A Rat's Guide to Glory

You stare at the Prescript a moment longer before your hand closes around it. You look up at the others, well aware of that lingering wariness; the Index inducts new members via Prescripts as well and even you can not help but wonder. But even if it is that, you know your answer already.

"Giano?" Your voice feels terribly loud in the silence. "May I borrow your lighter?"

She blinks at you just once before producing the little thing; it feels unfamiliar to hold, considering you are not a smoker, yet every single edge burns itself into your mind. A single flick is all it takes for flame to sprout and set the Prescript alight.

Nobody speaks beyond a surprised gasp from Maria, all watch whatever may have been written there go up in flames. You put it into the ashtray to burn out fully. Whatever the Index wants from you, no matter if they want to stop or help you, you do not want to know. They will never stop being your enemies.

"But why?" Maria whines. "You could have read it at least! Now I'll be curious forever!"

She is either oblivious of the looks that gets her or does not care for them. You just shrug, wondering how it is she of all Fixers is the only one not to understand. "I'm not working with the Index in any way, not now and not ever."

Though this mollifies Maria, she still lets out a sad "awww" and starts doodling in her notepad.

Giano takes her lighter back and gives you a little grin. "Wonder why I even worried there," she jokes and twirls it around her finger before pocketing it. "So what's the plan?"

Right, that. You nod at her before turning to the group as a whole. "Shadow, Maria, I want you two to take care of the Red Lily Gang leader. Giano and I will support you from afar to save on time. We can scout an escape route and keep an eye on that or something."

Maria perks up and Hifumi nods, though another voice chimes in with clear annoyance: "And what about me?"

Rose has her arms crossed and glares at you. She knows as well as you that there is nothing to really do for her, especially not when you need all attention on the task at hand. And she clearly does not like that at all.

You still try to calm her: "I'm sorry but you have to sit this one out, ma'am. We're getting closer, but this is too dangerous for you. So please stay here for today, I will call you when we're done."

Her glower grows in intensity, then she throws up her hands and stalks away. Giano glances after her and back to you, but you can only shrug. This is a risk you do not want to take.

The four of you quickly get to planning, which takes several hours and several cups of coffee. Hifumi is quick and efficient, which Maria surprisingly matches without a fuss. She really is different once she puts her head in the game and you feel a little bad for having doubted her. Nobody makes Grade 4 without being able to keep their eyes on the prize.

Before long you have a general idea, a route into the place the files say is the Red Lily Gang's headquarters, and an extraction route straight over a convoluted maze of streets right to its back. Scouting the area goes off without a hitch and there are no messages from Hifumi and Maria as they infiltrate; you trust them to have made it in and to not be dead.

Your heart skips a beat when your phone does vibrate twenty minutes after taking up your post. At first you relax when you see it is not from the infiltrating team but from Rose. A quick motion brings up the screen to your face, revealing two words.

'help zombies'

Now you pale rapidly and show the message to Giano, who curses and rushes to her feet. "No time to lose, let's go."

She takes the lead and the City passes by at a rapid pace while you send a quick notification to Hifumi and Maria that they are on their own. Saving Rose takes priority here.

Your pulse races by the time you arrive near the old Thorns hideout, still abandoned and completely bereft of anything. There are no zombies here anymore, the Sweepers must have cleaned them up. All you can do is follow obvious traces of battle into the heart of the Backstreets, leaving the building behind while every sensory augment you have between Giano and yourself is strained to find even a hint of Rose.

"That way," Giano finally calls and sprints off, you hot on her heels. You do not even ask what sort of augment lets her spot movement behind walls and buildings in the empty streets several hundred metres ahead.

The first zombie you find is caked in dried crimson, shambling around until your thunderous footsteps get its attention. The thing turns around and makes to reach out, only for a steam-propelled greatsword to part it straight down the middle. Both sides fall with a faint thud, revealing that they are indeed empty inside. Not even a drop of blood falls.

You stop to listen and only the augment to your ears allows to hear more corpses speedwalking your way over your racing heart. They make no noise, they do not breathe. They do not speak or hesitate either, which lets you kill them easily. After that you and Giano frantically start searching the area.

A quick message to Rose gives you another two-word answer, which helps find the place: 'crate hurry'

So you take the rooftops and keep your eyes open for any large crates; the first stack is empty beyond a few non-zombie corpses someone else must have left there. The second you find is completely filled if also abandoned.

The sheer lack of living people is starting to give you the creeps when you hear it. Ears straining against the quiet, there is a faint sob and breathing from one particularly innocent-looking crate. You quickly dash over and tear the lid off, prompting a scared shriek from the woman inside. Rose flickers for a moment, the next she looks at you with red-rimmed eyes and tear tracks running down her cheeks.

"What were you thinking?" you hiss at her while casting wary looks around. "You went into the Backstreets on your own, it's a miracle you're still alive!"

She shudders and tries to speak, so you use the silence to text Giano with the location. Rose is still crying by the time you finish; you pity her being in this situation as much as you are disgusted by her having the audacity to cry now.

