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Published:
2021-03-10
Updated:
2021-03-14
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2/?
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Code

Summary:

Tossed back into the real world, Kazuto Kirigaya thought that he could fit back in well enough, finish his rehab, catch up on schoolwork, all that jazz. But now there was talk of yakuza, a rather cold vigilante, a reformed military group, and three hundred players trapped in some weird fairy game. And to cap it all off, Kazuto was a Conduit now. Fun stuff.

Notes:

Decided to bring my FFN story "Code" to AO3. Hope you like it and please leave a review or something.

Chapter 1: Taken

Chapter Text

Simply put, rehabilitation was a bitch to handle.

Kazuto Kirigaya sighed as he took some bacon in his fingers and stuck the piece in his mouth, content in knowing that he won't have to go through it ever again. At least, the more extensive rehab sessions. Kazuto was still required to hobble around with a cane for the next four weeks before he could walk without it, but that was better than having to be rolled around by his cousin/sister Suguha, who was eating just across from him. Granted, he loved Suguha dearly and didn't mind her helping him too terribly, but he couldn't help but feel like their relationship had strained the last couple of years. Kazuto... he honestly thought he wasn't a good brother.

Kazuto shook his head. Scratch that, I've been a terrible brother.

It was like the proverb said; with absence the heart grows fonder, and Kazuto found himself being swallowed by guilt the moment he spent the next week in SAO without her. Suguha had done so much for him, defending him against their overbearing grandfather and practically throwing herself into kendo to the point of it becoming her full-time job just because Kazuto didn't want to do it in favor of immersing himself into the digital world. Kazuto really couldn't help but feel as if he forced Suguha to work as hard as she does without compensation.

Strangely though, Kazuto thought that the moment he woke back up from SAO, Suguha would push him away as he did to her. Yet she hadn't; quite the opposite, actually. In spite of how Kazuto himself felt, Suguha continued to interact with him day in and day out. She hadn't asked about anything related to SAO, which was something of a relief to him since the memories of SAO left him with this deeply-rooted feeling of longing that almost physical hurt the more it remained.

Asuna Yuuki. The love of his life, yet also one of the three hundred remaining SAO players that had yet to wake for some strange reason.

It worried him and it even slightly angered him to an extent. Something or someone was keeping Asuna away from him in spite of the vows they made to each other. Their promises of a good life in the real world. Kazuto had even promised to find a way to bring Yui, their virtual daughter, to the real world so that she may see it for herself.

One thing at a time, Kazuto thought. He'd cross that bridge when he got there, but for now, he had more pressing engagements. Like going for his scheduled walk.

After he had finished eating, Kazuto ventured into the bathroom to wash his face. Running the cold water across his face, Kazuto looked up to see his reflection. His hair had grown to where it stopped just shy of his shoulders, though he had it cut back into its original length.

As far as he was concerned, long hair was rather difficult to manage.

Kazuto had walked out of the bathroom and went to put on his street clothes. Since it was pretty hot, he decided to wear a black tank top with black pants and a black hoodie that slipped from his shoulders, leaving them bare and showing his still lean but slightly toned arms. Now that Kazuto thought about it, he may have become too attached to the black color scheme, but that didn't really matter at the moment.

After all, black was Asuna's lucky color.

"Sugu, I'm going for a walk," Kazuto said. "I'll be back... probably."

"Okay," was Suguha's reply with a smile. "Be careful."

"I will," Kazuto said. "... hopefully."

Walking out the door, Kazuto turned right and started walking.


Finding himself walking the streets of the Saitama Prefecture, Kazuto had made sure to keep a sharp eye out for anything dangerous nearby, such as speeding vehicles, suspicious persons, and, well, members of the yakuza.

The yakuza, even before the events of the Sword Art Online incident, had been losing ground for the past couple of years now and were losing members fast, whether through death, arrests, or they simply left altogether. However, in desperate attempts to bring themselves back up, they had decided to take children and teenagers from the streets. Some were homeless or lived in an abusive household and were thus promised a chance at a better life. Such was the case for those that joined the Auntie Shu's.

