I'm so tired... TT_TT

Restrictions

Veetu: "*sigh*"

The small sight leaving the girl’s lips was barely enough to penetrate the calm silence of the room. About twenty minutes have passed since the mercenary had left, and the two barely uttered a word since then. However, their silence was anything but heavy. Veevan was quietly reading on her bed while Veetu was lying on her back, absentmindedly staring at the ceiling with a peaceful expression. There were many things on their minds, mainly about the upcoming tests and their previous performance, and for Veevan, just one more little thing...

Veevan: "It’s so strange…"

Veetu: "…?"

The girl’s voice flatly echoed in the room as her sister bounced up to face her, wearing an uncharacteristically curious expression.

Veetu: "What’s strange?"

Veevan: "The silence."

Veetu: "Ah…"

As she mentioned it, Veetu couldn’t help but agree immediately, though at first even she didn’t really know why. After all, silence was the basic state of this room since she could remember. Before the mercenary came along, they rarely spoke out loud, so this soundless tranquility was anything but unusual. Before he came along…

Veetu: "Sheesh… It’s because of him."

Hearing her sister’s grumbling, Veevan’s brows knit in an instant.

Veevan: "You are saying it like it’s a bad thing!"

Veetu: "*sigh* No, it’s not, but it’s still because of him."

Veevan slightly puffed her cheeks at the offhand remark and returned to the book in her hands. Veetu, in the meantime, let out a surprisingly tired sigh, then reached for the basket and threw a grape into her mouth before lying back onto her bed. However, just as she was about to lean back, she froze in mid-motion while staring at the fruits.

Veetu: "And what was the point of this again?"

Veevan: "Huh?"

Just as she was about to immerse herself into her book again, her sister’s remark made Veevan peek out from behind the pages.

Veevan: "The point of what?"

Veetu: "This."

She indifferently pointed at the fruits-basket .

Veetu: "Why did he buy this again?"

Veevan tilted her head, searching for an answer beyond the evident one, but as she could not find it she simply stated the obvious.

Veevan: "I think he said because he wanted to cheer us up..."

Veetu let out a small sigh at her sister’s answer, just like she was expecting it. In the end she sat up properly and shook her head in disagreement.

Veetu: "But he went out to the surface to do that, risking that he could be thrown out for breaching security. How am I supposed to be cheerful about that?"

Veevan: "But… it worked. I mean, you are eating it and smiling."

The honest remark almost made her choke on the last grape, but she still managed to voice her denial.

Veetu: "I’m not smiling!"

Veevan: "Then… smirking?"

Veetu: "Argh! Don’t tell me he is rubbing off on you already!?"

Veevan: "?"

As she saw her sister tilt her head in confusion, Veetu let out a final, overwrought sigh as she fell back onto her pillow.

Veetu: "Whatever, it’s not like you would understand anyway."

Veevan: "… You know, you are really mean today!"

Veetu: "Whatever."

After brushing her off, Veetu turned towards the wall with a somewhat difficult expression. Even she had to admit that she didn’t really understand her own behavior. She knew she was unreasonable; she just couldn’t put her finger on why. Just what part of the mercenary’s existence was that she didn’t approve of?

Veetu: "(Maybe… It’s just the change itself…)"

It seemed obvious, but it was true nevertheless: the mercenary turned their lives upside-down in the short time since his arrival, and nothing made that more evident than their previous realization. In just these few days, they got so used to the bustling of the man that the familiar silence that filled their waking hours since their birth suddenly seemed unnatural. As she thought about it, maybe it was unnatural to begin with, but they just didn’t realize it. It was all they knew after all. Outside of the experiments they were always locked away in this lonely room without any chance to talk to anyone else, so this silence was something they took as a given.

Veetu: "(Locked away?)"

As the thought came to mind, she couldn’t help but turn her head towards the entrance. It was the same as the mercenary left it; halfway open. Just one more of the countless things that had never happened before he came along. In fact, after the first day they never closed that door completely. The reason was simple; the man didn’t want to get accidentally locked in like that one time. For a few silent moments she absentmindedly stared at the heavy iron door, like she was expecting the man to suddenly burst through it. And actually…

Nick: "*whistle* Hey there girls, I’m back!"

Veetu: "…"

The mercenary appeared just like he always did; loudly and suddenly, with a carefree grin on his face. It was just one more of those things that baffled Veetu. Just where did he get all that energy? Still, she didn’t make him wait for a reply.

Veetu: "Finally."

For a few moments it was hard to decide if he was amused or annoyed by the grumbling reaction, but Nicolai immediately answered with a mischievous smile.

Nick: "Oh, I see. You are still a little stingy, eh?"

Veetu: "…"

Nick: "Fufu… Kidding, just kidding. Don’t pout."

Veetu: "Who’s pouting?!"

He always did that. Getting on her nerves, and doing it so casually… And worst of all, she slowly started to find herself expecting these comments and making up comebacks beforehand, like it was some kind of game…

Veevan: "Welcome back."

Nick: "Hoho! You see, your sister has the right idea about greeting someone. Why don’t you learn from her?"

