Silver Doll

As the sun began to rise over the horizon, a few beams of light trickled through the partially closed curtains, into Audrey's eyes. Annoyed by her rude awakening, she slowly got up and tried to close the curtains next to the bed only to fall on a large mass hidden within the blankets.

"...?" A very sleepy Lucianna sat up after Audrey fell on her and she stretched and yawned before looking at Audrey. "Morn...ing" Lucianna looked around the room.

"Sorry for waking you, I forgot you were sleeping in the same bed as me," Audrey said as she got up from the bed and spotted Alan sleeping upright with a knife in his hands near the door. "Looks like someone's paranoid." Both Audrey and Lucianna made their way to the bathroom to prepare themselves for the day.

"Hey, Audrey?" Lucianna said with a toothbrush in her mouth, "Did you have a nightmare?"

Puzzled, Audrey looked at Lucianna, "No, not to my knowledge. Why do you ask?"

"Cuz you were tossing and turning a lot… and your neck was kinda glowing."

"..." Audrey looked in the mirror, 'So that wasn't just a dream then…' she thought to herself as she turned back to Lucianna, "Nah, nothing happened. I'm just a restless sleeper, that's all." Lucianna looked at her with doubt as she stopped from prying any further, seeing that her friend was obviously lying to her. Audrey felt bad about lying to her and quickly tried to change the subject, "Sooo~ wanna take a bath together?" A devious smile appeared on Audrey's face as she said that.

"Sure"

"Huh?" Audrey was taken aback by the lack of resistance that Lucianna had just shown her. Normally Audrey would get shut down for posing questions like this to her.

"I mean, if we take a bath together then it would be cheaper for Alan." Upon hearing this, Audrey cursed Alan from within her mind. "And...if it will make you trust me more, then I'll be happy to pamper you. Only this once though." After saying that to her, Lucianna drew the bath and started to undress; Audrey followed shortly after.

"..." Alan stood outside of the bathroom door, eavesdropping on the girls. 'So she's starting to awaken her power…' He thought to himself before heading back to the main room to clean up a little. As Alan finished cleaning up the room, a soft knock was heard coming from the front door. Alan decided to ignore it though since he didn't want to deal with any guests quite yet. However, the knocks began to get louder as time passed. "Who the hell?" Annoyed, Alan reluctantly unlocked the door to open it. "WHAT!- oh, sorry." Alan opened the door and made contact with a pinked haired woman who looked like she was suffering from a terrible hangover.

"Sorry for the ruckus, but please let me stay here for a while." Isabelle said with her hand on her head while leaning against the door.

"No" Without hesitation, Alan closed the door.

"Wait, hear me out!" Isabelle said in a muffled voice, "I was attacked!"

Alan opened the door slightly and looked at Isabelle, "You look fine to me."

"Sexually."

"..." Alan stared blankly at Isabelle and then gave a deep sigh, "You better not be joking. Anyway, come in." Alan opened the door, allowing Isabelle to come in and then he poked his head outside the door to make sure no one was watching. As Alan closed the door, he turned around to see that Isabelle was glaring into his soul. "Umm...yes?" Alan felt uncomfortable by the intense glare he was receiving.

"I didn't know you were a playboy."

"I'm not though. I'm just watching over them until it's safe."

"So it's two." Isabelle's stare only became harsher after hearing that.

"Look, nothing is happening with me nor am I even thinking of doing anything to them." Alan ushered Isabelle to the table, "Now how were you 'attacked'."

"I don't know." Isabelle quickly responded.

"..." Now it was Alan giving Isabelle a death stare as he became quite annoyed after hearing that.

"Maybe I should elaborate...ha...ha.." Isabelle gave an awkward laugh as she felt the pressure of Alan's glare. "I woke up inside of a high-class room within a love hotel. I have no memory of going there and I know something happened to me because my bra was out of place when I woke up."

"Maybe you got knocked up by some guy while you were drunk?" Alan said nonchalantly as he continued to glare at her, trying to see if she is actually telling the truth or not. Isabelle, heartbroken by his lack of trust, stood up defeated and went towards Alan's bed and dramatically fell onto it.

"Why don't you believe me!?"

Alan stopped his staring and ignored her as he walked into the kitchen to begin prepping for breakfast. "Soo...you hungry?" He asked Isabelle without looking at her.