Others, on the opposite end of the spectrum, simply stole children and teens by force. Their motives were mostly unknown, but one of the more likely stories was that they were take because children were the most impressionable and the like.

In order to crack down on this, self-defense laws were enacted so that parents and teens in question would be able to use aggressive force in order to protect either themselves or their loved ones. Originally, you could never escalate to violence except if there is a clear distinct risk of very serious injury or death, but with the rise in yakuza activity, officials had to make the changes so that force could be used when necessary to make sure that either you or your children were not taken. They were still very strict when it came to things leading to killing, but one had more clemency if the only thing you delivered was a bruise or a bloody nose.

Which, even then, didn't apply to Kazuto since he was still somewhat crippled and couldn't defend himself because of it. He would certainly try, but that would probably only delay the inevitable.

Or hasten his demise.

Still, Kazuto would not die anytime soon. It haunted him, imagining Asuna waking up after two years of fighting for their freedom only to discover that her in-game husband had been killed.

As mentioned before, Asuna herself had yet to actually wake from her coma. As well as three hundred of SAO's other players. Something about that just didn't sit right with him, rubbed him the wrong way, made alarm bells ring. Any analogy in order to describe the suspicious feeling he had. Kazuto did not know and he certainly didn't know where to start.

But either way, when Asuna woke up, Kazuto would greet her with open arms.

Other than that, Kazuto had noticed that something... strange had happened to him ever since he woke.

For one, at random intervals, he would hear... something. Something that sounded similar to radio static. He would turn around trying to find the source of the noise, but it was hard to do that when it felt like it was coming from all directions. Sometimes, when he passed by screens, they would glitch and suddenly go haywire. He would distinctly hear people complaining that their phones were doing the same thing, most alleging it to a hacker prank.

However, Kazuto knew for a fact that a hacker couldn't make his brain start buzzing and hissing, like a family of bees decided to make themselves right at home within the confines of his own skull. Sometimes it was negligible, other times it was unbearable, though Kazuto had just chalked this up as some type of minor brain damage.

This was the initial thought until they actually gave him scans of his brain. Everything was completely normal even with the slight increase in overall activity. Kazuto was no neurologist or psychologist by any means, but he didn't think buzzing within the brain was normal under any circumstance.

Kazuto had walked through a park, alone with his thoughts and memories of his and Asuna's time away from the frontlines. Kazuto was particularly fond of these ones since they, of course, were the most peaceful.

Though Kazuto couldn't help but blush when he remembered the one time he arrived home from shopping only to be greeted by Asuna dressed in nothing more than a red apron.

Damn my stupid hormones.

Placing himself on a bench to rest his grievously tired legs for a moment, Kazuto diverted his thoughts from that particularly risque memory to a more wholesome one. Perhaps the days after they encountered Yui? Yeah, those were good ones. In spite of the fact that she was an AI, Yui just felt so... alive. Felt so human.

Felt so... real.

Yui... I'll bring you here to the real world. Count on it.

Kazuto only now realized that he had been staring at the sunset for a while now. It was catching up pretty close to seven p.m. and he knew for a fact that Suguha would worry if he didn't get home soon. Grabbing his cane and getting to his feet, Kazuto limped as fast as he could to the general direction of home, which proved to be a bad idea since both his legs ached terribly and...

The Static was back.

But with a vengeance.

Kazuto found himself dropping to one knee while he gripped his cane until his knuckles were bone-white. The Static caused his head to throb violently as if something had settled into his skull before pushing outward in all directions. Kazuto's hands slipped from his cane as he fell on the stone path while his consciousness slipped between his fingers like sand.

Just before Kazuto finally succumbed to the blackness, he saw two figures make their way to him.


...

