View source for Desperate (Fate Testarossa)

{{Cutscene Header
|Date of Scene=2016/03/25
|Location=Skies Above Tokyo
|Synopsis=Fate sees the light at the end of her long tunnel, but Arf sees only darkness ahead.
|Cast of Characters=5
}}
Fate closed her eyes, and felt the vile tinge of darkness course through her like blood in her veins. At first it was a sickening feeling, but as she used it more and more she found that she could stomach it better. It was more 'bittersweet' than 'sickening', at this point. Maybe she just needed to get used to it?


	Arf, as always, was next to her. She was telepathically pleading with Fate, trying to get her to stop, or to cut back. "This is too much!" she'd say. "You'll get hurt!" Fate looked over herself, and even let herself get scanned by Bardiche. Aside from the corruption, she wasn't having any health issues. Arf's pleading was brushed aside.


	"This is only temporary," insisted Fate. "Don't worry about little details. Even if I get hurt, it's okay as long as I get what I want."


	"It's not okay if you get hurt!" Arf's shout came out before she even thought about it, and a chill ran down her spine when Fate looked at her.


	Yet, from Fate, there was nothing but warmth. A soft, gentle smile, and a small hand petting her orange hair. "Don't be afraid. I'm not going to hurt ''you''. You're my familiar."


	"... you didn't feel that way about that Ertiga girl."


	"She's not you. She's lucky mother was around."


	The look in Arf's eyes betrays a deep sadness, and a tinge of disappointment. She hesitates, but then she says, "... I think this is one of the 'personality changes' you told me to watch out for. As your familiar, I'm speaking up about it now. You never would've reacted that way if someone was mean to you before. She was ''barely'' being passive aggressive!"


	"She was laughing at us, she kept pointing out that this was my 'mother's' house, pointing out that I don't live there and I don't even get to see her most of the time, and I'm pretty sure the comment about the lack of coats was her way of implying that we weren't smart enough to be scientists. For all I know she hasn't even lived long enough to learn that people use coats for something other than lab work." Fate coldly recounts events, just as she sees them. "So yes. Passive aggressive."


	Arf can't think of a response, so alien is Fate's reaction, so ''paranoid'', but Fate does continue. "You're right. I never would've cared about something like that before. Thank you. You're always looking out for me. I'll try to be more patient with her..." Fate searches for a word, and finds one that a member of Eclipse would use, "... ignorance."


Arf almost looks relieved, but it doesn't last. How can it, with a response like that? What Fate's doing to herself isn't good, and she's too determined, too ''desperate'', to stop. Fate needs help, Arf decides, and the familiar's not even sure how she's going to get it.


Will Arf end up like Ayana, running away from her master? ... No, not Arf. This behavior isn't Fate, and she knows it. If Arf runs away, she's taking Fate with her, no matter what state she's in. Even if Fate doesn't understand at the time. Even if Fate is angry with her.


Arf is hesitant to ask. "So... you told your mother that you had other tasks to perform after setting up the network. You've already done that, so what's next?"


"The network will only tell me if a new Jewel Seed appears. It won't tell me about any Jewel Seeds that remain dormant in the city. I still need to find those." Fate's explanation is clear enough to Arf. "If I do a city-wide forced activation, it will attract more attention than I can handle, and the Jewel Seeds will be scattered all over the city. I won't have time to claim them all before someone else does."


Arf looks up at the gathering storm clouds above. Her master's creation. "So... your plan is to work on a smaller scale, so if there are any of them around you can reach them in time."


Fate smiles softly at Arf. "That's right. I can search area by area. If there are any to find, I'll get to them, and I'll be prepared."


"... and you'll be using dark energy to do this?" Arf's tone is apprehensive. She tries to hide her worry from Fate, but the telepathic link gives more away than she'd prefer.


Fate glances towards her, but the back up at the storm clouds. "I'll have to. Could you imagine if I tried doing this without dark energy? I'd spend so much of my own stamina that I wouldn't even be able to handle a fight if one happened."


Arf can't really deny that. With the kinds of spells that Fate knows, she could easily wear herself out if she weren't careful... but this way isn't necessarily better. "You don't have to go this far for her... you can just leave. Ayana did, and she's happy now!"


"I am ''so close''." Fate reaches up, her gloved hand grasping at the sky. "I am so close to making her happy. I can't stop now."


Arf watches as the golden magical circle appears and spreads out from Fate's feet. Lightning crashes around them. Rain falls. No Jewel Seed. Once Fate is sure, she withdraws her magic, and the storm fades soon after.


"... How long do you think this will take?" Arf has to know, because each time Fate uses that...


"It should take weeks, maybe even a couple of months for me to search the whole city," admits Fate. "Especially at this rate, and especially if I don't want to overextend. There's no point in finding one if I don't have the power to fight for it."


"I see." So... Arf has time to find help. She has time to do something. She has time to make a difference... but she also has a limit to that time. What should she even do?


Arf turns away. Fate notices. "Are you going somewhere?"


Arf looks over her shoulder at her master with a sad smile. "I won't be far. I'll be around if you need help." Fate nods, and Arf leaves her side. 


It's scary seeing her like this, but Arf doesn't really blame Fate. She's desperate for her mother's sake. 


Arf's desperate, too. For Fate's sake.