Veetu: "…"

Nick: "Ah! All right, all right! No more teasing today, I swear, just stop pouting!"

Veetu: "I’m not pouting, idiot!"

Veetu sent a half-serious scowl at the man, who theatrically jumped back while still grinning like a child.

Nick: "Ah! No! Mercy!"

Without even realizing it, a small smile rose onto her face, but the moment she noticed it, she immediately cleared her throat and turned away from the man.

Nick: "Hahaha!"

Veetu: "Hmpf. Whatever."

Nick: "Ah, you are such a tsundere."

Veevan: "Tsunde… re?"

Seeing the other twin tilt her head in confusion beside him managed to squeeze another small chuckle out of the man. He turned to her with fake engrossment on his face and raised his hand to his chin.

Nick: "Ah… Sorry, another weird old term. It means something like being stingy to hide one’s affection."

Veetu: "Affection my a-"

Nick: "OR! … something like that. I don’t really know either; it’s just a term I learned from a book I’ve read as a kid."

Veevan: "I see… was it an interesting book?"

Nick: "Yes, actually. It was about this pair of adventurers who…"

Veetu: "…"

As the discussion between the two slowly turned into the usual small-talk, meaning that Nicolai was talking like a machine-gun while Veevan attentively stared at him and occasionally nodded, Veetu quietly held her head in her palm. Just how can he do that, swinging through conversations by forcing everyone into his own pace?

Nick: "… and so she was always hitting him and being contrary just for the sake of gaining attention…"

There was no answer. It was just how he was, it was his nature. While feigning ignorance Veetu quietly watched over the two, and as she did so she inexplicably felt really lonely.

Nick: "… and so in the end they fought the evil overlord and saved the world, and then kissed at the end for good measure."

Veevan: "Wow…"

She didn’t even know why, but this wasn’t the first time she felt like that. Each time those two entered their own little world she felt she was left behind; even though they were right in front of her. The more she looked at them talking, the more she felt like those two were fitting together perfectly, and it somehow made it all even worse. It was an unreasonable feeling, but all too real.

Nick: "Earth to Veetu, are you there?"

Veetu: "Huh?"

Blinking in surprise, the girl raised her brow at the man’s hand waving in front of her nose, but she quickly snapped out of her daze and shooed him away.

Veetu: "Stop that! I was just thinking."

Nick: "Right, right. You were just… Ah, wait, I promised no more teasing today…"

Veetu: "…"

Nick: "Whatever. Say, are you guys hungry?"

The question came right out of nowhere, even though it was quite obvious in retrospect. After all, it was almost noon.

Veevan: "Just… a little."

Veetu: "Same here."

The man silently nodded to himself.

Nick: "Okay then, let’s go grab something."

Veetu: "Wait!"

Nick: "Hm? Yes?"

Nicolai was just about to turn around when the protest of the girl hit his ears and made him freeze in mid-motion.

Veetu: "Do we really have the time for that? The test should be starting in thirty minutes. Shouldn’t we get there a little early?"

Nick: "Oh… that… We won’t have any tests today."

Veetu: "… What?"

Her reaction was so flat that the man couldn’t help but chuckle at her expression.

Nick: "We got a day off for today."

Veevan: "Is it… because of yesterday’s failure?"

In contrast of the girl’s worried tone, the man immediately broke into a smile.

Nick: "Sorta. Come, I’ll tell you on the way."

Veetu: "Wait, isn’t this more important than eating!?"

However, by the time she uttered these words, the mercenary and her sister were already on the other side of the door, seemingly not even caring about her objection.

Veetu: "Oh for the love of…!"

As such, she finally followed after the two on their way to the cafeteria.

----------

Veetu: "So, let me see if I got this straight… His Excellency said that yesterday’s experiment was a success, and we got a day off so they can process the data that came out of it?"

Nick: "In a nutshell, yes. *munch*"

The moment the words left his mouth, the mercenary immediately stuffed it with food. They were sitting at their usual place in the cafeteria, avoided by everyone, a fact that seldom bothered the man.

Veetu: "So we got a day off… What does that even mean?"

Nick: "Hm?"

Even though the question wasn’t necessarily aimed at the Nicolai, he still seemed to look for an answer before swallowing the last of his food.

Nick: "*gulp* Well, I guess we’ll just take it easy. Let’s just loaf around for today."

Veetu: "How is that any different from what you are always doing?"

Nick: "Ouch. That hurt. You really are stingy today."

Veetu: "Cut that out already! I’m not stingy!"

Nick: "*sigh*Of course you are not."

Veetu: "Hey, are you mocking me again?!"

Nick: "*chew-chew-chew*"

Veetu: "Don’t ignore me!"

Veevan: "…"

A difficult expression settled on Veevan’s face as she listened to the two. It was hard to decide just what emotion was hiding behind her face, but before either of her two messmates could notice it, she spoke up with a curious smile.

Veevan: "Um… Nick?"

Nick: "Ah, yes?"

Veevan: "Could we continue our exploration today?"

The man’s eyes lit up at the question.

Nick: "Ah! That’s actually a pretty good idea! Good thinking!"

