Time: Six days later.
Power of Steam
Maki looked around upon entering the hospital room where the group had set up headquarters, seeking sign of the one person she knew wouldn't be there. Not seeing him she gave a deep sigh of relief. Around her were several members of the group working amidst chairs, tables and computer terminals, while one of the walls was a large computer screen. Daichi, as usual, had coolers full of drinks and snacks they could munch on scattered through the room. Most of the stuff had been there originally and they'd just taken it over. Like at the apartment each of them had their own room with their hospital bed, though it wasn't as private with nurses and doctors often passing through to check on them. But here was where they now gathered to chat, eat, play and, most importantly, plot.
In one corner she saw Machi and Ushiro talking with Moji. Faintly she could hear words and phrases like, 'Quick Sort,' and "Binary Search.' As Mirror had suggested Machi was teaching Moji how to be more efficient when he used his ability to divine things. From what little she understood the methods were just ways to break big problems down into little ones. So far though, with one exception, Moji was holding off on using more divination. He'd learned his lesson not to run low and not to assume just because he knew an answer that he knew everything. That one exception had been to find out who'd hurt Chizu in such a manner. As they all now knew it was Kodama. From what she could tell Ushiro was there just to make sure Moji didn't make a move on Machi.
Eyes moving to the right she saw Waku and Chizu plotting together just in front of the huge computer screen. On it were maps of the area around Death Valley which was the desert area they fought at on this world. Waku was sitting while Chizu was stretched out, resting on a small bed that could transform into any one of several shapes, including that of a wheelchair. While the technology of this world was incredible, it had its limits and Chizu would take at least a month to fully recover. On their old Earth she probably would've been severely crippled in some way for the rest of her life. The girl had taken to spending time with the rest of them now and her contributions to any topic was almost as incredible as her performance when she'd piloted MEarth. Listening, Maki could hear them talking about something called the Ubehebe Crater as well compression density and underground springs.
Turning to the far corner of the room she saw Anko, Nakama, Machi, and Komo. Walking over she took a seat. "Any new ideas?" she asked.
"Nope," Komo replied, casting a big smile her way. "Just more paint and more spider stuff."
Maki nodded. "Still, those should have quite an impact on the poor guy."
"Don't call him a poor guy," Komo snorted. "He wants to kill us all." She shivered. "He's evil."
"True." Maki shrugged and then sighed.
"I think the spider gag is going to be pretty neat," Anko said. "It'll freak the heck out of him."
"For sure," Maki agreed. She gave another deep sigh.
"We could alway try to paint him," Nakama suggested. "Just suggesting it is now getting old. Let's go with it?"
"Why not," Maki agreed. She gave another deep sigh.
"Something wrong?" Komo asked, finally picking up on the whole sigh thing.
Maki looked at her best friend, thinking. With a shake of her head, she stood. "Nay. I'm going to check out Ms. Brainiac over there." Forcing a smile she turned away.
Pausing, she glanced at the one other member of their group that was in the room, Kodama. He was working peacefully at a computer console as if nothing had happened. Noticing her watching he even tossed a smile her way, causing her stomach to roll. Quickly turning away she frowned, not understanding any of the things that'd been going on lately. Kodama was still treated as a part of the group despite what he'd done. It was almost if everyone had come down with a case of collective amnesia about it, thought she knew that wasn't the case. They just didn't care and that puzzled the heck out of her. Then there was Kako, everyone hated his guts even if he was innocent of what'd been done to Chizu. Everyone that is except Kirie and Chizu herself. If the group had the power to cast someone out by a vote where everyone's vote was secret she knew Kako would be history. If it had to be public then it might be Kodama that got cast out, maybe. Maki took a deep breath, wanting to scream and rage at them. Kako, under the pressure of knowing he was going to die, had tried to rape Chizu. Kodama, on the other hand, had not only raped her multiple times but tortured her almost to death with the goal of actually killing her.
Maki shook her head violently, pushing the disturbing thoughts to one side, and ran her hands through her hair. Taking another deep breath she headed over to where Chizu was. "Hey," she said.
Waku looked up. "This girl is brilliant," he stated dramatically. "Her ideas are . . . ." The awestruck boy shook his head. "Just incredible." He looked at Chizu with something akin to interest.
"So I heard," Maki replied, frowning again. Lately it'd been her default expression. Briefly, she wondered how Kako would take it if Chizu and Waku became an item. He'd been the one member of the group who hadn't been to the headquarters yet. Also, as far as she knew, no one other than Kirie had bothered to visit him. She wanted to but knew she wouldn't be welcome. First there was the whole breaking an oath thing, which was the only reason the group knew about the attempted rape in the first place. Then there was the one-hundred and sixty-eight holes she'd punched in him with those damned needles. Just how did you apologize for either of those? So for six whole days she'd played the part of a coward and stayed away.
"You okay?" Chizu asked?
Maki snorted. "No. What I don't understand is how any of you are." She glanced around the room again, wanting to point out the fact that Kodama was in their midst at the same time Chizu was. That she had to lie there while the bastard who'd almost tortured her to death was just fifteen or so feet away.
"What's wrong?" Waku asked, looking genuinely concerned.
"Talk to Kako lately?" she finally asked, having put it off for days.
"No," the boy growled, features shifting to resemble something out of a horror movie. "And if he shows up here while Chizu is I will kill him. Freaking monster."
Maki cringed, wanting to slap the idiot who sat in front of her. "Right," she stated impassively, trying to suppress her rage. Teeth firmly ground together she glanced at Chizu. The girl stared back, looking sad and confused as well. In her eyes there was a hint of fury but it was well hidden.
"Right," Maki repeated, turning to leave least she actually start a fight. She'd only taken three steps when Machi stood.
"One hour," the girl said just short of bellowing. "Alert everyone and make sure they're prepared. We go with paint plan three and spider plan six. That will give Moji more than enough time to choose a pilot and get some basic info on the enemy."
