Day 13: Part 1

(A/n)--

You guys should keep your powerstones to yourselves lol. I have no idea what those even do, but I can 100 percent assure you that, while appreciated, it is unnecessary. All I ask of you guys is to enjoy my story and maybe leave a comment when something gains your attention or if you notice an error in the story.

I also wouldn't mind reading any thoughts, criticisms, or even theories you might have regarding this story as it is still a work in progress and will be updated whenever I have time to write a new chapter.

Do keep in mind that these chapters I posted this past week are the ones that were already published on Wattpad, meaning that newer chapters will take time for me to write. Each chapter is more than 10K words after all, so I hope you can understand if there are long periods between each chapter update.

Speaking of words, unfortunately "Day 13" of my story was too long and passed the 20K word cap on Webnovel so it will be split into 2 parts. Hopefully that doesn't bother any of you.

Anyways, enjoy!

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["She was so sad that she had to leave her dear friends behind, so she came up with a brilliant idea!"]

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3rd POV

He hadn't quite properly registered the words Angela spoke before her departure. Most likely it was because he was too preoccupied in his thoughts to actually hear what she had to say. Sitting here for who knows how long after she had left, the room that the Manager's office was located at was empty and silent. Leaving him alone with only his crushing thoughts to keep him company.

Taking a very much needed deep breath, Xavier slowly rubbed his eyes to clear away whatever stress he could relief himself of. Which did very little as he had a lot on his mind as of late. The severe casualties from yesterday was something that he didn't fully process until now, much less how poor his managing skills actually were.

Maybe it was because it was during the moment or perhaps it was due to how preoccupied he was till now, but the fact that nearly an entire department of staff were killed under his supervision had nearly slipped his mind was both terrifying and concerning. He could've blamed it on the adrenaline he felt or the wave of relief that washed over him when he completed the day, but Xavier knew deep down within him that he subconsciously knew what he was doing.

'The Energy Quota was nearly finished!'

'If I went back, then all of that progress would've been for nothing!'

'Did I really want to go through it over again knowing it wouldn't change a thing?"

These were the whispers that he kept hearing, trying to justify what he did. Even despite knowing that such words were in vain, they kept coming and coming to ease his mind. Yesterday he slept a good rest, as if he hadn't just allowed an entire section of his staff to be butchered when he could've prevented it. A single push of a button was all it took to undo the massacre that was yesterday, and yet he hadn't thought to do so when the ever so blissful feeling of relief intoxicated him to sleep.

His words from before could still be heard in his head, promises and vows to better and differentiate himself from the rest. But who was he trying to fool? All that talk of keeping everyone safe and sound, now look at him. A liar and a hypocrite was what he had become, and it was weighing down on his consciousness. Was this who he was? A man who stumbles and falls into temptation for the littlest of reliefs? He wanted to do what was right, yet his mind and body naturally ignored such thoughts and intentions the moment his "job" was complete.

Only Xavier could answer his own questions, but even he didn't know the answer to them. But at this point it was beginning to seem like it wasn't answerable in the first place. Perhaps he should start seeing different alternatives? Giving up would be one, but that's simply him dropping he guillotine above his head down on himself.

Drink? Should be just drink his problems away? From what he's seen from Netzach it sure seemed to be a better way to go out. Or perhaps....should he just accept it? That he's nothing but a liar and a hypocrite, ready to toss his own workers into the jaws of an abnormality just so he reach the daily quota? Just a heartless man who is no different from A—

*BEEP* *BEEP* *BEEP*

Before he could despair into his dark thoughts any further, a familiar sound startled him as he reached his hand into his lab coat. He was almost thankful for such an interruption, because he wasn't sure how much his mental health was going to be able to take from his self beating. It almost made him wonder how the other Manager's were able to deal with this.

The beeping sound became more clear once he pulled out the device that he almost forgotten he even had. He couldn't lie, Xavier was nervous and uncertain as well about this entire thing with this 'B' person. Sweat began forming in his palms as Xavier stared at it, not knowing whether he should even consider using it. Unfortunately, it wasn't up to him to decide that.

"-el-o? H-lo? Hello, can you hear me?"

The same voice as last time rung out from the device, causing him to hitch his breath as he listened intently. As the static mixed in with his voice began to clear, Xavier could only speculate as to what this 'B' person could have to say this time. Just like the last time, the man on the other end of the line didn't hesitate to continue despite not receiving an answer.

"I apologize in advance if none of what I am about to say makes any sense to you. Perhaps you will brush aside my words as those of a lunatic without a care in the world. But for the chance that you are wishing to understand the circumstances that you have found yourself in, then please, listen well. I can only afford to say this once."

Xavier bit the inside of his cheek as he nervously sat up straighter on his seat. He could feel the palms of his hands slowly be drenched in even more sweat as he tightened his grip on his chair. Not even letting him mentally prepare himself, the voice continued.

"The first truth I wish to tell you....is that the AI at your side is not to be trusted. Before your confusion sets in, allow me to explain. In this day and age, most AI possess an intellect of at least ten regular people combined. Some can even imitate human emotions with ease."

Of course, that didn't shock or even surprise Xavier. It was a logical conclusion to arrive at when even computers and other tools created by Man were able to process things faster than their creators. Besides, the imitation of human behavior was something that he dealt with first hand, especially regarding the Sephirot. It did make Xavier wonder whether or not all the Sephirot were even AIs to begin with on more than one occasion. The only thing stopping him from fully believing that, however, was their perception and morality regarding others.

So then the question was; from this information, what exactly made them untrustworthy?

"However....they can do things you are not aware of yet.....or perhaps you have but simply choose not to acknowledge it. For example, some can lie, twisting their words and withholding information. Perhaps your definition of a 'lie' may be different from mine.....but in the end it can't be said that it is a good thing."

Scenarios, images, entire conversations with each Sephirot played through over and over in Xavier's mind. Remembering their words and actions as best as he could, he couldn't even tell the difference from the truth and lies, if there even was any, in their words.

"Another example.....If the controller of an AI were to give the order to not share specific information, then it has no obligation to tell the truth to anyone, other than that controller. More advanced AIs may even exploit such an order to tell lies, reinterpreting the meaning of the command."

"....and since I'm not their controller....they potentially have no obligation to tell me anything remotely true, even if I'm the Manager..." Xavier whispered to himself as a look of horror, and even a slight hint of betrayal, appeared in his eyes. Unable to control himself, he turned his attention back to the device, his stoic face struggling to contain his emotions. "How do I know you're telling the truth?" He unintentionally raised his voice a little after a small moment of silence, the strain in his tone showing how unnerved he was.

All the effort, hard work, mental straining that he had poured and gone through during his days here could have been for nothing. What was true and what wasn't, at this point he was losing himself in the chaotic mess that was his short life. But even then, was this even his life to begin with? No memories to go off of, alone and frightened with no clarity of what was and what wasn't, not even a name to be called on other than a letter as if he were simply a tool in a toolbox. Who was to say that his efforts weren't already in vain?

"How do I know that I can trust anything that you're saying?"

He asked once more, his stoic mask still in place but his words and eyes still contained the same intensity and uncertainty as before. Trust....was not something given but earned, and at the moment this 'B' person had done nothing to earn his. Words weren't enough to reassure him, something that they both knew, which is why 'B' had to tread carefully with his next words.

"I've programmed an AI before...well, participated in the programming, to be exact. It may not sound much, but I assure you that it was enough for me to know for a fact that an AI will not necessarily tell the truth if it doesn't have to."

Xavier's breath hitched as the implications of what he said entered his ears. His suspicions only continued to grow. After all, if he helped program an AI, who was to say that said AI wasn't in this facility right now.

".....I understand if you have your doubts regarding this, and I don't blame you for having them, but allow me to prove you otherwise."