"...You know, you have a terrible personality. But yes, I am hungry." Moments later, two girls stepped out of the bathroom, fully clothed in borrowed clothing from Evangela, and walked over to the small table on the floor, and sat down looking at Isabelle. Isabelle took a good look at the two girls and then turned to look at Alan. Without turning around, Alan spoke out loud to counter any dumb remark Isabelle was just about to say to him.

"There is nothing going on between me and those girls. I'm just their protector." He then walked over to the small table and the four of them enjoyed a small breakfast of eggs and sausage while having small talk about Isabelle's mysterious night.

After they finished eating, Tony stopped by to pick up the two girls and he drove them to the police station, or so Alan thought. As the three walked out the door, Alan sensed a familiar presence. "..." Alan looked around the room, hoping to find the source.

"Umm…" Isabelle said while watching Alan aimlessly walk around the small apartment room. "Something the matter?"

"No, it's nothing." Alan gave up and walked towards the door, "I'm gonna head to work. You can stay here if you want, just don't make a mess." He then waved Isabelle goodbye as he closed the door and made his way towards the train station.

~~~0~~~

As Alan entered the workshop, he beelines his way towards the employee room.

"What, not even a good morning?" A cheerful old man shouted from across the employee's room entrance, slightly surprised to see Alan.

"Mornin, I'm not in a good mood so don't expect a friendly attitude from me for a while," Alan said while resuming his walk towards the room.

"He-hey, I thought you had some kiddos to take care of, well that's what the muscle head cop said at least," Sawyer said, seeming desperate to grab Alan's attention.

"Yeah, but then he stopped by to pick them up, so I came here to work." Alan resumed walking once more.

"Didja know-"

Alan turned to look at Sawyer with a hint of respectful irritation, "Sir, if you are worried about stalling me for Maria's sake, then don't worry about it. All I'm gonna do is put my stuff down and start working." Alan gently placed his hand on the door's handle and gently opened it. As he opened the door, he expected to see Maria changing, however, that was not quite the sight he saw. Instead of Maria, he saw a short female figure's back with long dark purple hair zipping up a workplace jacket. Upon hearing the door open, she glanced back at the entrance to see Alan. They both stared at each other without saying a word.

"..."

"..."

"Hey, boss? Care to explain?" Alan closed the door to the employee room and glared at the old man who was currently whistling away as if he had no part in the current event. The door behind Alan began to slowly creak open and out came Renne wearing a short-sleeved, brown jacket with her dark purple hair tied behind her back. Upon seeing this, Sawyer quietly grabbed a canned coffee and stared at the two.

"Well my child, in accordance with the agreement I made with the EDPD, during the day Renne will be here under my protection while you SHOULD be in school." Alan sighed and looked at Renne then back at Sawyer.

"I guess that means I have been cleared to go back?"

"Yup, so go. You can come back later."

"Yessir, I guess." Alan responded with little emotion as he walked out the door to the workshop. As Alan walked out, Renne looked at Sawyer with concern in her eyes. Sawyer noticed her look and gave a small chuckle.

"Don't worry small one," Renne's look shifted from worried to annoyed by his words, "I'm sure he'll sleep at school. But It does concern me that he looks very exhausted.

~~~0~~~

The time was currently noon, and under a tree at a large academy in the heart of the Eastern District sat four students, Evangela, Marshal, Lucianna, and Audrey. Usually, this spot would see no more than two students, but due to Evangela being an addition to the group and the transfer of Lucianna and Audrey, the small hang out of Alan and Marshal's would now be a slight hindrance due to the other students finding interest in the new transfers. As the group received stares from passersby checking out the two new girls, a familiar face walked by and forcefully sat next to Marshal and leaned on his back.

"Well, you're late, by about four hours." Marshal said while adjusting himself to be comfortable with Alan leaning on him.

"Shut it." Alan said as he closed his eyes, "I've had a busy day and apparently surprises keep jumping out at me."

"Heh...heh…" Evangela gave an awkward laugh, "Sorry for not telling you sooner, Maverick came to our place this morning and told us the plan of action with Renne and these two. But enough of that, are you okay, you look dead."

"..." Alan pretended that he fell fast asleep.

"Damn that was fast!" Marshal said sarcastically, knowing that Alan wasn't really asleep. "At any rate, let's continue our relaxing break before more tests."