Slowly yet surely, Kazuto had awoken moments later to see that he was being held inside what seemed to be a van judging by the size of the interior space and the fact that they were moving fast. Kazuto could make out a few words between two figures at the front of the vehicle where a steel wall and barred windows separated them.

"... you think he'll be worth it?" Figure One, the one at the passenger seat, asked.

"Potentially..." was the reply of Figure Two, who was the one driving. "From what the boss said, Former SAO players are very rare considering how protective of them corporations are. They say the 'FullDive System might've messed up they're cognitive functions to a weird degree' or something like that, but if you want my honest opinion, I think they just want them for whatever weird super soldier thing they might have."

"Jesus shit, you're still hung up on that whole super soldier crap that Shoji told you?" Figure One asked. "I mean don't get me wrong, I wouldn't be surprise if they had something like that, but you think they might have something a little more... original?"

"Like what?"

"Well... I heard that sixteen years ago, there was a small group of... meta-human cases over in America," Figure One, who was starting to gain more definition in Kazuto's vision, said. "Seattle mainly."

"You mean like super strength and shit like that? Super speed? Flesh-eating death gaze?"

"No, nothing generic like that," Figure One replied. "I'm talking the kinds of guys who can make reality their bitch."

...

Kazuto held a look of utter confusion and, though unknown to him, so did Figure Two.

What are they talking about?

"Uh... care to elaborate?" Figure Two asked awkwardly.

"I heard there was this one guy who could literally use smoke as a weapon, like move it around with his mind, fly with it," Figure One listed. "Hell, he could even turn into smoke."

"You mean... the Conduits?"

"Yeah! Conduits!" Figure One replied while snapping his fingers. "Y'know, if you actually watched the news or listened to the meetings, apparently there's a Conduit or something on the loose here in Japan. The boss said so himself and there's footage of him in action."

Kazuto blinked in surprise. One of those Conduits was right here in their homeland? Since when? What even was a Conduit? This was the first time he was even hearing of these people.

"Wait, what?" Figure Two asked numbly. "You mean... one of those weirdos is fucking here?!"

"Oh yeah, and he's been taking down rivals, but only the ones who take the smaller kids," Figure One said, suddenly getting serious. "They swoop in, turn the joint into a winter wonderland, free the children, snatch the money, then they make like Usain and bolt. Law enforcement's been having a field day just about this one guy, saying he's unbeatable. I've even seen officers taking one look at a scene and then do an immediate U-turn."

"Holy hell... wait, what do you mean by winter wonderland?"

"I mean this guy uses ice as his power, and I'm not talking about the guy using ice weapons, I mean like giant ice waves, spikes, walls, glaciers, people frozen in ice... it's fucking scary," Figure One replied. "Conduits tend to have control over one type of thing and this one uses ice. Dry ice, rime ice, permafrost, snow, cold waves, diamond dust, you name it."

"... shit."

"'Shit' is right, my man," Figure One said. "You see this guy, then you better scramble like an egg before he folds you like an omelet."

"Bro, what is it with you and the bullshit metaphors today?"

"Hey, just be thankful I didn't use anything generic like 'make like a banana and split,'" Figure One replied before turning his attention to the rear view mirror. "Oh shit, guy's awake."

Finally being addressed, Kazuto spoke, "I'm guessing you took me for a reason?"

Figure One scoffed, "Yeah, boss thinks you might be useful and I don't question a sizeable profit for simple tasks like this."

"So I take it you're yakuza?" Kazuto asked, though he already knew the answer.

"Yeah, and what of it?" Figure Two, now Yakuza Two, retorted. "Look, just be cooperative and things won't get complicated. Besides, you can't really go anywhere since you're still using a crutch."

Kazuto looked down at the aforementioned crutch and gripped it. They were right, he had no way to get out of a situation like this since he can barely run. Fighting them would be suicidal and Kazuto didn't know their motives for sure. They're reasoning behind the kidnappings was rumor and speculation at best and Kazuto would only center his beliefs around the evidence.

But this whole talk of Conduits threw him off a bit.