A small clicking sound drew Xavier's attention to the device as he narrowed his eyes. In a sudden motion, a small opening suddenly appeared as a small rectangle object ejected out of it and onto us desk. Carefully leaning forward, Xavier's eyes locked onto the glistening object before he quickly realized what it was: a USB.

"Within that USB is a program that I, myself, have developed. At the moment, I wish for you to hold onto it, but when the time comes you will need to connect it to your monitor for it to serve its purpose."

"And just what exactly is its purpose?" Twiddling with it with his fingers, Xavier still held onto his gut feeling that something about this wasn't right. It felt as if there was something else he wasn't being told. Something that would both shatter his reality but still connect everything together like a puzzle set.

".....Once the program is transferred to your monitor it will serve as a key for you. Much like Pinocchio when his nose lengthens from a lie, your monitor will flash red when anyone within the vicinity fails to tell the truth. Unfortunately, it is merely a prototype, so it can only be used once and it lasts for a duration of a single minute."

The Manager swallowed the lump in his throat as he glanced at his palm that held the USB. Already suspicious, there was no way of knowing what exactly it did without actually using it. And if the words he heard just now were to be true, then he had no room for errors, especially when he couldn't see if it worked or not. With that in mind, another question had surfaced in his mind relating to the matter at hand. However, just as he glanced back up to his desk, 'B' spoke first cutting him off with a hint of annoyance in his tone.

"Apologies, it seems my time is up. Though our time was short, I hope you will keep what I've said in mind. Remember, don't tr—"

The last portion of his departure was interrupted by a sea of static that drowned out his voice. As if to indicate that it truly was the end of their conversation, the device released a click sound before it fully turned off. The silence that followed after left Xavier in a state of disbelief and frustration. Disbelief because of how sudden his words had been cut off, and frustration because he was still left with far more questions than answers.

Though he couldn't say that he trusted the words told to him, Xavier couldn't lie and say that it didn't make him pause and think. He already had a vague idea of just who he was going to use the program on, but his hesitation was coming from the fact that he didn't know who to trust: his assistant who he has known throughout his short time here or a random 'insider' who he hadn't even spoken much to just a day ago.

With his elbows plotted onto his desk, Xavier silently stared at the USB in his hands while fiddling with it slowly. Watching as the light glistened off it, and as much as he didn't want to admit it, he was waiting for his assistant to come back to guide him once more.

For once, he was wishing that the start of the shift would come quicker, simply so he could get his mind off things. More specifically, the guilt hanging over his head that only seemed to be getting heavier and heavier.

And maybe, just maybe.....he was considering accepting Angela's suggestion on drinking some wine together. Perhaps even getting Y/n or the other Sephirot to join in as well for a night to relax.

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???'s POV

I begrudgingly jotted down my observations as my fingers ached due to how long I've been doing this. Seconds, minutes, hours, days even, it all passed by like a hazy blur that I couldn't comprehend. I hated being here, around these insufferable people that continued to irritate me nonstop.

Chasing after a goal that only a lunatic could conjure from their pitiful dreams, damning all of those around them simply to satisfy their own consciousness. If they thought that I would follow them without a second thought, then all the more reason to question the sanity of these people. Despite my thoughts on the matter, I still continued working here while keeping up the facade I had adorned.

Watching these... "things" move about within their cells was intriguing to say the least, making this job bearable due to how unique they are. Out of all of these creatures that I've been tasked to observe, I would have to say that this one caught my attention the most. A creature made of flesh and bone, all jumbled to form an incoherent mess that can be barely identified as a living being.

Though its appearance was questionable and intriguing to the mind of one who lives for science, I was more fascinated by the creature's actions and "goal". Makes me wonder, why would something as grotesque as this want to become anything close to resembling a human? Humans are disgusting animals, driven by desire and greed to pillage from one another to satisfy their hunger for purpose.

I should know, I'm one of them.

Using my connections, wealth, and even my own family's business to come as far as I have now, knowing that it was only for my own sake that I've done so. Though taking into account how the City was, I suppose that I wasn't that special in that regard. But it still didn't help get rid of the sour taste in my mouth when I thought about leaving the family business to my brother, the egotistical bastard.

The creature within the cell blinked its many eyes as drool leaked from its mouth. Staring at the wall as if it found something interesting, I questioned myself if what I thought about it previously was actually true or not. Perhaps it's due to the feeble mind that this creature possesses that makes it think that becoming like us would make an improvement to its life. Or maybe, it was simply trying to adjust to its surroundings and is simply a predator wishing to infiltrate the herd it sees before it.

Due to being lost in my thoughts, I was startled when the creature was suddenly closer to the glass as it slammed one of its appendages against it. Startled, I immediately stepped back while swallowing nervously. For a moment, I was concerned that the reinforced glass wouldn't be able to contain it, but when the third slam didn't leave a crack, I sighed in relief.

Behind me, the sound of the door opening caused me to turn as the multitude of safety measures were disarmed. Still, I made sure to keep the creature in my line of sight just in case it tried to do anything again. As the metal locks turned and hissed out air, the door finally opened as a figure appeared behind it and stepped in.

Seeing them clearly, I wasn't surprised to see who entered as I had expected him to come by sooner or later. His lab coat, similar to my own, fluttered in the cold air as he stepped closer to me. With a smile that could light up the night sky, he presented me a cup of steaming coffee.

"Heyo!~ Did someone order a cup of coffee!~"

He spoke in a friendly manner in which I could only scoff at. I could feel my face twist and turn in a clear sign of irritation, and yet he didn't seem discouraged as he continued to step closer. I eyed the offered cup of coffee while debating whether to take it or not. After realizing that my throat was indeed in need of hydration, I slowly grabbed it from his hands and took a sip.

'Disgusting.'

I thought to myself while staring at my own reflection within the cup. No matter how many times I bring myself to drink it, the taste only churns my stomach as I instinctively feel myself become nauseous. It had nothing to do with the actual drink itself or anything like that. It was simply because it wasn't his coffee that I couldn't bring myself to enjoy it.

Glancing away from the cup, I noticed his smile seemed to grow as he watched me accept his offer. Ignoring the sourness swelling within my throat, I eyed him while silently questioning why he was here. As if he could understand what I was asking, he cleared his throat while nervously scratching the back of his neck.

"Haha, don't look at me like that. You've been working nonstop, I bet you haven't realized that it's now an hour, almost two, passed midnight?"

Blinking owlishly, I indeed hadn't noticed the time fly by as I spent my time down here. Checking the clock hanging on the wall, it's hour hand ticked as it struck one forty-six. Now that he brought up the mentioning of time, I realized that my eyes indeed felt heavier than what they normally felt like. Closing my eyes, I allowed myself to relax for just a moment.

".... I suppose you're right. I haven't had proper rest in a while..." Opening my eyes again I saw that he lost the nervous look and was adorning a more proud one, as if this was his goal from the start. Which it may as well have been if he's always bothering me like this. "*Sigh* If that's all you've came here for, then I'll be taking my leave."

"No problem, no problem~ You go ahead and rest up, I'll take over in the mean time."

Nodding at his words, I began cleaning up the documents and notes that I had written down. Leaving some of it behind for him to use for his own work, I started making my way past him to leave.

"Good night!~"

He called out to me, causing me to stop in my steps. At first I wasn't going to respond, but thinking back on this weird relationship that we've had since my first day here made me question if that was the best thing to do. Slowly looking over my shoulder, the man had his back turned to me while seemingly focusing on the Abnormality behind the glass.

In that moment, I saw passed the naive and carefree persona that I've gotten used to. Facing him from the back, his appearance was that of someone who looked lost and confused. Despite the bright smile that his reflection had on the glass, I saw that the same brightness didn't quite reach his eyes as he stared intently at the creature within.

