Masks Chapter 2.3 : Broken in Two

The Orphanage was a large Wooden Church Building that was painted White and Grey, and had a Large Cross above the entrance.

'Rio and Mika should be behind inside.'

Opening the door, the first thing to appear was a Metal Spoon flying towards his face.

With one swift motion, Max grabbed the Spoon out of the Air.

'What is this?'

"Sorry!"

A Black Haired Boy in a Grey Robe was fallen over.

"Are you okay?" Max extends his hand.

Looking up, the Boy takes his hand.

"Yes. Thank you. And, sorry about the Flying Silverware."

'Sliverware...'

"I'm here looking for some Bear Cubs. Are they here?"

"They're like heavy dogs. They should be in the back. If not, then they're probably in Lenn's Room. It's the Room Upstairs, before the Last Room at the end of the Hall."

"Thank you."

"My name is Luca Rimit. I'm one of the Staff in this Church. I don't really do much other than prepare Meals and Clean. A 'Maid' of sorts."

"...A Maid?"

"Yes. Despite my handsome looks, I am actually a 13 Year Old Girl."

'Really!? ...Her looks heavily resemble-'

"I look like Luck, don't I?"

'How did she..!?'

"I get that a lot. I'm used to it by now. May I know your name?"

"Max. It was a Name given to me by Lenn earlier today."

"Max? Hmm... Did Lenn just swap some Letters from 'Mask' and changed it to 'Maks'?"

"That is what she told me. Speaking of, I should probably check up on Lenn and the Cubs."

"Oh, right. Please, go ahead. If you'd like, would you like to stay for Dinner?"

"Dinner?"

"Yes. Today I'm making Egg Fried Rice with some Meat from yesterday's Hunt. I'm also making some Mixed Berry Pie, which is not only my specialty, but also the Kid's Favorite."

'These all sound a little weird, but...'

"If you'll have me, then I don't mind joining you all for 'Dinner'."

"Yay! This has me all pumped up! Go check on Lenn! I'm gonna cook the Best Food you have ever eaten!"

Without a second thought, Luca ran into a different room at terrifying speeds.

'She has a lot of [Kindness]. She has the ability to become a great Supporter if she attempted to become a [Holder].'

Walking towards the set of stairs, he immediately felt the gaze of many eyes on him.

Looking higher up the flight of stairs, he could see 4 Identicle looking Heads peeking at him from the top.

'...Is it me, or are there 4 of the exact same person.'

Immediately after arriving at the foot of the stairs, the 4 Heads went away.

'What was that about?'

Walking up the Stairs, a *Click* noise went off midway.

A Tin Can swung down from the Ceiling.

Avoiding it, Max could hear giggling on the second floor.

Walking the rest of the way up, a String was lined at the top.

However, instead of tripping, the Line snapped.

"What!?"

Looking to his left, he could see the 4 Kids from earlier sitting in a corner.

"How did it not work!? Was the String to weak?" Said the one with the Green and Blue Striped Shirt.

"It should have worked. I mean, it worked in the past." Said the one in the Purple Shirt.

"Yup. I even fell for it once. I landed straight on my face!" Said the one wearing a White Shirt.

"I told you! We shouldn't keep doing this! We'll get in trouble!" Said the one wearing a Lime One Piece Dress with Flower Patterns.

"...Who are you guys?"

"Can you wait for a bit!? We're having a conversation here!" Striped says.

"Please wait for a bit! I'll try to calm them down!" Dress says.

As they argued amongst themselves, Max just stood in Awe and Confusion.

'What... do I make of this?'

After a moment, they finally quieted down.

"Alright! Starting with me! I'm Ron!" Striped says.

"I'm Ran." Purple says.

"The name's Rin!" White says.

"My name is Ren. Nice to meat you." Dress says.

"...Max."

"Why are you wearing a Mask? It looks a little weird!" Ron says.

"Hey! Don't be rude to him!" Ren says.

"Ron, Ran, Rin, Ren... They sound similar." Max says.

"That's because we're Quadruplets. We all came from the same Mother, all in the same Hour." Ren says.

"Quadruplets? Is that why you all look identical to one another?"

"Yes. If I may ask, what are you here fo- Hey! Stop that!" Rin was poking at her side.

"Hahaha! Hey! Let's let Sis handle the new guy! We need to think of new Traps for him!" Rin says.

All nodding, they run to the end of the hall, and enter the Room to their Right.

"Geez. Why am I the only girl amongst us?"

"Is it difficult being the only girl?"

