on just yet. What did stop them in their tracks was the fact that the doors to the sun room were open and there was at least a small amount of light coming from inside. Brooklyn drew out his weapons as they neared, taking the lead while Matt brought up the rear.
They entered the room cautiously, but nothing happened until they'd gotten several feet in, at which point a couple familiar voices spoke up as one. "Welcome, friends. I'm glad you could make it."
Freezing in place, the three of them found themselves being approached from either side. On the right was Artemis Fowl, hands in his pockets and stance casual. To the left was Mello, chocolate bar in one hand while the other had a gun pointed right at Near. Both were dressed as they would have been in their own world and both wore similar blank expressions. "It was good of you to come," they went on, again speaking as one, "but I don't need all of you."
The sight of them speaking in tandem was giving Matt another headache, and he wasn't totally convinced that he wasn't dreaming the whole thing.
Near's eyes had narrowed. On the foreheads of each was a letter corresponding with their first names - Mello an M and Artemis an A. The way they spoke as though they were one person insinuated that another was pulling the strings in some sort of grand puppet show. Not the Head Doctor, however. No, the letters were in a familiar script and the implications of this were very troubling. Before he could ask what they meant by not needing everyone, a metal ring about the size of a bracelet came flying through the air and attached itself to Brooklyn's wrist.
For a moment, the white-haired man simply stared at it in surprise. Then he curled up on himself as he was hit with the pain of transforming back into his true form. As it began, Near and Matt automatically backed away from the scene.
All it took was a glance towards Matt and the two of them were immediately headed back the way they'd come in. Their way was blocked, however, by another figure - this one female. Naomi Misora, Near recognized, and on her forehead the letter N.
"I see," said Near.
Trapped on all sides, Near and Matt could only wonder what the controlled patients planned to do with those they didn't need (get rid of them being the most likely answer). In a thought slightly detached from the situation, Near wondered if perhaps they should have gotten there sooner. At least then they might not have just been extra letters. He only wanted one of each, he realized, and their positions had already been filled.
Before any of their brainwashed acquaintances could lay a hand on them, however, they were swept up in a gray blur and removed from the room.
"Well that was close," said Wally West as he took a moment to catch his breath. "Good thing you two are both lightweights or that would have been a lot harder."
A glance around revealed that they'd been deposited in one of the waiting rooms. Their savior sat in one of the chairs against the wall, bent over and probably not ready to do another dash like that until he'd had a fair sized breather.
"Thank you," said Near.
"Oh yeah. Don't mention it." The man waved off the apology. "You're not the first person I grabbed out of there anyway." He jerked a thumb to his right and only then did the two of them notice another figure in the room. He'd been quiet, and the room was dark enough that he was easily missed. his right shoulder had been bandaged - injuries from gunshot wounds, Near noted. Likely Mello's doing.
Upon realizing that their attention was on him, the man gave a small wave. "Allelujah Haptism," he said by way of introducing himself. An effort to sit up straighter caused him to wince.
"If you're trying to figure out what's going on out there, he might be a better person to ask than me." Wally got back to his feet, giving his legs a stretch and performing a few warm-ups. "It's foolish to go in the sun room right now."
At this comment, Near nodded. "It is. But we've learned a lot from doing it." Matt said nothing, having come to his own conclusions but waiting for the inevitable explanation.
"Like what?" asked Wally. "That you can get brainwashed if you get too close?
Near shook his head. "Incorrect. If that was the case then you wouldn't have needed to rescue us. The brainwashing is limited." The young man looked around for something to demonstrate his point, and soon had grabbed hold of a magazine from a nearby stack. He flipped it open to a page with a fair amount of large text and then began tearing out individual letters, setting each aside once it had been removed. "Only one patient corresponding to each letter is needed. Anyone else is just excess and set for elimination. Allelujah," Near pushed a letter A away from the others, "when you went into the room, Artemis Fowl was already taken. He is the young man in the suit. Is this right?"
Allelujah nodded.
"Then you were unneeded, as the letters are chosen based on the given name and not the surname." Next to the A he added a B, M, and then N. Brooklyn. Mihael. Naomi. Perhaps it had been the gargoyle's folly to choose a name for himself. If he hadn't, and he'd remained nameless, would he have been immune to this? What about the Death Note? Thoughts for a later time. "So they attacked you. If you could give me a run-down of anything you saw once I finished here I would appreciate it."
He received another nod from the injured man as he continued to carefully tear letters from the magazine. One of each. "We also know who the main puppet in this ordeal is."
A large L joined the smaller group of letters.
"Who's that?" Wally leaned over to watch Near work.
"L. Just as it says. From the same world as myself, Nate," he pointed at the N, followed by the M, "and Mail over there."