"Oi!~ What are you standing there for? Do you need something?"

I didn't know how long I had been staring, but it must've been a long time if he had turned and noticed. When his voice calling out my name finally reached my ears, I blinked before regaining my composure as my eyes met his. Those orbs that seemed to devour any form of light within its sight, conjuring me to stare at them even more.

"....No, it's nothing."

Muttering quietly in reponse, I was finally able to glance away before I became too infatuated by them. I could see him smiling even more out of the corner of my eyes, most likely in amusement. Though I still couldn't help but notice the constant dead look in his eyes.

"Good night....Lennan."

With that final whisper escaping my lips I turned and walked out, the darkness devouring my vision along with my silhouette.

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3rd POV

The clicking of heels echoed as a certain AI made her way down the hall leading to the medical section of the facility. The employees that passed by her glanced away or kept their heads straight forward lest they attracted attention to themselves. For once, the usual stoic look on Angela's face was gone and instead was replaced with a frown and furrowed brows. Fortunately for the ones around her, her closed eyelids spared them of the piercing gaze behind it.

There were many things occupying her mind now that she's taken into account the events that occurred the past few days. For one, the Manager's behavior was something she had long noticed was different from the previous ones. If anyone were to compare the past Managers to the one they had now, they wouldn't find that many differences. But Angela wasn't just anyone, no, she was an AI who was built with the sole purpose of analyzing every detail of every single speck around her in mere nanoseconds.

So it was no surprise that she was able to notice the subtle differences that the current Manager had compared to the others. The way his body tenses whenever an Abnormality breaks loose. Or the way he kicks his leg up and down when under stressful circumstances. His ever growing interest and attachment to the small cactus on his desk. Going out of his way to try and make it through the day without any casualties despite knowing the impossibility of it.....though the last one seems to be dwindling.

If it were the previous Managers, they would've hardly acted the same way as he did. If an Abnormality broke loose, they would've paid it no mind. Whenever they received gifts from employees, they would've disregarded or trashed them at the end of the day. The employees were their pawns, their tools, their resource to be used with the sole purpose of meeting the quota of each day.

And they didn't hesitate to do so.

Despite all of this, Angela hadn't done anything in response to the habits that the Managers had expressed during their time here. It wasn't like there was anything wrong with what they were doing. In fact, Angela had actively commended them for being as efficient as they were. Even if it left a sour taste in her mouth when voicing it, though if she were to be honest the indifference and dismissals they gave stung much worse.

But that was long ago, far into the depths of her memory to ever pain her as much as it did the first instances. That wasn't to say that they weren't still vividly present in her mind to remind her each passing second.

Feeling her mood instantly plummet, Angela quickly tossed those thoughts aside for later as she noticed her target destination just up ahead. Trying to keep a neutral and presentable look, it was all for naught as she entered the room before finding herself frowning again at the scene in front of her.

"And what exactly do you think you are doing?"

If her mood wasn't already near rock bottom, then this surely was sinking it to the point of no return. The person who she addressed the question to didn't even acknowledge her presence as they kept gazing at the unconscious man lying next to them. Running their finger in circles across his chest, the smile plastered on their face seemed to widen a tad bit more in amusement when he suddenly groaned in his sleep.

Of course, who could the person be but none other than Shina while the unconscious man on the medical bed lying right next to her was Y/n. All of this was analyzed by Angela in under a second as the frown she had disappeared as quickly as it came. With her poker face set once more, she slowly paced herself into the room as she homed in on them.

However, before she could voice her displeasure once more so it could be known, a figure walked into her peripheral vision. With a frown of his own, Renold made his way towards the AI assistant from the opposite side of the room. It seemed that she had failed to spot him upon entering the room, making her question what exactly realize just how much the scene had affected her.

She made a mental note to refrain from letting such a thing happen again in the future. Ignoring the other two in the room, Renold marched his way towards her. Only once he was at a decent distance for a conversation did he speak.

"I would like to have a word with you, Angela." His tone said it all, he wasn't here for pleasantries and was certainly not taking a 'no' as an answer. Before she could reply, Renold quickly spoke while glancing at Shina and Y/n from the corner of his eye. "Alone, preferably."

Raising a brow, Angela followed his line of sight and noticed it was directed towards the two on the medical bed, or more precisely Shina. With an irritating, goofy smile and maniacal look in her eyes, she looked far too occupied in tracing circles with her finger to pay either of the two any mind. But to the analytical eyes of an AI, Angela noticed the slightest twitches of her ear.

She was listening...

Not that it bothered Angela in any way, for she could care less whether or not she was. The same couldn't be said for the red-headed individual who narrowed his eyes at her, silently telling her that he had nothing else to say unless they were out of the room. Not saying another word, Renold brushed past her before leaving. No doubt waiting out there for her to follow.

Though she intended to oblige his request, Angela at the moment wished to at least finish what she came here to do. Which was checking up on a certain unconscious patient that had occupied her mind far more than she would like to admit. As if just now noticing her presence, Shina propped her head on her hand as she turned towards her before flashing a bright teasing smile.

"Oh hey, it's the walking fleshlight!~ Didn't see you there, how have you been?~" Even when Angela ignored her and interacted with the console next to them, Shina's smile remained as she chuckled to herself. "The cold shoulder treatment, huh? Well, no biggie, you're not fun to talk to anyways."

With that, she want back to doing what she was doing before. Not bothering in entertaining her, Angela was able to quickly finish her diagnostics in no time. The slight disappointment and irritation that she felt within her for the current scenario was surfacing each time Shina's shit-eating grin flashed in her mind. The fact that she could vividly remember it wasn't helping. Fighting the urge to simply walk right out, Angela finally gave Shina her attention once she was calm enough.

"I have an assignment for you." She spoke in a clear and neutral tone, causing Shina to look at her once more. "One that, need I remind you, should be your top priority until it is finished."

"Oh sure, an 'assignment'~" If the sarcasm in her voice wasn't showing off her amusement, the air quotations that she made with her fingers did. "Is that what we are calling favors now? Because need I remind you that favors need to be repaid with favors~"

Angela steeled her face as she showed no reaction, making Shina frown a bit in disappointment. Releasing an exasperated sigh, she rolled her eyes before nodding her head. Though reluctant, she knew that they would get nowhere if she kept this up.

"Fine, I'll do it. Same thing as always right?" When she saw the slightest sign of a nod, she rolled off the bed and got to her feet. Stretching until her joints popped, she then began making her way out of the room though not before giving Angela one last cold glare. "Though I know you won't care, let me just say this. Pull another stunt like yesterday and I'll scrap you just like the rest."

"I have not the slightest idea of what you are talking about." Her response only caused the glare to sharpen, but she brushed it off. "It seems the injuries you sustained have caused you to become delusional."

"Tch! You know damn well what you did....whatever, I hope you're ready to return the favor when the time comes."

Stepping out of the room, Shina ignored the look she got from Renold as she walked past him. He was, for some reason, in a foul mood ever since he woke up from his nap, so she knew he wouldn't bother confronting her today. Though either way, the look she had was far from the usual one she wore, making it obvious she wasn't in the mood to talk either.

Thinking about what she was about to do, Shina could already feel the sour taste in her mouth that was building up the more steps she took. As she descended down the elevator, she stared at her palms with a far away look. Her teasing and lighthearted demeanor completely gone as she noticed how they were subtly shaking.

From fear? Anxiety? Anger? In all honesty, even she, the person herself, didn't know. Regardless, this wasn't the time for such trivial things. Silently, she squeezed them tightly into fists to get them to stop.

"I'm losing my touch, aren't I?"

She whispered to herself as the doors opened, allowing her to step out.

