dothackers.net

Zorlo sighed. "I ain't your boss, so don't treat me as such." Zorlo sighed again as he took the cell phone and looked at the sky. "I guess you wouldn't understand that either, huh? You only have so much programmed into you, so things like emotions and stuff are kinda pointless for me to discuss. I don't think I'll ever adjust to that, no matter how many times I say it to ya," he said as he looked at her. "But I guess you're right. I don't want any part of this waste of time. They're just using us and all of those special folks and that stupid vampire to kill their foes. I doubt very much that many of us will live even after humanity's great triumph. Somethin'll go wrong... it always does," Zorlo said as he placed his hands in his pockets and slouched forwards before he started walking.

"I guess... you aren't programmed to worry about the future, or what's gonna happen when this war is over. It's so odd... to not think about it... since I've had nothing but time since I became... well, what I am now. For those uncouth creatures to kill me... that'd be exciting... but the rest of you, I doubt you'd resist. You'd all be martyr's ultimately to the goal of saving humanity from the dangerous vampires..."

Zorlo paused against and looked at the sky, deep in thought. "But... dying for a cause you're programmed for is what's in you... so I won't argue with you. I'll just protect you until the time comes that they come for those of us that saved those ungrateful human bastards." With those words, Zorlo headed off towards Xander's office with Yukari not far from where he was, he assumed.

It was strange to see her smiling so happily. He had been alive back then. Then things had changed with her family. No one really talked about the incident for a reason. Only she knew the whole truth to it. She sat down in one of the chairs with an apple in her hands. She began to make small little animals with her dagger. Maybe Raven would eat them when he woke up. She didn't mind the distraction the creation of the animals gave her. She'd have to make sure that Raven woke up before she left the office.

Xander looked up from forcefeeding Raven when Zorlo walked in and smiled. "I'm glad you three came. Please, sit anywhere. My home is your home, as they say or said I suppose." He finished emptying the bottle before he rolled over to his desk and took a quick photo of Zorlo and Ouroboros, he would print it out later.

He placed the camera back in it's drawer and withdrew a crystal ball that he began passing from hand to hand. "I'm sure you're all wondering why I asked you here and why I haven't erased myself from your minds. If I'm honest, I'm lonely and I like having people around that I don't have to do that to everytime they see me. I also think Raven could use the company, given his situation is not too dissimilar from my own. Anyways, since I can read your minds it seems fair that you each get to ask me one question about myself that I will answer honestly without regard to what IA wants, and no it cannot be a long winded multipart question. But whatever the question, unless you give it voice, I won't answer it. Oh, except for you Yukari, you may ask me up to three questions, but I get to ask you one. Sound fair enough?"

"What is your stake in this whole affair," Zorlo voiced up suddenly.

Ouroboros materialized and looked at Zorlo somewhat quizzically after the statement, but didn't say anything at first. "Why would you waste a question on something his answer will clearly be some crap this place spouts freely?" Ouroboros asked angrily.

"SImple, he said I can ask any question to him. I want the whole truth behind this operation and why he's involved," Zorlo said as his eyes opened and shined green. For the first time anyone there had noticed, Zorlo's eyes had a different aura about them then anyone had previously noticed. "I want to know why I should have any part of this war outside of my contract. If you can convince me that your cause isn't some bull crap pre-prepared speech, I may consider being a 'player' in this battle, like the boss said I may be. If not, I'll act as I please and do only what I'm ordered to do," Zorlo said as he closed his eyes and lowered his hat. "So, what is your place in this whole event?"

"He has the right to the question Ouroboros, you may ask something you feel is more important. My place..." Xander looked down at the orb in his hands. "They would say, safeguarding humanity from vampiric machinations." He let out a hollow laugh. "I guess that's the nice way of saying I steal the most important things from people for them. But the place I would choose for myself. I...don't know." He looked down at his watch as the alarm went off, as it beeped he remembered when he had gone to the castle earlier. "But...if I do nothing, nothing will happen." He looked up at Zorlo. "I miss how the scenery used to change." Xander shrugged and began passing the orb from hand to hand again. "Oh, and Zorlo, I never asked you to fight. I just asked you to deliver messages to Yukari for me. Did you enjoy the lunch I packed for you?"

Zorlo rubbed the back of his head and chuckled. "Sorry, I don't eat anymore... ya know, nonmaterial being and all, so I totally forgot I had it. Thanks for the kind sentiment though!"

"Focus, you tool, focus!" the snake protested.