"OI!" Matt protested loudly.
"He doesn't go by that name, but it's enough," Near went on. "He'd rather you call him Robin."
Matt swore under his breath but said nothing else in argument.
Near didn't know L's real name, but L would be L. No one else would be assigned that letter.
"The lettering on the forehead is one giveaway. It's of the same style that both he and I have used to represent ourselves. But that in itself isn't quite enough." He put a finger each on the B, M, and N. "Of the patients currently under his control, most are those he already had some connection to. Easily roped in. And then there's the message over the intercom."
"About someone sticking their nose where it didn't belong, right?" Allelujah's question had Near nodding. He arranged the letters into a partial pyramid with L on top.
"If there's anyone in this Institute capable of getting into its true secrets, it's L." The thought caused Near to smile somewhat (in a way Wally found absolutely creepy). If L had truly come to his senses again, it would only make sense that those in charge would want to find another way to break him.
"Well, I'm not sure who you mean, but there was definitely someone else in the room." Figuring Near had about finished, Allelujah spoke up to add his own insight. "They were near the back, sitting on a sort of high platform that isn't usually in the sun room. As far as I know, they were fairly quiet and unmoving, but I'm willing to bet it was the person you're referring to - at least the one in charge."
Near turned his full attention to the injured man. "This person you saw. Was he sitting with his legs pulled up like this?" He imitated L's style of sitting from what he'd seen while at the Institute.
Allelujah shook his head. "I couldn't see him well enough to tell. Only his eyes - like a cat's reflected from a torch* beam." While he was speaking, he began pulling out something that had been tucked at his side. "I was more interested in this at the time. It was glowing then, but it's stopped now." Having retrieved the item, he set it in front of him. It appeared to be the hilt of a sword.
At least to most. "That's an interesting blade," said Near. "How did you keep it hidden away like that?"
Three pairs of eyes turned to look at him in confusion, and the boy frowned back at the attention. He'd missed something, and he didn't enjoy that feeling.
After a moment, Matt asked "What blade? It's just the hilt?"
"That's all it is," Allelujah nodded, "and all it was when I found it."
Near continued to frown, staring at the item on the floor. To his eyes, there was more than a hilt. A blade of what might at first look like illuminated glass but at second glance could well be made of formed light stuck out from the hilt. There was no need to question whether the others were playing him for a fool. Their simultaneous reactions had been enough proof against that. Once again, he wasn't liking the implications of this. He held out his hand. "Allelujah, may I see it, please?"
The wounded man seemed hesitant, but he did as asked. Once it was in Near's hands, the blade became visible to everyone. This was made obvious by the mirrored looks of surprise.
Then Matt burst into laughter, having to turn away and cover his mouth with one hand.
As Near had thought, whoever had set this up, whether it be the Head Doctor or L, had planned it so that the weakest among them had the means to come to everyone's rescue. He could hardly blame Matt for finding the situation hilarious.
"Well," said Near as though it wasn't a death sentence, "I suppose we'd best get moving."
"Are you serious?" Matt began, calming somewhat. "You can't-"
"What's your name?" Near ignored his childhood acquaintance for the moment and looked to the Flash.
"Wally West."
"You should stay here. We don't know if that letter is already taken." The letter W in particular could be harder to find a match for, and the double use of it would be especially tempting. "I thank you for your help again."
"Hey, wait! I can't just sit around here and-"
"Please." Near was already standing. Matt was hesitant to follow, but if the other two weren't capable of coming along then he was the only option. With a long sigh, he stood and prepared to go as well.
All plans were temporarily derailed, however, as the moment Near opened the door he had to step aside to let another body come flying through. The body belonged to a semi-conscious teenage male who fell against the back wall and lay still. Near closed the door quickly, but it was too late. They'd already been seen.
Everyone rushed to the back wall as the door was thrown off its hinges. Allelujah, unable to move out of the way fast enough due to his injuries, gave a pained cry as he was hit head on with it.
The figure looming in the hallway was smiling, but the letter emblazoned on his forehead showed that he was still being puppeted. Perhaps being away from the center of things allowed the patient to retain some of his personality.
This man's letter was V, and he hovered about two feet off the ground, skin blue and hair dark with a lighter stripe down the center. Vlad Plasmius waved a glowing hand at the other assembled patients. "Scurrying around like rats," he said. "This is cute."
The teenager who'd fallen, a lanky boy with an oddly long nose, began to sit up with a groan. The front of his uniform was scorched. "Y-you should just be glad... I've gone easy on you," Usopp got out before flopping back down. Near made note of the fact that there was already a letter U. Vlad laughed and was about to advance, when the broken door went flying back at him.