"I-I didn't mean to," she answers weakly. "Everything's just going s-so slow, Daddy's been gone for days and I still don't know where he went. So I thought I can try looking at those zombies a-a-and-" she sobs and clamps down on your coat, hanging on for dear life. "A-and I saw one and it was one of his friends!"

You freeze instantly as the meaning of her words registers. The Feathers are dead. Holly Briar is dead. Is that why Rose is crying?

"Did you see your father?"

She mutely shakes her head, then flinches when Giano lands heavily nearby. A look at your face makes Rose elaborate: "I tried to follow them, see if they have a nest or something. I need to know if he's really dead, I can't just pack up and leave now."

There is something desperate to her words that reminds you of days gone by, from even before you had a pack. You sympathise, even if Rose's weakness disgusts you all the same. Giano makes no motion to comfort her, so you ultimately kneel down by the younger woman's side and take her hands firmly into your own.

"I get what you were trying to do, I'm even grateful that you could confirm the link between those zombies and the case. But why were you in that crate? And why didn't you call me at once when you recognised one of your father's friends?"

Rose averts her gaze. "I was angry, a-and arrogant," she admits weakly and turns one hand to show a small device with T-Corp's logo on the side. It is really only a button to be pressed on the top. "Daddy gave me this a while ago. I-It speeds me up a thousandfold. So I used that to hide whenever they got close. B-But then there were so many earlier and I only have five seconds of charge left, so...."

Rose trails off, the rest of her explanation clear. You eye the little device longingly, oh so tempted to take it for yourself. Is it the same thing that let her escape way back when?

You shake off the thought and focus on the here and now. There is a mass of zombies around in the area, one of which may be Holly Briar. Hifumi just sent a message proclaiming success, so they are over an hour away from your position.

Giano starts talking quietly to Rose and you listen while typing a response to Hifumi. Rose really does not know what her father is doing, though she obviously guessed it must be something 'extralegal', or so she calls it. Hifumi confirms the new information in the meantime, he and Maria will be on the way.

Just as you open your mouth to tell the others to hunker down however, every fibre of your being shudders in fright. A powerful aura washes over you from the side, drawing your gaze like a magnet does steel. It is not grace, nothing blunt or calm, just pure hunger. And it emanates from a woman clad in what may have been fine clothes once, now torn and red from blood. But the worst of all is that half of her face is a swirling miasma of black and red.

Around her march two dozen corpses, not even an afterthought compared to the monster that studies you like a butcher does swine.

"Now what do we have here?" she muses idly, one clawed finger tapping her chin. "Another little morsel."

You do not dare to look away, but your ears still catch the whimpered "Daddy" from behind. A skim of the faces reveals one that looks familiar.

Now you know, even though you wish you had never found out if it meant standing before this woman. She approaches at a sedate pace, so absolutely certain of herself.

Then Giano charges past in a wave of white and you instinctively grasp your Lucerne to follow her, but it is over before you make two steps; reinforced steel shatters and the other woman bites straight into Giano's collar. The redhead shouts in surprise and pain, then another jab from her attacker snaps her shield arm; the heavy piece cracks the ground on impact while she tries to free herself.

Whatever that woman is, she makes a sharp motion with her head that tears Giano's uniform; its sturdiness is all that saves her throat from being torn out, she only trails a thin streamer of blood on her path right to your feet.

You leap back in surprise, looking from the broken form of one of the strongest people you know to the monster before you. She absently licks blood from her lips, eyes closing with a soft hum.

"Not bad. I will enjoy you too, of that I am sure."

There is not even a sardonic smile or anything, just plain certainty. You know you stand no chance against her, and she knows that you know. You have to run and save yourself.

But before you lies Giano and basically next to her kneels Rose, both helpless. Rose stares in shock at her defeated protector, not quite realising that you are the only one who can still save her. Giano is bleeding and seems unconcious.

You have to run, but that woman will follow you if you do. Help is too far out. You can not fight.

Someone has to distract her.

Giano? Or Rose?

There is no way you can run fast enough carrying both.

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View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RbYva7AE8Aw&ab_channel=Mili

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[] Save Giano

[] Save Rose


Write-ins are restricted to ten words or less. Ciel does not have the time for complex plans. No subvotes.

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Elena
-Current Classification: Urban Plague
-Number of Opponents: 1 + chaff
-Goal: Eat a hearty meal
-Displayed Strategy: Winning

Ciel's Team
-Number of People: 3 (Maria and Hifumi incoming but far too late)
-Current Grades: 6 (Ciel), 5 (Giano), None (Rose Briar)
-Goal: Survive

Information
-Holly Briar and some colleagues head into the Backstreets on occasion
-the Feathers did not vanish in the Nest
-the Feathers were escorted by Jade Office Fixers
--Jade Office Operator Yaling wants an off-the-books favour in exchange for checking his records
-the Feathers' trail in the Backstreets has gone cold
-hollowed-out corpses shamble around the old Thorns hideout's neighbourhood
--Rose recognised one of her father's friends among them
--Rose recognised her father among them; Holly Briar is dead
--The creator of those zombies has found you

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-Canon Characters Encountered: 3 -> 4