"Oh, right! Uh... well... okay. That's fine. I'll keep her informed, but in exchange, when this war ends, I want you to get her somewhere safe. Somewhere removed from this enormous waste of manpower called humanity and vampires. I know there aren't many third parties like Yukari and I in the world... not anymore at least, but I figure my request can't be impossible. If it were, I wouldn't be able to form the words for it."

"You're quite welcome, but I'm afraid that I won't make that promise Zorlo. What happens to Yukari is her decision." He shrugged, "So it's out of my hands." He scooted over and got a water bottle out of the fridge.

Mary didn't really have anything she wanted to ask. She was more worried about if Raven would wake up than asking a pointless question. Perhaps part of her still felt annoyed at the amount of time that wasted away when you didn't do something. She formed a ladybug and put it down. She then began making an apple dog while she listened to the others. What she knew, Xander didn't know. There was nothing in the IA records about what she would have asked. It was her parents she should be asking. They weren't around much anymore.

Yukari chose to remain silent for a time as she stood slightly behind everyone else. "It is of no concern to me what is to happen after all of this is over. I anticipate that after all Vampires are exterminated, at best I will be indefinitely De-activated. At worse, I will be scrapped," Yukari stated flatly once silence came to the room. "Xander, I do not have multiply questions for you at this time. However, I do have thing I wish to know. Why is it that you hide yourself for other's minds? I do not comprehend the reasoning behind leaving one's self without possible allies," she asked.

Xander nodded understandably, "That's fine, I set no time limit for the questions after all. Back to your first question. Why I hide myself from others. The IA doesn't want anybody to know anything about me. There are people who receive special or temporary clearance, like Raven and Donnely, but they're only supposed to know the name Xander and that I have a thing for knives." A soulknife appeared in hand as an example. "And that I'm part of IA. The higher ups would prefer their boogie man to remain a terrifying seemingly omnipotent and omnipresent ghost. And personally, I find it easier to move about when people aren't stopping me or getting in my way. As for potential allies," he shrugged, "I think of them more like casualties waiting to happen more than potential allies." The knife disappeared. "I shrug a lot, don't I?"

Zellos woke up from his nap, sky still dark like always. He stretched out and yawned I guess I should go get another assignment from Elma. Zellos walked out of his room and took a look around, he felt uneasy like something was waiting for him. He walked onward and found himself at Elma's office, he walked in and met the same face that always greeted him, a frown full of disdain. "Way to go, you missed a lot, where the hell were you?" Zellos sighed "I was sleeping. You gonna give me another assignment?" "Just more investigating, go through the canals and follow it as far down as you can go. It's possible that it leads directly into Vlad's castle. Zellos seemed surprised "That would explain why weird things were going on down there... alright just send a few scouts out when you can, if it really does lead to the castle then it won't be unguarded." Zellos turned around and left, the door slammed behind him and he was on his way to the canals

Raven:.... { his hand twitches as he jumps up his eyes glowing red and the dark energy emits from his body he almost looks like he's ready to attack}...*soft breathing*..... GAH! * hack* *Cough* BLAH! { he spits out the blood as the energy fades and his eyes revert to normal} what do you think your doing! feeding me that stuff are you insane!....you couldn't of healed me any other way?! { he wipes his mouth} Tch....wait where am I?

"You're in my office." Xander said calmly as he rolled his sleeve up past his elbow revealing where he had drained himself for the blood. "In response to your first question, after managing a network of minds consisting of every hunter in the city, and even some nonhunters so that my information was complete, playing combat medic for half the hunters, keeping the other half from suffering mortal blows, and collapsing a rather large facility on the heads of a bunch of people, I was too exhausted to heal you the other way. So I'm going to have to ask you to forgive me for resorting to a baser method." He rolled the sleeve back down, "But that is neither here, nor there. We're having a Q&A, about me. I've offered everybody here one personal question about myself, regardless of how IA would react. So if there's something you've been dying to ask me, Raven, feel free to give it voice." Xander picked up the empty wine bottle and began rinsing it out at the sink.

Yukari's hand went back, her F*GSHOT pistol appearing in her hand as Raven awakened violently and tripped her warning sensors. But when everything subsided and Raven returned to 'normal', Yukari returned to standby, her weapon gone from sight. "You currently in Xander's office on the second floor of the Guild's headquarters located in the city of Fortuna," Yukari replied to Raven before looking back toward Xander. "Xander. I am in need of Maintenance. If you have no further orders for me, I will be returning to the lab now," she stated as she turned and walked out to head downstairs.