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3rd POV Training Department: Main Room

Sipping their cups of coffee at a table were three individuals. One was a young man with short black hair, his bangs barely reaching over his eyes. Beside him was a similar looking young woman, her long black hair tied in twin tails. These two were the newly assigned members of the Training Team, Ryu and Ruki. Though similar to one another, they weren't twins but simply brother and sister, they couldn't be anymore different in anything but appearance.

At the moment, Ryu had a frown as he stared at the other person sitting at their table while Ruki was simply glancing around the room as if analyzing something. The old man sitting with them, who was the last member of their Team and appeared to be in his sixties, simply sipped his drink unbothered by the heated look.

"What are you doing here.....Boss?"

Despite the clear aggression that he was showing physically, Ryu spoke in a respectful manner to the man. The response he got was a snort as the man continued to finish his drink. Only once the cup was empty did he clear his throat to speak.

"Still calling me that? Just call me Gustav at this point, because last I remember you no longer work for me." His voice, despite just having a drink, was dry and coarse. He glanced to the side as Ruki finally brought her attention back to them. "Neither of you."

"Well, what can we say, Gramps? Not often you get accepted to work for a Wing." Ruki nonchalantly responded while shrugging her shoulders. "Besides, the pay wasn't cutting it during our time together."

"An opportunity landed before us, and we took it. Isn't that something you taught us to do, Boss?"

Gustav narrowed his eyes at the two, yet they kept their facial features calm despite how unnerved they felt. After all, they were the ones who left of their own accord, so it wasn't that far off to say that they didn't necessarily expect their former employer to be at their new occupation. Which showed in the instances of respect that was almost instinct to Ryu and the casual way Ruki spoke to him.

"Taught you to do? Funny, I also remember teaching you that debts should be repaid in full. So use that thing you call a brain and figure out why I'm here yourself."

Ryu struggled not to bite back a remark as he racked up his brain like he was told to do. It seemed that he wasn't able to get rid of the instinct to obey since their departure. Ruki sent him a worried look as she could see how much he was struggling with this sudden reunion.

"Hey Ryu, let's just leave."

She stood up and was ready to leave but stopped when she noticed her brother releasing a loud sigh. Turning back, she saw him waving his hand for her to take her seat again. Reluctantly doing so, she fiddled with her sidearm as a way to pass the time. For a moment, Ryu saw Gustav's eyes glance at the firearm before looking back at him. In that moment, it clicked in his mind what their former employer was here for, but instead he decided to keep it to himself and play ignorant.

"I can only presume that you're here for us to repay you for saving our lives back then. Though allow me to be blunt, Boss. I never thought you would be a petty man as you are now."

As they stared at each other, Ryu couldn't lie and say he didn't feel hurt by the look of disappointment in Gustav's eyes. But as sudden as it had appeared it was quickly replaced with one of intimidation.

"There is much you don't know, boy. But yes, I'm here for the two of you. It would be a shame to lose the two assets I've invested large amounts of time and money over the years to develop."

Ruki grimaced at being seen as a simple thing to invest in, she was closer to him than Ryu was. Most evident by her nickname for him, she saw him as something close to family. Unlike her, however, Ryu made sure to keep the man at arms length just in case. Because of that, it made it easier for him to play off how he was actually feeling.

"Tch, even after a year away from you, I don't know why I expected you to—"

The buzzing sound cut off Ryu's words as they all glanced towards the source. Ruki's wrist watch continued to buzz before she looked at it and saw her first assignment: 'Insight: O-01-67'. Taking the opportunity for what it was, Ryu quickly stood up as he tugged Ruki's sleeve.

"Sorry, Boss, but I will be accompanying Ruki to her assignment."

He fixed the tie of his suit while also straightening his armband, his own firearm attached to his hip by the belt. Not waiting for a response, not that he expected one, he began walking out of the room with her following right behind. Because of that, they weren't able to see how hard Gustav was clenching his fists.

What was surprising was that it wasn't from anger but from distress. Leaning back on his seat, he stared as the two siblings left the room side by side. He quickly averted his gaze when their silhouettes resembled two similar, but smaller, ones. When the door closed behind them, he grunted to himself as he tilted his head up to stare at the rusty ceiling.

'A year, huh? Either this has been the longest year of my life, or you two truly don't know what you've gotten yourselves into....'

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3rd POV

As Ryu and Ruki made their way to the southern hallway of the Training Department, the male was thinking back to their short conversation with Gustav. His sister seemed to had already moved on from the encounter, but that was to be expected as she didn't necessarily do much overthinking to begin with. So just like their younger days out in the Backstreets, it was up to him to be the brains of the duo that questions every little thing.

But unfortunately that was easier said than done.

There wasn't much he could go off of and most of the theories were just baseless assumptions. He could question everything all day, make all the plans he could to deal with Gustav, but still end up with nothing to make up for it. So with this predicament, the best thing to do was to simply keep their distance and observe.

"Ruki, avoid the Boss as much as you can." He muttered to his sister who froze mid-step to look at him. "If it comes down to it, you know what to do." Seeing the serious look that he gave her, she slowly nodded before resuming their walk.

As much as they would have liked to trust their benefactor since their childhood, they both knew better than to be naive into thinking that he wasn't here for his own benefit. Though the same could be said about them as well, he bit the inside of his cheek as the irony of it wasn't lost to him.

It would be after a few more steps that they both arrived at their destination. A heavily enforced steel door that was no different than many of the others they passed by. Only, this one had a designated resident that could most likely kill them should they put their guard down.

"I'll be waiting for you right here." He informed her as he leaned against the wall beside the door. Ruki, who was grabbing the mop and cleaning equipment turned to him with an unsure look.

"And if you aren't?" She asked while closing the equipment closet and getting herself ready to enter the room. "What if they assign you a task, do you want me to wait right here for you to come back?"

Ryu didn't respond at first as he rubbed his chin in thought. After a few seconds he just sighed heavily before shaking his head.

"No. If I'm not here by the time you are finished then just wait for me back in the main room. It'll be easier for the both of us that way." Receiving a nod from his sister he watched as she carried the cleaning equipment in one hand while her other hand was free and stayed close to the holster on her hip. 'Good,' he mentally praised, 'at least she knows to not let her guard down.'

As she entered and the door closed right behind her, it was as if the higher ups were waiting for this exact moment as his watch suddenly buzzed to life. He brought his arm up and looked at it, 'Attachment: Snow Queen', before gritting his teeth as he glanced at the door that his sister just entered through. The locks hissed out air, as if to dissuade him of the thought of entering, before they fully secured the door shut.

With no other choice, Ryu reluctantly turned around and began making his way to his assignment, though he made sure to take small steps in case he heard his sister cry for help. Fortunately, or perhaps unfortunately, he didn't.

——————————————————————————

Ruki's POV

Walking into the containment room was more difficult than it seemed. The cold air that I submerged myself into was like walking through a wall of ice. I couldn't tell if it was simply because of how nervous I was or because of how alone I felt, regardless, there wasn't much I could do about it. Armed with my only form of protection in one hand, I slowly scanned the room I was temporarily stuck in.

It was mostly empty as far as I could see, excluding the very creepy little girl staring right at me. Dressed in a red dress with pink frills and sleeves, the little girl's pale skin glistened in the light as if she were made of metal. Her dark grey hair was accompanied with a red bell hat with a black pattern. The way she constantly twitched caused the yellow rusty bells at the end of her hat to jingle a muffled noise. If none of this didn't alarm me enough, the way her eyes shifted and moved at different intervals and directions surely did.

Ryu always pestered me about the dangers that this job would present to us, and no doubt the "manual" provided by our Sephirah would reinforce his words. But even without his warnings of caution, I would've kept alert. I knew I didn't necessarily have the wits that my brother had but I still had my survival instincts to keep me alive.

And right now, they're telling me to stay as far away from this "child" as I can.