Maki sighed, ceasing her rapid stride. Since she hadn't seen Mirror she assumed the girl had used telepathy, or whatever, to tell Machi. None of them had seen her since they'd been at the hospital, and with six days since the last fight they'd even wondered if it was all over. Maybe the girl, whatever she was, had blasted MEarth into atoms and abandoned them here. Given how they were all acting like a bunch of kids Maki wouldn't have blamed her, but it seemed they were still on the job and around her everyone rushed to prepare. Maki was starting to think Mirror was more than a few pennies short of a dollar. Maybe even a full dollar short of a dollar. Any sane person by now would've moved on and recruited another bunch of fools. With another sigh, still frowning, she changed direction and rushed to prepare herself.
"Okay people," Drop Dead shouted an hour later. "Last time was wonderful. You played the game and even if you did somehow destroy that level fifteen mech one of you miserable brats still . . . ." The ceramic-looking creature went silent for a few seconds. "Why aren't you dead?" he then roared at Chizu.
"Trust me, I ask myself that same question every day," the girl replied innocently. "Being dead is pretty peaceful."
"But . . . ." Drop Dead stared around, looking at the rest of the kids. "Not going to tell me how late I am today, naked boy?"
Maki turned around, then let her jaw drop. Kako was standing there, hands on his head which was full of soap or shampoo. He was wet and totally naked. Around her she heard giggling and snickers. No one told him, she guessed, fuming. From the way his hands gripped his hair before he slowly lowered them and opened his eyes, she knew he was furious as well. The girl couldn't help but wondered if the whole group was crazy, provoking a fight right now, and if she should put in for a transfer. If only I knew how, she told herself, seething inside.
"Seems I was left out of the loop," Kako replied with forced calm. "I won't tell the boss you're always late if you don't tell him I showed up for work naked." Under his breath he slowly counted to ten, struggling not to let the rage take him. He stood thinking for a second, then smiled. If they wanted to play he was willing to. "Guess the guys wanted to see a real penis," he told the floating Snotball. "At least some of them are into guys so I guess that's natural." He winked at Waku and Moji who were standing together. "Heard you guys got bored during the last trip and got into a sixty-nine position." He'd been unconscious for most of it but whatever drugs he'd been given had started to wear off toward the end. He'd seen Penny have to move the two guys apart.
"Faggot," Waku roared.
Kako gave the boy a slight smile, not bothering to cover himself as he sat down, legs slightly spread. "Hey, Snotty," he called.
"That's not my name." Drop Dead said, still not knowing how to react to these crazy kids.
"You got cameras on this thing, right? Show us that sixty-nine Waku and Moji did with each other during the last fight."
"Why should I bother . . . ." He gave a sigh. "Whatever." The screen came alive showing the image of the last fight where the two, Waku and Moji, had been close together. From the angle one could have sworn they were deep in heated, gay passion. Slight vibrations from MEarth roaring through nuclear explosion made the two tremble once in a while, adding realism.
Waku blinked while Moji went pale.
"A picture is worth a thousand words," Kako said, shrugging with no attempt to preserve his modesty. "No touching, but since both of you are rather lacking, I don't mind you taking a glance once in a while."
Maki studied Kako's penis wondering if it was large. It didn't seem to be, but from the looks on the other guys' faces she assumed he had them beat. Waku and Moji were still frozen, not sure what to do. The girls were looking on with interest but had stopped giggling, realizing in this battle they'd picked the losing team.
"Bastard," Waku stepped forward, followed by Moji.
"Coward," Daichi added, stepping up beside them.
"Coward?" Kako asked, head tilted as he studied the boy. "Whatever do you mean?" The boy casually stood and placed his hands on the back of his chair.
"Kicking people in the groin," Daichi replied, forcing the words out through closed teeth. "Using a knife."
Kako snorted, causing his penis to jiggle. "One, you kicked first. I know because it was me who you kicked. What does that make you?." He spoke the words nonchalantly in a low voice, with nothing in his tone or stance to indicate aggression. Just the words themselves.
Daichi's fist clenched even tighter and he took a step forward. "I was protecting Chizu," he countered.
"Second it was your team that brought both a knife and a steel rod to the fight," Kako said, still sounding totally calm.
"We did not." This came from Waku.
"I was the one you were trying to kill. I didn't bring the knife or the pipe, so that leaves your team." Kako said with an indifferent shrug.
"Kodama was the one who . . . ." Waku started.
"Who was on your side," Kako quietly replied, interrupting. "He certainly wasn't on mine given the way he attacked me."
"He wasn't . . . ." Moji tried to counter.
"So let's see who's the coward, shall we?" Kako said, sounding indifferent to the whole debate. "You kicked me in the groin first. It was eleven against two. Your side brought a knife. Your side also brought a steel rod or something. You also went berserk and attacked first. Oh, and one of you used two-dozen knitting needles as a weapon." The boy shrugged. "Any neutral parties here want to make a decision on who the cowards are?" He looked around the room.
Daichi's face turned red while his eyes bulged in rage. "You attacked Chizu." He retorted, bordering on an insane fury as he had the day of the last fight.
"You protected the person who raped and tortured her," Kako countered.
"We didn't know," Daichi snapped back. "We did know you attacked her. We should tear you to pieces." He started to take another step forward.
"Right," Kako snorted derisively. "However, during the last week you've been pretty tight with the guy who tried to torture her to death." His eyes narrowed in unchecked rage. "Not even one bloody freaking word from any of you against him all week, just nods and even a smile or two." His fists now also clenched, and while still ignoring his modesty he stepped from behind his chair. "If I take a step into that room, you know me, the only guy who even tried to stop the guy who nearly killed her, and it's like a bunch of freaking, crazed dogs scenting blood."
Practically foaming at the mouth, Daichi stepped forward with Waku and Moji right behind him.
Refusing to let them get in the first strike this time, not with his left testicle still aching, Kako stepped forward driving his fist into Daichi's solar plexus. As the boy bent over he snapped his knee upward, creating an explosion of blood. Shifting his posture to keep his eyes on the other two, knowing it would be just seconds before the rest of them joined in, Kako then pivoted to his right, planning to go after Moji next.
"Stop," Chizu shouted, bringing Kako to a halt. She noted that Waku and Moji were less inclined to back off just by her words, but did so after they gave Daichi a second glance. Without the older and more powerful boy behind them it seemed their own blood lust was severely diminished.
Chizu took a deep breath and sprayed her throat with some of the lemon-tasting spray she'd been given. "Please don't make me shout again," she said. "It hurts and I'm really sick of hurting."
