Neurosis

Chapter IV: The Double Secret

The stream of flame faded, the once prodigious and blazing tower of fire waned until it became naught but embers. Frantic notifications, warnings detailing the amount of blood HUAN had spent clouded his vision whilst he fought against the drag of unconsciousness as his vision blurred. As the Khafasa accoun's speed slowed, XIAO fell unto the uneven and rocky terrain and HUAN followed after. "Uuunnh..." HUAN groaned in both pain and relief, they were far from the miners. The both of them were safe. XIAO arose, his nerves reeling from the collision as he found the place he was in: a wide open area with no walls or still standing crags to speak of. "That was..." XIAO started before his voice trailed off as he began to asses the damage he had incurred. Nothing severe, mainly just faint and nearly unobservable scratches on the alloyed metals. This was but a small price, HUAN's toll was greater. "That was insane, HUAN." XIAO said, their tone was almost in disapproval of the means of their escape. HUAN only replied with agonized groan, words were intermingled within them. The translation from Korean was muddy at best, nearly incomprehensible save for one word: 'Sorry'. "What?" XIAO spoke in reply, befuddlement brewing within him. "Need...need heat." HUAN repeated, "Lost too much...Think I...Think I did some...dumb thing, hurry." His speech was sluggish, the word 'hurry' had spurred XIAO to action. With the Plagerya still in his possession, XIAO looked around only to see that his comrade was not far from him.

The sight before XIAO was stark. HUAN laid in a small but noticeable puddle of his own blood, the heftier accoun's occuli facing the ground as his arms propped up his torso. His shield was clasped by appendages that held prior to the altercation with the miners and the HEAT Harba was sheathed above the occuli. "What have you done?" XIAO questioned his comrade as he laid his occuli upon the wound on HUAN's side. "I'unno..." HUAN grunted as XIAO placed the hefty weapon on the ground with gentleness, hoping to not arouse a possessive anger within HUAN. The hooked blade was then drawn out and the side of the scorched steel was pressed against the mutilated alloys. The hotness from the blade forced the titanium alloys melded with the veins, the small leakage of lavender ichor ceased. The wound was cauterized as the Zhàměng became troubled by a thought. "Can you see clearly?" "Whuuh?" HUAN groaned in confusion, still feeling the effects of his gamble. "Hwhuuh did'ya say...?" HUAN mumbled. XIAO repeated, "Can you see clearly?"

"Oh! I can see the ground, kinda blurry though." HUAN said casually. "How blurry?" XIAO asked inquisitively, HUAN delivered a response. "Can'treallytell." HUAN's words came out in a sudden blitz, the syllables were just barely distinguishable. "Uh-huh..." The hooked blade returned back into the slimmer accoun's arm as he came to a realization. "Can you move at all?" XIAO asked. "Noooope! I used allmah blood!"HUAN spoke nonchalantly. "I see." XIAO said, while stewing in the thought. "Very well..."

HUAN's nerves flared, dull pain assaulted the side of his torso as he let out a yelp. The sound of steel clashing against steel echoed through out the darkness and open expanse. XIAO had kicked HUAN at the side. "Ow!" HUAN cried out, his body unable to even jolt from the pain due to insufficient blood flow. "Th'fuckwastha'for?!" The Khanfasa blurted out rapidly, almost bordering on gabble. "That was to see if you could still feel." XIAO explained calmly before delivering another kick to HUAN's side. "Ow!" The much more bulkier accoun yelped while the blood began to flow throughout his body. "One time was enough!" HUAN shouted. "That was for being an idiot." XIAO spoke in reply before continuing on. "The means of our escape gave you a stroke. We'll have to wait for you to fully regain control of your body in an open area no less. You have put this mission in jeopardy." "Would'ya rather I fly inn'u a fuckin' wall?" HUAN slurred, the kicks having affronted him. "I'd rather you not have a stroke at all." XIAO rebutted.

Silence filled the air for a moment, HUAN laid on the ground and XIAO stood over him; he had stopped kicking the downed Khanfasa. "HUAN." XIAO spoke. "Huh?" "Why are you so adamant about not firing the Plegarya? I know you pilfered it from the body of a UW accoun but, surely you took the ammunition." XIAO continued. "Ooooh! 'Boutdat...that's the only nail they had left." HUAN replied, their tone was nonchalant as if the both of them did not just bicker. "Too'ouh a Khanfasa befo'mah damn eyes, fucker sploded too. Blood 'n' metal everywhere, her'eart was gone dude!" He added, his tone shifted. It was filled with an excitement and eagerness much akin to a child recounting something incredible that had happened before their eyes. "So it's an explosive?" XIAO asked—the product of their exegeting. "Yeah kinda like that bu'it does so much more, dude. Ya'gotta see it for yerself honestly."