Allelujah was standing, the hair that had been falling to one side of his face now covering the other, the eye that was visible now a bright gold. Hallelujah ignored his wounded shoulder and relatively useless arm, glaring at Vlad. Picking up a chair, he prepared to throw that as well while matching the half-ghost's grin. "What are you waiting for?" he asked Near without looking at him. "I'm sure that sword's good for something.
Near had already been watching Vlad carefully. A ring, like the one that had attached itself to Brooklyn, was visible on the man's arm. The main difference from before was that now he could see something coming off of it. A glowing chain was attached to the ring, losing visibility about a foot away from where it was connected. This chain, he supposed, had to lead back to the source - to L. And of course the whole chain wouldn't be visible, because then it would be too easy to sever. There was no other explanation for the sword, then, but to do just that. Therein lay the problem, however. Near would have to get right next to his target. This could be a difficult task for someone far better at combat than he was.
Just as he'd decided what needed to be done, his body moved on its own.
With a cry of shock, Near found himself dashing towards Vlad with the sword at the ready. The man was surprised and prepared to shoot that odd glowing material at him. Hallelujah threw a chair as means of distraction, but it went right through him. Miraculously, the small young man managed to dodge the shot anyway, moving swiftly. When Vlad realized how close he was getting, he threw up a shield. The downward strike Near made with the sword went right through it, as well as the targeted chain. Vlad and Near then both fell to their knees at the same time - one from the loss of his abilities and one from pure exhaustion. L's heir was not built to move that way.
Matt was at his side the moment after. "What the hell was that? That was incredible!"
"I have to get to L," Near said, panting as he stood. They'd have to take the matter directly to the source, as there was no way he was going to be able to fight off each minion individually.
The now de-powered Vlad Masters stood up and brushed himself off. "Who do I destroy for this outrage?" he grumbled, hoping to tag along to find out.
"No one," Near answered simply. "Stay and see to the patients you beat up. The less we send in there, the better."
Vlad didn't appear pleased to be hearing this at all, especially not from someone Near's size, but he began heading inside the room anyway.
But it appeared that just as they stopped one brainwashed patient, another took his place.
"Enemies must be destroyed," said a small girl that had just stepped out of the sun room. Here, it seemed, was the missing U. Looks might be deceiving, but it was hard to believe that someone so minuscule could cause any real damage. This must have been Hallelujah's opinion, at least, because he ran straight at her. He was obviously quite surprised, then, to be flung bodily to the eastern end of the corridor. With her attention thus focused on the other man, however, Near was able to get close enough to sever the chain without too much difficulty.
Once she came to her senses, Ururu began running towards the man she'd just thrown, hoping she hadn't done too much damage.
Near didn't have time to pause. He and Matt kept moving, straight back into the sun room. There they expected to be greeted by more brainwashed patients, but found only a single man in the regular Landel's uniform. He appeared to be watching something with mild curiosity, and as they joined in watching they were rewarded by the sight of one of the rings flying towards him - only to stop before it reached him and go flying back.
"What's going on?" asked Matt.
The man, blond and somewhat sad looking, turned to them and shrugged his shoulders. "I'm not really sure. Every so often one of these things appears and then goes away again. It's been happening on and off all night."
Frowning, Near considered what this might mean. "What's your name?" That would be the biggest clue, given that the man responded truthfully.
"Kira Izuru."
At this, Near's eyes widened ever so slightly and Matt muttered "...It's not even his given name."
"We have to move now," the white-haired boy said quickly. "If he wants Kira that badly, everyone will be in trouble once he gets a hold of him." If a brainwashed Yagami Light were to have control of the Death Note while L was in this state, anyone not assigned a letter could have their very lives at stake.
"Excuse me," asked Izuru. "What's going on?"
Near said nothing, already beginning to move ahead, but Matt decided to offer a short warning. "Those rings are trying to attach themselves to another Kira and if they did it would be bad. We'll leave it at that."
The shinigami's eyes narrowed and he turned back towards the center of the room as another ring went flying towards him. Before it could turn around, he grabbed a hold of it. He was yanked forward a couple feet as it tried to return, but he managed to keep hold. "Is that so?" Slowly, and with much effort, he began trying to slide his own wrist into it.
Near had paused now to watch. Was this Kira trying to force the issue? Could he make it accept him even though he wasn't the person it was after? For a moment, this looked to be the case as the ring suddenly snapped into place. Yet almost immediately after, the man cried out and brought a hand to his forehead while staggering back. It wasn't the letter K that appeared there, but four smaller letters - carving their way deep enough that blood began running down Izuru's face: F-A-K-E.
