Xenosaga: Gottlicher Eingriff
Chapter Seven: Gnosis Awakening, Part Two
KOS-MOS' gaze rested upon the area in front of her. She'd finally reached her destination, after what seemed like a mere second of travel; in reality it had been 3.58 days, but she had been asleep for most of it. Her red eyes fell upon a Gnosis in front of her, and she scanned it quickly and efficiently. It matched the parameters that had been sent to her via Connection Gear. This was the Gnosis that Director Wilhelm had wanted her to deal with.
She stopped a moment before she encountered the Gnosis to think. During her travel she had been unconscious, unaware, unable to think. Now that the opportunity presented itself, she felt the need to sort through the data she had been bombarded with over the course of the days that had lead up to her departure. Most importantly, the conversation that she had had with chaos echoed in her mind.
Is it possible that I was meant to become more than a weapon? KOS-MOS mused, considering the evidence he had presented her with. It did seem to fit, in an odd sort of way. She was supposed to learn to facilitate relationships with people, something that should be considered unnecessary for a weapon. She was also becoming more independent, able to make her own decisions about her fate, to a certain extent.
Why would a weapon need to be in control of their fate? After all, cannons did not facilitate relationships with their masters. Where they were aimed they fired, without ever speaking a word. Guns did not have to opportunity to decided what would allow them to live and die; if throw at an enemy in a half-hearted attempt to survive, they could not decided that it negated allowing them to live. Granted she was a one of a kind weapon, but still it did not explain her human appearance.
She shook her head marginally, as though to shake such thoughts from her head. She did not need such thoughts now, not when she had a mission to complete. Careful to avoid any and all detection, she left her wings behind and flew swiftly toward the Gnosis.
Once inside she oriented herself, and after a moment of thought she started off down a passageway. It went on for three meters, and then stopped at a huge, reinforced metal door. KOS-MOS walked to the security encryption, and inputted a password. The door beeped in acceptance, and KOS-MOS walked inside. She paused before a structure at the center, and then stilled herself. She was ready; all she needed to do was wait.
---
Ziggy and chaos had yet to encounter any enemies, something that they were highly suspicious of. Still, they moved forward, hoping the workers would be found alive and well. But, in the back of Ziggy's head, he had the feeling that not everything was what it seemed. It wasn't even the lack of Gnosis; it was just one of the lingering hints of his humanity that insisted that there was something he hadn't seen, another puzzle piece that was right in front of him that he hadn't slipped into place yet.
"I think there's someone or something up ahead," chaos murmured to him. It was very low, especially with the drone of the machinery, but Ziggy still heard his words. He nodded in reply, and slowly released the lock on his arm weapon. chaos adjusted his gloves, and together they approached the door. No words were spoken; they flanked the door, one on each side, and chaos quickly detached the faceplate of the security hatch and released the lock.
The door ground open, shuddering to a halt after a moment. Silence filled the hall. Ziggy glanced through the wall, registering movement from within. The patterns were that of a human, one who was on the verge of hysteria.
"W-who's there?" demanded a shaky voice. "I'm warning you, I have a gun!"
"We're a rescue party from the Durandal," chaos called back, moving away from the door, Ziggy following him. "Are there any others here?"
"No, it's just me. Those monsters already got the other seven of us that decided to stay in the rooms surrounding this place. The rest of the crew went somewhere else, the bridge maybe, or the commissary; they're both big enough for a lot of people. They thought there was safety in numbers, and we each decided to get a lone place to hide around here.
"My coworkers, my friends… I heard their screams as those creatures took them, seven in all. All seven of them… Those monsters came right through the walls, anywhere they wanted. We didn't know where they'd come next… They drifted in and out, snatching at us lazily. They were just…toying with us. And they still got so many…" He lowered the gun, and then he himself collapsed to the cool deck below. He seemed to be crying, although he was trying desperately to hide it. chaos walked over and laid a gentle hand upon his shoulder.
"We have to keep moving, okay? They may be gone, but you're still here. You still have your life ahead of you, but first, you have to get out alive. Do you understand me?" The man nodded, his face still to the ground. chaos gently helped him to his feet, and then turned to Ziggy.
"How many more crewmembers does that leave us with?"
"The report said there were exactly twenty-seven crewmembers onboard. Seven killed, and with him that makes eight so far. There are still nineteen people to account for."