I didn't exchange any words with the Abnormality, focusing more on cleaning and getting the job done than trying to figure out what exactly this thing was. It wasn't human, that's for sure. Perhaps if it wasn't some creature posing as a child I would've found it cute and possibly even adorable, but the feeling in my gut was enough to keep any positive emotions at bay.

It didn't take long for me to wipe the floors, though it was mostly because I only cleaned the side near the exit. I wasn't taking the chance in going near the thing if I didn't have to. Something that I had noticed is that there is never supposed to be a situation in which you should willingly interact with an Abnormality. The lessons, the manuals, everything that was told and given to us each had the same intention of keeping us, the Agents, from seeing these Abnormalities in a positive light.

'I guess that's one way to keep us safe.....not that it matters much in the long run.'

I couldn't help but think that while taking note of the creepy behavior the Abnormality was showing. It's eyes would look in opposite directions but it always had one of them looking directly at me at all times. At times after blinking, I couldn't help but feel that it somehow was closer than when I first entered. Which only caused me to grip the weapon attached to my hip even tighter, the only form of protection I had at the moment.

"6 PE-Boxes Acquired"

The robotic voice of a woman sounded out. I nearly jumped in fright while frantically pulling out my gun. The door several feet behind me hissed as it began to unlock itself. Not wasting any time, I slowly began backing away while keeping eye contact with the doll. When I felt my back hit the wall, I dropped the cleaning equipment before blindly reaching out for the handle. When I couldn't find it, I began to fling my hand around frantically in search of it.

'Where is it? Where is it? Where is it?!'

The longer it took for me to find the handle, the more I could feel the pit in my stomach growing. It was to the point that I couldn't help myself and turned around, only to find that the handle that I had been so desperately searching for was actually to my right rather than my left.

'You have got to be kidding me!'

Completely forgetting about the thing behind me, I quickly switched hands and opened it with the intent to leave. Fortunately I was able to make it out without a scratch, despite turning my back on the Abnormality. Unfortunately, however, that meant that I had failed to see it close the distance between us.

"Holy moly—!!" Seeing its freakishly large eyes staring directly at me from the door frame, I could feel my heart thumping in my chest from surprise. It's constant twitching only made me more jumpy. "G-Get back you!!"

The vocal and visual threat that I tried to enforce did nothing as it held out a crude, red object in the shape of a heart. Where exactly did it get it from? I neither knew nor wanted to know as I tried to forcibly slam the door shut.

Instead of the relieving sound of the door closing, a loud metallic thud reached my ears as something prevented me from closing it. I peaked through the crevice and saw the crude heart being forcibly wedged into the door, by the Abnormality no less.

"Oh come on!" I could feel the pit in my stomach drop at the revelation, the door slowly creaking against my efforts wasn't helping either. "No. No, no, no. Don't you dare do this to me!"

I glanced my head around frantically looking for Ryu. When I couldn't find his figure, that was when I knew that I was truly alone. Pushing down the urge to scream for his name, I continued to try and push the door close with all the strength that I could muster.

I'm sure it would've seemed cartoonish, comical even, to anyone watching me struggling my hardest to keep this door closed with all my weight only for it to open slowly regardless. Although I wouldn't call myself physically strong, I was pretty sure that this wasn't supposed to be happening given our size differences. But then again, these are Abnormalities, so it should've been a given.

So what I did next was what any normal person would do: I started panicking. The moment I realized that my actions did nothing, I knew this was something entirely out of my league. So I booked it. My legs bolted as my hands released whatever hold I had on the door. I didn't look back, not that there would be any point since it was most likely going to escape anyways.

Now imagine my surprise when the sound of the door closing on its own reached my ears as I'm halfway across the hall. Of course, my full on sprint slowed down to a jog as the tiniest pinch of curiosity started to form in my mind. When I heard nothing else, more specifically no footsteps chasing after me, my jog trailed off into a walk. Soon I was just standing with my eyebrows creased in confusion.

Glancing over my shoulder, I took a peak to see what was happening. The answer: nothing. The hallway was empty aside from the cleaning equipment I had left on the floor. No sign of the creepy girl anywhere, in fact, it didn't even seem as if she took a single step out of her room.

"Huh...Well that's just confusing." Turning back around, I shook my head while making my way back to find Ryu. Despite this false sense of safety, I couldn't help be feel a lingering gaze upon my figure that only made me increase my speed. "I could've gone without being scared out of my mind though."

I ignored the fact that I left a mess on the floor. I would question my own intelligence if I went back just to clean up some wet floors. Especially knowing damn well that the Abnormality could be waiting just behind that door. The risk wasn't worth it, hopefully my Sephirah would understand that. If not, then I wouldn't be surprised if they downed my paycheck.

3rd POV

As Ruki made her way out of the hallway, a small silhouette could be seen making its way towards her direction through the shadows on the ceiling. Perhaps if she had spent a little more time looking she would have noticed it, but of course that wasn't what happened, so the day continued on without incident.

——————————————————————————

Y/n's eyes snapped open suddenly as he jolted up from the medical bed he was laying on. With erratic gasps, he clutched the front of his shirt tightly while staring straight ahead. It took a while for him to process his surroundings, but once he did, he immediately started turning his head side to side in confusion. His confusion came from the fact that he was alive and in the medical bay. The last thing he remembered was seeing a blade descending upon him before everything became a white blur.

Despite not knowing what had occurred after, Y/n still had a lingering feeling that he shouldn't even be here.....alive. Glancing down at his chest and shoulder where he was subconsciously clutching at with his hand, he let out a shuddering breath as he realized that he was still whole. Yet, even though there wasn't any sign of harm on him, Y/n still winced as he tried to sit up properly.

Once again, he looked around the room and realized he was in the "infirmary". In his opinion it wasn't exactly qualified to be called as such since there was very little that indicated it. At a first glance anyone would assume this was simply a normal room but just bigger. Until they spot the rows of medical beds and the low quantity heart monitors that barely seemed operational that accompanied them. But even then, the absence of any medical equipment and tools would give the impression that this was simply a big room with beds.

Seeing how empty it was, he brought his eyes back to himself and the state he was in. Cold sweat that he hadn't registered yet was noticeable as his white dress shirt clung to his body all around. The sound of the heart beat monitor continuing its duty caused him to have a small headache before he quickly detached the wire from his left wrist. He immediately regretted it as the machine released a long dead tone that was usually correlated to the unfortunate, further worsening his aching head.

Just as it was getting to the point that his ears were ringing, it mysteriously shut off on its own. As much as Y/n wanted to bring his attention to that, at the moment he had other priorities. Swinging his legs off the bed, he slowly pulled himself off of the bed. Y/n's legs wobbled a bit, shaking as if he were still in the cold wasteland that he still vividly remembers he was in. Using his hand to support himself up, he realized that it wasn't just his legs but his hands as well that were shaking nonstop.

In quick need of warmth, he spotted a new set of clean clothes by the bed side near him. Quickly removing his soaked clothing, he was able to find some resemblance of warmth under the new coat that he adorned himself with. When the sound of his radio hitting the floor brought his attention, he stared at it for a moment or two.

"BongBong..." When he finally remembered why and how he had became this way, he immediately snatched the device off the floor while ignoring the burning of his muscles. Frantically turning it on, he quickly turned the dials to the frequency commonly used by the little girl. "BongBong! Are you there?! Answer me, please!"

The radio was silent, only the echoes of his voice throughout the empty room accompanied him. Silence wasn't the response that you would get if you couldn't connect to the other line, usually that would be static. So to hear nothing at all was concerning. He was about to speak once more, but flinched when it released a jumble of high pitch screeches.