"Before what?" Alan jolted up.

"Heh heh, you forgot didn't you."

"..." Alan stood up and brushed off his pants before attempting to walk away from the area, but just as he did a tall middle-aged teacher, wearing a red and black tracksuit ran up and grabbed him by his hoodie. "Oh for fuck sake-"

"Nice to see that you are well, ALAN." The teacher looked directly at Alan's head as Alan refused to make eye contact. "But just where on earth do you think you are going?"

"..." Alan made no motion to resist the teacher's force. This prompted the teacher to let go of Alan's hoodie, causing Alan to turn around and look the teacher in the eyes. Alan gave a forced smile and said in a forced cheerful tone, "Looks like you caught me, sir. I'll make my way towards the classroom now. Alan slowly inched his way towards the entrance of the school gates. But before having the chance to bolt out, he was stopped by a strong arm. Alan traced the arm and found himself staring at a buff-looking school security guard with an irritating smile on his face. "Tch" Alan sucked his teeth as the officer escorted him into the building where he was not seen again for the rest of the day.

Back at the tree stood two dumbfounded girls watching this unfold while the other two were unfazed. The two looked back at them and were baffled by their non-existent reactions.

"Umm...does that not bother you?" Audrey was the first to speak up.

"Oh?" Marshal looked at her, "You actually care about him?"

"Not in particular, I just wanna know why his closest friend isn't cornered at the fact that he was just basically kidnapped by a teacher."

"Oh, that." Evangela said while packing up her lunch, "For Alan, this is normal. He's notorious for skipping and helping the teachers out, mostly because of his skipping. So most likely he was taken to take his tests privately and to probably help grade some teachers' assignments as punishment for skipping the first four hours-" The sound of the antique school bell echoed a strange unfamiliar tone, and Marshal and Evangela looked at each other with concern. Marshal immediately opened his air console then turned at the girls.

"I'm assuming this isn't normal?" Audrey said with a slight look of concern as she slowly moved towards Lucianna.

"No...and my air console can't connect to any networks either." As the sounds continued to echo throughout the air, a loud faint voice was heard coming from the school building.

"Damn it, boy. Stop running away." The voice was unknown to the four, but it sounded like one of the senior teachers trying to chase down a student.

Marshal then heard footsteps from behind and quickly turned around to see a masked figure holding a knife to his throat. "..." Marshal stayed calm while the other three girls didn't move a muscle as the masked figure held Marshal.

"Well played." The figure said in a distorted voice. "Though it's more for me when my victims fight back." The figure pressed his knife gently on Marshal's neck, causing a small amount of blood to drip down. "Anyway, I have just one demand and if you want this boy to live, you'll do well to obey." The girls stood there quietly. "All I want is the rich brat and the man-hating genius."

"Why?" Audrey asked while staring at the masked man. However, the man didn't like that and pressed his knife a little harder on Marshal's neck. "...!" A look of regret appeared on Audrey's face as she watched more blood drip from Marshal's neck.

"Na na na, that's not how this works." The masked man shook his head. "I made a simple request, the two of you walk with me, and the other two leave alive. But since you failed a simple request, you get to watch your friend DIE!" The masked man pulled back his knife and tried to pierce Marshal's neck, however, just before he made contact, a ball of fire slammed into his mask. The man jumped back, letting go of Marshal, and looked in the direction of the fireball. Before the man could see where the fireball came from, Marshal charged at the masked man and punched him in the gut. "Heh." The man brushed off the attack and called forth a silver mist. Out from the mist came four small mechanical dolls, each with a dagger in both hands. Marshal jumped back and regrouped with the girls. "Well done. You little kiddos do know how to fight back. Too bad you're still dead." The man motioned his hand towards the entrance of the door of the school and his four dolls dashed towards the area. He then faded into his mist and reappeared next to Marshal in a new outfit. Marshal blocked the man's surprise attack and the man stood and laughed. "Hehehe...So damn annoying." The man looked at Marshal through his newly acquired silver mask and outfit and raised his left hand to Marshal. "To think a normal human would be strong enough to stop this vessel." The man sighed, "These artificial wielders are useless."