"Sorry," Kako said, frowning as he returned to his original position behind his chair. He didn't look at the girl.
"No, fight," Drop Dead urged them. Even if piloting a mech didn't kill then it was obvious they could hurt each other. With these kids it just didn't pay to be too fussy where one got their jollies.
Chizu glanced down, then turned her eyes back up to look at Kako again. "I've seen bigger," she told him, "but I wish I hadn't. It hurts." She gave him a tiny smile. Then taking a deep breath, wishing she'd done it when they'd first arrived on this world, she looked the boy in the eye. "I'm sorry I killed you," she said. "I really really am sorry."
Kako blinked. "You didn't kill me," he stated, sincerely puzzled.
"I'm the one who knocked you down those stairs. If I hadn't then . . . ." She looked away. "I wish I hadn't."
Kako shook his head. "You didn't kill me," he said. "The ceiling falling did. If you hadn't come it would still have happened. I'm guessing if the concrete broke then the glass in the aquarium did too, so I was dead either way."
"But . . . ." Chizu looked at her hands.
"And you had every right to knock me down those steps, even to kill me if you wanted. I was attacking you. I was . . . ."
"I didn't understand, at least not until I sat in that seat. Then it was too late." Chizu sighed. "You were right. It was all going to end anyway, so why not? I had nothing to lose. Certainly not my dignity." The girl snorted. "At least it would've been real and not like the dream I'd made up." She wiped at her tears.
"Nothing excuses . . . ." Waku started.
"Shut up," Chizu told the boy sharply. "For one, this isn't any of your concern. For another, you've never sat in that seat knowing the truth. You've never known what it feels like. Even now you don't, so don't think to judge." She sprayed her throat again, savoring the lemony taste, pausing to think. "If his crime is so great then imagine how much greater mine is. I killed who knows how many in my bid for a vengeance I couldn't even carry out." She looked around the room. "His pales in comparison, so are you going to try to lynch me?" Only silence met her words as every eye turned away from her.
"Of course it didn't all end," Chizu continued. "And while back then I think I should've, it's now different." She looked up at Kako. "Sorry. I like you, but I don't love you. I'm not sure I know what love is anymore. And as for sex, I'm not going to try that again until I'm thirty. or at least not for a long long time." She took a deep breath. "Can we be friends?" To her dismay the boy looked away.
"Poor little Rapist Boy got shot down," Komo said in a mocking tone. She snorted, laughing.
"Komo, shut up," Maki said, shocking the girl. She turned back to Chizu. "I messed up. He trusted me, but back then I backstabbed him," she told the downcast girl. Recalling the look of betrayal he'd cast her way she wanted to weep. She'd had someone besides Komo who knew and trusted her, a second true friend, and she'd had to go and ruin it.
"I did wonder how you knew about it," Chizu replied, still frowning.
"I'm sorry." Maki looked around the room. "And I don't think even one of us has apologized yet. We even prefer a sociopath over him."
"Kodama isn't a sociopath," Chizu told the girl.
"Huh? But, . . . ."
"I talked it over with Mirror. Seems there's nothing wrong with his brain. It's just that he has a liking for hearing people scream, and he plays them like a musician would a musical instrument. When they're about to die he decides how well he played the instrument by their eyes and if they want to die." She shrugged. "He could stop, but it's like a person who loves drums; he doesn't see any reason to. His delusion of being the chosen is just an excuse he's come up with for his behavior."
"Oh." Maki didn't know what else to say so she let her eyes slide over towards Kako who was still naked. She frowned, not knowing what to do.
"Penny, help me, please," Chizu said.
"Of course." The girl was only too willing to help the person, the friend, she'd believed dead for six whole days.
"My arms are still weak. Help me take off my top."
Instantly every pair of eyes in the room, except one, was on the girl.
"Why?" Penny asked, pausing in the process of kneeling down to help the girl.
"Don't bother," Maki told her. "I've got more to apologize for than you." Taking a deep gulp of air, she quickly unzipped her own shirt and handed it over to Kako, trying to ignore the fact that every eye in the room was now on her chest. "I'm sorry," she told the boy. "I betrayed the oath I took. And I did mean to visit but I kept chickening out. I knew you would hate me."
Kako stood still, not reaching for the shirt. Finally, without taking it, he turned away, sitting down with no attempt at modesty at all. "Have any of you geniuses looked at the mech we're to fight?" he asked stoically, "I know Waku and Moji are still drooling over my penis, but surely one of you . . . ."
Red faced, Maki put the shirt back on, looking at the screen as she did so. She gasped. "Oh." Not able to think of anything to add she continued to stare at a mech that was identical to ZEarth.
Sputtering, still casting dark, foreboding looks at Kako, Waku turned to look as well. "Crap."
"So, Mr. I'm Never Wrong, who's the pilot for today?" Kako asked.
"What about the plan?" Komo asked.
"You mean the one to assassinate me under the guise of playing paintball?" Kako asked.
"We weren't . . . ."
"Just be quiet," Kako interrupted. "I'm too tired to care what you meant. Speak up," he added, turning to Moji.
Moji pointed at Maki.
"No," Komo said, immediately forgetting the plan. "Why her? Why not him?" She pointed at Kako.
"He's already piloted, Komo," Maki said, touched the girl still cared after the way she'd snapped at her.
"So, be a good way to get rid of him."
"Why him and not Kodama," Chizu asked, "because I'm really puzzled why you hate him so much. For crying out loud, Kodama is the one who nearly killed you. Kodama is also the one who if he could, would tie you down, rape you, and then torture you to death, smiling the whole bloody time." Her eyes bore into the girl's. "He's also the one who would gladly do the same to Maki as he did to me. Just what the bloody hell is wrong with you people?" She growled the words, face red with anger.
"But . . . ." Komo started.
"Do you want Kodama to rape Maki?" Chizu asked angrily, interrupting.
"Of course not," Komo replied, shocked. "I would never . . . ."
"Do you want him to take an eighteen-inch needle and repeatedly push it up through her arm" The girl raised her own arm and drew a line from her palm up past her elbow to illustrated what she meant. 'Trust me, it hurts like a bitch and if you move the arm it rips your flesh to shreds. Do you want that done to Maki?"