"Can you move your body?" XIAO suddenly asked as he reached down towards the Plegarya that laid on the ground. "Nah, I can only move mah'inguhs 'n' mah'oculay though." HUAN spoke as his fingers curled and uncurled. "Willprolly be abihlonger 'till I can move around though." The Khanfasa added as a the Zhàměng stood straight up, the heavy weapon remained on the ground as XIAO spoke. "This has taken too long, I'll erect a few sonar pikes far from here. By the time we see anyone come by, we'll have enough time to react accordingly." "Ya'bettanotfuckin'shoo'it, ya'hear me?" HUAN's tone became hostile, the delivery of his words were sudden and swift. "No promises are made." XIAO replied stoically.

"Look behind you." HUAN spoke, his words were came slowly and were articulated well—free from the malaise that was the slurring of his speech—and his voice had a sense of apprehension; a hint of anxiety. "What?" XIAO replied in utter bemusement, the panic that had griped HUAN had confused him. "What is wrong?" "XIAO, look behind you." HUAN repeated once more, his voice quivered as delivery quickened slightly. Compiled by his ally's sudden wariness, the one-armed Zhàměng turned around.

The asynchronous radial pulsations of the pikes formed a sight that was foreign to the environment of The Groznyi Hellmouth; the image did not belong in a dark arid place such as this yet it was here before XIAO's occuli. The scarlet outline—the mark of an enemy, the asymmetry, the lack of ID, the lack of estimated threat level. It was clear no matter how hard XIAO tried to rationalize it. "That..." XIAO uttered, his bewilderment turned into concern.

At the bottom laid sprawled out was the cadaver of a Mǎyǐ accoun, all limbs attached to their rotund body. From the corpse was a slender body with a multiplicity of handless arms reaching out upwards, jutting out of the arms were even more arms and each decreased in size—branches! From the trunk something pulsed...

    "Th-Th-That shouldn't..." The Zhàměng stammered as his voice trailed off, the hand of panic finally grasping him as it did HUAN as the grizzly vista that he had witnessed on the surface during his descent crept into his psyche. Despite his apprehension, he felt as though the tree was beckoning him to come to it—the gravity of a world pulling an apple to the ground. Silence drowned out XIAO's senses, the chain of curiosity tugged. "XIAO," HUAN called out, his voice low but above a whisper. "What'th ever-living FUCK is tha'?"Khanfasa continued. "I don't know." XIAO said reply, he kept asking himself the same question but nothing came of it. "Ya'think the UW got somethin' toodoo with this?" HUAN asked. "I don't know." XIAO repeated. "Then what if it's..." HUAN's voice trailed off, unsure if he should continue to ask. Both of them didn't know. "Should'we go tah it?" HUAN questioned. "No."

As the duo pondered a sharp and sudden ping demanded their attention. It was from one of the sonar pikes from the west. "Ah shit!" HUAN hissed, his occuli turning whilst XIAO turned around to look. Scarlet outlines shuffled sluggishly and formed a large and quad legged shape, it head towards the both of them. The both of them recognized it.

   XIAO reached for the Plegarya. A steel paw blocked the Zhàměng's only hand. "Yer'notfuckin'shootin'it! Ya'hear me?!" HUAN snarled, his words nearly tumbling into each other as blurted them out. "What do you think you're doing?" XIAO inquired as he tried to grab ahold in the weapon before HUAN pushed the Zhàměng's arm with his other . "Exac'ly whuhitlooks, dumb ass!" The Khanfasa barked "Why don't ya'play dead? Maybe itwon'bother tah kill " "Play dead?" XIAO repeated, irritation almost compelled him to strike HUAN in the side for such insolence at a time like this. XIAO's occuli turned, the red outline of the four legged accoun had gotten closer—soon, they'll see the both of them bickering. The One-Armed Zhàměng sighed. "If this fails, I'll forever curse you as a traitor, HUAN."

"Tha's pre'y big if. I'm super sure 'boutmahodds, yah hard ass," HUAN said in reply. "Now, c'mon lay on the damn ground!" XIAO got on both of his knees before laying flat on the ground. Motionless. Heavy footsteps came their way...