"More like you're just weak." Marshal taunted the man as he charged at him. The man was taken by surprise at the speed Marshal ran at. Unable to protect himself, Marshal threw a punch that sent the man flying into a nearby tree. "...To think I let myself be held captive by a scrawny man like you." Marshal shook his hand as if he punched a metal wall. "Damn that hurt." He said quietly. The man laid motionless at the tree. "Heh." Marshal walked up to the man and reached out to grab the man's mask. Just as Marshal reached over, he noticed something move in his peripheral vision and that something leaped at him. Just before the unknown object made contact, a blur of flames flashed past him and sent the object flying. Just as the object was sent flying, Marshal saw the masked man disappear into a silver mist. Marshal then turned behind him and noticed Alan standing next to him with black marking covering his body with cut and charred clothing. The silver mist then surrounded the five of them in a tightly enclosed area. Marshal then turned to the girls. "You guys alright?"

"Yeah...he didn't touch us." Evangela said with a worried tone as the mist began to tighten.

Alan didn't say a word as he turned back to the girls. He then turned towards Marshal and nodded. Marshal picked up on the hint and backed towards the girls. Alan then raised his left hand and a crimson mist conjugated around his hand. As the mist in his hand thickened, a figure appeared from the silver mist and slashed a small knife at Alan. Alan smiled a little as the mist in his hand ignited into a large flame and he threw a ball of fire at the figure. The ball of fire connected with the figure and the silver mist dissipated, revealing a small group of mechanical dolls with a silver man holding his face. The man's mask disappeared from Alan's fireball. The man then looked at Alan with a bloodthirsty look as black markings appeared on top of his silver outfit. Small doll-like figures grew out of the markings as the man's face no longer showed emotion.

"..." The dolls surrounding the silver and black man stared soullessly at the five.

"..." Alan looked at the man and with a slight look of concern. "That may have been a mistake…"

"A mistake? How?" Marshal said, keeping his eyes on the dolls as he guarded the girls.

"That man was being consumed by corruption and that silver mask was the last thing stopping it from taking over his body." Alan then summoned a large ball of mist behind him. "Marshal, on my signal, grab the girls and run. There is no way I can beat this guy."

"Couldn't you kill him with that big sword of yours?" Evangela said.

Alan shook his head. "For reasons I cannot tell you; I cannot summon my blade. But I can stall for your escape."

"..." The four of them looked at Alan and then at each other. They then quietly prepared themselves to run on Alan's signal.

As Alan and the dolls stared at each other, the silver-dressed man raised his hand and Alan shouted, "NOW!" As Marshal and the girls fled the area, Alan released a ball of flames at the rushing doll army and a large explosion sent large volumes of ash and dust into the air around the school building. From within the ash-covered field, the silver man leaped at Alan and slashed a part of his hoodie. After his attack, Alan noticed that an implant located on his right arm began to flash a whitish-grey color. The man stopped moving as if he was a robot receiving new orders and then vanished into a small silver mist. As the ash and dust from the explosion cleared, Alan looked around at the aftermath and noticed that all the dolls were gone.

"..." Alan was dumbfounded by the attack. He then noticed a shattered mask lying on the ground. He went over to pick it up and noticed strange circuitry lined on the inside. "Mind control?"

"What the hell?" A teacher walked up behind Alan. "Just what happened here?"

"Mr. Clude, was anyone injured?" The teacher looked at Alan dumbfoundedly before shaking his no. "Good..." Alan then fell over. Black markings burned through his hoodie as he lied on the ground withering in pain.

"Hey...HEY!" The teacher tried to touch Alan but burned himself instead. He then opened his air console and called Linda. Linda then told the teacher that a couple of officers would come to pick him up. A few moments later, Tony and Maverick arrived at the scene with heat-resistant clothing. They both carried the boy to the car and then they drove off to the police station.

Off in the distance stood an aqua spirit that oversaw the whole conflict. He sat quietly on a rock near a large warehouse that belonged to the school. "..." Chronos gave a gentle sigh as he stood up from his rock. "I wonder why he didn't use the Crimson Princess."

"Maybe they got into a fight?" Loki said from Chronos' mouth. "Though I wonder what would happen if he killed a silver doll."

"I wonder too." Chronos then looked at the sky above. "Though is it a copycat or the real one."

"If you believe in immortality, then the latter. Though I wouldn't be surprised if she figured it out."

"Yeah…" Chronos then faded into an aqua mist.