Juuichi-ji Gojuukyu-fun
By Team GEMINI
Yuki : Okay, so you've probably guessed it by now... we've uploaded 3 stories on teh same naightz. ;o Now these stories are options for you. If you review the stories they will ALL get updated, and if you don't review on 1 or more of the stories... well they get dropped. ;o Normally I'm patient when it comes to reviews so I will wait to see how everyone will react.
Anyways, the title here says "11:59pm". This story is a horror story that takes place on a Planet Cracker (Thank you Dead Space). ;D This story involves chainsaws... so beware.
Enjoy the story.
Chapter 1
Prologue - The Void
Tick-Tick-Tick-Tick-Tick
Raising heart was clasped tightly within my grasp, cracking under the pressure with a silent scream as pieces began to chip off of its cold body floating away. I couldn't shake the taste of iron in my mouth, not that I really had the choice. It hurt so much, it hurt so much. The pain my body was feeling weighed nothing compared to the pain welling within my chest both physically and metaphorically. You had left before me, leaving me to myself in a growing sea of our blood.
I was taking tiny breaths, losing the will to, no; I was losing the strength to live in all. Your beautiful face was adorned with a peaceful smile. Why wouldn't you be smiling, you had given up your life to protect my life. How foolish, we were both doomed to the very last minute. You and I, we were doomed to die the very moment we signed that blasted piece of paper, signing our lives away...
The Zero-G room that is to be our final resting place was dark, cold, damp, and most of all lonely. The only sound audible was the flickering of the faulty lights; the air vents wheezing, forcing steam to come out of the cracks, and the constant pitter-patter of clawed feet against the metal floors stained by blood. The only source of comfort I felt was your cold, bloody hand holding onto my own. I couldn't help but smile, I had always known we would die together, but not like this. I think I can die some-what happy now, I held your heart till the very end... literally.
A tiny sigh escaped my lips as my life finally came to an end. It was befitting that I died last. I...
It was a day like any other day. I sat in my desk doing paper work, followed by more paper work, followed by even more. Closing my eyes, I leaned back in my chair and breathed in deeply, exhaling only when my lungs couldn't contain any more air. I tilted my head to my right only to stop half way with a yelp.
"Ouchy!" I cried out. I reached for my ponytail and winced in pain. I had unknowingly sat on my pony tail. I looked around and noticed that people were staring a me. Frowning, I sent them a quick glare and said, "What are you looking at? Get back to work!"
"Yes, Ma'am!" they all shouted.
I placed my palm on my left eye and rubbed it. Sleep was trying to overcome me, and I was just weak enough to tremble at its feet. I couldn't stand the constant beeping of the holographic keyboards and the silent buzz of the holoscreens.
"Miku!" I called out rudely.
A girl, a few years my junior rushed to my side with a salute, her long hair swishing with every step she took. "You called, Ma'am?" She asked.
"Has there been a call from, Fleet Admiral Fate T. Harlaown... by any chance?" I asked her, my voice rising slightly. My personal attendant brought up a holoscreen of my past messages and scrolled through them. I was starting to get impatient by the silence she gave me. "Well?" I asked her impatiently.
Shaking her head, Miku closed the screen and stood up straight. "The Fleet Admiral has not left a message, Ma'am! Though you do, however, have a lunch meeting with General Yagami Hayate."
"When?" I asked her drolly. My mood soured dramatically after hearing of the absence of a message from the Naval Officer.
"Um, about..." Miku gulped. "About an hour ago, Ma'am." My eyes widened in fright as a chill ran up my spine. I had missed a lunch date with my superior officer. "Wo-Would you like me to contact the General and inform her of your apology?"
I shook my head and said, "I can Handle, General Hayate on my own, thank you." Miku nodded her head and asked if I had anything else in mind for her, when I said no she had left with much haste. I leaned back in my chair and grinned as I closed my eyes. "It must really suck being the, The White Devil's, personal assistant huh?" I muttered to myself with a rueful laugh. "And when is it that I got notorious enough to get the word 'The' before my codename?"
"Because you've been notoriously late for your lunch date with your superior officer, as well as your old friend. So wake up, soldier!" a whimsical voice replied. My eyes shot open as I looked into the cerulean eyes of the person I had forgotten about. "Good to see you're awake, Nanoha-chan!"
"H-Hayate-chan, I'm sorry for not coming today." I mumbled sheepishly.
"It's okay..." Hayate's words drifted away slowly as she looked at my left hand. "Hey you're still wearing the ring." she said with a relaxed tone of voice, almost as if she was relieved to see me clinging onto my marriage.
"Yea..." I replied weakly, hiding my left hand underneath my right.
"Haven't you two been divorced for like what, two years? Three?" she asked me.
"Yea... but when you've worn something like for almost half of your life, you feel awkward without it." I said, chuckling lightly. I was with one person for my whole life, I didn't have to go searching everywhere to find my soul mate... but because of duty we were forced apart.
"True..."
I sat up straight and organized some of my papers, praying that I could forget the painful memory I carried with me. Whilst I was filing, my mind drifted back to the Fleet Admiral and said, "I haven't gotten a message from the Fleet Admiral for over a month. I'm starting to get worried."
"Nanoha, come with me. I have something important to discuss with you." Hayate said to me, no she ordered me to. The woman before me lost her playful expression and replaced it with a more serious, a more official stare tha belonged a high ranking officer.
"About what?" I asked her, my interest finally perking up.
Hayate sighed and crossed her arms. "I was supposed to tell you during our lunch date but you didn't show." she said in a matter of fact kind of way.
"Oh..." I mumbled with a blush.