"All right. Are we taking him with us, or taking him back to the ES to wait? He should be safe in it, if we lock down the controls so he doesn't get rash ideas."
"To save time we should bring him with us. If he stays out of the way of the battle, it shouldn't be a problem."
"Very well," chaos murmured, and then turned back to the man. "We're all going ahead to find the others. Try to stay out of the way of our battle, okay?"
"Yeah. I don't want to meet those monsters again." He shuddered, as though to prove his point. Ziggy and chaos began to leave, the worker close behind them, when a shudder ran through the ship. Ziggy, thanks to his quick reflexes, grabbed onto the doorway. chaos grabbed the worker's arm, and grabbed the other edge of the doorway. After a moment the tremors receded, and they all stood again.
"What was that?" the worker questioned nervously, looking about to see if any Gnosis were coming. "What was that?" he repeated shrilly, getting no answer.
"I don't know," chaos murmured. "It sounded like something was shaking the ship."
"Oh god, oh god, oh god…" the worker moaned, hugging himself. "They're coming, aren't they? They're coming and they're going to get us, and kill us just like the others. We're all going to die!"
"Calm down before the Gnosis hear," warned Ziggy. But the man just kept rocking himself; pushed over the edge by the Gnosis and the deaths of the people he had spent almost all of his free time with on the small ship.
"They're gonna kill us, we're dead…" he kept moaning. Ziggy looked at chaos.
"He can't stay with us. Perhaps someone should go back to the ES with him, while the other carries on ahead. When it's safe we can begin to repair this ship, and then he'll be alright by himself."
"Is it really wise to split up?"
"It is if we want to rescue the rest of the crewmembers. He's only going to be a dangerous liability."
"I suppose you're right," chaos said. "I'll – " But he never finished his sentence as a horrible moan filled the ship, and a Gnosis charged down the passageway, it's spiked tail spearing the startled worker before either could make a move. The tail entered and exited the body with the painful sound of split flesh, snapping bone and a gushing of brilliant crimson blood. Slowly the tail retreated, and the man stared down at his stomach a moment in horror before collapsing to his knees.
"I'm…gonna…die…" he whispered, looking at the hole in his stomach. Then he slid to the deck, dead, before chaos could call forth a healing spell.
The Gnosis, a Vacillation, was unconcerned as it turned its attention to them, floating in the air. It looked like the upper half of a human torso with disproportioned arms dangling at its sides, and six protrusions coming out of the back of its head, stretching up at least a foot or so above the head. Where the lower torso and legs should have been was instead its long tail, which was still dripping with the blood of their fallen charge.
Ziggy recovered first, and his arm blade snapped out. He and chaos fell into their battle stances, watching and waiting, forcing the other to make the first move.
The Vacillation was only too happy to comply. It raced forward with its deadly tail whipping toward Ziggy. He dodged, and drove his blade up into the gut of the Gnosis as it passed overhead. The Gnosis merely floated higher, causing him to do nothing more that scratch it's stomach, hardly causing any bleeding.
"Ziggy, we should use ethers," chaos called. "We don't usually fare well in battle against air creatures." Ziggy reluctantly agreed with him. He was better at ground tactics, and was useless in the air. His ethers weren't even that powerful, but he would still try.
"Aura Blast," chaos said calmly, and the deadly power surrounded the creature. It cried out, but didn't falter. Ziggy added his own, weaker, Thunder Blast, but the creature still continued on. The Vacillation did indeed seem to be toying with them, as it stayed on the defensive instead of the offensive. Ziggy considered this very odd, but filed away for further thought; now was the time for battle.
"Distract it by keeping up the barrage or directly attacking it. I'm going to try a new tactic," chaos called to him. Ziggy nodded, not losing on iota of concentration. The Vacillation seemed to turn toward chaos, but Ziggy raced up and jumped as high as he could, slashing his arm blade deep into its gut. The Vacillation screeched, and dove at him. He barely had time to raise the blade in defense as the creature dive-bombed him. Apparently, that was all the distraction that chaos needed.
He appeared out of nowhere, and leapt at the Gnosis, his fists glowing with his mysterious powers. He rammed the two spheres of light into the creatures face, starting to burn it like acid, and then thrust his foot toward its throat. The scream of fury died in its throat as the foot slammed into it with a sickening thud. The Vacillation started to teeter as chaos fell back lightly to the ground, resting easily on his feet. The Gnosis started slamming into walls with its death throes, apparently unable to breathe because of the move chaos had used. They two backed up, and the Gnosis collapsed dead at their feet.