"Very. Those boys can't keep in check without me being there. But even then they don't listen to me."

"Sounds... troubling."

"Tell me about it. Anyways, who are you? I've never seen anybody with a Mask walking around here."

"My name is Max. I am here to check on Rio and Mika, as well as Lenn."

"Lenn? What business do you have with her?"

"I met her in the Forest. She is also the one to give me my name, so I have a sort of... resolve?"

"Hmm... I don't know how much of that I can believe, but you don't seem like a bad guy. I'll lead you there, so let's check on her."

Without saying more, Max follows Ren to near the end of the hall.

Opening the door, Ren peaks inside.

"Lenn? Are you awake?"

"Ren? Why are you here?" Lenn says from inside.

"A friend of yours came by. Can we come in?"

"Sure? I don't remember any... wait, is it Max?"

Opening the door all the way, Ren reveals Max, who was standing behind her.

"I see you are doing well. How are you?" Max says.

"Max! What happened inside the [Veil]? You left me for only a minute, and then the entire place started shaking!"

"Calm down... wait, what? A [Veil]? Are you... serious?" Ren is confused.

"I found the 'Boss', and quickly took it out. If I took too long, then you have been in more danger." Max walked inside.

"That's not what I'm talking about!"

Everyone fell silent.

"... I'm... gonna leave you two alone for a while."

Ren left the room, closing the door behind her.

'This atmosphere... is very tense.'

"I was scared..." Lenn spoke.

Max stood in silence.

"Do you know how I felt? When you left me behind in a place I didn't know? ...I couldn't even look up from my feet because of how scared I was."

'...She must have been terrified.'

"I began hearing a lot of noises... I kept thinking of running after you, but my body couldn't move..."

'Noises... she was still under the Boss's effect.'

"After a few moments, my body tenced up, and I suddenly lost consciousness... I didn't know what would happen next."

"...I have nothing to say against that. I was at fault for leaving you alone. However, I do not regret it."

"And you shouldn't. I know that it had to be done, but... I couldn't think clearly while I was in there."

"You couldn't have fought it off. The 'Boss' made you run into the [Veil] without thinking. You were under it's 'Influence'."

"...Influence? What are you talking about?"

"Look to your left."

Looking, her left hand was twirling a pencil from a nearby shelf.

"What the!? I'm... I'm not doing that!"

"It's the effects of my [Mask]. This [Mask] has the ability to create or enhance specific thoughts. This time, I tapped into your Subconscious, so you were not aware of what you were doing."

"Create? Enhance? What are you talking about? Is this... Magic? No... I don't understand!"

"Would you like one more example?"

"Example? What... what kind?"

[Aqua Flow]

The Mask went Blank, then began gaining Grey Wavey Lines from one side to the other. One on the Forehead, one through the Eyes, one through where his mouth would be, and one through where the bottom of his Chin should be.

"What!? How!? Why!? ...HUH!?"

"I'll explain later. For now, I give you my example."

The air around them began to dampen.

Slowly moving his hands in a smooth movement, Max began to quickly gather the Water Vapor from the surrounding air.

The Vapor gathered, and pure Water began to form.

"How are you... This really is magic..." Lenn was in awe.

Continuing, Max moves his hands.

The Water began to move and mold, slowly taking shape.

"Is that... a Dragon?"

"This is a recreation of the 'Boss' I defeated. It was a large, Dragon you said?, with enough strength to not only effect outside the [Veil], but also move the 'Fog' from within them."

"The Fog? What's special about the fog?"

"It's nearly immovable. Unless you can generate enough Force or use a Special Method, then you can't move it." He dispersed the Water back into Vapor.

"Woah. That's kinda... spooky. Can you move the Fog?"

"Yes. Using either Forceful or Special Methods, I can move the Fog."

"That's sounds so cool! Will I be able to do that too?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, you're gonna teach me how to fight, aren't you?"

"I didn't forget, however... Actually, you just might be able to."

"Really!? Yes! How long will it take?"

'Time... If I had to guess, then it would be-'

"Roughly 11 Years."

"Hmm... It'll take a while, but if that's what it takes to instantly take out a Dragon, then I'm willing to do all I can!"

'Quite energetic despite what just happened.'

"Alright, we'll begin your training soon. For now, rest and recover."

"Yes! Teacher Max!"

At that moment, a Bell could be heard from up above.

"A Bell?" Lenn says.

Opening the door, Ren seemed exhausted.

"Max! It's the Chief!"

'What? Did something happen?'

"She started a 'Citizenship Event'!"

'...A what?'

. . .