Hayate had ordered the people under my supervision to take five and rest up while we talked. Everyone saluted us on our way out; unusually enough Hayate ignored them and took us in the direction to her office. It must be a pretty important issue to make Hayate forget about her favorite part of being in the military. So I followed her wordlessly until we reached her office.
"So what is this about?" I asked her whilst she entered the security pin to her office door. Hayate didn't respond as quickly as I had hoped. She led us into her office and I noticed that we were not alone in this room.
My mind went blank as I stared at the woman before me. Long beautiful blonde hair, well built figure cloaked by black, a stunningly beautiful face, but her eyes were the wrong color. I smiled at her weakly and turned away. My mind has been playing tricks on me lately, and I mistook the beautiful blonde as the Fleet Admiral.
"I see you are doing well, Nanoha-san." the woman who I now recognize as Carim said.
"I'm as well as I'll ever be I guess." I replied. "The White Devil cannot be taken down so easily." Carim giggled quietly and returned to Hayate's side.
The blonde who reminded me of the Admiral was Carim Gracia. She is one of the holy knights sent here to serve as a sign of a peace treaty between the TSAB and the Church of Martel. Not only is she a sign of peace, but she is also recognized as a military agent working along side the young general before me. Though this is a little known fact, so little that only my ex-wife and I know of it, but Carim and Hayate are secretly lovers.
Hayate pressed a white button on a small pad bringing down a large black screen. "Two years ago, when the higher ups demanded you and your wife to get divorced... I was told not to tell you the reason why." she said, her voice wavering as she spoke her words slowly. She was scared of my reaction and sought out for Carim's hand on her shoulder.
"What?" I blurted out in shock. I felt an unknown anger well up inside of me.
"Lieutenant General, please do not be angry at me, I opposed the idea with everything I had." Hayate explained with a quiver in her voice. She looked at me with a guilty expression, on the verge of tears. She had betrayed her best friend's trust by staying silent of the matter. She took a deep breath and continued her explanation."They sent her up to the Planet Cracker: Hokkyokusei, The Polaris, as the commanding officer because she was the only one able to pilot it effectively."
"The Polaris, heh, that's her pet project..." I said to myself quietly.
"Anyways, moving on." Hayate said. She pushed yet another button, dimming the lights till the room was pitch black. "We received a transmission, it was sent about a month ago."
Crossing my arms I frowned. "That's about the time she stopped contacting me."
"Normally what I'm about to show you is top secret information, but since it deals with you personally I..." Hayate paused and took a deep breath. "I have been given permission to let you view it. I warn you, you will not like the contents of this transmission."
"Bring it." I replied with an haughty chuckle. Nothing in this world could displease me anymore then I already am.
"Nanoha, I just want to make sure you remember how the Admiral received her rank." Hayate said, her voice low and treading carefully.
"She received the rank Fleet Admiral because she was the lead engineer of The Polaris's creation." I stated quickly. "Honestly, how can I forget? She received the title a day after we got divorced."
"Glad you remember," Hayate giggled quietly. "And Nanoha chan?"
"Hm?"
"Sorry for making you remember." Hayate mumbled before pushing the big red button on the button pad.
"No problem..."
Beginning Transmission
A beautiful blonde woman appeared on the large black screen. Her face took my breath away instantly drawing me towards her. I felt myself tremble the mere sight of her, she was hurt, and she was hurt badly. There was a large gash that looked like a claw mark on her left eye. My heart was screaming for Hayate to stop the video, but I couldn't utter a word. My pride had gotten in the way.
"I am, Fleet Admiral Fate T. Harla-... I am Fleet Admiral Fate Takamachi. Head engineer, as well as commanding officer of the TSAB operated Planet Cracker: Hokkyokusei, The Polaris.
"I have sent you a video of an autopsy the medical team conducted without my approval, of a creature I had personally killed. I-It was just one monster... but now, but now they've spread like the plague.
"The monsters are of Martian decent, that I can account for. It appears that they multiply by antigens released into the air, and breathed in by organic life forms. I would have attempted to purify the air system VIA the air system filter, but doing so would activate the dormant antigens within the dead bodies of what ever is left of my crew.
"I must keep this transmission brief, so along with this transmission, and the autopsy recording, I have sent you an encrypted data file of all that I know about these... these... creatures.
"I personally don't know if I have been infected, or how long I will last here. So please, while I still have complete control of The Polaris, please blow this cursed station to oblivion before it enters Earth's gravitational field. Th-These monsters, ugh, they're constantly growing more aware of their surroundings, constantly evolving... learning.
"If this message reaches you Nanoha... I still love you. Now and forever."
End Of Transmission
"F-Fate..." I breathed out. The tears that threatened to come out where stopped by Hayate's words.
"You're divorce was a sham, Nanoha." Hayate confessed. My blood ran cold as her words imbedded themselves within my already broken heart. "The hire ups told you to request for a divorce, not because it was going against their wishes, but they did it so they could send Fate to man The Polaris."
"I... see..." I muttered darkly.
"Fate was the only one with the skill to pilot it effectively..." Hayate explained with a heavy sigh. "Seeing as how she's the daughter of a veteran commander, and the younger sister of one... it was only obvious who was to take the helm."
"I... understand..."
"We assumed that The Polaris was just drifting around slowly with no one manning it, seeing as we didn't really detect any life from it. We assumed the worst, Nanoha." Hayate said as she returned the room to normal. "Though after we received the transmission from Fleet Admiral Fate Takamachi, sensors began to pick up life signals, and they're multiplying..."
"O... okay..."
"Recently, distress signals were received, as well as real-time video feed of the survivors. It seems the Admiral was incorrect about her diagnoses."
"And what does this have to do with me?" I asked her, my heart breaking even more as seconds passed by.
"We got confirmation Fleet Admiral Fate Takamachi... is still alive."