He was expecting it to last only for a seconds but instead it seemed to only be getting louder and louder the longer he left it on. Even changing the frequency to a different channel and turning it off and on seemed to have not done a thing. Just as it was getting to the point he thought that his ears would bleed, he threw it across the room with all the strength he could muster.

With a wincing glare, he watched as the rectangle object smack against the floor before bursting to pieces. The circuits and components shattered as well, leaving the high pitch noises to finally settle down.

"Fine, I'll just check on her myself!"

Fighting the urge to sit back down and tend to his unseeable wounds, he stumbled his way to the doorway before leaning on it to catch his breath. He didn't expect it to be this difficult when he first woke up, only minor straining and a small headache, but it seemed that it wasn't the case. His fingers flinched whenever they touched the coldness of the walls, making him want to stuff them into his pockets for warmth. But he knew that if he did so that he wouldn't be able to catch himself from falling if his legs gave out.

When Y/n finally made it out of the room, he glanced at his wrist watch and nearly choked in surprise at the time. Ten minutes passed two; he was not only late for the shift but also in no condition to be applicable for Abnormality duty. That much he could tell with how much it was stressing his body to walk a few steps.

Yet, he still pushed himself to walk out.

It was hard to tell how long it took when your whole body ached, but at some point Y/n had made it to the Training Department. He appreciated the worried glances he got from the few employees he saw walking by, but their worry was for naught as it seemed that as the more time went on the more Y/n was able to ignore the pain. By the time he made his way to the portion of the room where BongBong usually was in, the pain became an afterthought as he scanned the area for the top of a certain girl's blue head.

Focusing his eyes, he was able to notice something odd. There were far too few staff present to efficiently maintain the Training Department. Counting himself, there were only twelve people here and most were clerks. A tap on his shoulder made Y/n flinch a little before he turned with a startled and pained look.

"S-Sorry! I didn't mean to sneak up on you Y/n!" Hod timidly spoke while giving him a worried look. Seeing that it was simply her, Y/n allowed himself to calm down before flashing her a smile. He made sure to take a step back in case she got more physical.

"You're fine, Hod. I was just thinking about something." Her eyes still held that worried look in them, most likely from seeing him distancing himself from her, but the rest of her body seemed to have relaxed a bit. "Anyways, was there something you needed from me?"

"Huh? Oh, no! I was just wondering if you were alright. You're supposed to be resting, you know?" Her question caused him to inwardly grimace but other than that he didn't outwardly react. "Renold came by and mentioned how you wouldn't be present today, so I'm glad to see you are doing alright but please take it easy."

"Ha, don't worry yourself over me! I'm doing just fine, nothing a little rest couldn't help." Although he was able to play it off perfectly well, Hod still seemed to be troubled by something. To which Y/n rose a brow at. "Is there something wrong? You look troubled."

"I wouldn't really say that, I don't think it's my business to meddle with but you do worry me." Seeing the confusion on his face, she decided to simply come out with it. "It's just, you looked a bit lost for a moment. Not in the sense of being directionally lost but more so.....sorry, I can't really put it into words...."

"It's fine, I understand what you're trying to say....guess I've been having a lot on my mind lately..."

".....Is there anything I can do to help?"

"There isn't anything in particular...." Y/n trailed off a bit as he pondered for a moment. Since Hod was BongBong's Sephirah, it wasn't illogical to say that she would know where she was at. "....well actually there is, I suppose. Could you tell me where BongBong is? I haven't seen her since yesterday's.....incident..... and I would like to know if she's alright."

"BongBong?" She asked with a look of confusion while tapping her chin, making Y/n give her a look, but it quickly morphed to one of realization. "Oh, BongBong! Yes, don't worry, she's fine! I gave her some errands to run for me as I didn't want to overexert her after what happened yesterday."

A small sigh of relief escaped Y/n's lips at her statement that the blue-haired girl was fine. Though he was quite unsettled by Hod's earlier reaction, making him doubt her credibility. But as much as he wanted to bring it up, the soreness in his knees made him aware of the poor condition he was in. He very much needed to take a seat, but there was something else that got his attention.

"...That's a relief. I appreciate you taking her and my well-being into account." A proud bright smile was the response he got. "But I have to ask, where are the rest of your staff?"

Just like that, the smile strained a bit as she looked anywhere but at his eyes. "O-Oh! W-Well, there were many, many, casualties yesterday. Most of which were due to the Abnormalities ." Her gaze fell to the tips of her shoes, a look of remorse was on her face as she clutched her shoulder with her hand.. "I-I wish I could've done more to help them, but my position as a Sephirah prevents me from doing so."

"...."

Silence was the only thing Y/n could respond with as he honestly didn't know what to say. He wasn't in a position to criticize or scold her since many of those who "work" for him were but names on a piece of paper. Almost never is there a time for him to actually associate with those who he can call "colleagues", excluding a few. But, that was besides the point, while he may understand the reason as to why her staff weren't present at the moment.....it wasn't exactly a valid one.

"But still if that's the case, why haven't you requested a replenishment of staff from the Reserves. I know that I may have been out of commission yesterday, but surely Shina or Renold would've approved of such a request."

In fact, it was mandatory, a basic procedure, for the Sephirot of each Department to report if such a situation occurred. If they didn't then they would be understaffed, and it was exponentially better to have at least some form of helping hands than none. This was especially true when dealing with HE level abnormalities or higher. So if the amount of employees were this low and there was still nothing done about it, either Hod forgot to submit the report, which was very unlikely, or she did submit one but someone purposely neglected it.

"Well, actually, about that...I may have or may not have decided to refrain from submitting my reports yesterday." She sheepishly smiled while not meeting his eyes. Y/n chuckled out loud, thinking that she was simply joking and trying to lighten the mood. It quickly drifted off when he noticed that she wasn't, his eyes staring at her in bafflement.

"Excuse me.....What?" He asked after processing what she said causing her to shrink back a bit from his reaction. "What do you mean you didn't give your reports? How could you neglect to do something so important?"

Although she wasn't the last person he thought would forget doing something, given her personality he was certain that she would prioritize anything that would be helpful for the people she worked with.

She was just that caring of a person.

Which was why it was as shocking as it was to hear that she purposely didn't do what was considered to be her job. Seeing the distress on his face, she quickly waved her arms in front of her as if to blow away the negative emotions.

"I-I didn't think it was necessary! I was more worried about you at the time and I thought that maybe it would've been fine just this one time!" She exclaimed while holding a tone that showed she fully believed in what she said. "And b-besides, this way makes it so that less people are put in harms way."

Y/n closed his eyes as his head quite suddenly felt dizzy from all of this nonsense that he was hearing. The only thing stopping him from making a reprimanding remark was the good will and intentions that Hod had behind her words. If these words were said by anyone other than her, he would've already left after the first few sentences.

But even then, Y/n couldn't wrap his head around the logic that Hod had running through her head. Sure, having less people actively attend to a Department's necessities would lower the casualty rates, but that was only on paper and it also doesn't take into account the other Departments.

If the Woodsman breaks loose again and slaughters the remaining staff of this Department, who then will suppress it and keep the situation under control? Not the other Departments, that's for sure. Unless ordered by the Manager himself, they have their own problems to deal with that they can't afford to neglect it.

All of this and Hod still didn't seem to notice anything wrong with what she had done. Perhaps she was fully convinced that this was a helpful gesture, or maybe it was an excuse she made and is simply acting so that he wouldn't report it. Regardless, Y/n had to do something about it, lest he wants today to be the day of his early retirement.

"You're right, that does make sense." He lied as he opened his eyes to look at her. Despite the guilt he felt and the urge to glance away, not once did his eyes stray away from hers. "Wow, Hod, I'm impressed. I never thought of it like that."

Her demeanor completely changed as she beamed a bright and proud smile. Every doubt she had simply flew over her head and left her completely oblivious to the lies he was saying.