"That's insane?" Komo replied, face going white. "You're crazy."
"Crazy pissed," Chizu admitted. She glared up at the girl, eyes ablaze with anger. Then she smiled. "I know. If you like Kodama so much, how about we give you two some alone time?" Her demented smile sent the other girl staggering back several feet.
"Um . . . ."
Chizu turned to Drop Dead. "Hey, Snotty," she called.
"That's not my name . . . ."
"Yeah, tell it to the police," the girl retorted. "Want to play a game? You might get to see someone die slowly, screaming the whole time."
Drop Dead was instantly floating down beside the girl. "I'm interested," he admitted.
"Get me two needles," Chizu told him. "Eighteen inches long, about two millimeters in diameter, and decently sharp at the ends."
"Done," Drop Dead replied a few seconds later. The two needles appeared on the floor in front of the girl.
"Thanks," Chizu replied, grabbing them. One she tossed over to Kodama who caught it. The other she tossed at Kako who let it hit him with a puzzled look on his face. The needle dropped to the floor. "Pick it up," she ordered the boy."
"Why?"
The girl shook her head, exasperated. "Okay, Drop Dead," she said, looking at Komo. "I want you to send Kodama to an isolated area on the planet. Then send Kako to another such area. You then give Komo a choice. She can join Kodama for some alone time or she can choose to go to Kako for however long it takes us to finish this fight."
"Hey, wait a second," Daichi screamed, rushing in to try to protect one of his kids. "That's crazy. You can't do that. He would . . . ." His eyes turned towards Kodama.
"I'm sure that sweet little pal of yours wouldn't do anything too rash, right?" Chizu retorted. "I mean, you did chat with him quite a few times over the last week. You even offered him snacks." She shrugged, turning towards Kodama. "If the girl just happens to slip or fall then it wouldn't be your fault, right? There wouldn't even be any need for Drop Dead to bring the corpse back here."
Komo stood staring, face white, having trouble breathing. "But . . . ."
"Okay. I hate that seat Maki as much as you do, but we have to do this." Chizu looked apologetically up at the girl.
"Yeah. I hate this seat," Maki agreed, sitting down. Looking around she saw Kodama and Kako were nowhere to be seen. Poor Komo was spluttering and trying to avoid making either choice.
"Give her ten more seconds," Chizu said coldly, "then send her to one at random."
"That's a bit harsh," Maki said, starting to panic a little. "If she chooses Kodama she could be hurt real bad. She could even die. I know the point you're trying to make, but . . . . Stop it," she commanded.
"She's not that stupid." Chizu tilted her head, thinking. "At least I hope not."
"Choose Kako," Moji suddenly stood, shouting. "You die if you go with Kodama." His face was pale.
Chizu watched as Komo disappeared. "We can play this game again next time," she suggested, "if you all want to. While I am sure Kako won't kill you, you did try to kill him." She shrugged. "I'm sure he'll be glad to have some fun with you for a while."
"But . . . ." Daichi, pale looking, stared at where Komo had been. He also looked confused.
"Guess it's time to fight," Maki said, sounding tired. "But you know, I'm sick of all the drama and I'm sick of this thing having no weapons." She looked around the room. "Do we talk to them or not?" the girl asked, knowing they had to.
When the screen to the enemy mech flickered on all of them watched with an avid interest that puzzled both Drop Dead and Penny.
"We were told to wait," a woman in a Japanese uniform said. "Who dares to impose such an insult on the imperial forces of Japan."
"Our apologies," Chizu said apologetically. "Unfortunately we tend to have a lot of disruptive people in this group." She glanced around the room with a frown. "I'm starting to think we should've went with toddlers in their terrible twos. I'm pretty sure they would be much better behaved."
The enemy woman studied the girl who was still sitting on the floor. "You're a kid," she stated. "And that weird looking mech of yours has no weapons."
"Right on both accounts," Chizu told her. "And trust me, I'm getting sick of that. In fact, I'm sure people are getting sick of hearing me say I'm sick of it."
"Have you won any fights?" the woman asked, then shook her head. "You couldn't have. I'm sorry. God, I'm sick of this."
"We've won a few," Chizu replied, closely examining the woman's uniform. From what she could tell it was exactly the same as from her world. Komo would know, she muttered to herself, not liking the irony. "Who's the Japanese president in your world?" she asked.
"Yuki Akira Minami, the woman replied. "Why? Who rules your Earth?"
The group looked around at each other. "Actually, we're not sure," Chizu replied. "We never considered it important. We were just curious."
"Oh." The woman frowned again. "My luck I would have to kill a kid," she muttered, sounding as tired as Chizu did.
Chizu frowned as well, then glanced at Maki who nodded. "Drop Dead," she said, "show them an image of the last mech we fought. The level fifteen."
In the enemy cockpit there were gasps of shock followed by exclamations of disbelief.
"Why?" Waku and Moji muttered angrily. "They would've had their guard down."
"Precisely," Maki told the two. "Would that be fair? Should we use the fact that we're children as a weapon as one world did?" She frowned, recalling the girl called Jenny who'd loved blueberry cake and her big brother.
"No." The two sat back down, lost in thought as well.
"This is a trick," the woman insisted a few minutes later when the clamor had died down. "How could you destroy that without weapons?" She paused. "Unless your world has powerful weapons of its own?"
Chizu shook her head. "This mech is fast enough to travel on the surface of the ocean. We simply led it into the Japan Trench. There nature took its course."
Waku and Moji slapped themselves on the forehead.
"Oh." The woman studied Chizu again. "In other words we shouldn't underestimate you?"
Chizu nodded. "We have a world to protect as do you. Both of us will do what's necessary."
The woman nodded. "Then shall we begin?"
Chizu looked at Maki. "Ready?" she asked.
"Are you sure this isn't . . . . You know." She looked down at Chizu.
"Is isn't," Chizu and Moji assured her. "Close, but different," Chizu added, shooing a confused Drop Dead aside.
"Ready then," Maki said. "What's the plan?"
"UCM," Chizu replied.