"Good move," Ziggy said, envying the younger man for a moment at his even breathing and calm demeanor, as though nothing more than a light stroll had just occurred. He himself was starting to sweat, and it took a moment for him to calm his breathing. But he was soon recovered.
"Are you ready?" chaos asked.
"Yes," he said, drawing himself back up to his full height and returning the blade on his arm to it's usual sheathed spot. chaos straightened his gloves, and then looked down the corridor.
"Good, let's go. There are still nineteen people left to rescue."
---
MOMO and Jr. had made it through the next few corridors without any problems until the shaking started. They grabbed onto the nearest sturdy object, a metal pole, until the vibrations had ceased. Jr. looked around, but couldn't see any cause of the tremors.
"I don't detect anything unusual within the ship," MOMO reported, her golden eyes focused somewhere in the distance. "Whatever cause those tremors did it from outside the ship."
"But we aren't too close to anything," Jr. said, confused. "Not even that Gnosis could affect us from here, could it?"
"I don't think so, but that Gnosis seems different somehow. More…aware." She blushed slightly. "I'm sorry, but I can't explain it any better than that. It just seems to have a…higher consciousness that the others."
"Do you think it's controlling them?" he asked.
"It's possible. But if it was, then why allow us so close to their leader?"
"True," Jr. said. They stood there in silence a moment, considering, until Jr. brought them out of their thoughts. "Well, no use pondering it now. We have to go and rescue those workers before the Gnosis get to them."
"Right," MOMO said, and they both continued walking down the corridor. But as they navigated three corridors, they began to wonder at the lack of anything. No Gnosis, no workers, no blood, no sign of struggle. It was as though they were the only living souls left on this ship. Finally, they came to the elevator to the bridge. Jr. and MOMO got in, and Jr. pressed the start button.
At the top they stopped, and stared. The lack of people, Gnosis, and struggle was instantly discovered. They had all been up here, and this had been their last stand. Twisted and battered bodies lay everywhere, their blood already starting to dry. The shields had been closed around the bridge windows, not that it did much good. The Gnosis had still gotten in, and they were all dead. Jr. looked at MOMO, who was staring in shock. He knew she shouldn't have come along, but without her the Gnosis wouldn't have been materialized.
"Hey, you okay?" he asked quietly. She turned to look at him, her face visibly pale and drawn.
"I'll be all right," she said calmly, although a slight quiver in her voice gave away the façade.
"You could go find Ziggy and chaos…" he began, but she cut him off.
"I'll be fine, Jr.," she repeated. "I insisted upon coming along, and I knew what I was getting myself into. I'll really be all right. Now, where is their logbook? It might have some important information, a reason as to the Gnosis attack." She started to search, keeping her eyes on the controls instead of the floor.
Jr. admired her for her resolve; she never let anything get in the way of what she wanted. By finding the logbook she could try to make sure this sort of tragedy didn't happen again. By working through her own shock and terror, she was proving to them that she was strong. He almost laughed, but their solemn and macabre surroundings held him back. She didn't need to prove to anyone that she was strong and could hold her own ground. She'd all ready done that.
"I think I found it," she called to him. He snapped out of his thoughts, and turned to her. She was hunched over a console, scanning it. After a moment, she pressed several buttons. A screen above their heads displayed a burst of static, then what he assumed was the captain appeared on the screen, her face schooled by military discipline to appear calm and collected at even the most trying of times. In the background the shields had already been drawn, and the crew was arming themselves.
She leaned close to the screen, as though wanting to keep the conversation their little secret, her blonde hair brushing the slanted screen, her eyes narrowed in determination.
"I am Captain Sophia Valentine of Observer One. This may be our final log. Today the scientists onboard made a startling discovery. By planting tracking devices on some of the Gnosis we have determined that the giant Gnosis we have been observing is transporting Gnosis to another region of space, one our computers cannot get a lock on. All the data has been transferred to a disk that I left sitting on the table beside my chair, inside a locked box clearly labeled 'Gnosis Readings'. The code for it is the serial number of this ship, information only possessed by the people I want to give this information to. Be sure to use it to further our research, so that it has not been in vain. Godspeed to whomever finds this. Captain Angelo, over and out."