"So... Conduits?" Kazuto asked while Yakuza One hummed. "And there's one here in Japan?"

"Yeah, turned up one day right at the beginning of the SAO incident's second year," Yakuza One said. "Some people call him the Frozen Terror, the Frozen Demon, the Collector, the Ice King, things like that."

"Oh? And what do you call him?" Kazuto asked.

"Eh, just the Ice Man, really," Yakuza One replied, shrugging his shoulders before making a sharp turn into an alley. "Boss doesn't seem too worried about it for some reason, but this fucking guy puts the fear of God in me, like, if you told me that he fed on the hopes and dreams of his enemies, I'd believe you."

Kazuto quirked a brow. People controlling smoke and ice like magic was one thing, but feeding on hopes and dreams sounded just plain stupid.

"Has this guy... killed people?" Kazuto couldn't help but ask.

Kazuto could very well see both the curiosity on Yakuza Two's face while Yakuza One's face went apprehensive.

He already knew the answer then and there.

"Hmph... yeah... but it's only people like mass murderers and rapists so we should be fine," Yakuza One replied.

Kazuto nodded, "Okay, and what about the boss? What's he like?" Kazuto asked.

Yakuza One grunted, "The boss hired us not too long ago, but I can say without a shadow of a doubt that he knows what he's doing," Yakuza One said. "He apparently used to be a doctor of some variety... neurosurgeon, I think. I think he also used to work for a tech company, but he never said which."

Kazuto grimaced, "Don't tell me I'm gonna be a lab rat..."

Yakuza Two shook his head, "Nah, he's more like an examiner as far as I've seen and heard," he said. "He'll look you up and down before letting you go... but I can never tell what's he's looking for. But safe to say, I don't think you'll end up with probes up your ass if that's what you were wondering."

Kazuto shivered at the thought, but the Yakuza's words did alleviate his stress, even if only a little.

Before they knew it, the vehicle had made a couple of turns before slowing to a stop.

"Okay kid, remember, cooperate and don't be difficult," Yakuza Two remarked before opening his door. Kazuto followed the sound of footfalls against concrete before the doors to the back of the van opened, revealing Yakuza One and Two with One gesturing for Kazuto to move.

Planting his crutch against the floor of the van, Kazuto hobbled out of the vehicle. Nearly stumbling, Yakuza One grabbed Kazuto by the arm to stop his fall.

"Careful kid," he said as he helped Kazuto back to his feet.

Kazuto nodded before the two yakuza led the way.

He just hoped that he would get out of this alive.


Entering a rather unassuming building which used to be home to a vacuum cleaner company, Kazuto looked around to see what was more liked a casino and bar. Various other yakuza members, male and female alike, were settled either around tables or leaning against walls and railings while conversing with their comrades. Some turned to look at Kazuto himself before going back to whatever it was they were doing, whether it was a card game and/or their drinks.

Soon enough, the two yakuza escorting Kazuto led him to an elevator. Entering the elevator, Yakuza Two pressed a couple of buttons, each one glowing red before the elevator doors closed. Kazuto felt the elevator suddenly begin going down while the entire ride was dead silent. No music or anything, so things got a tad awkward.

Thankfully, it didn't take too long to get to their destination.

The three entered an what looked like a barely personalized office space with a desk and chair. The chair was facing the opposite direction of the elevator and the three guests. On one side of the rather spacious office was a desk and an assortment of medical equipment.

All of it giving Kazuto flashbacks of rehab.

"Boss, we brought him here, just as you asked," Yakuza One said as Yakuza Two nodded.

"Thank you... I told you that you're patience would be rewarded... tell Genshirou that drinks are on me," said a voice. "You've earned it."

Both yakuza bowed while smiling.

"Thanks, boss," said Yakuza Two before turning his attention to Kazuto. "Good luck, kid."

Both yakuza entered the elevator with Yakuza One pressing a button. The elevator doors then closed.