Veevan: "…"

Nick: "Okay now, what was the last place we explored? We finished with the B-section yesterday, didn’t we?"

After a moment of hesitation, Veetu curtly nodded. In the last few days it became part of their routine to take small “detours” while returning to their quarters and explore the different parts of the Forge. It was the man’s idea, of course, but it proved to be surprisingly interesting for the girls as well. Since they had been mostly locked up in their rooms, everything was fresh and new to them even within the bounds of the facility where they grew up.

Nick: "Okay, it’s decided then!"

Veetu: "What’s decided?"

Nick: "For our day off, we are going to explore the A-section! All of it!"

Veetu: "… That’s… still not different from what we are usually doing."

Nick: "Oh come on! Stop nitpicking!"

Veevan: "But… Isn’t the A-section a restricted area?"

The man tilted his head at the unexpected question.

Nick: "Hm? Restricted?"

Veevan: "Umm… The map…"

Nick: "Ah, right!"

Suddenly reminded, Nicolai reached for the pouch on his belt and, after rummaging for a few seconds, took out a wrinkled sheet of paper with the map of the Forge printed upon it.

Nick: "I knew I had it on me somewhere…"

The mercenary put the map to the middle of the table and carefully straightened it out. It was a utilitarian, simple overhead map of the tunnels and rooms that made up the facility. The different sections were highlighted in different colors, and all the important locales were labeled with an easily readable font. The Forge, as he had already experienced first-hand, was quite big. Its three sections, labeled from A to C, were each made up from at least a dozen chambers of varying sizes, and that didn’t even took into account the corridors and the really big rooms, like the testing ground or the cafeteria. Overall, the place wasn’t mind-numbingly huge, but it was still impressive enough. As for the map itself, it was actually a really tidy thing; except for the fact that it was somewhat wrinkled, thanks to the few days it had spent in the man’s pouch.

Nick: "So, this is the A-section, right here."

The man lightly tapped his fingertip against the southernmost part of the map, highlighted with a vivid red color. In response, the girl curtly nodded.

Veevan: "Yes… and look, it’s here."

Veevan extended her hand, and gently pushed the man’s finger aside, revealing the small words obstructed by his hand.

Veevan: "You see? It’s written here."

Veetu: "… I didn’t even notice that…"

Nick: "Wow, you are right. It IS restricted."

Suddenly, the man’s face became almost solemn as he stared at the map.

Veetu: "…? What is it?"

The mercenary’s eyes seemed almost panicking as he glanced up at the girl, like a kid who had been caught in the middle of some mischief, but quickly collected himself.

Nick: "Nothing, I was just thinking."

Veevan: "About what? The restriction?"

Nick: "Yes."

Veevan: "…"

Nick: "Ah, I mean… Don’t worry about it; it just bugged me a little why they have restricted areas in a facility that is already a huge secret to begin with. One would think that once you are in, you are trusted enough."

Veetu: "I don’t know… Maybe against spies?"

Nick: "Fufu… I don’t thinks so. Who could spy on an Order facility like this?"

Veevan: "What do you mean?"

The mercenary absentmindedly reached for his glass of water, and after gulping its content down in one go he leaned back on his chair while playing with his fork.

Nick: "Listen, the Order is the big boy of the playground around here. No one would even think about going up against it like that. Hell, even I wouldn’t dare to try to infiltrate this place, even if I didn’t know that smiley-guy was toting his blade around these parts."

Veetu: "But… They had to have a reason for restricting that section."

Nick: "Who knows? Maybe there is some shady secret organization out there we don’t know about?"

Veevan: "Secret organization?"

Nick: "Yes. They must be part of some secret conspiracy and that section holds information the Order wants to hide from the world. It makes perfect sense."

Veetu: "Really…?"

Nick: "Yeah."

Veetu: "…"

Nick: "… Pf… Pffffhahaha!"

Veevan & Veetu: "?"

After staring at the two in solemn silence for so long, the man suddenly broke into a loud laughter, drawing even the normally unresponsive stares of the other employees to him.

Nick: "Hehehe… Seriously, you guys are so naïve."

Veetu: "W-What?!"

Nick: "I was just pulling your legs there. There’s no way something like that would be true."

Veevan: "But then… Why is it restricted?"

Nick: "Ah, that?"

The man casually pointed at the map.

Nick: "That map is for me, right? It must mean that the A-section is restricted for me specifically. They must not want their test-subject walking around those parts for one reason or another. Or maybe that is the place where Alternates are made and it would be dangerous to loaf around there. Or that is where they keep the slave gremlins that power the machinery around here. Seriously, any explanation is more sensible than some espionage-plot by some shady secret organization."

At first it seemed like the two might get angry over the man’s trick, but in the end, they just fell silent and, after a brief pause, glanced at each other. Nicolai, on the other hand, had simply shrugged his shoulder and returned to the last few bites of his third serving. At times like these it was hard for him to decide if it was a good or bad thing that he figured out how they are actually talking to each other like this, completely disregarding him in the process. Still, he decided not to complain and just keep on eating like he didn’t even notice. At last, just as he swallowed the last bit of his food, the girls disengaged their voiceless conversation and turned to him in unison.