Mary found herself smiling when she saw Raven had woke up. He would be alright and her mission had been fulfilled. She put the last apple animal down and leaned a little against the chair. If she wasn't careful she might fall asleep in the chair. She wouldn't want to fall asleep in the office of someone high up. It'd be rather rude.

"Alright, see you around Yukari, feel free to drop in anytime. I take it you two are going as well?" Xander said to Ouroboros and Zellos. He glanced towards Mary, if she fell asleep, he'd leave her. She had had a rough day and this was as much a bedroom as an office. He set the now clean wine bottle down on the counter and spun around to look at Raven.

Zorlo waved the man off. "If she's repairing herself, then that's her business. Not that androids know anything about shame or privacy, but I figured she'd want some. Don't mistake me for a creepy stalker or a vampire. I've got other things I need to work on while she's in maintenance. She can find me, or I can find her, later," the man said as he started stepping out. "So if you don't mind, I'm going to exit this place and leave you all to your business. Best of luck," Zorlo said as he moved out of the range of the spirit shielding before phase shifting.

"I guess we're back to watching again," the green haired man said as he adjusted his hat.

Of course. That is our mission for now. Until the time comes that action is dictated, we shall remain vigilant watchers of that... thing you have a thing for... the serpent stated as it felt strange just saying that. Why do I always wind up with the weird ones? the snake asked in annoyance.

"Oh I'm not that bad. I can't help it... if she had more human feelings... I'd be able to share what I'm feeling, but right now... I'm pained that there are so few of us in this world... those who are neither human nor night stalker... yet we are subjugated by the rule of lesser beings. At least I know my boss is worlds more powerful than most of the tools in this event. Maybe I'll see what the boss can do to help?" he asked as he looked at the gray-white sky of the spirit world as it began to rain.

"Rain... huh..." Zorlo asked as he smiled as a drop of rain splashed against his face. "I guess that means it is that time again..." Zorlo said as he floated off. For now, he would think...

Raven: well then i fuess it it was the only way then fine i understand.... me...I dont actually have any questions that need answers as of right now *yawn* well then thanks for saving my life and what not I guess I should leave you be for now {he walks outside of the room and he leans against the wall} *damn what was that dream* { a image of a burning city with thousands of corpses appear in his head and atop the pile of body stands what looks like Raven as the image disappears} *Sigh*..I guess I should report to elma before I hit the hay

Yukari was just summoning back her maintenance bed when the Doctor returned. "You're late, Yukari."

"I was not aware that there was a time limit on my return," she replied as she continued working as if he'd never spoken.

"But you are aware that I gave you an order to return, right?"

"Correct. However, your order was superseded by another order. If you wish to dispute this, please talk to your higher-ups," Yukari simply replied as the doctor walked off. Finishing her inputs, she held up her hands in front of her as the crystal Zorlo gave her reappeared in her hands. Her left eyes turned crimson. "Access to KP-XX sealed functions granted. Route secured and locked. Now releasing restriction number '262'." Yukari floated off the floor as six, person-length pods with crimson seams appeared in the air behind her with a dull thud. "Dimensional Interference Imaginary Number formed. Connected to Vector Traps established. Dimensional Interference Force-field deployed. Activating systems..." The crystal shattered as the sphere withing turned to 'data' and entered Yukari's left eye. a network of circuit-like lines extended from that same eye to her to her back and across the space to two of the pods. They shone bright golden for a moment before returning to normal only with sapphire seams as a seal clicked and the pods vanished once more. Yukari floated to the ground and touched down as she also returned to 'normal'. "Upgrade complete." The Maintenance bed opened as Yukari laid down. "Shutting down..." Her eyes closed and the bed closed after that, the locks and such setting into place.

((I edited my profile to reflect the new stuff, though not too much changed...))

Xander waved goodbye, "Ok, have a good evening Raven." He motioned the necessary pieces of furniture out of the way, Mary's was not one of them, and unfolded the hide-a-bed. I suppose I should be a good host. The lights went out and the door's many hidden locks sealed, in fact the entire floor went into lockdown as soon as Raven was off it. Xander's powers tended to run a little wild when he was asleep. Hallucinations and things moving around, sometimes violently. Nobody was really sure why or how, but the crystals at least kept Xander from moving things in his own room around in a way that would be dangerous to him, instead of things moving in his room while he sleeps the crystals glow a faint blue. He telekinetically moved Mary's sleeping form into the bed, and walked into his meditation chamber, he left the door open so that Mary could find him when she woke up. Xander lied down on the pillows in there and went to sleep. The floor and room became very Alice in Wonderland very quickly.