Leaving Kazuto with the apparent boss of this resident yakuza group.

The office chair turned, revealing a pale man with short auburn hair and yellowish eyes. He wore a black button-up shirt, a white tie, and what appeared to be a black surgical mask over his face. He leafed through a few files on his desk which had bore the symbol of the hospital Kazuto was appointed to, much to his surprise.

"Hmm... Kazuto Kirigaya, sixteen, and survivor of the Sword Art Online Crisis," said the pale man. "At last, we meet."

Kazuto was nonplussed, "Have we... met before?" Kazuto asked, blinking in confusion. From what the yakuza that drove him here said, this man was a former doctor and he had records from his given hospital. So either this man was just immensely resourceful in the medical community, or he used to work there.

Or both.

"No. My name is Kai Chisaki and I'm the leader of the yakuza organization known as the Shie Hissaikai," said the now-named Kai Chisaki. "I'm also a former neurosurgeon and a former employee for Argus, but you already knew the first bit."

Kazuto fidgeted nervously. A yakuza group with a name like the Eight Precepts of Death sounded pretty menacing and probably had the manpower to back it up. Although he was much more unnerved by the fact that he used to work for Argus, the same company that developed the FullDive system.

"Okay, I'm here now," Kazuto said. "Now what do you want with me?"

Kai said nothing as he ventured over towards the area with the medical bed and equipment, "You also already know of the Conduits that have roamed this world ever since their sudden appearance sixteen years ago," Kai said, fingering some scalpels laid out neatly over a plate before placing the files upon the desk next to the equipment. "I know this because I closely monitor the actions and words of my followers, including the ones in the vehicle used to bring you to me."

Kazuto raised a brow in confusion, "You... are you looking for Conduits?"

Kai nodded, "Yes... I've spent the last fourteen years studying them from afar, going through old medical records, all while getting the rest of my funding from Argus, basically finding out what exactly makes Conduits tick," Kai said. "As such, I was able to develop the ability to see whether someone carries the Conduit gene."

"Conduit gene? It's genetic?" Kazuto asked with both brows raised.

Kai nodded again before pulling out a small notebook from the stack of books next to both files and medical equipment, "Yes. Conduits are a sub-species of humans who possess superhuman abilities afforded to them by the presence of the aforementioned Conduit gene, and I reserve the ability to see these genes," Kai replied, flipping over the notebook and showing Kazuto a rough sketch of a Conduit gene. "There are three classifications of Conduits; Conduit Positive, Force Conduit, and Prime Conduits."

"Okay, and what are those?" Kazuto asked.

Kai ventured over to a side bar and opened a cabinet, "Conduit Positives are individual carriers of an inactive Conduit gene who haven't manifested any superhuman abilities of their own," Kai said as he pulled out a bottle of orange juice. "But they have the potential to develop superhuman abilities upon Conduit gene activation."

Kazuto nodded, "Okay, and what about Force Conduits?"

Kai pulled out two glass and set them on a table between two couches, "Force Conduits are the ones who have had superhuman abilities bestowed or grafted unto them via external means," Kai replied, pouring the orange juice into the glasses before gesturing for Kazuto to take a seat.

Kazuto reluctantly placed himself on the couch opposite to Kai. Kai gestured once again towards the cup of orange juice in front of Kazuto, at the same time removing his face mask to take a sip for himself.

Kazuto slowly took a sip, sighing in slight satisfaction, "Alright... and what about the Prime Conduits?" Kazuto asked. "I'd imagine by the name that the Primes are much more special?"

Kai nodded, "You could say that," he replied. "Prime Conduits... they are the individual carriers of an active Conduit gene which enables the development and manifestation of their own set of superhuman abilities."

Kazuto blinked before looking down at the floor, his mind still trying to process all this Conduit business. As if things couldn't get crazier... first the yakuza kidnappings, then the SAO crisis, and now he was learning about the more-than-decade-long existence of literal superhumans!

What the hell else was next?! Transformers?!

