Chapter 7 - Deception

Author's Notes:
-So, FINALLY another chapter up. This one, written by yours truly. I must have made Brian wait for this chapter for nearly a year. I'm such a bum :( But it's finally done!!
-Basically: return, news flash, deception, battle, realization, infiltration, and affection. :) Enjoy!



Dolosus stared at the man who had caught Kat. Altojo, the one they had been searching for all this time, had finally come to them. Dolosus’ eyes narrowed. He watched every move he made, stepping towards him slowly, cautiously. He knew that this man had power. Like most things in life, he was not all he seemed.
Altojo turned towards Dolosus when he had come to stand right beside him. Were he able to see and the red bandana not covering his eyes, he would have been met by a cold, calculating stare. The two faced each other in a moment of silence, and it seemed that no one existed but the two of them and Kat, laying like a rag doll in Altojo’s arms.
“Take her.” He said, and he held Kat out to Dolosus, holding her effortlessly in strong arms as if she weighed nothing.
“Why?” The taller man responded, never moving his gaze from the other’s face.
“You are her friend. You can take care of her.”
“I am neither her friend, nor her caretaker,” he responded, a pink flush tinting his complection, “but as her supervisor, it is my duty to teach and protect her.” He took the sleeping girl from Altojo and held her with a care that he was not used to applying when dealing with other people. Altojo turned to walk away.
“I see now,” Dolosus said to the man’s back, “That what I offer out of duty is more than you can offer out of friendship.” Altojo stopped walking. Dolosus couldn’t help showing a hint of a grin. He knew how to get to Altojo. This would be simple…
“I didn’t want to see her again.”
Dolosus faught to supress a, “not that you could ever ‘see’ her to begin with,” and instead, simply said,
“Why not?”
“My reasons are not your concern.”
“You would abandon this girl for those reasons? This girl who searched for you so desperately? Who killed for you? Who was nearly killed herself?”
“…I-“
“I don’t think you’ve given this enough thought, Altojo.” He was silent. Dolosus’ grin widened. He had had his suspicions lately that Demonic had other reasons for assisting Kat in her search for this man, and if he played this right, he could get Altojo back to the organization’s headquarters. Demonic could decide on what to do with him from there. But first, how to lure him in. The obvious method would be to drag his unconscious body there. Just as this thought crossed Dolosus’ mind, Altojo muttered,
“I’ll be going now.” And took a step away from the other two. Dolosus’ mind raced. He didn’t have his scythe, so taking him by force would be nighe impossible. Could he use Kat as bait? No, not if Altojo’s objective had been to avoid her. But why had he been avoiding her to begin with? Dolosus had a strong feeling that Altojo still cared very much for her. The most likely case was that he wanted to keep her out of something. Something was going on that she couldn’t know about or be involved in…
He’s getting away! Damnit, say something!
“Altojo, wait!” his voice cracked. He shook his head and cleared his throat, “My master can help you!” he stopped, about fifty feet away. Dolosus held in a sigh of relief. He slowly regained his composure and walked towards the other man once more.
“I can sense that you are a man in search of something,” he said, making it up as he went along and praying that it made sense, “My master goes by the name of Demonic and leads an organization of sorts, if you will. We are a group of individuals skilled in the matters of the soul and spirit. I sense a longing in you, and I believe that my master can help you.”
“…Your master, who supposedly is a spiritual leader and helps those in need of guidance… goes by a name such as Demonic?” Altojo returned in dry tones, with a wry smile at Dolosus over his shoulder.
Damnit. Dolosus mentally kicked himself. He should have used an alias for her.
“Particularly cruel parents,” He answered with a shrug and a sigh, “But let us not digress, my friend.” Dolosus was nearly sickened by his own corny act. But he was confident. This could really work.
Altojo turned and came to stand directly in front of Dolosus, as if to stare into his eyes until he found the truth. He stood with confidence, but Dolosus noticed his hands fussing restlessly in his pockets.
“What is your name, you who claim to be a spiritual, yet give such a aura of bloodlust?”
“My name is Dolosus.”
“Dolosus?”
“Exactly as you say, sir.”
“Latin, I believe,” Altojo observed. Dolosus nodded, “Clever. Tricky. Sly. That’s… about right, if I’m not much mistaken.”
“You are an intelligent man. And you are correct. Though I myself do not know how I was given such a name, as I never knew my parents. But that is neither here nor there.” Dolosus knew he couldn’t sidetrack too much or become too involved in lies, or he could slip up.
“Altojo, would you see my master? She can grant you what you seek! This girl, Kat, who risked so much for you… you can be happy with her, and you wont have to run any longer. And Crimson! We know where she is currently, and my master can take you to her! Please, Altojo… for your sake and for their’s…”
A stunning performance, in Dolosus’ humble opinion. He waited patiently for Altojo’s answer, but hoped that this would not go on for long enough for Kat to wake up and ruin the whole façade.
“I will consider this offer of yours, Sly One,” he finally said, “May I assume that Kat will be at this organization with you and your master?”
“Yes.”
“Good. I will find you. Farewell. I trust that whether I take up this offer or not, our paths will cross again.”
“I agree. Farewell.”
Dolosus nearly laughed.