Veevan: "Could we… still try looking around there?"

Nick: "Huh?"

The mercenary was visibly surprised, but that didn’t keep him from gulping down the last bite of his food.

Nick: "You guys are unusually forthcoming. You know that we can get into trouble of we go there, right?"

Veetu: "But we are still curious."

Nick: "And honest too… Okay, I have no objections; I wanted to look around there myself anyway."

The two somehow seemed both excited and worried at the same time. As the man could see, they apparently didn’t make up their mind completely yet, but now that he gave his approval, there was no other option but to go along with the flow. He quickly wiped the corners of his mouth with a napkin and tucked the outstretched map back into his pouch as he stood up. Following his lead, the girls also rose from their seats, leaving the empty dishes behind.

Nick: "Okay girls, first things first; let’s make a plan."

Veevan: "A plan?"

The girl curiously raised her eyes on him as they stepped through the door of the cafeteria.

Nick: "Yes, for the worst case scenario."

Veetu: "And I’m pessimistic?"

Nick: "Hey, this is serious!"

The two fell silent as Nicolai forcefully cleared his throat.

Nick: "*cough* Okay, first off; if the place is locked, we turn back. We are not going to break in or something  stupid like that; I have already played out all my cards for the old man today."

Veevan: "Did you two have a fight?"

Veetu: "Again?"

Nick: "No. I mean… whatever. The thing is, I don’t want to get on grandpa’s bad side today."

Veetu: "I see…"

The girl nodded as they turned around the corner leading up to the A-section.

Nick: "Okay, next point: if we can get in without problem, act natural, like we have all the right in the world to be there. If someone calls out to us, leave the talking to me. In the off-chance that the place really is forbidden for me and we would get caught and they ask you specifically, you tell them that it was my idea. Just blame it all on me like Veetu usually does and you’ll be all right."

Veetu: "Are you still picking on me?!"

Veevan: "But… didn’t you just say that you don’t want to get in trouble with His Excellency?"

Nick: "Well, right, but it’s still the most logical course of action. I told you before, I can take care of myself, and it’s part of my job to keep you out of trouble, so… it’s okay. I guess."

Veetu: "But aren’t you taking us into some possible trouble right now?"

Nick: "Hey, that’s beside the question! So, again: if it’s locked we go home; if it’s not, we are just looking around and I’m doing the talking; and if we are busted, it’s all my fault. Got it?"

Veevan & Veetu: "…"

After a brief moment of hesitation, the two meekly nodded in unison.

Nick: "Good. With this, operation Gray Fox is officially underway!"

Veetu: "Operation Gray Fox? What does that even mean?"

Nick: "I don’t know, I just thought it sounded cool. Stop nitpicking!"

Veetu: "Then stop giving me the material!"

Veevan: "…"

As the two kept on bickering at her side, Veevan let out an uncharacteristically heavy sigh, then straightened her back and grabbed hold of Nicolai’s sleeve, forcefully drawing the man’s attention to herself.

Nick: "Huh? Yes?"

Veevan: "We are almost at the A-section."

Nick: "Ah, right. Okay girls, be natural."

After nodding at themselves, the three finally turned around the last corner with a casual stride, only to stop right on their track in the next instant.

Zara: "Fufu… What a coincidence, to meet you here. Are you lost?"

The grinning swordsman’s figure was leisurely leaning onto the concrete wall in the middle of the tunnel. Unlike the rest of the walls, this one was obviously a recent construction with the same type of thick metal door on its middle that the one in the girls’ room. After quickly assessing the situation, the mercenary theatrically shrugged his shoulder.

Nick: "Ah, hello there python."

Zara: "Python?"

Nick: "Ah, that’s a kind of giant snake that lives in the rainforests and… wait, don’t make me explain the joke!"

Zara: "Fufu… I see. So? I’m still waiting your answer."

The girls seemingly shrunk back, as if hiding behind the mercenary’s back. They actually didn’t have any hard feelings towards the swordsman, but the thinly veiled hostility behind every single word between the two’s always made it nigh-impossible for them to even raise their voices.

Nick: "Ah, just got a little lost. This place is like a maze."

Zara: "Fufu… Strange, I could have sworn I gave you a map already. I hope you didn’t lose it."

Nick: "No, but it’s so lame to walk around while looking at it."

Zara: "I see. Fufu… Please take good care of it, along with the rest of the contents of that envelope I gave you. They are really important."

Nick: "Really? Please don’t tell me you hand-made them and they are filled with your love. I know I’m hard to resist, but I do not swing that way."

Zara’s smile momentarily widened into an even more unnerving grin, but it quickly faded as he straightened himself and slowly started walking towards the three.

Zara: "That was such a suspiciously specific denial."

Nick: "Nah, you are just imagining things."

Zara: "Fufu… Am I?"

Nick: "Yeah, it’s just your weird, perverted imagination. Yes."

The air was almost sparkling between the two as Zara stepped closer, finally standing right in front of the mercenary. For a few moments, they both fell silent while staring daggers at each other.