They sat in silence for a moment, unable to comprehend what was going on. Is that Gnosis like a troop carrier, or something really powerful? What exactly are we up against? Damn, I just don't understand. Maybe Gaignun'll know…
"Does that Gnosis lead to their dimension?" MOMO asked, breaking the silence. "Or is it somewhere in this galaxy, at a staging point of some kind?"
"I don't know. But we have to get this information back to the Durandal, and soon. The 100-series can analyze everything, and they should be able to tell us what exactly is going on, or at least give us an idea," Jr. said, confident that they'd be able to sort it all out. MOMO nodded.
"Okay! Let's go find the others; I'm sure they've discovered the other crewmembers by now, and the other eight's body readings are in their direction."
"Sounds like a plan," Jr. said. "But first, let's open up these shields. I can't see a thing in this emergency lighting, and I want to be able to find the right box." He looked around at the unfamiliar buttons. "Hmm, I wonder which one it is?"
"Right here," MOMO said, pressing a blue button. Gyros whirred to life, and the shields began to creak downward. They turned to look out at the starry void when something began to rock the ship, only harder than the last time. They gripped the edges of the console they were at, fighting the tremors in an effort to get to the box. Finally, Jr. recovered the right one, and grinned triumphantly.
"MOMO, I found it!" he called. But MOMO didn't reply, just gripped his hand so hard she was almost crushing it. "MOMO?" he asked, turning around, and trying to hide a blush. He saw her staring out the window, and looked up, confused. And found himself staring face to face with the giant Gnosis. Maybe it had moved, maybe the ship had reoriented itself, but they were being watched by the Gnosis, which was glowing a pale blue as Gnosis raced past their ship in an effort to reach the Gnosis, not caring how hard they hit and damaged the ship.
"We have to get out of here," MOMO said, starting toward the door, her hand still in his. "The ship can't take much more of this." Jr. nodded, trusting her judgment. Moving from place to place, they worked their way to the door, holding onto each other so they didn't get lost, and onto anything solid that would keep them from being toppled to the ground.
---
Wilhelm observed the Gnosis casually, wondering if the time had finally come. If it had, would everyone play the correct part? He sighed. This was becoming too much of a hassle to complete an age-old promise. He merely hoped that it would be worth it.
"O master…" called a mocking tone, dragging out the title in such a way that it was defiled the moment it left those poisonous lips. "We had a deal, didn't we? I trust you haven't forgotten it."
"I don't forget," Wilhelm said, continuing to observe the Gnosis with his mind.
"I trust I am free for the evening, then?" questioned the person in front of him.
"Of course, as long as you'll come back. And trust me, one way or another, you will come back." His garnet eyes stared unblinking into the eyes of the man before him, who smiled back.
"Whatever you say, o master…" he said, laughing as he sketched an exaggerated bow. Then he spun around, at Wilhelm's gesture, and left the room. Wilhelm returned to observing the events. With him on the loose, this will prove to be interesting indeed…he mused. And I was never one to miss a good show.
---
Ziggy and chaos arrive back at the split of the corridor just as MOMO and Jr. did. No words were necessary; the two younger ones could tell that the rest were dead, the elders could tell that the time to leave was now. Without a moment's hesitation, they ran to the ES bay.
Ziggy strapped himself into the Zebulun as MOMO climbed into the cockpit. She started to flip the switches with practiced ease, starting up the engine right away. "Find anything of interest?" he questioned her as they both pulled their space suits on.
"A log of information from the scientists about unusual Gnosis behavior," she said. "I'm sure that my sisters will be able to learn something useful when the combine it with our own knowledge."
They said nothing else then, concentrating on returning to the Durandal. At the signal from the Asher they took off, dodging the flying Gnosis. MOMO narrowed her eyes in concentration and brushed a stray tress of peach hair out of her face, jerking the ES around in an attempt to avoid the Gnosis, who were acting much like projectiles. The Asher was faring no better; even with a skilled pilot at the controls, they were having several near misses. Ziggy and chaos could do nothing but watch and try to shoot some of the Gnosis out of the way; their escape was dependant on the pilot. They were all getting scratched up, but none of the hits had been direct.
The beep of the radar brought him out of his concentration. The Durandal had launched its own A.G.W.S. to provide them with some assistance. MOMO turned the Zebulun toward the small clearance they were making.