Maki blinked. "In a language I can understand, please." She pulled back from the mech she thought of as ZEarth, spinning as was MEarth signature move now. A sandstorm whipped up, confusing the enemy. Several lasers hit around them with a few actually snapping a wire or two. As the enemy mech burst through the smokescreen the girl pulled MEarth back further, tossing up more sand.
"Head southeast for fifteen kilometers," Chizu told the girl.
"Oh. That plan," Maki nodded. "Will try." In mechs that towered five-hundred meters a dozen or so kilometers was nothing, and as MEarth led the way in a swirling hurricane of sand the enemy cautiously followed.
"What are the odds?" Maki asked less than three minutes later.
"The geological surveys of this Earth are highly comprehensive," Chizu replied. "I think the odds are pretty good while Waku is more unsure. I think the scale of things has him a bit daunted."
"Oh." Maki pulled MEarth back another kilometer, kicking up more sand in the process. She then rolled MEarth around the crater in question, hoping the enemy would step in it. Being wary of traps the enemy mech instead walked around it as well, somehow seeing it in the blizzard of sand.
"Maybe we gave away too much," Chizu mused aloud. "We made them too cautious."
Maki pouted, thinking. "Yeah." Circling around the crater she let MEarth roll off the steep cliff on one side to drop two-hundred meters down into the pit. Then she drove the mech up over the more gentle slope on the other side. "That should show them it's safe."
Chizu nodded. "So far they've only stepped on ground we've passed over. So we can hope." A moment later she muttered under her breath when the enemy once again stepped around the crater.
"Damn," Maki swore. "I really want to get Komo back too. I trust Kako, but who knows where Snotty sent them."
"No place nice I'm sure," Chizu replied.
"Yeah." In a fit of desperate fury Maki drove MEarth into the enemy, trying to tip the giant mech over into the crater. The sharp tips of the enemy's arms immediately responded by ripping dozens of the wires that held MEarth together, while their lasers shredded several more. One arm actually poked through the wires to graze the cockpit, prompting Maki to cringe and frantically try to pull MEarth back to safety. Kicking sand into the face of the enemy MEarth managed to pull away, losing a dozen or more wires in the process. "Those arms are pretty much designed to handle a mech like this," Maki fumed.
"True," Chizu said, nodding with her heart up in her throat.
"Just get in the crater and spin," Waku suggested, or rather ordered as he was the team leader. "They will have to follow us in, and since we'll be in there they'll know it's safe to do so." The boy frowned. "Whatever you do, just be sure to keep spinning."
"Will lose a lot of wire though," Chizu said. "An awful lot."
"I know," Waku said, cringing at the image his mind conjured up. "But we can spare the wire and it will keep them from targeting our cockpit."
"Going in," Maki said, letting the mech roll down the gentler slope of the crater where she then spun the massive machine called MEarth up.
ZEarth followed, daring both the intense sand storm and their worries about the crater to do so. When nothing happened they began to thrash the unseen enemy time and time again with their powerful arms. Flashes of energy frequently lit the darkness of the sand storm as their energy weapons sought the enemy.
"Nothing is happening," Maki said, cringing, wanting to pull back.
"Hold for maybe five minutes," Chizu said, also cringing as the twanging of wires being stripped from MEarth reached their ears. She automatically ducked when laser flashes grazed their cockpit, leaving a small but distinct burn mark on it.
"If the pay wasn't good, . . . ." Maki muttered under her breath, face pale. She turned even whiter when one of ZEarth's arms once again poked through the wire cover of MEarth, coming way too close to the cockpit.
"Just another minute or two," Chizu said, wiping sweat from her brow.
"Should've known this was crazy from the way you piloted this thing last week," Maki nervously quipped, wanting to close her eyes. Then there was an explosion as Ubehebe Crater erupted, sending rock fragments smashing out in every direction for more than a kilometer. Vapour puffed violently into the sky in super hot, billowing clouds while the ground grew warmer and magma actually rose from cracks in the shaking ground.
"Get out," Chizu and Waku shouted even as Maki did so.
"About time," Maki said, standing MEarth on the rim of the crater. There she madly spun the machine around and around as fast as she could, sending rocks and sand into the air by the thousands of tons. While the falling debri wouldn't hurt ZEarth the expectation was that the enemy machine was still in the crater, hopefully hip deep in magma. The girl continued to spin for an hour before, drenched in sweat, she stopped.
"Keep spinning," Waku sharply commanded when they managed to see the enemy. Zearth was down on its knees in the crater with its arms moving swiftly and precisely to smash apart the cooling rock that coated parts of its lower body. It was a work of patience as the parts freed were immediately incrusted again and again by the magma that covered the bottom of the pit. The mech would be trapped until either the magma in the pit cooled or those valiant and powerful arms turned the tide and freed them.
"It's working," Maki said, sounding surprised even as she recreated the sandstorm that kept the enemy from precisely targeting the stone shackles that held them imprisoned in the fiery pit.
"Of course," Chizu said. "Our combined weight was enough to compress the earth, causing magma and water beneath the ground to combine which produced an explosion. For a while some magma will make its way up into the pit, keeping them trapped for a few hours." The girl frowned. "They will be cooked alive."
"Not a nice way to go," Maki said, having to force herself to command MEarth to keep up the smokescreen. Nor was it, she recalled, the first time they'd used such a method to win a fight. It was a dirty way to do things even if it did keep this world alive. She sighed.
"That was a level nine," Drop Dead told them two hours later. "Pretty good on the armor with some decent attack power." He turned away from the screen to peer at the kids. "Anyway, just so long at the Maki kid dies I'm happy. I figured if you kids win no matter what I might as well bet on you."
"Bring back Komo and Kako now," Maki ordered, jumping out the pilot seat to stand in front of the creature. "Right no . . . ."
"Arrggghh," Komo screamed, thrusting herself up and away from Kako where the two had just appeared on the floor, wrapped together in a close embrace. The girl dashed across the room screaming, 'pervert,' over and over. She hid behind Maki, trembling violently and uncontrollably. She blinked for a second, realized her best friend was still alive, and forgot about Kako. Overwhelmingly happy, she then decided that that same best friend should be rewarded not only her first kiss but her second as well.
"Damn pervert," Daichi growled, quickly stepping closer to Kako who was obviously aroused. He smashed his foot over and over into the groin of the boy who was also trembling uncontrollably.