When Kat awakened, she found herself on her back on her bed in the hotel that she and Dolosus had been staying in. She blinked a couple times to clear her vision. Her eyes focused, she glanced around the room to see everything packed. She sat up slowly, noticing in the process that she had a throbbing headache. She looked to her left to see Dolosus sitting on his bed, wearing only his jeans and drying off his dripping wet hair with a towel.
Kat's brain worked on the situation slowly. First, she noted that Dolosus was nice to look at, all things considered. Then, she got to wondering why everything was packed. After that, things got a little confused. Had they ever found Altojo? Where was Kitty? Who was that Cinta girl? Was Crimson safe or had they really…?
“You’re awake. About time.”
“Y-yeah…” Kat muttered. So much had happened. Her mind was in a haze.
“Go shower,” Dolosus said, pointing to the bathroom door, “and whatever else you girls do. But make it fast. We’re leaving soon.”
“What? Wait, Dolosus, what happen-?”
“Shower. You smell. We’ll talk after.”
Kat frowned childishly at him. He didn’t seem to notice. Kat stood up and made her way to the bathroom, stepping over suitcases and her giant leaf. She noticed that Dolosus’ scythe was nowhere to be seen. So, Kitty had made off with it. Demonic wouldn’t be happy.
“What happened to your-?” she started to ask, but was interrupted yet again.
“Kat.” He said, in the tone a parent uses when they’ve just begun to lose patience with a defiant child. He got to his feet and stood in front of her. Bending down to bring his face closer to hers (which caused her to blush noticeably), he spoke slowly,
“I refuse to answer a single question. Take a shower and change your clothes. After that, we leave. We are to return to headquarters. You will act quickly and only speak to me when absolutely necessary. These are my orders to you, as your superior, understand?”
Slowly, she nodded, entered the bathroom and shut the door behind her.
Dolosus stared at the closed door for a few long moments. He sighed and went back to his bed, where he plopped down on his back and closed his eyes, listening to the sound of the water hitting tile in the shower. He was certain that Kat would obey her orders and not speak to him for the majority of their trip back.
“Well… that’s for the best…” he muttered to himself. He couldn’t speak to her. Not given what he was planning. Who knew how she would react? Normally, he wouldn’t care. People endure pain in life, and it makes them stronger, and if it doesn’t make them stronger, it breaks them, and so they had been too weak to begin with. Dolosus had no use for weaklings. And yet, this was different. He thought about it, and quickly ruled out the possibility of affection for Kat. Eventually, he decided that to not feel a touch of guilt over deceiving and probably killing the close friend of one whom you’ve been working with as partners for so long would be simply inhuman.
But then… was he human? He now knew that Demonic had created him by using the powers of her brush. He had not actually been born, but did that make him less human? Dolosus was at a loss. He had never questioned his own humanity before.
The door of the bathroom opened, hot air wafting into the room. Kat was already dressed again. A quick glance at Dolosus, then she immediately averted her gaze and busied herself with packing a few stray items. Dolosus stood up, pulled his shirt on over his head and mumbled,
“Hurry up.”

Mid April. Four months plus since the encounter between Dolosus and Altojo. Trees and flowers bloomed in firework blasts of color and aroma. The spring that year was mild for the most part. Temperatures were warm but not hot, and a cool breeze blew almost consistently. Rain came in brief showers and beautiful clear skies followed closely after them. All of these pleasantries of the season, of course, went virtually unnoticed by the organization members. They spent their time training, eating, lazing about in the privacy of their rooms, or on missions.
Dolosus had been sent on only a couple here and there since Guatemala. This was not because of a lessening of his value, but rather because few missions ever required his strength. Over all, Demonic was pleased with him these days. She had listened with interest to his report of the Guatemala mission and as he described his deception of Altojo, she smiled to herself and nodded. Before Dolosus could request yet another replacement scythe, however, the crows bursted into the master's room, and without even bowing as was expected of them, they whispered urgently to her, something that seemed to disturb her greatly. She muttered to them, her hand over her lips. They replied curtly. She closed her eyes and rubbed her temples, a habit of hers when she was stressed. Finally, she got to her feet and the action seemed authoritative- powerful. With a careless wave of her hand, she called the crows after her as she headed towards the door, walking briskly.
“Ah- Master!” Dolosus called after her, just as her hand grasped the doorknob. She glared over her shoulder at him,
“Yes, what, what is it? You’ve finished your report, haven’t you? Get out of my sight!”
“My scythe-“
“Yes, what about it?”
“I’ll, uh, be needing another one…”
Demonic displayed a series of facial expressions. First surprise, then great irritation, and finally, utter exasperation. She sighed and rolled her eyes,
“You’ve got to be kidding me. Another one. This is, what, your third now? Ugh, I don’t have time for this crap.” A green light flashed in her hand and the over sized paintbrush appeared. In just three strokes, she had painted a new scythe in the air. Another flash of light, and the new weapon materialized from the ink.
“Think you can actually hold on to this one for any length of time?” she spat at him, tossing the scythe to him by the staff. He caught it and began to examine and weigh it in his hands. Demonic went on, “No one but you and I can touch this one. Anyone else would be overcome by a fit of madness, the duration of which depends on how long they had been in contact with the scythe. Happy now? Good, I’m leaving.”
“Th-thank you, master.” Dolosus just managed to get out before the door slammed in his face. He looked back down at his new scythe. It was simple in appearance, but he could feel that it was an excellent weapon.
He gave the room one last glance and left, carefully closing the gigantic oak doors behind him as he went.