Zara: "So…? Aren’t you going back to your quarters?"

Nick: "Ah, right. Now that you mention it, we should."

Zara: "Fufu… You should just keep following the green line on the wall; it will lead you back to the vicinity."

Nick: "Errr… Thanks, I guess."

The girls, more than eager to finally get out of the suffocating aura covering the two men, were just about to turn around and leave, but the mercenary didn’t budge.

Nick: "But before we leave, just one last question."

Zara: "Oh? Fufu… Yes, what is it?"

Nick: "Just what’s behind that door over there?"

The swordsman slowly turned his head, following the mercenary’s outstretched index finger, then faced him again with an amused smile.

Zara: "Oh, are you curious?"

Nicolai nonchalantly shrugged his shoulders at the question.

Nick: "Not that much, but I thought I might as well ask if we are here already."

Zara: "I see. Understandable. That door leads to the A-section."

Nick: "Aaaaand what’s in there?"

Zara’s eyes narrowed as his face was almost brimming with thinly concealed glee.

Zara: "Oh, so you are curious after all? Fufufu… How come I’m not surprised?"

Nick: "Oh come on! Cut the chase and just tell me!"

Zara: "… The archives and some storage compartments. There is nothing interesting."

Nick: "Really? That’s an awful lot of security for such a boring place."

Once again, the swordsman followed the man’s gesture towards the familiar machine at the side of the iron door. It was the same type of card-reader as what they had at their own room.

Zara: "Ah, that? Of course it’s locked."

The man’s narrowed eyes almost gleamed as he glanced at the mercenary.

Zara: "Everyone has some skeletons in their closet. Ours are just a little… bigger than average, and we don’t want anyone to see them."

Nick: "So even the secret facility has secrets. How charming."

Zara: "Fufufu…"

After staring at each other, trying to read the other’s expression, Nicolai finally shrugged his shoulders and turned to the girls.

Nick: "Okay, I guess we wasted enough time on you. Time to move on."

Used to the man’s fickle nature by now, the girls immediately turned heel at Nicolai’s sudden decision, and the three quietly walked away without saying a single word of farewell to the smiling swordsman.

Zara: "Fufufu…"

Like that, Zara silently returned to the door and leaned onto the wall beside the card-reader once again. No one could see it, but for the first time in a while, the obfuscating smile slowly withered on his face, giving way to a chillingly sharp glare.

Zara: "(I wonder how long I’ll have to wait for you to make your move, Wolf… I hate it when people make me wait…)"

----------

Veetu: "*sigh* What a waste of time!"

The girl loudly exclaimed as she threw herself onto her bed. They had just returned from their failed exploration attempt, and she didn’t really bother to hide her irritation.

Nick: "Well, we couldn’t help it. If it’s locked down, it’s locked down."

Veevan: "And mister Dust said that it was only used for storage, right?"

Nick: "Right, it would have been boring anyway."

After sending a sharp glance at the two, Veetu let out a small sigh and shrugged her shoulders.

Veetu: "They could have at least put it on the map or something…"

Nick: "But they didn’t. There’s no point dwelling on it, we only lost half an hour at worst and didn’t even get into trouble, so everything is all right. Just relax. We still have the rest of the day free, so don’t sweat it."

Veetu: "*sigh* Whatever."

After curtly shaking her head, the girl reached for the basket the night-table between the two beds and popped the last grape into her mouth. In the meantime, her sister sat down onto her own bed and started reading her pet book.

Nicolai on the other hand slowly drew his blades and laid them onto the small table next to his own bed. Followed by Veetu’s eyes, he walked over to his duffle-bag and started rummaging through its contents, grabbing a few tools and rags, then quickly returned to the table.

Veetu: "…"

Still followed by her gaze, Nicolai started tinkering with his swords. This was actually the first time she could take a good look at the weapons outside their scabbards. The two straight short-swords were completely identical. Their blades were surprisingly thick, but by the way the man handled them they didn’t seem that heavy. However, the strangest thing about them was not that, but their odd ornamentation. It was an intricate, circuit-like pattern running over the blades’ spine and their cross-guards, while their pommels were curved back and decorated with the same style of embellishments. In fact, at first glance they didn’t even seem to be made for actual combat at all, although she had already seen them in action. As she looked at them, Veetu couldn’t help but think that they were elegant, if not downright beautiful.

Nick: "Are you interested?"

She instantly shuddered as she realized the man was gazing right into her eyes. After a moment of hesitation, she finally answered in a quiet voice.

Veetu: "Not… really."

Nick: "Are you sure? You looked like you were curious."

Veetu: "… Maybe just a little."

Nick: "…"

 Veetu: "I mean, I have nothing better to do, so might as well…"

Nick: "Hehe… There you go."

The man flashed a bright smile and gestured towards her, which immediately made her awkwardly avert her eyes. Still, she rose from her bed and walked over to the table.

Nick: "Nice blades, right?"

Veetu: "They are… I think. I haven’t seen many swords before, so I can’t really tell."