"Stop," Komo suddenly screamed in shock. "Stop. What are you doing?" She stared in horror at Kako who was now unconscious from the pain of having his groin area brutally and mercilessly kicked several times by the older and much more powerful boy. "Why?" Komo asked, looking up at Daichi. "Why?" her eyes turned back to the boy on the floor. "Oh God."
"He was attacking you," Daichi simply said, puzzled by the girl's reaction. "He deserved it. He won't be allowed in the group anymore."
"Komo," Machi said, tightly holding the girl who felt as cold as ice, if not colder. "Did he attack you?"
"No." Komo shook her head over and over. "He never even tried to touch me. Not really."
"But he had his arms on you," Daichi countered. "Don't lie. It was obvious. We all saw it."
"Snotty, please send Kako back to the hospital," Chizu said.
"I'm not finished with him yet," Daichi said.
"You are," Chizu said bluntly. "Send him back," the girl ordered.
Drop Dead obeyed, all the while muttering under his breath something about being nothing more than a glorified taxi driver.
Chizu turned back to Maki and Komo. "You're freezing," she said, observing the girl. "I assume you two were huddled together for body heat and nature took its course?"
Komo gulped, still shivering, and nodded with her eyes on the floor where Kako had been. "It was dark and there was nothing but snow and more snow." She shuddered. "The only thing other than the snow was the wind." The girl shook her head. "I've never been so cold in my life."
"But, . . . ." Daichi started, then fell silent.
"I don't know how he stood it," Komo added. "I had clothes and I was too cold to move. He just bent down and started digging a tunnel like he didn't feel it at all. We, or rather he, made a small place inside and I joined him. We wanted the place to be as small as possible so our body heat could warm the air so we cuddled." Komo looked around the room. "We were really close together, and I was really cold, so I kept shivering and touching him." The girl blushed a crimson red. "But he never tried to do anything. I think he hates me too much to even consider it. We just talked a lot."
"I guess that ends the team as it is," Chizu said. "We will still be called here to fight, but we won't be a team. I asked the doctors how he was doing. In that last fight one of his testicles was crushed. And just now I'm pretty sure both were. If we were back hom . . . . " She glanced at Drop Dead. "If we were back a hundred years ago he would now be neutered. Here it can be fixed but I doubt he'll be in a good mood." The girl looked at Daichi. "He was cold too. They's why he was on the ground shivering like that. And that makes twice you attacked first without warning, but this time I doubt he could have even tried to defend himself. I know you thought you were in the right but you weren't."
The group went quiet recalling Mirror's words from several days past: 'Just remember, you're a team.' They all knew they needed to be a team to win, that if they weren't then they would lose. Why else would the strange girl have mentioned it if it wasn't important?"
"He was exposed to the cold more than I was," Komo finally said. "He took the position closest to the tunnel leading outside. He was the one who kept it open so we could breathe." She tried to clear from her mind the way he'd been kicked. It'd been so hard he'd slid across the floor.
'We ask that you remember that deal when today has passed.' Machi recalled Mirror's words even though six days had passed. She also recalled that she'd insisted Kodama be part of the deal despite Mirror and Sakura resisting the idea. What do we do? she asked herself, frowning as intensely as the rest of the gang. They came to me first. The rest of them, except for Ushiro, don't even know all of the deal. And Mirror thinks of me as the leader. The determined girl took a deep sigh, clenched her fists, and stepped forward, switching her cell phone to record.
"Who cut him out of the loop?" Machi asked, voice firm yet barely carrying across the room. When the entire group, including Drop Dead and Penny, looked her way she wanted to cringe.
"Me and Daichi," Moji admitted. "But I'm no longer sure why."
"The two most rational people in the group?" Machi stated, puzzled. "Why?"
"I'm guessing they wanted to defend the team," Chizu said, "even if it was against imaginary foes."
"Whatever." Machi shook her head, refocusing her thoughts. "Last week we had a reason, or so we believed, to be angry. Then we knew he was responsible for what had been done to Chizu. We were proved wrong. At that time everyone should've backed off and apologized. We didn't. In fact, many of us continued to be hostile towards him while, for some reason, being friendly towards the actual monster." The girl looked around the room, eyes flashing. "In any group there has to be some rules to keep order. When crimes are committed there has to be a response, a punishment for the crime." The girl turned to look at Moji and Daichi. "Since you two thought bringing him here naked was a good idea you will spend the next three days naked yourselves."
"We didn't know he would be naked," Moji insisted.
"I'm the leader," Waku said, stepping forward. "I should get to impose the rules. And three days is too much. He was only here for minutes."
"No," Machi countered. "You're team leader when it comes to fighting. I'm the leader of the group."
"Why?" the boy asked. "Mirror said I was leader."
"Only because I suck at leading a team," Machi replied, not backing down. "You were needed to stand in for me because you have experience at being on a team and should know how to run one." She shook her head. "But this time you're one of the ones who messed up, remember? You remained hostile towards Kako throughout the entire week and you also tried to provoke a fight within the team at a critical moment. What would have happened if they'd attacked us without letting us have our little quarrel? Or for that matter, during the last fight when we needed more than just a little time to settle matters." She gulped nervously, looking embarrassed. "Even though we hadn't learned the truth at that time, we should still have focused on the fight." She looked over at Chizu. "Sorry for making so much trouble for you back then." She bowed her head. "And thanks for cleaning it up in a very spectacular fashion."
"So they go naked for three days?" Chizu asked, eyebrows raised. "I'm sure the girls will love that, but I'm not sure if it'll soothe Kako's feelings."
"We didn't know he would be naked," Moji repeated, sounding frantic.
"You didn't know he wouldn't be either," Machi countered. "Three days naked; take it or leave it."
"And if we don't?" Moji fumed.
"Then you're off the team."
"You don't have that sort of power. None of us do," Waku butted in.
"Don't I?" Machi asked, looking Moji in the eye. "Why don't you do a little divination?"
The boy froze, eyes closed for several seconds. "You do," he admitted sounding incredulous. "How? Why?"
Machi shrugged. While both Sakura and Mirror insisted they be the pilots for her group she also knew the task, whatever it was, was far more important. She could force the issue and insist they leave if they caused trouble, and that it would in no way break the individual agreements Sakura had made with each of them. She guessed the demi was old enough and wise enough not to make conflicting agreements.