"Argh!" called a voice on the open channel, and they both whipped around to see the Asher being bombarded by a string of Gnosis. Not stopping to think, MOMO swung the Zebulun around, Ziggy firing away at the Gnosis. After a moment the wave subsided, but the ES was limping badly. It half-hearted fired its thrusters toward the opening, and the Zebulun backed it until it had reached safety. Then they started out.
Just as they were about to reach safety a Gnosis came out of nowhere, slamming into the ES dead on. The ES jerked into a sharp spiral, causing Ziggy to clutch his head a moment. The compensators were obviously offline. They came out of the spin, and he hit the console hard I really should have remembered to strap in, he thought. He looked up, and all thoughts about strapping in were forgotten as he realized with horror that they were on a direct course with the Gnosis.
"MOMO, get us out of here!" he called. When there was no answer he spared a moment to turn and look. She had been knocked unconscious. Her breathing was shallow, but she'd live. He transferred the controls of the ES to his station, and tried to get the limping ship back to the Durandal. Before he could get very far, another Gnosis slammed the ES, causing the cockpit to jar open. He flew out with the oxygen that had been in there, thankful that they had at least remembered their spacesuits. He tried to reached the ES, but the momentum carried him away. He could only watch in horror as the ES slammed into the Gnosis, and was absorbed by it.
---
chaos watched Jr. pace the deck outside of the sickbay, obviously deep in thought. He was no doubt coming up with a rash plan to rescue MOMO. "What are you thinking?" he questioned, hoping that if he learned enough of the plan he could stall it with logical suggestions. Jr. just sighed, and sat down on a bench, leaning his head against the wall and closing his eyes. chaos frowned at this lack of a response, but didn't push him. Jr. wasn't the type to sit around in silence.
Before anything could be said, the sickbay door swished open, and Mary stuck her head out. "Ziggy's gonna be okay!" she said cheerfully, filling up the silence. "Just a minor concussion, nothin' to worry 'bout. The doc says he's gonna be right out in no time!"
"That's great," Jr. said, and he seemed to relax a little. He passed her a paper he had been holding. "Give this to Gaignun, will you? It's my report about what happened, and the serial number I looked up for Observer One. He'll know what to do with the contents."
"Why not tell 'im yourself? I'm sure he's dyin' ta hear from ya, we all are," Mary asked.
"I've got other things to do," he said. Mary looked at him through narrowed eyes, but she didn't protest. He was the Little Master, after all, even if he wasn't so little anymore. She just walked off down the corridor. Jr. started to leave too, but chaos stopped him.
"Jr., you can't just head out on a rescue mission without some preparation," chaos pleaded. Jr. turned to regard him.
"But it was my fault. I got us stuck, so they came back. If it wasn't for me, she wouldn't be stuck like this. I should have done more…" he muttered weakly, and chaos wasn't entirely sure if they were still talking about MOMO, or if somehow it had become Sakura. Maybe they were the same, right now. It had been his appointed job to watch them, and he'd already failed once. He wouldn't want to do it again.
"Jr., I know you told Sakura you'd watch her sister. But sometimes things don't happen according to plan. Sometimes, the unpredictable happens, and you can't blame yourself when it does. You just end up doing something that you regret if you do."
"I know you're trying to help, and I appreciate it," Jr. said. "But it was my mistake, and I have to make up for it. I don't want her to die because I sat around and did nothing."
"At least think about it," chaos pleaded. "Get a quick plan or something. Please."
"…okay…" murmured Jr., and he turned back toward his room. "Later, chaos."
"Goodbye," chaos said to his retreating back. Then he stepped into the sickbay.
---
As soon as chaos was gone Jr. took off in the other direction. He hadn't promised not to do anything, after all. Just said he'd think about it for a moment. He had, and his decision remained. He was going after MOMO whether they wanted him to or not.
In the ES bay he started up the Asher quietly. It was hard to pilot by yourself, especially in combat situations, but the Gnosis seemed preoccupied. He pulled out his connection gear, and, after checking to make sure no one was around, locked the doors to the ship and opened the ones into space. He was going out there, and he was going to find her.
Shelley's worried voice immediately filled his headset. "Little Master, what are you doing? Please close the doors and come up to the bridge." He smiled at her concern, but didn't change his destination. He maneuvered the ES out of the ship, and toward the Gnosis. Hold on, MOMO, he begged. Just a little more.