Nick: "Well, then you have to trust me on this one. They are."

Veetu: "I see… And what are you doing with them now?"

Nick: "Ah, you are right, I haven’t even told you. It’s just some routine maintenance."

Veetu: "Maintenance?"

The girl’s eyes suddenly opened wide in amazement.

Veetu: "Like, tuning?"

Nick: "Ah, nonono. These are not that kind of weapons."

Veetu: "…"

After seeing the girl’s confused expression, he quietly reached for a rag with an amused smile.

Nick: "Well, they are not completely ordinary either, but they are still just swords. They need to be cleaned and oiled regularly, so that they won’t rust, although… well, they are not made from ordinary steel, but it’s better to be on the safe side. I also need to regularly check if the handle is wobbling or if any of the parts came loose… stuff like that."

Veetu: "… I never thought you needed to care so much for your weapons…"

Nick: "Of course I need to care. My life depends on these; I always have to keep them in good condition."

While saying so, the mercenary slowly kept scrubbing the blades with the outmost care.

Nick: "An unkempt weapon is a disaster in waiting. When you have to fight for your life, or even worse, when you have to fight for someone else’s life, a broken hilt or a crack on the edge can mean certain death."

After he was done with the cleaning and checking the integrity of the parts, Nicolai took out a small jar and started oiling his blades, all the while followed by the girl’s inquiring eyes. After he completed that step, the mercenary once again methodically examined the swords.

Nick: "You see, the old man did some tests with them, and who knows what kind of conditions he put them under. In the end, it’s better be safe than sorry, so it never hurts to check everything twice."

At last, noticing Veetu’s almost entranced gaze, an amused chuckle left the man’s lips.

Nick: "Is me cleaning my swords really that interesting?"

Veetu: "…! Huh?"

The girl looked at him like she didn’t even understand what he was asking, but after a few moments, she slowly averted her eyes.

Veetu: "It’s not about being interesting or not, it just… made me think."

Nick: "Oh…"

The mercenary casually sheathed his weapons, then once he secured them he took off his sword-belt and carefully laid it onto the top of his bag. Veetu in the meantime stayed strangely quiet, like she was waiting for something. Frankly speaking, it wasn’t hard for the man to realize what it was…

Nick: "*cough* So, what were you thinking about?"

The girl looked at him with a peevish expression, clearly hesitating between speaking her mind and dismissing him, but in the end she decided on voicing her thoughts.

Veetu: "Just about how we are going to become your weapons and what we are going to do after that."

Nick: "I see…"

After the man’s voice slowly trailed off, the two of them kept on looking at each other with a difficult expression, while Veevan curiously glanced over at them from behind the pages of her book.

Nick: "I know it may sound stupid, but… I actually never really thought about it."

Veevan: "About what?"

Finally joining their discussion, the other twin put her book down and moved to the closer end of her bed.

Nick: "About this whole weapon issue. I just never thought about how it even works."

Veetu: "We don’t really know either."

Veevan: "We… only tried it once."

Nick: "Huh? Didn’t you say…?"

The man suddenly swallowed the end of his sentence. The girls said that they cannot transform, but it just dawned on him that to know that, they must have at least tried it already.

Veetu: "What is it?"

Seeing the solemn expression on his face, the question involuntarily slipped through the girl’s lips before she knew it. In response, the man’s eyes immediately returned to her.

Nick: "How is it?"

Veetu: "How is what?"

Nick: "When you transform."

It immediately became obvious that he treaded on a sensitive issue, but he pressed on nevertheless.

Nick: "It doesn’t hurt, right?"

Veetu: "…"

In face of the silence, the man raised his voice up a notch.

Nick: "Right?"

Veetu: "It… doesn’t. It’s just scary."

Nick: "Scary?"

The word coming from the mouth of the headstrong girl was surprising enough to finally break the man’s unusually neutral expression. In the end, he turned to the other girl, silently sitting at the end of her bed.

Nick: "What about you?"

Veevan: "I… can’t really say. For me it wasn’t that bad, but for sis…"

Nick: "What do you mean by that? How bad was it?"

Veetu slowly hanged her head as the man’s gaze returned to her.

Veetu: "Why do you want to know?"

Even though she was apparently trying, she couldn’t hide the irritation in her voice. However, Nicolai brushed it off without a moment of hesitation.

Nick: "What? What you do you mean why do I want to know?! I’m your partner, for god’s sake! I should at least know about something like that if it could be bad for you!"

The girl still hesitated in front of Nicolai’s concerned outburst, but after averting her eyes yet again she finally mustered up her determination and looked him right in the eye.

Veetu: "It’s not something I can’t easily describe."

Nick: "…"

Veetu: "It was… alien. When I transformed, I could feel my body falling apart. It was cold and nauseating. Then I lost my senses."

Nick: "Lost your senses?"

The girl strongly nodded while not taking her eyes off the mercenary’s face for even a moment, like she was constantly gauging his reactions.

Veetu: "Yes. I had no eyes, no ears, no mouth… Only the sense of touch remained, but it was even more terrifying. I could feel the hands of the researchers on me, but I couldn’t recognize what they were touching… It was my body, but it wasn’t."