On one particularly lovely April afternoon, Dolosus had just finished supervising training sessions for the day, and was making his way back to his room, when the crow siblings appeared in the main hallway out of which all of the members’ rooms branched. They swooped down from the skylight that had been installed in the roof in order for them to come and go quickly for their important spying missions.
They chattered excitedly amongst themselves for a few moments until they noticed Dolosus about to enter his room.
“Dolosus! There’s the man of the hour- hey, wait up!” the male shouted down the hall to him. He had tried to ignore them at first, but it seemed they were determined. He looked at them sourly and wated for them to come to him.
“Altojo!” the female said a little breathlessly. Dolosus quirked an eyebrow. Now he was interested.
“Go on.”
“He’s coming- heading this way. Demonic will be mighty pissed if you don’t get ‘im this time. Thought you’d like to know.”
“I see…” he responded curtly. Finally, he had come. The Crows had expected a more interesting reaction to this news, and so they stood and waited patiently for one that would suit their fancy. Dolosus took his time in evaluating and deciding how to react to the situation, however, nearly forgetting the Crows’ presence. Eventually, he looked up at them as if he were somewhat surprised to see them there. He thought over the plan one last time, and, finding it satisfactory, he said to the eagerly waiting siblings,
“Kat had a training session this morning, did she not?”
They looked at each other and nodded.
“Tell her…” he said slowly, “tell her that we’re going to that movie I promised her.” He looked to the female crow, “I entrust this task to you, as a woman. Talk to her. Insist that she shower, find a nice outfit, do her hair and makeup and whatever else you women do before you’re ready to go out in public. I need time when I know she’ll be in her room, busy, and unable to get in my way. If she had training this morning, she should need some extra time to get ready, but nonetheless, I want you to ensure that she remains occupied for at least an hour.”
“Roger.” She responded with a smirk.
“And you,” Dolosus went on, now addressing the brother, “are to be my backup. If Kat runs off and your sister can’t stop her, which is entirely possible, seeing as how excitable Kat can be… you are to restrain her- with physical force, if necessary.”
“Gotcha!” he replied, delighted by this assignment.
“Hold it,” his sister said, “what’s in this for us?”
Dolosus simply smiled at first, turning to make his way to the headquarters’ main entrance. He had taken but a couple steps when he stopped, and, looking over his shoulder at them, said,
“You can have the corpse.”

At last, Altojo stood at the doors of the group that had spent so much time and effort pursuing him, and that he had been in turn pursuing for nearly three months now. He smiled slightly. He had always appreciated irony.
Altojo had gone through quite a bit of effort to find this organization’s headquarters. He had chased source after source, lead after lead, extracting information from shady characters, often by force. Of those he had… conversed with, many would laugh or smirk when Altojo told what he knew about this group, as if he had missed out on some inside joke. Many others, however, would take in his story, add further details, and seemed to understand exactly what he was saying. If this story turned out to be a ruse, Altojo guessed that he would not have been the first fool to fall for it.
The sound of someone taking a step towards him from behind brought Altojo back to awareness.
“So… you’ve finally come.”
“Ah, Dolosus… the sly one.” Altojo did not turn to face him. He listened carefully to the other man’s voice. It was calm, and measured. Each syllable considered carefully before it was spoken. This was seeming more and more like a trap with each passing moment.
“My master eagerly awaits you, Altojo,” he took another two steps closer, “if you would kindly follow me…”
When Dolosus had come closer, Altojo turned so the two of them were face to face. Dolosus was now close enough for Altojo to listen to his body properly. He heard his weight shifting. Most likely to accommodate for some extra weight on one side. He heard his heart pounding rapidly, blood rushing…
“You are armed.” Altojo observed, “your body shifts to hold it properly. It is a rather heavy weapon.”
Dolosus was silent for a moment.
“Your hearing is superb.” Dolosus returned his own observation, “I carry a scythe. My weapon of choice. However, I’ve certainly no intention of raising my blade against you. You see, my scythe has a power. With it, I can open a path to take us to my master.”
“… I see.” Said Altojo, in a tone that clearly showed his distrust, “Well then, lead on.”
Dolosus swung his scythe. Altojo jumped, narrowly avoiding having his feet emancipated from his body. Rather than landing back on the ground, however, he fell. He tried to cry out, but he couldn’t hear his own voice, as if he were in a silent film. He fell in a great emptiness, having no sounds or scents or any other sensation than falling to tell him where he was. Then, suddenly, it stopped. He collapsed onto hard concrete.
Dolosus had not been aiming to cut Altojo with that swing. He had forced him to enter a wormhole and take him to the roof of the organizaiton building.
“…That bastard.” Altojo mumbled, and was relieved to hear his own voice. He could feel that he was outside, and, judging by the strength of the spring breeze, fairly high up. Other than this, he couldn’t say. He focused his hearing and eventually noticed someone breathing nearby. Immediately, he jumped up to his feet and faced the source of the sound.
Dolosus smirked.
“And now, we begin.”