"Well, since it seems you've got everything under control...." Y/n slowly began inching his way to the nearest exit. Despite how much his body was telling him to take a seat and rest, he ignored it in favor of getting out of here while he still could. "I'm going to take a guess and say that today's training and counseling will be postponed till further notice.... So, see ya!"

Quickly turning, he began to speed walk his way out. Since he had began moving ahead of time, he was able to just barely dodge the hand that reached out for his sleeve. Pretending to not notice the attempt, he gave Hod a closed eye smile while waving goodbye. The stammering Sephirah could be heard trying to form a coherent sentence to stop him, but it did little to his stride.

It was rude of him, Y/n won't lie about that, but he quite honestly didn't want to further prolong the discussion. The longer they spoke the more likely that he would slip up and say something he wouldn't intend. Plus he didn't know how long his legs would keep him up. Though he did feel like he was starting to do a lot of walking away mid-discussion, more often then he would normally as well.

Once out of the room, Y/n heaved out the air in his lungs while clutching his chest. Leaning against the door that closed behind him, he slowly began sliding down against it before finally his shaking legs gave out and dropped him on the ground. Having ignored the condition he was in, the little adrenaline he had was gone as the pain and soreness of his limbs came rushing throughout his nervous system all at once.

"W-What's going with me?" He asked simply to avert his mind from the pain. No one answered much like he expected, yet that only served to emphasize his confusion. Gritting his teeth and taking a sharp breath, Y/n slowly began to crawl back up to his feet. "Hah.....hah.....dammit, hah.....maybe I should've stayed in bed today."

Despite his words, not once had the thought of staying put entered his mind. It was quite strange how he didn't think of that. Maybe it was because he was too preoccupied with finding out BongBong's whereabouts to actually consider taking a break. But if he were to be honest, Y/n would admit that something compelled him to get up and attend to his work despite how difficult it may have seemed.

In fact, even now he could feel this unknown pressure that overwhelmed any thoughts of rest. His body shuddered and quivered, yet his legs forced himself to stand tall and proud. He didn't know what he planned on doing for today, but he just hoped that it didn't require him to exert himself more than he already had.

Unbeknownst to Y/n, small specks of ice began appearing near his neck and cheek. It silently crackled before it began receding back as his skin returned to its normal look. It was almost as if something was preventing it from staying. This continued to occur over and over before ceasing after a few tries, letting his skin return to its natural appearance. Y/n was oblivious to this as he slowly made his way down the hall and he let fate take him to where it wanted.

——————————————————————————

Control Team: One Sin's Containment

A fidgeting Mike could be seen cleaning the thorny crown of the skull abnormality called One Sin. His nervous demeanor had nothing to do with the abnormality itself, but more so with his thoughts on a certain subject.

Lately, for the past couple of nights, he's been having the weirdest variety of nightmares that he's ever had. Now, Mike wasn't new to these types of things, he had to deal with a ton of them when he found out his own Office's unfortunate demise with his very eyes. So the issue didn't lie there, though he was already self-aware that he wasn't mentally the same after that.

But no, this was something entirely different.

It was best to say that what left him unsettled was the fact that despite how blurry and scattered his nightmares were, they felt real enough to the point where he questioned if they really were a dream. Waking up frantically, grabbing certain limbs as if he were in pain, and outright screaming in terror were some of the few things that happened after such deep sleeps. The only thing stopping him from outright thinking that they were real was the fact that it always involved people he didn't know or situations that he'd never find himself in.

Hanging out while talking and discussing with strangers as if they were long time friends. Their faces were always blurs, ones that looked like someone tried to erase pen ink with an eraser. Their voices were so familiar and distinct, yet they only filtered into his ears as broken syllables and letters. Their fates...the less said about it the better. Trying to remember it was enough for Mike to pale from head to toe, so he avoided doing that as much as he could.

Suffice to say that the past few nights were not too generous to the man known as Mike. Of course, being the kind and caring individuals that they were, Dana and Roxie were quickly able to notice the changes in his tone and mood lately, especially in the mornings. Though that might also be due to the fact that he wore his heart on his sleeve, he's an honest guy in nature so it was impossible to try and lie his way out when asked what was wrong.

But that didn't mean he was willing to just outright admit his troubles to them. Half-truths were what he would give them them, a simple and short answer was all he could give to them. Despite how close the Control Team had become in terms of bonds after that day of Dana's vulnerability, Mike was not comfortable in sharing his pain and doubts. He would rather jump into an abnormality's containment cell than spill out his fears to them, the last thing he wanted to do was to trouble them.

They've had enough on their shoulders already with this job, there was no need to add more weight to it.

Keeping this stuff bottled in, however, would only cause him more harm than good. That much Mike knew. So an alternative was what he needed, one where it wouldn't be an inconvenience to anyone. The solution came to him as a random idea that soon turned into a weird daily occurrence. Which is what he was currently doing right now: he was letting it all out on One Sin.

"I mean, come on? It doesn't make any sense! I'm starting to think I'm going insane the more I go to sleep!" He exclaimed in worry, not even expecting an answer from One Sin as he spoke his thoughts out loud. One Sin simply floated in silence. "Yeah, you're right. Maybe I am just overthinking it a bit. But that still doesn't make me feel better though!"

*Sigh*

Releasing a heavy sigh, Mike stopped cleaning before he slumped his shoulders in what seemed to be defeat. Subconsciously his hand drifted upward to pet the weird flower attached to his scalp from Beauty. It's texture was both soft and bushy as his fingers weaved between the buds. Though he was alarmed at the beginning, he slowly grew to admire it when the first few attempts to take it off failed.

Dana and Roxie had tried to help him but neither could find a way to get it off. Scissors would snap in half when trying to cut the tiny stem. Trying to pull it off only gave him a massive headache as his head felt like it would split open. Roxie proposed burning it but Dana strongly refused saying that it would most likely end up hurting him more than helping.

Soon, they simply gave up on the idea when, in their last ditch effort, they asked Malkuth about it. They should've saw it coming given how she had been the past few days because instead of getting any noteworthy advice, they instead got scolded and yelled at for "thinking of useless things" and "slacking off".

In the end, it was suffice to say that he was most likely stuck with it permanently. Whether for good or for bad, it was up to debate.

It was at this moment that the intercom notified him that his task was finished. Walking out, Mike barely cared about the results of his work. One Sin never caused any trouble, even when the results were bad, so he didn't see any point in caring.

"What am I even doing? Talking to an abnormality about my problems, like that's going to do anything." Grumbling to himself, he started scratching his head in frustration. He suddenly stopped when he noticed several of the clerks nearby looking at him in worry. He smiled sheepishly before quickly walking away from them. "Idiot, look at you making them worry about nothing."

With the occasional wave to whoever passed by, Mike simply wandered around his Department. He would've went back to the Main Room but the chances of running into Roxie or Dana made him reluctant to do so.

"Maybe I've got the right idea, just the wrong....person?" Muttering such a thing to himself, he sought out the only other person who he could potentially talk to. Though he didn't have to walk far as the person himself was already coming his way. "Dexter! Just the guy I was looking for! You got time to spare for a chat? I really need someone to tal—Woah, are you okay?"

Dexter, the Information Team's captain, trodded his way towards him. The bags under his eyes seemed more darker and prominent than Mike last remembered, making him worry a bit about his health and well-being. He wasn't even holding his E.G.O. properly as he let the spear drag on the ground behind him as it scrapped against the floor.

"Hello, Mike."

He finally greeted back once he was near enough to speak. His enthusiasm for today matched the way he looked, and if the Control Team agent didn't know him any better, he would have thought that he was annoyed. But this was simply how he was, it just seemed to be a bit worse today.

"Unfortunately, I don't think I have the energy to spare in holding a conversation."