Nick: "…"

Veetu: "It was like being locked in a black room and tied up, unable to do anything but endure until it was over. I couldn’t even scream to make them stop the experiment, and I-"

Nick: "Sorry."

The girl’s darkening monologue suddenly stopped with a screeching halt by the man’s voice, but she still kept looking him the eyes.

Nick: "I didn’t know it was such a traumatic experience. I was tactless. Sorry."

Veetu: "…"

After a few moments of intense silence, the girl’s lips slightly curved.

Veetu: "It’s okay. It’s not like it’s your fault. It’s mine."

Nick: "Your fault? What are you…?"

Veetu: "It’s my personal problem, and… it’s not like I can avoid it. Sooner or later, I will need to transform again. I’m an Alternate. I was made to do that."

Nick: "…"

For a few moments, the room became eerily silent while the mercenary fell deep in thought. Normally it would have been hard for him to understand the implications of the transformation, but the girl’s voice and expression made the message clear as day. After a few more seconds of consideration, he finally spoke his mind.

Nick: "I don’t really want to dwell on this issue, but there is just one more thing I want to make clear… You said you could feel when the researchers touched you, is that right?"

Apparently confused over the cause of the inquiry, the girl’s expression gained a curious tone as she answered.

Veetu: "Yes. Why?"

Nick: "Then could you feel other things as well."

Veetu: "Other… things?"

Nick: "I mean pain. Like when you would hit something as a weapon."

Her eyes opened wide at the question, but she managed to answer after a brief moment of wavering.

Veetu: "I… don’t really know. They didn’t do any test that caused pain, but they said even if I felt pain, it would soon disappear after I was used enough."

Nick: "They?"

Veetu: "His Excellency and the others."

Nick: "I see… So you can get hurt as a weapon. Good."

Veetu: "Good?"

Nick: "Errr… Bad choice of words. What I meant to say was that it’s good to know."

Veetu: "…"

Nick: "Oh come on, don’t look at me like that!"

Following a sudden impulse, the man absentmindedly extended his hand and started patting the baffled girl.

Nick: "Don’t worry. Thanks for telling me though. At least now I know I have yet another thing to do something about. I don’t know what or how yet, but I will figure something out so that you won’t get hurt. That goes for you too, Veevan."

Veevan: "… *nod*"

Nick: "So again, don’t worry girls. I’ll think of something."

After nonchalantly ruffling Veetu’s hair for a few seconds, the man suddenly withdrew his hand with an awkward expression.

Nick: "Ah, sorry. I totally forgot you guys don’t like when I mess with your hair."

Veetu: "R-Right!"

As if she was woken from some sort of daze, the girl meekly agreed while the mercenary let out a tired sigh.

Nick: "Geez… Just how did we get to this point anyway…? Oh yeah, you were looking at my swords and then they made you think or something… What was that about again?"

The sudden return to a previous topic made the girl visibly ponder for a second.

Veetu: "... I was just wondering what kind of weapons we will become and how that would feel."

Nick: "Being oiled?"

Veetu: "Wha…? No! Idiot! I meant looking like your sword!"

Nick: "Fufu... I get it. So, you want to be a sword?"

Veetu: "…?"

Momentarily bewildered, Veetu’s eyes opened wide as she was looking for an answer in her head.

Veetu: "I think… Yes, that would make the most sense. You need to wield us at the same time, and you are already dual-wielding your swords, so…"

Nick: "I see, I see… What do you say, Veevan?"

Veevan: "…?"

The other girl, who in the meantime returned to her book, once again peeked out from behind the cover with a slightly grumpy expression.

Veevan: "Swords are good."

It was an unusually brisk answer, but the mercenary decided not to dwell on the issue.

Nick: "Well, I admit it makes sense, but…"

Veetu: "But…?"

Nicolai almost embarrassedly scratched his chin while glancing over to the girl.

Nick: "You see, I used only that pair of blades in the past few years. Even thinking about using something else feels weird."

Veetu: "…"

Nick: "Hmm… So, you girls have no weapon-form yet, right?"

Veetu: "*nod*"

Nick: "So… I presume you could turn into any weapon you wanted, right?"

Once again, the girl seemed confused at the sudden change in the flow of the conversation. On the other hand, the man’s eyes were nearly sparkling with excitement.

Veetu: "I… don’t really know…"

It seemed like she was hesitant for a moment, but after taking a deep breath, Veetu continued on.

Veetu: "I mean, technically we could. We just need the image to be imprinted into our mind."

Nick: "Really? And how do you do that? Do you have some kind of machine, or…?"

Veetu: "No, we just need to study it for a good while."

Nick: "Study it?"

Veetu: "It’s… hard to explain. We need to enter into this meditative state and then grave the weapon into our mind or something to that effect. We haven’t really done that before, but that’s what His Excellency said."

As the old man’s involvement came up again, the mercenary’s curiosity was lit anew.

Nick: "Then what about your first transformation?"

Veetu: "That was different. It was imprinted on us by His Excellency."