“He… he what?” Kat stared in disbelief at the crow.
“Yeah, weird, right? But that’s what he said.” She responded with a shrug, “here, I’ll help you get ready.” She welcomed herself into Kat’s room, shut the door behind her, and dragged the befuddled girl along.
“I thought he had forgotten! But we’re really- wait!” the two stopped, and Kat looked anxiously at the crow, “is this like a date? What should I wear? I don’t know if I’m ready. I don’t think I’m ready! Oh no, what should I do?!”
“I-I, don’t, Kat! Calm down!” said a very flustered crow, “Here, listen,” she sighed, and seeing the excitement on Kat’s face, she felt a pang of guilt, “go shower and get yourself cleaned up. No offense, but that training session this morning was not kind to your personal hygiene.” Kat giggled awkwardly. “Go do that. I’ll wait here, and once you’re done, I’ll help you pick out an outfit, okay?”
The pink haired girl was delighted. With a smile reaching from ear to ear, she embraced her friend,
“Thanks so much, you’re the best.”
“It’s… it’s nothing…”
Kat released the crow and practically danced towards her bathroom.
“Oooh, I’m so excited!”
The crow waited until she heard the water running, then let out a heavy sigh. She closed her eyes, crossed her arms and leaned against the wall. How would Kat react when she realized this was all a lie? That her friends had lied to her. That they had done so to get to Altojo. Not to mention she’d never get to go to that movie… but the thought of a delicious corpse overtook the crows thoughts, and her misgivings vanished.
“Ah, well.” She said to the empty room, “we’ve all got to eat, and there’s no such thing as a free lunch.”

Kat stepped into the shower, humming cheerfully to herself as she lathered up her hair with a sweet smelling shampoo. She wasn’t sure why, but she knew that she wanted to look good for this movie. She thought of Dolosus and smiled cutely, wondering what had suddenly made him think to invite her. They hadn’t even spoken much since they’re mission in Guatemala. That was kind of strange. She never had really understood Dolosus. She shrugged and rinsed out the shampoo, now picking up the bottle of conditioner. But she stopped, frowning.
Why had he sent the crow to tell her? He didn’t really seem that shy. Sure, he was kind of awkward, but shy? And where was he anyway? Something seemed a little strange about the situation. Something that she hadn’t noticed due to her initial excitement, but now seemed very strange. Suspicious, even.
She put down the bottle and got out of the shower, turned off the water, and dried herself off quickly. She had to talk to Dolosus.

