It was a new task: separating color-coded forms. Sounded easy enough that morning, sure... until he realized there were five different blues. Two purples. Three reds. About eight greens, though some of them were color to blue and much too hard to organize that way. He just couldn't make heads or tails of the yellows... and by the time evening came, there was one rogue orange that he just could not for the life of him comprehend.
        It was the dismissive drawer slam that caught his attention. "You can clean up and take off, if you'd like. I'm going myself, so use the security lock on your way out."
        The way she'd sounded so damn drained, worn out and tired got Rean to look up. Despite her assurance that she was leaving, she was draped over her desk, head uncharacteristically in her hands in what appeared to be complete exhaustion. Maybe just frustration. Part of him was perfectly ready to throw those papers and run for it. The other part... was still an idiot. "Something wrong, sir?"
        "She sighed through her fingers, not bothering to lift her head. "Some damn... ceremony... thing." She muttered with annoyance, bleeding slowly into something a little more raw. "For the victims of the Rush. Every year, I just can't manage to hide. It's not as if I want anyone to come looking for me..." If someone found the abandoned area, that wasn't really so bad; no one would think twice. If someone found it while she was there, it was quite likely to be taken away entirely.
        His throat went dry for a moment. The way she'd said it was just... too unlike her. Painful and tortured and wanting to get away... but he had a collision with genius. Hopefully.
        Rakashi felt the light tapping on her arm, quickly raising her head to look out of the sheer surprise of physical contact. Actually seeing the object tapping her arm offered no more answers.
        "My key card." Rean informed her, shrugging like it were nothing. "My room's 472. I don't think they'll find you in there."
        She stared at him in something he first thought might be horror. Her eyes were too revealing--but whatever emotion had been there was quickly hidden once again. "Rean..?"
        He couldn't swallow. He couldn't even speak. He didn't really know what the hell was going on, but... he knew that she must have expected some kind of response. "Hm?"
        The general looked like there was a great deal more to say, like she wanted to express something... but it fell from her eyes as a learned mask of indifference went up like a shield. "Thank you."

------------------------

        Captain Dulce didn't even bother to sneak up on him. It was late, and wonder of wonders, he seemed too tired to be quite as much of an irritation. "What the hell are you doing wandering the halls so late?"
        That was a very good question. One that Rean had no desire to answer. "Mrm." He responded, and kept walking.
        Demi was clearly not one to give up so easily. "You did something, didn't you? Lost your key? Accidentally wielded your door shut?"
        "Only you would do something like that." His friend mumbled, unfortunately feeling a bit more awake. Dammit, the captain made him think.
        "Oh come on. You should be fast asleep by now. Rakashi isn't keeping you, is she?"
        If he thought he had a chance in hell of escaping, he most definitely would have tried. As it was, he was already a little concerned about stumbling over his own feet and winding up in the infirmary. "My room is... occupied."
        The captain graced him with a moment's most bizarre and precious thing: silent shock. "Wh..?" escaped first, quietly. Several paces later, he found the coherency to speak a half-decent, "What?"
        "I don't want to deal with your damn 'good-natured bullshit' right now, okay?" Rean tried to shout. He really gave it a decent shot. He could never really manage to yell at Demi, because despite the teasing and the surface idiocy, the man had really never meant ill at any point in his life. "I gave her my key card."
        Another very odd silence passed, rendering Captain Dulce expressionless for quite a surprising while. "Wait. You gave... Rakashi... your key card?"
        "Yes." His friend hissed quietly, steps getting faster.
        And yet one more uncharacteristic pause. All of a sudden, there was that damned grin again. "Oh, Rean. Rean, you poor boy."
        He did not ask. He did not want to know. He just kept walking.
        "Rakashi has the Skeleton." Demi informed him.
        Well now that got him to stop with a bit of a skid. "Wh--does that mean what I think it means?"
        The grin only brightened. "Yup. She's got the only card in the Tower that opens every door on every level. The idiots only made one, and she got her hands on it."
        The information had a slight time-stopping effect. Rean's brain took a bit to digest the information. Then the implications. Well, really that had meant nothing, right? The general already had her places to hide, and the offer of his quarters was totally insignificant.
        Except for the fact that he'd offered in the first place. And she'd accepted with a simple thanks. No argument, no information divulged. She had his card for no reason then, dammit.
        It was too late and he was too tired to try and wrap his mind around anything at that point. He couldn't even manage to make excuses for his still-grinning idiot friend. "Fine. I'm going to go sleep on Rakashi's desk, then."
        "It's only fair." Demi agreed, still grinning.