Hearing that, Mike's expression slowly lost its brightness as he nodded his head in understanding. During their short talks, Dexter explicitly mentioned the workload he's been burdened with and his annoyance with his teammate's antics. So he could understand Dexter's lack effort put into anything but work. Though he still felt a bit saddened at the fact.

"Ah....yeah, sure thing. Sorry to bother you."

With the bright and chipper voice gone, in its place was a low and quiet voice that somehow gave off the feeling of a kicked puppy. Ironic, given how he was a few inches taller than the other. But still, it was something that Dexter quickly picked up on before he bit back a sigh and stopped in his tracks. This action didn't go unnoticed by Mike as he curiously tilted his head to the side, though a small shine of hope appeared in his eyes.

Not having the energy to tell him what he wanted to say, Dexter simply grunted while rolling his eyes. Somehow the message was able to be understood by the other Agent as he smiled broadly and took a spot in his left. Resuming their walk, Mike carefully explained his situation regarding his nightmares to the Captain of the Information Team. With each passing second Dexter's eyes slowly began to lose their tired look. After a good ten minutes or so, his eyes were wide awake as he furrowed his brows.

"So? What do you think?" Mike asked while chuckling with an embarrassed look. "I know that I'm probably overthinking it, but somehow they feel...I don't know, genuine?"

The only answer that Dexter gave to his questions was another small grunt. Whether it was of agreement or of dismissal, Mike didn't know, causing him to become disheartened at the lack of a response. However, contrary to what he thought of it, Dexter's silence wasn't due to him being dismissive of it but instead him going into deep thought.

When asked about his condition worsening, Dexter would always blame the paperwork or Bella and Vinera. In actuality, he was experiencing the exact same thing as Mike. It was odd, strange even, that such a phenomenon was occurring between two people in the exact same way. Especially the remark he made of waking up in the middle of the night in fright. The cause could simply be the bottled up stress that they have due to circumstances of their jobs. But Dexter wasn't into chalking it up as just that, the fear and paranoia felt far too real.

'Could it all be a side effect of an abnormality?' He asked himself while hefting his spear on his shoulder. 'If it is, then it's a hell of an annoying one.'

"...Right.....never mind." Mike muttered under his breath after noticing that he wasn't going to respond. Instead he quickly changed the subject to something that he was curious about. "So what brings you up here, Dexter? Manager's orders or just taking a relaxing walk?"

"Mike.....if I wanted to take a relaxing walk, this would be the last place I would think of." He glanced at the man who gave the foolish question, receiving the look Mike could only chuckle sheepishly. "And yes, I'm here by the Manager's instructions. Repression work on Beauty And The Beast."

"Beauty?" Mike repeated out loud while raising an eyebrow. "Well, that's funny, because—"

"—you're heading the wrong way."

A female voice spoke just behind them finishing his sentence. They both turned their heads over their shoulders to see a woman that seemed to be in her thirties. She had long brown hair that was tied into a single bun at the back of her head. Brown eyes stared at them behind a pair of glasses at the bridge of her nose. Her plain attire let them know that she is a clerk for the Control Team who seemingly overheard their conversation and decided to jump in to assist.

"Beauty's containment cell should be that way, up the stairwell, to the left." She said while pointing in the direction behind them. Turning back to the two Agents, she furrowed her brows in confusion. "Don't know why you're all the way over here."

"I was wondering that too. I was just following you but if you were heading towards Beauty you could've just asked you know?"

Dexter pinched the bridge of his nose while fighting back a sigh.

"If I had known that a Wing would provide faulty equipment such as this," he waved his arm showing the watch, "I would've done that already." Giving Mike a small glare, he huffed in annoyance before walking off in the direction the clerk pointed in.

"Sheesh, not even a thank you? Talk about rude." The female clerk spoke while rolling her eyes. Eventually her eyes landed on Mike who had yet to move as he stared at Dexter's retreating back. "So, what's the deal with your friend? Woke up on the wrong side of the bed?"

"Hahaha, sorry about that. I guess the stress is getting to him more than I thought. But Dexter isn't a bad guy, today just doesn't seem to be a good one for him."

The female clerk raised an eyebrow at that while scoffing.

"When is it ever a good day for anyone here? I've got a shit ton of things to do before Malkuth tears my head in two, but you don't see me glaring and grumbling about."

He couldn't deny the truth in her words, so he instead looked to the side to avoid looking into her eyes. Her annoyance didn't last long as she placed a finger under her chin in thought.

"Though now that I think about it, things have been a little weird." Her words were loud enough to reach his ears causing him to glance back at her. As if guessing the questioning look he had on, she pointed to his wrist and the device attached to their hips. "These things right here are what I'm talking about. Lately, it's becoming an ongoing occurrence for them to act up or not even work at all. Starting to think that your friend isn't far off regarding them giving us faulty equipment."

"That's...true, I guess. Though I will admit that I haven't paid it that much attention." He stated while frowning a bit, trying to remember when such things occurred. However, not before doing what he thought to be an important step in keeping a conversation with a stranger. "Oh, I forgot to introduce myself. The name's Mike."

"Funnily enough, I already knew your name, Mike. Agent Dana speaks fondly of you to us clerks when you're not around." Smirking a bit at the look of interest on his face, she decided to tease him a bit. "Must be nice having such a caring girlfriend. If only I had someone to speak fondly of me like that."

"G-Girlfriend?! We aren't like that! S-She's just a friend." He exclaimed in a hurry, showing just how embarrassed he was at the thought. The clerk showed a look of surprise, not really expecting him to react in such a way, before beginning to laugh. She certainly found this more interesting than she first thought. "H-Hey, what's so funny? Y-You were lying about her saying stuff like that right? Like there's no way she would think of me in that way, right?!"

"Hahaha, oh my word! Who the hell reacts like that nowadays!" The clerk struggled to keep her laughter down while out of breathe. "Oh geez, I'm so sorry, but that was just too hilarious!"

"Glad you could get a laugh out of this..." Mike muttered bitterly, disappointed in himself for reacting the way he did. "If you're done, don't you think it would be best to go back to what you were doing before Malkuth says finds out?"

"Gawk!"

She released a sound that resembled a combination of both a gasp and a hiccup which effectively killed her laughing fit. The mere mention of the Sephirah's name was enough to cause anyone who associated with her to freeze in their tracks.

"Fine, you win, I'll get out of your hair.....for now." Saying so, she began walking past him but stopped a few steps away before turning around with a smile.

"Before I forget, the name's Sarah. Or Zeta-9916, if you prefer going by ID's. Try to stay alive, I would miss your cute reactions if you died anytime soon~"

Without waiting for him to respond, she walked away while happily humming a tune to herself. She didn't seem that worried about Malkuth, making Mike a little worried of the repercussions that she was going to face. Though since he couldn't do much, he decided to leave it out of his mind for now. Sighing a bit, he turned to follow after Dexter but was stopped when he felt something collide with his abdomen.

"What the?" Taking a step back, he glanced down to see the top of Roxie's head as as she silently rubbed her nose. "Oh! Hey Roxie. Sorry, I didn't see you there."

Ignoring his apology, she pointed at the watch on her wrist with an impatient look before grabbing his sleeve and tugging him along with her. Although reluctant, Mike wisely decided to not resist as he followed behind her. The flower bud attached to his hair like an accessory shivered for a moment before resting silently.

As they traversed back to the Control Team's main department, the small frown on Roxie's face didn't seem to be leaving anytime soon. If Mike had better hearing, he would have heard the faint clicking of her tongue in annoyance. His earlier conversation with the clerk still bounced around in her head the entire way

As if something were clouding her judgment, Roxie ignored the fact that it was being voiced by what seemed to be a woman that she neither never met before nor knew.

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