Flames sprung up around the two fighters, creating a wall of inferno about the perimeter of the roof where they fought. Dolosus closed his eyes for a moment, letting the warmth seep over him. He could feel Altojo’s power in the flames. He drank it in like a fine wine. But it was not enough.
“…Yet, this is not your full power…” he said.
“Shouldn’t be necessary.”
Dolosus laughed, readying his scythe,
“Arrogance has a tendency to bite the hand that feeds it, Altojo.”
In an instant, the two closed to distance between them, and the battle began. Flames coated Altojo’s hands and he threw punch after punch, but Dolosus was always just slightly faster, and so the flames only succeeded in charring Dolosus’ clothes slightly. He soon found an opening and went on the offensive. He swung his scythe at Altojo’s mid-section, but he dodged, and continued to avoid the blade, until, finally, he grabbed it by the staff. The result startled both of the fighters.
“Agh! Ayaaaaaah!!” Altojo screamed and clutched his head with both hands. He fell to his knees, panting. Slowly, Dolosus’ look of bewilderment transformed into a sadistic, lopsided grin.
“Yes, of course… thank you, my master…” he murmured to himself, watching as his opponent slowly regained his sanity. This was just a small taste of his weapon’s new power, but he already felt he would enjoy it. But first, he had to maintain his slight advantage. Altojo was beginning to get back up to his feet, shakily, but Dolosus sent a kick to the side of his head and he fell back down, sprawled on the concrete. He blinked and shook his head, then rolled onto his side just as the scythe’s wicked blade plowed into the floor, barely missing Altojo’s arm. He saw his chance. Altojo flung up his leg and kicked the staff of the scythe out of Dolosus’ hands as he tried to free it from the concrete. He stumbled back just slightly, but it gave his opponent time to get up on his feet again. Altojo positioned himself between Dolosus and the weapon.
“Up for a little game of keep-away?” Altojo betrayed the smallest hint of a smirk.
“Your witty banter needs work.” Dolosus returned, and wasted no time in attacking. He lunged towards Altojo and began throwing punches. His opponent was slower than he, but also quite a bit more muscular, and so while the majority of the blows landed, they did little. Dolosus suddenly realized how much he needed his scythe against this opponent.
He tried to fake him out, using sudden movements, trying to find an opening to get to his weapon, all the while throwing punches. But every motion, every twitch of his eyes to every tensed muscle was easily detected and reacted to. To Altojo, Dolosus was just a jumble of sounds- muscle rubbing against bone, blood rushing through veins, air entering and exiting the lungs. Where Dolosus was fast and clever, Altojo was strong and skilled. They seemed evenly matched.
A fist connected with Altojo’s face. And another on the other side. Up until then, Dolosus had aimed only for the chest and shoulders. Shock clouded his mind for the shortest of moments, but as another punch soared towards him, his body seemed to move on its own, and he flung out his hand and caught Dolosus by the neck. Hazel eyes flew open in shock. Altojo himself was surprised, but he knew he couldn’t miss this chance. His grip tightened. Dolosus began to panic. There was no way he could overpower Altojo. His vision blurred, his lungs were burning, and in desperation, he flailed out his legs, praying that he’d connect. And suddenly, he was free. His foot had slammed into Altojo’s stomach, winding him and causing him to drop his victim. An opening!
Dolosus bolted to his scythe, and all in one fluid motion, he liberated the blade from the concrete, spun the staff into Altojo’s legs, knocking him to the ground, and spun the blade around to rest against Altojo’s neck. A sneering, mocking smile danced across Dolosus’ lips. His eyes burned with the thrill of the kill. He was so ready to see his blade sinking into flesh, the blood pouring, hear Altojo’s final gasp of life leave his body…
“D…Dolosus…?” a soft, meek voice sounded behind him. His smile vanished. His body nearly went limp. He knew who it was, and, judging by Altojo’s apparent shock, he also recognized the voice.
“Dolosus… Altojo…” she murmured in a shocked tone. It seemed to be all she could say. Dolosus closed his eyes, took a deep breath, opened them, and, keeping the blade of his scythe at Altojo’s neck for good measure, he turned to face Kat.
Her expression alone nearly brought Dolosus to his knees. She was deathly pale, her eyes bloodshot and shimmering with tears that wouldn’t fall. She stood completely frozen, feet rooted to the concrete, hands slowly clenching and unclenching. And for the first time in his life, Dolosus felt guilt. A horrible, wrenching feeling in his chest. A twisting, writhing parasite around his heart.
He lowered his scythe. Altojo stood up silently. Kat slowly began walking towards the two. Meanwhile, the brother crow soared up over the roof of the building, maintaining a safe distance from the scene below.
“I-I’m sorry, Dolosus, she got by me! I tried to stop her, really! But she…” he began nervously, but soon realized that no one was listening. His sister soon joined him, and the Crows simply watched from the sky.
“Kat, I-“ smack! Dolosus, stunned into silence, stared wide-eyed at Kat and gingerly touched his cheek where she had slapped him. His mouth opened, then closed. He sighed and closed his eyes.
“I have nothing else to say to you.” She turned to Altojo and went on, now addressing him, “And you! Why, you little-!”
“Kat, please, I had my reasons.”
“Reasons!” she laughed. A horrible, hysterical laugh. “He has REASONS, he says! Well now that just fixes everything, now, doesn’t it. I’ve killed people to find you, nearly got myself killed, Crimson could be DEAD for all we know, I’m stuck in this loony bin, working with HIM-“ she pointed an accusing finger at Dolosus, “but there’s a reason for it all. Now-isn’t-that-just-PEACHY!” she screamed so that a flock of birds took off from nearby trees and her throat ached from the strain. The two men were silent. A single tear slid down Kat’s girlish face. She turned and walked briskly to the edge of the building and jumped down, floating on a cushion of air around her. It was over.
“…I’m sorry.” Dolosus said, and nearly laughed at the very idea, “I’m sorry.” He repeated.
Silence.
“What now?” Altojo asked.
“I should be asking you that.” Dolosus said with a wry smile, “I’m stuck here. I don’t have a choice. I just follow orders. But you have options. And so does Kat.” And he found himself hoping that she would stay. He couldn’t say for sure, for he had never experienced such a thing, but he felt that he would… miss her.
God, what was she doing to him?
“Who do you take orders from?”
“My master.”
“So that part was true. This is an organization of sorts, you’re a member, and you have a powerful master.”
“Unless I’m still lying.” Dolosus shrugged, “But you’d hardly know. You and Kat and your friend, Crimson, you’re those ‘honest types,’” he spoke those words almost mockingly, “much unlike myself.” Altojo sighed and smiled somewhat awkwardly,
“Doesn’t really matter anymore, now that…” he trailed off, then began again. “I can’t go through with it now. I knew I wouldn’t be able to. I knew that if I saw her, it would all be over. And now… I don’t know…” Dolosus watched him for a long while, he brow furrowed in thought. What a heavy burden freedom could be.
“I wouldn’t know. The whole ‘meaning of life’ thing has never been one of my strong suits. I follow orders.”
“What would you do if you were free?”
“I…” Dolosus stopped and thought. If he were free? He had never even considered such a thing. But the first thing that came to mind was travel. Friends. Seeing what the world had to offer for himself. And the most ridiculous idea cross his mind for the shortest of moments of traveling with Kat an her friends. It was absurd.
“I don’t want to tell you.” He finally said in an almost child like manner. Altojo, caught between amusement and irritation, shrugged and said,
“Alright. So how about this master of yours? Think I could still talk to him?”
“…Her.”
“Nice, man.”
Dolosus rolled his eyes,
“Let’s just go.”
And all the while, as they talked of meaningless theories and worthless ideas, one thought lay in the back of each of their minds, nagging at them and demanding their constant attention no matter how they tried to distract themselves.
‘I hope she’s okay.’