Nick: "Wait, so you do have a machine that can do that?"

Veetu: "It’s complicated…"

Nick: "I see…"

Nicolai once again fell silent with a pondering look on his face. He quickly skimmed over all the information he just gathered, and in the end, his face lit up as a brand new idea came to his mind.

Nick: "Correct me if I’m wrong, but doesn’t that mean that you could turn into any object that you studied? Like, say, clothes, or jewelry?"

Veetu: "I don’t really know, to be honest. Technically, yes, it’s possible, but it would make little sense."

Nick: "Why?"

Veetu: "Because we are Alternates. We are weapons, so we would be useless as anything else."

Nick: "… Right."

After the straightforward answer, Nicolai crossed his arms in front of his chest while seemingly deep in thought. There were many factors he needed to consider, but in the end, his sudden idea seemed to be more and more viable.

Nick: "I see… It could actually work…"

Veetu: "What are you mumbling about?"

Strangely, hearing the accusing question brought a sudden smile onto the man’s face as he gestured towards the two.

Nick: "Come closer for a moment please. I have a mighty convenient idea that you might actually like…"

Veevan & Veetu: "…"

----------

Veevan: "(*sigh*)"

It was about midnight. After Nicolai came up with his idea, the day flew by like it was on fast forwarding. They planned, they experimented, they theorized, they experimented some more, and before they knew it their day off was gone in the blink of an eye.

Veevan was lying in her bed, in the dark room. However, she just couldn’t fall asleep. It wasn’t because she wasn’t tired though, in fact it was almost the exact opposite. She was exhausted, so much so that she couldn’t even remember the last time she felt so worn out… and yet slumber steadily avoided her eyes.

Veetu: "Sis…?"

Veevan: "…"

The girl’s eyes immediately jumped over to the direction of her sister’s whispering voice.

[Veetu]: "Are you still awake?"

[Veevan]: "…"

[Veetu]: "Hey, Veevan?"

[Veevan]: "I... don’t want to talk right now."

[Veetu]: "*sigh* Don’t tell me you are thinking about him again…"

[Veevan]: "No… I just don’t want to talk with you."

Her sister couldn’t see it in the dark, but Veetu’s brows slowly knit in puzzlement as she tried to figure out what her sister was meaning by that.

[Veetu]: "I don’t get it. Are you all right?"

[Veevan]: "…"

There was no answer. As the seconds passed one after the other, the girl started wondering if her sister even heard her message. For a few long minutes, it seemed like she would have no answer, but at last, Veevan finally replied.

[Veevan]: "I just… I think I’m jealous of you. Maybe…"

[Veetu]: "…? Excuse me; did you just say you were jealous of me? As in, about me and him?"

[Veevan]: "… Yes."

[Veetu]: "You can’t be serious…"

[Veevan]: "But you two are getting along so well recently…"

[Veetu]: "Were you even listening to us? We are fighting all the time! I’m the last person you should be jealous of!"

[Veevan]: "Liar."

[Veetu]: "What?"

[Veevan]: "If you two are fighting, then how come you always seem to enjoy yourself?"

[Veetu]: "… Are you seriously picking a fight with me now? About something this stupid?"

[Veevan]: "I’m not, I’m just stating the obvious."

[Veetu]: "But he is always teasing me and I’m arguing with him!"

[Veevan]: "Exactly."

[Veetu]: "… You are completely losing me here…"

[Veevan]: "But it’s true! You two are so close already, and I’m still at square one!"

[Veetu]: "Who are close?! If there is anyone close to him, it’s you! Stop playing the victim!"

[Veevan]: "I’m not playing the victim!"

[Veetu]: "Yes you are! You are the one who is always forcing yourself between us!"

[Veevan]: "…?"

[Veetu]: "…"

[Veevan]: "Sis…? Are you jealous of me… too?"

[Veetu]: "I’m... I’m not!"

She said so, but it was obvious her denial had no strength behind it. Suddenly the silent air around the two became heavy, if not downright suffocating.

[Veevan]: "I see… So you do like him after all."

[Veetu]: "… I don’t…! Stop putting words into my mouth!"

Veevan: "…"

[Veevan]: "Good night."

[Veetu]: "Wait! Sis?!"

As her sister cut off their connection, Veetu abruptly rose on her bed, and was about to call out to her, but the sleeping mercenary’s presence immediately made her stop on her track. At the end, she only knit her brows as she was staring at her sister’s direction.

Veetu: "(Just what the hell is her problem!? She is jealous!? Of me! Come on!)"

Eventually, she just glared at her sister one last time, then fell back into her bed and pulled the blankets over her head.

Veetu: "(Idiot. It’s not like I would get in your way. I thought you knew I was on your side, even if…)"

Even she couldn’t understand why, but as she slowly started to calm down, a new wave of exhaustion came over her. After a small yawn, she shot one last glance at her sister’s direction, and a pitiful smile conquered her lips.

Veetu: "(I guess we are both idiots after all…)"

She could still hear the last of her thoughts echo in her mind, but at last, her eyes closed for the night, leaving all that trouble behind for these few, precious hours of respite…

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