"So... do I have the gene?" Kazuto asked, afraid of the answer.

In that moment, Kazuto swore that Kai's eyes shine an even brighter yellow, almost becoming neon. Kai's stare was critical and roamed Kazuto's entire form almost to point where Kazuto felt the urge to cover himself helplessly, as if he were laid naked and bare to this man.

Though thankfully, it didn't take all that long before Kai blinked a couple of times. Kai hummed to himself as he lifted himself from the couch, walked over towards his main desk, and pressed a button on his answering machine.

"Genshirou, this is Kai... I think we found another one," Kai said looking at Kazuto.

Kazuto himself flinched in shock and confusion, "H-Hey wait, what do you mean?!"

"Bring in Toshi and Nagi," Kai ordered while Kazuto tried his best to rise quickly from his seat. Kazuto heard some kind of chatter come from the machine, but he ignored most of it in favor of finding easily accessible escape routes. "And bring them quick, he's trying to escape."

Kazuto, in his rush to move, stumbled over onto one knee, feeling his legs severely aching while the Static had returned, though it was to a much lesser degree than the one that brought him into this situation in the first place.

Kazuto wanted to strangle the thing or person responsible for putting such a thing in his head. Kazuto did not care if that particular desire did not make sense at the moment. He was in too much physical and mental distress to care.

Before he knew it, Kazuto felt two pairs of hands grasping him by the biceps before hoisting him up, to which they began to drag him away. His crutch, which he had dropped from the sudden movements, was picked up by Kai.

Kai grinned a small bit under his mask as he inspected the crutch. Seeing it and holding it gave him a miniscule feeling of nostalgia.

"It'll be okay, Kirigaya," Kai said. "You'll come out of this either alive... or with unimaginable power at your disposal. Take him to the chamber."

Kazuto blinked in confusion and panic before being dragged away. He didn't bother struggling, he knew he could do very little against these people in the state he was in currently.

He just prayed that he'd come out of this alive.


Kai sighed as he watched the Kirigaya boy being dragged off to a special place that Kai had commissioned specifically to test the willpower and mental capacities of their newer recruits.

But this time... it would be different.

Kai did not want him to be sent to their arena as he did not want his men to potentially walk away either being severely injured by newly unleashed Conduit power of the unknown variety or to walk away feeling bad about kicking a cripple while he was down.

The second issue was that he lacked the equipment that a certain military force from back then had which was specifically designed to forcefully activate Conduit genes.

So, being the resourceful leader that he was, found another way.

Technology in the world had come a long way, as per humanity's ungodly ability to adapt and innovate. The FullDive System created by Akihiko Kayaba was one pleasant yet also unpleasant example of this. Yes, they were now able to create entire worlds and manipulate both it and its inhabitants not unlike that of a god, but it also showed that such a thing can be used to the detriment of others.

Kai shook his head as he remembered the amount of people who had died from the SAO incident, although it was rather kind to call it as such, but he was digressing.

However, Kai had studied Kirigaya for a long time now (being a former Argus employee and doctor with many connections had its perks) and knew that a simple beatdown would not cause enough stress to trigger his Conduit gene (if it would activate at all).

But what would he be willing to do if put under severe mental turmoil? Especially with relief just beyond arm's reach.

Yes, it would be cruel, but it would all be for the sake of his research.

Kai blinked before chuckling to himself. Listen to him, doing something cruel to an innocent man for the sake of his research. Made him sound like a deranged scientist who had little to no care for the morality of the situation.

Well... considering everything that's happened, that probably wasn't too far off the mark. But for now, he would just have to wait and see.

Kai blinked once again as he felt his phone vibrate for a moment. Pulling out his phone from his pants pocket, he turned it on to see it was his right hand man calling him. Clicking on the answer icon, Kai brought the phone to his head.

"Ah, Hari, has Kirigaya's legal guardian been notified?" Kai asked.

"Yes. I told them and they are quite distraught," Hari replied. "They, of course, want him back."