The next few days were something of a blur to Dolosus. Altojo had spoken to Demonic, and it was arranged that he would stay at the organization’s headquarters and work for her until it was determined for certain whether or not Crimson was still alive. The deal was that if she had died, Kat and Altojo would remain with the organization and if she still lived, the three could be reunited and go on their merry way. Altojo, being, as Dolosus had put it, the “honest type,” accepted this deal with a little caution. But Dolosus knew better than to trust his master. He considered warning Altojo of this, but he figured that he would wait and see how things panned out. No need to hurry.
Days and weeks passed, and Altojo was sent on a number of minor missions, and Dolosus continued to supervise training sessions, and all the while, Kat never spoke to him, or even looked at him if she could help it. Altojo had managed to catch up to her and explain himself. He told her his story, and later repeated it to Dolosus.
“I wanted to see again,” he had said quietly during a training session one day, as Dolosus marked down time and accuracy scores, “I found someone who had the power to heal me. An old fortune teller in the city. But like all things worth having in life, there was a price.”
“Please don’t tell me the hag wanted your soul,” Dolosus muttered, checking off another score on his clip board, “Next up! Because really, that’s just so cliché. I said next up! We haven’t got all day!”
“Not my soul. My memories. My memories of all those closest to me. That basically meant Kat and Crimson. We traveled too much for me to be close to anyone else. Anyway, I knew that if I met either of them again, I wouldn’t be able to go through with it. And I was right.” He smiled bitterly.
“But think of the power you’ve gained in hearing, rather than seeing,” Dolosus said.
“Ah, well,” Altojo shrugged, “we always want what we can’t have.”
Dolosus watched him for a moment, then nodded, sighed softly and checked his stop watch. He marked down another score.
“Time, 3:55.33, accuracy, 73.2 percent. Work on that. Next!”
Altojo had gone on to explain that he and Kat were on speaking terms again. The story had satisfied her at least that much.
“She called me a selfish jerk,” he admitted, “but at least she listened.”
“Good. I wont have to deal with that drama,” Dolosus said and scribbled down another time and accuracy score, noting that performance was up that week, “you people couldn’t control your emotions long enough to- next! I said, next!”
“You really are an @$$, you know that?”
“Yes. But at least I don’t whine like a woman on her period.”
Altojo sighed and shook his head.
“You should talk to her.” He said.
“Why? So I can get slapped again? Next! No, thank you, I’d rather avoid that if at all possible.” Altojo sighed again, and decided that it wasn’t worth trying to convince him otherwise. What Altojo didn’t know was that Dolosus did want to talk to Kat. Very much so. But she was good about avoiding him, and soon, a mission of vast importance was in the works, which meant training, meetings, and no time to track down Kat.
Oh well. She’d probably just hit him anyway.

“Will you relax? They’ll think I shoved my paint brush up your @$$.”
“…Yes, master.” Dolosus muttered stiffly, and tried to calm his nerves and relax his posture. He was only somewhat successful. Staring at the ornately carved wooden doors of the four story mansion, he adjusted his tie and sighed, giving his master an awkward sidelong glance. Demonic had designed for herself a lovely dress for the occasion. A tight corset accentuated her waist and pushed up her bust in typical Victorian fashion. Her skirts poofed out from her waist, flowing out about her, dragging just slightly on the ground and covering her healed shoes. The dress was a dark green with black lace added anywhere possible. Long black gloves reached up past her elbows, and pearls adorned her neck. She truly was a sight to behold. But while others gazed at her with blatantly admiring eyes, Dolosus was confused.
”Master,” he said tentatively, “you have not quite explained this mission to me. You made it sound like infiltration, but… a party?”
Demonic sighed heavily and grabbed him by the arm, dragging him down marble steps to the lush, verdant garden in front of the mansion. They passed between towering hedges, under a low arch covered in twisting vines and flowers, until they reached a pond and a stone bench nearby. Demonic seated herself on the bench, brushing off her skirt,
“God damned heals… and who said you could sit?” she spat when Dolosus had gone to sit next to her, “the nerve of you fools sometimes. Anyway, this mission. Things have been busy so I haven’t had time to properly inform you.” This was very true. Information wasn’t getting out as well as it usually did, and Demonic’s temper had been shorter.
“This event is being hosted by Maion, the woman who is… let us say that she and I are business rivals. The party is being held in honor of a new member, supposedly. Your mission is to mingle, socialize, eavesdrop, and if you hear anything even slightly suspicious, report it to myself or the crows- they’re here too. I’m particularly interested in any news regarding Crimson. If anyone asks, tell them you’re with me. Use a similar story to what you told Altojo about the organization. Don’t make a scene. Blend in. And for God’s sake, try to handle yourself with some amount of social grace.”
Dolosus couldn’t help feeling uncomfortable. He knew a little about Maion’s group. They were an assassination organization, like Demonic’s, and went by the guise of a military force specializing in stealth and undercover assignments. Even with all of this information and his instructions from Demonic, besides his own cunning and strength, he was still nervous.
Social events… ugh.
“Oh, and here, wear this.” Demonic summoned her brush to her hand in a flash of green light and in a matter of moments, created a mask to be placed over his eyes, where his glasses were. The brush vanished, and Demonic forced the mask into Dolosus’ hand, “you have contact lenses, right? This is a masquerade, after all.”
Dolosus sighed.
Social events…