The two others didn't stick around to see the ring crumble into dust.
There was some sort of struggle happening further back in the room. This, most likely, was what had kept the other brainwashed patients away from them until now. As they got closer, however, they were once again noticed.
Brooklyn swept down from a perch on the second floor balcony, but Near was ready for him by the time he'd gotten low enough. Gliding, he'd said, not flying. So there was less maneuverability. When the gargoyle's chain was cut - done before he'd even touched down - he crashed and rolled to the side. The transformation back into a human didn't look comfortable, and Near honestly pitied him for having to endure it twice in one night.
Nest was Harley Quinn with a giant hammer, followed by Ichimaru Gin (at which point Matt began running in the opposite direction and nearly got stabbed for that bit of cowardice before Near took care of things). At this point, the poor heir to L had to slump to the ground again. Their target was almost reached, but his body couldn't take much more crazy stunts and jumping around. His breathing hadn't been regular since they'd left Izuru.
The pedestal Allelujah had mentioned was in sight now, and at its base was Mello and Artemis. They turned as one as Matt and Near approached them. "Back again?" they said. "You should leave me in peace."
Neither of the other two young men paused, though they divided themselves between the two patients - Near to Mello, Matt to Artemis. While certain that dodging bullets was going to practically kill him, Near was also certain that Mello would naturally want to focus on him more, making it easier to keep their attention divided.
Unfortunately, Matt wasn't lucky enough to have a magical sword enhancing his somewhat pathetic natural abilities. It was thus that a somewhat bruised Allelujah, trailing along after the two, was treated to a long, doppler-esque cry of "aaaaaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAaaaaaaaa!" as Matt went flying past him. The young man connected with the wall next to the sun room doors, sliding down into an unconscious heap. The Gundam pilot shifted his attention to the wounded man, hoping Near would be all right on his own.
By now Mello's chain had been severed. Knowing the gun would soon disappear as well, the blond quickly fired one last shot towards Artemis, taking the boy by surprise and allowing Near to take care of him as well.
"You shot me!" Artemis cried in outrage while he sat on the floor and held a hand over his now bleeding arm.
"You can thank me later." Mello smiled as he was reverted once again to the Landel's gray, firearms vanishing. He then turned to glare at Near as he made his way up the pillar. So his rival had the hero role. Later, he might have a better opportunity to be angry about it.
There were foot holds up the odd monument. One might think this was how L had gotten up, but Near was more willing to believe that the other man had been placed atop it without having to climb at all. The footholds were for the rescuer. In fact, this whole scenario had been set up to allow Near a somewhat easy victory. From the start, L had been calling for help. Allowing Allelujah to get away with the sword, allowing Wally West to rescue himself and Matt - he had no doubt that L could have stopped any of these things. He'd been meant to get this far.
And sure enough, once he'd climbed the few feet necessary, there was L.
He was sitting the same as always, though his arms hung down - weighted by huge, thick bracelets from which all the remaining chains were attached. Like those on the brainwashed patients, these also extended only a foot or so before vanishing. L's eyes glowed a solid white, his hands and feet claw-like and skin tinged a sickly gray. The product of his puppetry, it seemed.
He could hear shouts below- no doubt other puppets come to help their master now that Near had reached him. L himself didn't move. Perhaps his arms were simply too weighed down for him to actually defend himself. Or perhaps he simply had no desire to.
There wasn't much to think about now. Near was worn down, every breath difficult. His arms felt much like L's must have, difficult to lift from his sides. Ignoring the bracelets completely, Near plunged the sword straight into L's chest.
For almost a minute, there was nothing, just the two of them staring at each other. The blade did no physical damage - in fact there was no visible would where it entered the man's body. Then the light faded from L's eyes and the chains fell away from his wrists, dissolving into nothing. The fighting that had been going on below came to a stop.
And the loudspeaker came on: "There now. Wasn't that entertaining? A complete waste of an evening as well, I'm sure. I was amused, at least. Maybe you all have learned something."
Then the night ended, and Near had never felt more played.
* "torch" because a) Zalia is British and b) if Allelujah's main language isn't English, Matt and Near are both Brits and would probably hear it as torch anyway (Yes, I felt the need to explain this.)
In regards to the passage of time, I played on the theme of it moving differently depending where you are or how many people you're threading with - just like what happens in the game itself. This is why so much had already happened before Brooklyn, Matt, and Near arrived, and why there were several more turned patients after their discussion in the waiting room.
I love you, Allelujah. I would like to apologize to Hallelujah's pride.
Also, Kira Izuru has only just been accepted into the game, but I couldn't pass up the opportunity to use him. ^^; I hope his mun doesn't mind.