"I'm sure they do," Kai said as he proceeded to leaf through a file he had picked up along the way. "Tell them that the boy will be returned within the week depending on results."

"Yes, sir."

With that, the call had ended and Kai pocketed his phone. Of course, he wasn't just going to take someone and leave their family in the dark.


Kazuto grunted as he was tossed unceremoniously onto a wire-made floor while hearing the sound of a heavy set of doors closing before locking. Groaning, Kazuto grabbed his crutch and propped himself on it, although he was doing so rather shakily.

He looked around to see that he had been thrown into a chamber where the walls, floor, and ceiling were lined with strange, thick wedges, all of which were colored a very dull grey.

The entire room just felt completely... dead.

Where... just where was he?!


Kai watched the inside of the chamber that his newest... candidate was thrown into through a very small camera which connected to his monitor. As always, there was that very minuscule ping of guilt for what he was doing to the boy, but Kai quickly suppressed the feeling.

"The anechoic chamber..." Kai muttered to himself as he watched Kazuto whip his head in several directions before hurriedly placing himself in the chair in the center of the chamber.

The anechoic chamber, which means no echo, was a special room where the walls, ceiling, and floor were lined with thick fiberglass acoustic wedges. A floor made of wire allowed people to step on the floor and underneath it were more acoustic wedges. These things make the room almost completely echo free.

The sound level in the room was at negative nine point four decibels, but humans can only hear sounds above zero decibels (an average quiet room is about thirty decibels). This meant that the room was so quiet that anyone put inside would soon begin to hear sounds from their stomach, heart, lungs, and even sounds that your ears would make when there is an absence of sound. The other senses are amplified without the reflection of sound off the walls and, without these reflections, balance is thrown off and the person inside the room must sit, hence Kazuto's desperate need to be in the chair. In a room like this, there were little to no cues for a person to orient themselves.

One person in America was able to withstand the quiet of such a chamber in Minnesota for forty-five minutes, but most can't last more than thirty minutes, and some can't even make it inside the room at all. The complete disorientation would just be too much for their systems to handle.

Kai felt yet another ping of guilt as he watched Kazuto begin to hold his head in his hands while his left leg bounced. Twelve minutes had passed and yet there had been no results. Perhaps Kazuto was much stronger-willed than Kai had previously anticipated.

Kazuto's knee continued to bounce while his index finger began to tap against his head. Perhaps he was now hearing the sound of his own blood rushing to his brain?

...

...

...

Kai checked his watch, his yellow eyes narrowed as the twenty minute mark passed. Kai immediately shifted his attention back at Kazuto, only to widen his eyes as Kazuto began shaking.

Kai pressed a button on his machine, intending to order his men to take Kazuto out. He wanted to put enough stress on him to produce results, not break the boy.

"Toshi, you might want to remove-"

Kai stopped in his tracks as his surveillance screen began to... shimmer. Distorted digital blocks danced across the screen along with deep-sounding static not unlike that of an untuned radio.

Kai began watching with rapt attention. Finally, results.

"Actually, nevermind," Kai corrected. "Do nothing."

Kai removed his finger from the call button as he watched Kazuto struggle to escape the chamber.

Now... let us see your true potential.

...

Wait... are those... pixels?


How long had Kazuto been placed in this accursed chamber? Minutes? Hours? He couldn't possibly know.

At first, Kazuto didn't know what the purpose of this room was supposed to be. But... things began to go wrong quick. Too quick. Too much.

He could... hear? Could he hear? Kazuto, once again, didn't know. He could hear, and yet he couldn't.

For once, he wanted the Static to return just so he could hear... something. Anything! Please! Anything at all!

In a moment of desperation, he tried so hard imagining Asuna whispering sweet nothings into his ear while holding her in his embrace. He tried so hard to imagine Suguha's words of encouragement as he powered on through his rehabilitation. He tried so hard to imagine his Aunt Midori doting on him about eating right and spending more time outside. Hell, he even tried to imagine Kai's condescending and clinical tone as he looked at him like he wanted to dissect him.