Kat entered the mansion and was greeted by an impressive sight. A massive ballroom lay in front of her where she stood at the top of a staircase leading down to the dance floor. Kat guessed there had to be at least a few hundred people there, dancing, laughing, drinking and socializing. And every one of them was dressed to the nines. Men in full tuxedos, carrying canes and wearing top hats escorted women around the dance floor, and the women were truly breathtaking. Jewelery worth more than the women wearing it adorned every neck, every ear, wrist and finger. Frills, lace and corsets were in abundance. Many of the women wore their corsets so tight that they pushed up their chests and gave them the appearance of wearing their breasts as necklaces. Kat looked down at her own, somewhat less impressive bust and frowned in disappointment, but then got to wondering how those women managed to breath like that. She herself was having some difficulty breathing in that straight-jacket of a dress, but she tried to ignore it and act natural.
She carefully descended the stairs, gazing in wonderment at her surroundings. The whole place was covered in gold, marble and diamonds. A humongous chandelier hung from the ceiling, casting a yellowish lighting over the room. An entire wall opposite from where Kat stood was taken up by a series of long tables covered with every type of food and drink imaginable. Well, every expensive type, at least. Kat set her sights on those tables and slowly made her way around the room, rather than across it, so as to avoid dancing couples bumping into her. When she finally made it, she smiled at the sight of two familiar faces.
“I swear, all this food and not a single piece of human meet.”
“You were expecting human? Not everyone appreciates a delicacy like we do, y’know.”
“But they could at least-“
“Hey there, you two.” Kat said brightly to the crows. The two turned and stared at her for a moment, as if they didn’t recognize her, then the sister smiled and said,
“Oh, hello, Kat! I almost didn’t recognize you!”
“Kat? Oh, right!” the boy said, “wow, you sure look different.”
Kat smiled shyly. It was very true. For one, she hardly ever wore dresses, much less something as lovely and extravagant as what Demonic had designed for her. Her dress was a pure white, with baby blue lace bordering every seem and added wherever detail was an option, without being tacky. Also, Demonic had used her brush to lengthen Kat’s hair, and it now reached down past her shoulders, and curled gently, framing her face nicely. Besides these, it was a masquerade, and so Kat wore a mask over her eyes. It was the same baby blue of the lace on her dress, and two black feathers adorned the upper right border of the mask. She looked lovely, but she had never felt so awkward.
“I feel ridiculous,” she said with a nervous laugh, “Do I look okay?”
“I think you look great,” said the female crow.
“And incidentally, so does he.” The male pointed to a man a little ways down the row of tables, who had been eying Kat, and making no huge effort to hide it. Kat glanced over at him. A mistake. The man made eye contact, which gave him an excuse to approach her.
“Crap…” Kat muttered. He certainly was not her type. He was as greasy and fake looking as any rich snob she had seen all night, and now she couldn’t get away from him.
“Good evening, miss,” he said, his voice all silk and honey, as he bowed and took her hand and kissed it, “I couldn’t help noticing you were alone, and I was wondering if you would join me for a dance?”
“’Alone’?” the male crow said incredulously, “What, do we not count now?” But the man ignored them and continued his attempts at charming Kat. She obviously wasn’t buying it.
“I’m sorry, sir, I couldn’t-“
“Oh, but I insist.”
He took her hand and practically dragged her onto the dance floor, but not before an entire silent conversation between the three friends. Kat looked desperately at the crows. They shrugged. Kat frowned.
Do something, will you?!
What do you want us to do?
Anything!
And suddenly, Kat felt an arm around her shoulders, and someone held on to her, so that the man pulling her hand stopped and looked back.
“I’m sorry I’m late, dear.” Said a soft, but confident voice behind her, “I hope I didn’t cause you any worry. Oh, excuse me,” he said in mock surprise, “who is this? A friend of yours?”
Kat tried to hide her surprise and play along. Freeing her hand from the other man’s grasp, she turned to her savior and tried her best to keep the act up. She took his arm and smiled warmly at him, saying,
“No worry at all, darling, I’m just glad you came. But no, I only just met this man. When he saw that I was alone, he kindly offered to dance, but now that you’re here, that wont be necessary.”
“I see.” He said, and stared right into the other man’s eyes, “Thank you for entertaining her until my arrival. I apologize again for being late.”
“…No trouble at all.” He responded curtly through tight lips, and he turned and went off, most likely in search of some other girl to charm. Once he had gone, Kat let out a sigh of relief and laughed.
“Thank you so much.” She said and looked up at the man who had saved her from an extremely uncomfortable and unwanted experience. He was very handsome. Tall, and imperially slim, but not skeletal. He was clothed in a black tuxedo and top hat, but did not carry a cane like many of the other men, and over his eyes was a plain black mask with silver stitching around the border. He had gorgeous hazel eyes, and Kat found herself quite fond of him already.
“It’s nothing. I just can’t stand guys like that.” He smiled a little awkwardly, just raising one corner of his lips slightly. Kat laughed and nodded,
“Yeah, same here. Hey, would you like to dance?” the man appeared to give the matter more thought than was necessary, in Kat’s opinion, but finally, he nodded,
“I would like that.”
Kat smiled, and the two made their way to the dance floor. They clasped hands. She placed her free hand on his shoulder (which was a little difficult due to his height), and he wrapped his arm around her waist, and they began a slow, graceful waltz. It started out somewhat awkwardly, both of them trying to get into the rhythm and work together, but eventually, they both got the hang of it, and Kat’s mystery man turned out to be an exceptional dance partner.
The song ended, and the two, a little worn, separated and joined in applauding the band. The man bowed, and Kat curtsied. He said something, but the words didn’t really register in her mind. She was feeling light headed. Her breath came only with difficulty, and sweat began to show on her brow. She swayed a little, steadied herself, then closed her eyes, and felt herself begin to fall…