------------------------

        The raven-haired man seemed intent to follow him all the way to the general's office, mostly to see if he really would sleep on the desk. It was a touch of sick fascination, maybe, and a need for amusement at that time of night. What neither of them were prepared for was to run into Rakashi herself on her way out of the office.
        "Sir?" Rean asked softly, doing everything in his power to pretend that Demi didn't exist just then.
        Instead of any real response or explanation, she reached into her pocket and held out his card. "Thanks for the thought. But I found another way out."
        He blinked slowly before reaching for the offered card, mentally swearing that if his friend elbowed him in the ribs at that point, he would not hesitate to punch him in the face. "Oh." He responded stupidly.
        Demi made a sudden and very surprising move by initializing conversation without insult. "So... you're technically off duty and still here, General?"
        She regarded him with the same sort of slightly startled pause that Rean was feeling. "Technically speaking, I am never off duty, Captain. I simply elect to choose my own working hours."
        Surprising them more still, the raven-haired man laughed pleasantly as if he and Rakashi talked all the time. "Well then. Care to follow us down to the cafeteria for a way-past-midnight snack?"
        Rean was utterly mortified. The general, on the other hand, gave a soft snort of amusement. "I really don't think I'd be welcome there, I'm sure you understand."
        "Ah, right." Demi grinned. "Banned and all."
        The conversation (such as it was) was interrupted by a call from down the hallway. "I really don't think the admiral is going to appreciate what you wrote on the side of his rental car."
        The group looked over at who had spoken--and Rean was a little surprised to recognize the man. It was that janitor from a few days ago that had been talking to Demi in the cafeteria. He supposed "small world" didn't apply to the Tower. More like, "small universe".
        Something that seemed confirmed when Rakashi just grinned at the man. "I'm sure I could say something wise about sacrifice right now, but... 'two birds with one stone' seems more apt."
        The janitor rolled his eyes. "So much for behaving yourself."
        Her grin turned just a little vicious. "Sorry, boys, I've got to go be reprimanded."
        Rean waited until the general and the janitor had both disappeared in opposite directions before he spoke up softly, "Do they know each other or something?"
        Demi shrugged. "He works this area, so I assume they know each other, yeah. Always best to get in good with the staff, you know?"
        Well, that was... interesting. "But not superior officers?"
        The captain slapped him on the back, effectively getting him moving toward his own quarters. "Are you trying to find logic in Rakashi?"
        Well, that was a good point. Damn, he really did need some sleep. Coming across an open lift that would be a faster route to his bed than walking, he slipped his key card in and waited for it to process.
        "I thought you only had level 6 clearance."
        Rubbing his eyes, Rean turned back tiredly to try and figure out what the hell his friend was talking about that time. "Yeah..?"
        "Says there you've got All-Level Clear." Demi's grin was getting dangerous. "Oh, Rean. You poor, poor boy, Rean."
        It was too late for this. To make his brain wrap around what the hell had happened. And yet he was just awake enough to turn back and see what the captain was referring to on the panel read-out. All-Level Clear. With his name beneath. It was his key card, yeah... but it was also a copy of the Skeleton. Rakashi had reprogrammed his card.
        "Well." The raven-haired man patted his shoulder. "Good luck there, kid."
        There was no verbal response. He just took his card back, stepped into the lift and prayed that everything would make sense in the morning.