"Decide," the resolute girl stated, staring down the two stunned boys. "Accept punishment for what you did or leave? Of course you will be paid for what you've done so far, but beyond that . . . ." She shrugged.
Both Moji and Daichi looked at each other, unsure of what to do.
"Of course," Machi added, "you would be missed. The way Daichi takes care of us is like having a mother with us. Just one who's not too invasive or judgemental. Don't take this the wrong way, but I think all of us love you like a mother as well." She shrugged, looking down with her face turning red before continuing. "And Moji is our seer. We'll never find anyone who can replace him in that regard. It would be like trying to find a better pilot than Kirie; it just isn't going to happen." The girl took another deep breath. "But much as we love you, or as good as you are at your job, if the team breaks then the billions of people on this world die." She looked up, eyes flaring. "I won't allow that to happen."
"I joined because I knew I would be needed," Moji said, "but I'm no longer sure that's the case. You've all become pretty good at taking down those mechs even without having any weapons, or having my help. But . . . . " He shook his head. "Why did we focus so much on hating him? I don't understand."
"I don't either," Machi admitted. "I'm hoping you'll stay. And while I do promise to try not to stare too much, I'm not sure I'll keep that promise." From her left side she heard Ushiro growl. "But I'll also make it clear right now to the whole group that whoever makes a single word of fun at you while you're in that state, other than Kako, will face the same punishment and even he only gets to go so far."
Moji sighed while his fingers slowly rose to fumble at the zipper to his shirt. beside him Daichi also started to strip.
"Wait," Machi said, pointing at Daichi. "You were part of the group who cut him out of the loop but you did something much worse. You neutered him viciously and without warning. There will be extra punishment for that which we should decide before you, um." The girl blushed. "If you leave then there's no need for you to embarrass yourself like that." She looked down, closing her eyes. "Moji please move out of sight. I can't think with you there like that."
"What is it," Daichi asked stoically.
"I don't know. He was neutered, but I can't bring myself to say . . . ."
"That I deserve the same?" Daichi asked.
Machi shrugged. "I want to go easy on you so you'll stay. But you kicked him so hard he slid across the floor. And you did it several times." The girl shuddered. "God, that was so scary and I don't even know if this will get him to stay, or remain part of the team. Even if he leaves though I want him to at least know there was some sort of justice."
"It will," Maki said. "If he sees justice done, and if he's not excluded again, I think he'll stay. At least I hope so. I like talking to him."
"Good," Machi replied. "But . . . ." She looked at Daichi. "We know you think of us as your kids, so why not Kako? Yes, he attacked Chizu, but he also tried to protect her. Actually, he was the only one who tried to. And when he had that knife he could have cut you all down, but instead there were no really bad stab wounds. The most serious was the one he took himself in the chest. How can you call the person who goes easy on those trying to kill him a monster? Answer that question and we"ll skip punishment for the way you kicked him."
Daichi looked down, thinking, kicking at the floor like a kid. "I can't," he finally said. "So it's either leave or get neutered." The boy was pale and scared.
Penny hesitantly stepped forward to whisper in his ear. Her voice was too low for anyone else to hear, but Daichi turned a bright crimson-red.
"It'll only hurt until you get back to the hospital," Chizu said softly, feeling the need to be punished herself. She'd hoped that by joining the group she would be able to move on. Mirror had suggested she ask the hospital staff for treatment for her issues and she'd done so. But the group was fracturing and it made her feel sad inside, as if she was bad. "Please stay," she begged. "We need you. Just stop hurting Kako."
Daichi gulped. "And if they can't fix it?"
"They can," Maki told him. "I think."
Daichi shook his head. "This is my manhood you're being so cavalier about here," he cried.
"Just like you were so cavalier about Kako's," Machi replied. She turned to Moji. "Divine this for us, if Daichi accepts punishment does both he and Kako get fully healed. Don't waste juice on doing the two separately. Between choosing a pilot, the Komo issue, deciding about that alternate Earth, and now this you've used more than enough juice for today."
Moji closed his eyes. "Fully healed," he finally replied. "And I also sort of get the feeling that later in life one of them avoids prostate cancer because of this, though I didn't ask that question. It's just a feeling."
"Who does the honors?" Maki asked reluctantly, looking a bit green.
"I do," Machi replied. "You sure?" she asked, looking at Daichi.
The boy nodded, looking like he was going to throw up.
Machi stood still for a long time, not wanting to do it, yet knowing she had to. She was the leader and it was her place to handle this; she'd made the decisions and she'd decided the punishment. It was also her place to carry out the punishment. Taking two steps forward she kicked the shaking boy. Then, as he collapsed to the ground, she turned and threw up. It was three more savage kicks before they were sure both testicles had ruptured and the girl quickly ordered Drop Dead to send the him back to the hospital. Feeling sick, disgusted by what she'd done, she spent the next five minutes crying while Ushiro sat beside her and the others politely looked away.
"Now," Machi said, finally managing to stand. "There's one last punishment to decide."
"Mine?" Komo asked, still violently shaking while her body warmed up. "I was pretty mean to him earlier."
"But you made up with him?" Machi asked. "When you got back you ran and screamed pervert, but that was natural given the situation you were in. You were pretty shocked when he got hurt."
"I guess." The girl looked down, rubbing her arms vigorously. "We talked a lot. He's not a monster."
Machi noded. "The punishment we need to talk about is mine. I let this get out of hand and it almost destroyed the team, assuming there still is a team. While I'm not sure there will be, I do know I failed my responsibilities. What's my punishment? I can't decide since that would be just plain wrong." The clearly frightened girl stared around the room. "Just like with Daichi it can't be too lenient."
"What of mine?" Chizu asked, thinking. "I let Kodama run loose and threaten the team. I was the first weak-link in the chain."
"Honey," Maki said. "You got punished more than enough. There's no way we're adding to it." She looked down. "And I'm sorry about the things I said about you when I was trying to kill Kako. They were out of place. They're not things I believe, just what I said out of frustration and anger." She shook her head, smiling. "He told me I'd never seen the real you, now I know what he meant."