Instead, all these things were drowned out by his heart thumping in his chest like a war drum, the rush of blood coursing just beneath his pale skin, the churning of his stomach as it was almost twisted into a painful knot.

Please... please just... just let me out!

To hell with it! Even if the attempt was futile, Kazuto leapt from the chair and began slamming his fists into the door, though there was, once again, no sound. He felt a strange buzz start from the tips of his clenched fingers and then work its way down his arms, a feeling akin to when your limbs fell asleep due to lack of circulation. Maybe he was hallucinating, but he thought he saw his arms flicker with a bluish hue.

"Someone! Anyone! Let me out, please!" Kazuto begged. At least, he think he begged. He couldn't even hear the sound of his own voice, though he could definitely feel the vibrating of his vocal cords.

In fact, he felt them much more clearly than he should have, feeling as if was something had just shivered in his neck.

Kazuto, knowing that what he was doing was most likely not going to work, turned back to the room. Back to the vault doors, Kazuto slid down as his breathing quickened, burying his head once more in his arms in another effort to calm himself down. Rocking back and forth, Kazuto whimpered (or at least he think he did), wanting this... this torture to stop!

Please... just let me out...

There was that buzzing again, but this time it was in both his arms and his torso.

Let me out.

The feeling spread from his torso to his pelvis and then his legs. The lights began to flicker in and out.

Let me out!

His whole body was now buzzing. His body quivered and convulsed as... something... in him began to pulse violently.

LET ME OUT!

He just...

He couldn't bear it any longer.

"PLEASE JUST LET ME OUT!"

BZZT!

CRACKLE!

BOOM!


Kai quickly grabbed onto his desk as the entire complex shook from the sheer force of the... shockwave, or whatever it was. Dust fell from the ceiling, his ceiling fan swayed a bit, and his medical equipment and side bar rattled and clinked. The live feed had just up and died from what was probably an explosion of... whatever power he had.

Well, either way, Kirigaya possibly unlocked his power, even if his anechoic chamber was potentially destroyed.

All for the sake of his research.

Hurriedly, Kai got up from his seat and fast-walked to the elevator. Pressing a series of buttons, Kai grunted impatiently as the elevator moved upwards in what felt like a snail's pace. On the off hand, he shouldn't complain about this one minor annoyance when he basically ordered an innocent boy to be thrown into one of the world's quietest rooms.

He just hoped the damage to his mental capacities wasn't too severe. If Kirigaya despised him for what he did, so be it, but as long as he got results and his mind was still intact. Really, Kai couldn't blame the poor boy even if he wanted to. Kai too would hate someone if they forced him to endure such a harrowing ordeal.

Still, whatever was happening to Kirigaya was quite odd. Pixels everywhere... I thought it would be something like electrokinesis or pyrokinesis.

Either way, Kirigaya was bound to walk away with immense power at his disposal and what he did with said power was up to him.

Kai flinched from his thoughts as his phone vibrated. Whipping out his phone in a practiced motion, Kai blinked as his phone's screen had glitched and flickered blue for a moment before everything went back to normal. Kai pressed the answer icon and placed the phone to his head.

"This is Kai."

"Boss! You felt that, right?!"

Kai nodded, "I did, rather difficult not to."

"Okay, so what do you want us to do?"

"Nothing," Kai warned immediately. "No one is to go near Kirigaya. What happened to him?"

"Hold on, I'm just getting there... holy shit... a-anyways, he's just lying there and there're these weird blue squares around him. I think he's out cold."

"That's good, but still, do not go near him," Kai warned again. "I'll be there shortly."

Kai hung up the phone before he shivered in anticipation. This was exciting... first the ice Conduit and now a new one with freshly-unlocked power. Everything was changing.

Though, he would be lying if he said he wasn't looking forward to the looks on Kirigaya's family's faces.