------------------------

        His hopes were dashed, of course. Not for any particular reason, exactly; it was just that he couldn't sleep. When he had first realized his affliction, he'd cursed quite loudly then turned over and tried to clear his mind. When that clearly wasn't working, Rean counted. Whatever he could think of. Nothing. Nearly three hours of sleep that weren't happening. Considering the way his mind kept running back to that fact, he was pretty sure that the rest of the night was going to be a loss as well.
        Sitting up with a ragged sigh, he stared at the clock with accusation. Well... he could go bother Demi. The man had it coming to him, for one, and if sleep wasn't going to happen anyway... It was a very Rakashi thing to do, he imagined. Then tried very hard to ignore that idea as he got dressed.
        The Captain's quarters were on a different floor than his, and a damn lot nicer. That was to be expected. For there to be activity around the bend as he was walking through the hallway really wasn't expected, but he hardly thought that everyone kept the same hours. His steps slowed when the conversation started to sound particularly heated, but they stopped altogether when he heard the words.
        "Don't you dare." Rean had been sure that he was hearing things, that he was actually a lot more tired than he thought and was just looking forward to annoying his friend, but... pressing up against the wall, he really listened. "Don't you fucking dare go neither either of them, do you hear me?"
        That was... Demi. That was a snarl that he didn't think the captain was in the least bit capable of. What could he possibly be talking about? And who the hell could he ever be talking to? The man was friendly with everyone...
        Another voice, then. Unfamiliar and accented, soft and hard to make out. Rean held his breath and strained his ears, trying to make out the words. It only took a few seconds for him to wish he hadn't. "No motion has been made for a very long time. We would not want this entire operation to be a waste, would we?"
        "I'm warning you." Captain Dulce hissed, sounding every bit as though that wasn't a threat; sounding nothing like Demi. "I don't give a damn what the Control Room does to me--"
        "Then think of what she will do to you when she finds out. Or that boy you've become so adept at protecting. Captain."
        Rean's blood ran cold, not sure if his heart was beating too quickly to follow or had stopped altogether. He could have heard wrong. He might just be somehow flattering himself by thinking he'd actually been mentioned in that conversation. Of course, this could all be a giant hallucination. Please be a hallucination, please be a hallucination...
        "Like you'd ever tell her the truth anyway." Demi's voice was a great deal more tired, then. It seemed like he had something else to say, the pause spanning quite a chasm of time--but all he did was turn and walk away.
        But not toward the hiding brunet. Thank whatever powers existed; Rean was able to force his feet to move, quietly walking back along the wall from where he'd come, headed for the lift and then straight back to his room.
        Though... dammit. There was a back way to the captain's quarters. He really should go make sure that his friend was alright, even if it might mean admitting what he'd heard. Whatever that had been about, it was serious and quite possibly extremely dangerous. Which he was sure that even Demi would agree he should stay out of. Since when had he listened to that idiot's advice?
        He stopped for a moment to glance at that key card. Having every level open in the Tower also meant that he could go report this. A sardonic smile appeared on his lips at the very thought. Rakashi hadn't held back in telling him that he was pretty much useless here as he was. Making trouble, reporting something that clearly wasn't his business, might well be the last decision he would ever make.
        Turning the card over before placing it back in his pocket, Rean sighed. "Dammit." Turning, he decided that the back way was definitely his best bet.
        He hadn't made it three steps down the hall before he stopped short with surprise. "I know I've said this before, but what the hell are you doing wandering the halls so late?"
        Demi. Just... regular, smiling, jovial idiot Demi. Like a few minutes ago didn't even happen... "Um..."
        The captain snorted and caught Rean by the shoulders, turning him around. "Uh-uh. No way I'm going to let you wander around half-awake and then get blamed for you falling asleep in the middle of whatever Rakashi's having you sort through tomorrow. Have a few shots if you need to, but go to sleep. Captain's orders."
        There was a numb pause before the brunet laughed in spite of himself. "Captain's orders?"
        "It's totally legitimate, too." Demi grinned.
        He was sort of amazed that his jaw didn't unhinge. After what he was sure he'd heard, and then his friend just acting perfectly fine... The turn was dizzying, to put it mildly. And maybe he was too damn tired to make any sense of it. "Okay, fine. But tomorrow, I have something to talk to you about."
        The older man did the worst possible thing that he could have done in that moment: he was simply himself. "You can buy condoms pretty much anywhere, kid."
        "Demi!"
        "Ssshh, don't wake the rest of the world up on your account." With another grin, he lightly shoved Rean into the lift and mock-saluted as the doors closed.
        This went a little further than just "not right"... but the bastard was right. He really did need the sleep. He was just pretty sure that he needed a more complicated lock on his door. If all else failed, he really could crash on Rakashi's desk...
        It really was kind of a stupid idea to seek out the general. Even with the quick ride down a couple of floors, there was time to absorb the wrong of Demi's angry words, the possibilities of what they might mean... Though maybe he simply shouldn't assume who was being talked about. It was quite a bit of ego to do so. Then again... who else could it be?
        Shaking his head as he stepped off, he knew he'd only drive himself crazy trying to figure it out. Even so... he honestly doubted that the general would lie to him if he asked directly about this. Maybe she didn't know, maybe--
        Maybe she was the "she" who was being discussed. The pit of his stomach clenched and dropped, and for a moment he had to reach out for a wall just to be sure he wouldn't weave. This was all probably silly. In his head. The "she" could be a psychotic ex of Demi's for all he knew.
        It was a feeling that Rean couldn't shake, however. Something was slipping, had already been slipping, and now at this point...
        He thought his heart was going to stop with that sound. Panicked, high-pitched blaring as the lights started to flash--a siren of some kind. All the years he'd been there, he'd never heard a thing like it, never remembered it being mentioned. The siren wasn't the worst part, though.
        "ATTENTION: THE TOWER IS BEING INVADED. BATTLE MODE ACTIVATION. TAKE YOUR POSITIONS." Over and over against the siren, barely above it, both screaming to him in different ways and in different tones.
        There was just enough coherent thought left to wonder how the fuck something as fortified and important as the Tower could possibly be invaded... but that wasn't really what he was focused on. He had to find Rakashi, and he would have bet money that she was in her office.