Dolosus caught her quickly as she fainted. He stared at her in shock, holding on to her tightly and trying not to make a scene. He wasn’t entirely successful. People began to panic and ask questions as he tried to make his way to the door and get her outside, with one hand holding her waist, and the other holding her hand with her arm over his shoulders.
“Goodness, is she quite alright?!”
“Here, let me help you-“
“Out of the way!”
“Would you like some wine?”
“Oh my, what happened?!”
The noise was nearly enough to drive Dolosus insane. He generally ignored it, and finally reached the door. His guess was that her corset was too tight, and she couldn’t breath probably. Not to mention, with all of those people crowding the ballroom, it was very warm. Some fresh air would help her. Maybe some water.
He carried her carefully to the spot where he and Demonic had been earlier, and laid her down on the stone bench. He imagined it wouldn’t be too comfortable, but she had to lay down, and it was better than the ground. Kneeling down next to the pond near the bench, he first splashed some water on his own face to cool himself off and calm his nerves, then he wet his hands and approached the unconscious girl and dabbed the water on her forehead, neck and ears. He shook his hands dry, and watched her, and pretty soon he saw her eyes fluttering open under her mask. He smiled softly,
“You’re up. That’s good. Uhm….” She sat up slowly, rubbing her head, “I think your corset is a little tight, if you don’t mind my mentioning it…” she laughed very softly, as her chest probably still hurt. Dolosus had to admit that she had a cute laugh.
“Yeah, I think I’d have to agree with you on that.”
Dolosus sat next to her and watched her for a few long moments. She was very pretty. She had strangely pink hair that reminded him of Kat, but hers was quite a bit longer than Kat’s, and curled cutely around her face. She looked up at him and saw him staring back at her. They both laughed a little awkwardly. She cleared her throat and said,
“Thanks again, for, you know… before, with that guy.”
“It was nothing, really. I’m glad I got to dance with you. You’re quite the dancer.”
“Really? I don’t dance often. I don’t even come to these parties often.”
That sent up a sort of red flag in Dolosus’ head. He could tell that she was different from the moment he saw her, and not just because she was beautiful. Something about her made her stand out, but he couldn’t tell if it was in a good way or a bad way. And now she made herself seem even more of an oddity.
“…Neither do I, actually.”
“Why not?”
“I’m… not really good with people.”
She looked at him strangely, then smiled and placed her hand gently over his.
“I think you’re just fine. I really enjoy your company.”
Dolosus didn’t quite know what to say to that. Part of his mind was searching for a way to casually find out who she was and what she was doing here. And another part, the dominant part for the time being, was searching for a way to have a normal conversation with a pretty girl. He turned to face her, and they stared at each other for a short moment that seemed to last a lifetime. Dolosus’ heart was racing, and his body seemed to go numb.
But when their lips met, instinct took over. He placed a hand on her waste. She wrapped her arms around his neck. And though he had never been kissed before, it felt like the most natural thing in the world. But just as he began to slide his tongue past her lips,
“Kat! Big news, we found- Woah!! What the hell?!” the male crow had barged in on them, and seemed quite flustered and excited. He went completely silent, however, when he saw what was going on. His sister soon joined him, and had a similar initial reaction, but blinked her eyes, shook her head and said,
“What do you two think you’re doing? We found Crimson!”
“You what?!” Kat stood up, curtsied to Dolosus, saying, “I’m really sorry, it’s an emergency- I have to go!”
The sister crow grabbed Kat’s wrist and ran off, leaving an extremely perplexed Dolosus, standing by the pond. The brother crow stayed behind as the girls went, and was giving Dolosus a kind of sly grin.
“What?” Dolosus finally spat at him.
“Nothing, nothing!” he said, putting his hands up defensively.
“Well? Let’s go find Crimson.” He said, and the two followed the girls out of the garden and back into the mansion. But while Dolosus tried to focus on the mission, his mind was screaming at him,
I just kissed Kat!





Owari.

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