"You felt guilty when you learned that it was Kodama and not him," Chizu said with a casual shrug. "That was the reasonable thing to do. I don't think anyone can fault you on your actions there."
"'We can't," Machi agreed. "Now, what to do about me?"
"I'm sure he would much more appreciate a girl walking around naked than a guy," suggested Kanji who was immediately clobbered by Anko.
"I'm sure he would," Maki agreed. So would I, she silently mused just before Komo smacked her on the head.
"I'm sure he would be happy with the fact you stuck up for him," Kirie told Machi. Bleh! Who wants to see girls naked, he silently muttered, trying to see Moji out of the corner of his eye.
Machi wearily rubbed at her eyes, wondering what to do. She very much doubted any guy would want to see her naked. Not when there were girls like Anko and Maki around. And the idea that Ushiro might look and compare scared the heck out of her. "Hitting, beating?" she suggested. "My failure to enforce rules did result in him being hurt."
"No," Ushiro immediately stated. "I'll kill the guy who hits you."
Machi shrugged. "Then it'll have to be a girl."
"Please, no more hurting each other like that," Chizu said, making it a plea.
"Agreed," Maki said.
Machi sighed. They weren't helping at all. "Suggestions?" she asked again only to be met with silence. Crud, she told herself. Crud, crud, crud. With her heart trembling in fear, not daring to meet Ushiro's eyes, the girl's hands reached for her shirt zipper.
"I think that would be unfair to Kako," Chizu said, looking at the girl and how her hands were shaking.
"How so?" Machi asked, all the while silently pleading, please give me an out, please give me an out.
"He certainly won't be able to enjoy a naked girl for quite some time. By the time he could you'll be back in clothes." Chizu shrugged. "Would be pretty much of a downer for him. You'll just be rewarding the guys like Waku and Moji who were a part of the problem."
"Oh." Machi let her hands drop.
Waku glared at Chizu, then sighed. "I think the fact you were the one who kicked Daichi like that is punishment enough. Let's just go with that, or perhaps a warning."
"Agreed," Maki said, followed a second later by Chizu.
Waku looked down. "I did make a scene earlier when we were supposed to be focused on the fight."
"As did I during the last fight," Maki added.
"Let's just go with more warnings then," Machi said, gladly taking the out she'd been offered. "But next time you'll have to clean a random toilet from one of our rooms with your toothbrush, then use the toothbrush to brush your teeth."
Machi turned the record option on her phone off. "Please see to it he's put back into the loop, and that he gets this," She told Waku, hitting the send button.
"Will do." Waku saluted.
"You know," Maki mused aloud, looking thoughtful, "I do believe that's a spider up there." She pointed.
"What?" Drop Dead screamed, glancing upward fearfully even as he let his body sink lower and lower towards the floor.
Nakama pointed downward, "Now there's one on the floor," she shrieked, sounding truly frightened.
Drop Dead paused in his descent towards the floor, looking fearfully around him. There was, above him, a six-foot black spider casually crawling around on the ceiling. Trembling, poor Drop Dead turned to look downward. There was another spider staring up at him. "Eek." He flashed around the room in circles screaming incoherently.
"Ah snap," Maki said. "You know, it's just my earring creating a shadow. Silly me." She pulled the earring off, placing the small jewelry holo-projector kids used for fun and practical jokes in her pocket.
"They do that?" Nakama asked, pulling her own earring off. The spider on the floor disappeared. The girl eyed the earring, smiling. "And here I thought it was just a cute trinket," she said, sounding totally innocent.
"Damn kids," Drop Dead muttered, wobbling in the air like he was drunk. "Damn damn kids."
"You can bet on these fights?" Chizu suddenly asked, recalling an earlier comment by the strange, ceramic-looking creature.
"They can," Penny informed the girl. "It's just something he's never done before because we keep losing. And a level one that beats a level nine is going to give quite a reward. Nine times what he bet in fact." She looked at Drop Dead. "He's quite happy with that."
"Doesn't that mean you guys have something like money and you can buy stuff?" Anko asked.
Penny shrugged helplessly. "Don't know about buying stuff. From what I've overheard they mainly use it for stuff like status."
"Would a level nine mech beating a level one get one-ninth of what they bet?" Chizu asked.
"Yep. It's based on the level of the mechs. Why?" Penny looked at the girl.
"Just curious about them," Chizu said with a careless shrug. She looked around. "Anyway, might as well get back to the hospital. I'm tired and in pain and I want my wheelchair back." She smiled up at Drop Dead. "Be a sweetie and send us back. I'm sure the nice taxi driver wants some alone time after seeing those big, nasty spiders."
The creature muttered but obeyed and the room was instantly cleared of the troublesome group. "Wait a bloody second," he suddenly exclaimed." Wasn't one of you supposed to die?"
"Give it a rest," Penny told him. "I don't think what you want has much of an impact with them. Interesting kids. Crazy, but interesting." She frowned, wondering how Daichi was doing. While the way he'd kicked Kako had scared her, his willingness to take a punishment like that had her impressed.
A short while later Maki entered her room, used a brush on her hair, and looked around. Spotting the last of the strange-looking mints that someone had left her she took it, eyes closing in pleasure as she bit it in two. While they looked like drops of blood they tasted like heaven. It was something like a cross between strawberry and raspberry juice with a hint of chocolate in the mix. They were delicious. Taking a deep breath, the girl looked around one more time and left, heading towards Kako's room. She figured there was no way he'd be seeing visitors just yet, but she could ask when and go back at that time. She'd been chicken enough.
Kodama sat on the beach, trying to ignore the sun that beat down on him. When it'd became obvious that Komo hadn't chosen to join him he'd started playing with the needle, using it to impale some tiny crabs he'd found in a small, tidal pool. They'd died all too quickly, leaving him unsatisfied. There's nothing like the screams of humans, especially a girl, he mused unhappily with a deep, sad sigh as he glanced up at the sun that seemed determined to roast him alive. Briefly he wondered if staking someone out in the sun would be an interesting way to test them, but quickly decided it wasn't. The dehydrated weren't all that good at screaming. Still, if I gave them water then the sunburn would be exquisitely painful, he decided. More hours passed and day turned to night, which turned to light again.
End of Chapter