------------------------

        He felt lost in the crowds that moved past him. There were more than just night shifters, the siren having thrown a lot of people out of bed and half-ready for whatever it was they were rushing off to. Rean supposed that he just plain didn't want to know, slipping between the waves of people toward... well, whatever it was he expected to get to. The general's office, that was all he really thought about. It was a good focus, leading him to hug the wall on the side of her office door so he wouldn't have to cross the streams of people who didn't even seem to acknowledge his existence. Well, just like usual.
        Taking the last turn in the hall just before the office revealed... no one. Not a single person moving or coming from that direction. Not surprising, considering the time of night, but it was still unsettling. Far too still, too silent.
        Until the loud crashing sound--two things meeting at high speed with great power. Why he felt the need to run toward it, he didn't know; until he realized that the sound had come from Rakashi's office, the door open.
        "What aren't you telling me?"
        It was incredibly unfortunate that he recognized General Vrunai's yelling voice... but it was quite different that time. There had still been some restraint when she'd yelled in the Control Room. Here, that demand was something vicious, animalistic, barely human...
        Rean grasped the door frame to stop himself so that his momentum wouldn't carry him past. He was ready for a fight, or at least to offer a distraction--or so he'd thought.
        He could swear that Rakasi's eyes were glowing. Rings of pure shining gold that hurt his own eyes to look at; a pain beyond physical. It was absolutely unique, something he'd never touched or experienced before, but it was quite clearly negative. Something he didn't want to endure.
        Not that he could look away from it, either. Whether it was just plain shock rooting him to the spot, keeping his eyes wide and focused, Rean just didn't have the ability to work out. Especially not when he noticed that Rakashi had someone pinned against the wall. Of course he'd only noticed because she'd pulled that someone away just to slam them back against it... "What the hell is going on?"
        That was where the shock really seeped into him, leaving him cold and completely numb. He saw the face of the receiving end of the general's surprisingly brutal rage. Utterly unmistakable. But it couldn't be, it just... it couldn't...
        Demi..?
        They noticed one another at the same time, the captain looking like some combination of relieved, terrified and sorrowful all at once. "Wrong" was a word that no longer held meaning enough to describe. The man opened his mouth to speak, unable at first. Whether it was a mix of emotions or those hands clutching onto his collar to hold him above the ground and against the wall was unclear. When the words finally did tumble awkwardly from his friend's mouth, he wished they hadn't.
        "Get out, Rean." His voice was shaking, surprisingly, rough and weak--but demanding. Certain. "Leave the Tower. Now."
        He just... he couldn't understand... "D-Demi..?
        "What is it?" General Vrunai hissed, ignoring the rest, pressing up hard against the man's rib cage. If she had to systematically break every last one...
        Captain Dulce surprised them both by shaking his head and sighing unevenly. "I'm afraid... this is for your own good, Rakashi."
        Too fast to follow. Too many things happened at once. The general's hold suddenly slipped, her body tensing before falling limply. There was something in Demi's hand, glowing with electricity--
        Rean's eyes felt altogether too large. As did everything... everything happening, everything unfolding around him. He couldn't even back away as his friend approached.
        "I'm sorry, Rean."
        No chance for questions. No room even for gasping with the suddenness of the enormous emptiness that surrounded him as all went black and cold.