"Don't worry. You're safe now."
"Who are you?" The green-eyed soldier questioned hazily.
His head was pounding, pain twitching ruthlessly across his skull as though it were cracked and tracing the jagged edges of the break. He struggled to stay conscious only catching sight of familiar deep blue eyes of a man that had made his mind reel in frustration. As he drifted he could hear a name but the name would not become clear as if knowing that by staying hidden it would taunt him until he could no longer stand it.
"Everything will be alright."
My mother was never one to completely disregard the supernatural. Though she never openly admitted to believing in it, she never denied it either. I suppose like she, I've adopted the same type of attitude, indifferent but never truly closed off to the idea. After all, some would consider me "unnatural", "strange", "impossible", all things that could be used to describe the aforementioned topic. The supernatural. Now that I stop to think about it, I believe in an afterlife and I believe that my ancestors are there watching me. So should their story really surprise me?
I can see their motive now and their actions do not stray far from what I would do if placed in their situation. To watch over worlds other than your own? I'm actually beginning to sympathize for them. I suppose they're not that bad either.
At first I had suspected them for frauds trying to manipulate us to do their dirty work but now it's evident that wasn't the case. Though it reprieves me to finally hear the truth, I've now become curious of another topic.
The look of loss is evident in her aura, the loss of someone important. I know because I was the same way when my wife was killed along with what was left of my family and friends. But she is lost and without purpose. Her presence here is undoubtedly confusing, frustrating and possibly painful. When I was lost I was unsure of how to handle things, uncertain as to what sort of action I should take. My mind was swallowed in those events, tainted by the pain and suffering. It fueled my motivation for "justice", a term I so willingly used as a substitute for vengeance. I was driven by painful memories and it's not hard to see that she is in the same place I used to be…Misery.
"We'll leave as soon as we're certain Black Star is shut down and inoperable," Minako concluded, Heero and Wufei taking in the information and nodding.
She glanced towards Makoto who sat quietly by and frowned. Minako wished she could see what was going on in that head of hers but since she had arrived, she remained quiet the majority of the time.
"So," Wufei started. "I guess having the coordinates for Black Star's main base would be useful in ending this whole ordeal," he ended suggestively with a slight frown.
Minako suddenly perked up in interest.
"Do you—"
"Duo found them. We've had them ever since the beginning."
"But," Heero quickly interceded. "They may have moved base when they realized they were being tracked."
"True," Minako stated. "But it probably takes time to relocate. We may still have a chance to intercept them before they disappear again."
She looked expectantly at Makoto who merely bobbed her head, rising slowly from her seat in anticipation as she assumed that meant they would be leaving shortly. Wufei looked skeptical, his charcoal gaze still resting on the brunette.
"Are you stable enough?" He questioned.
Minako winced, gulping at the fact that a man who had barely even met her could already see that there was something wrong. Makoto suddenly turned cold, her eyes unforgiving as if offended that he would ask such a question. She did not respond to him vocally, a quick flash of lightning striking through her eyes in a dangerous warning. Minako hastily stepped in.
"Makoto never fails," she asserted though she secretly had her own thoughts of doubt. "And she won't start now."
Wufei and Heero nodded apprehensively, the static growing thicker as they stood in the room. Wufei, stubborn and unafraid, groaned in dismay. Hopefully the blonde would be able to keep the brunette sane though he knew better than anyone that chances were dismal.
"We should get going."
Minako headed for the exit, Makoto following after until stopped by an impulsive placement of a hand on her shoulder. Surprise was evident all around, including Wufei, as he didn't expect his body to reach out so carelessly. Makoto's body tensed, irritation rising and provoking action as she reverted her gaze back to him. However, his expression shocked her, deep ominous charcoal eyes staring back at her with a history that was all too familiar.
"I know what you're feeling," he murmured in a low tone, his angular eyes growing darker as the wall he kept up started to falter. He didn't know why he chose to stop her or even why he was compelled to share such a deeply hidden past with a complete stranger, but his heart wouldn't let him turn a blind eye to someone he could clearly influence if he just spoke up.
"Don't let it consume you," he stated, splicing a large balloon of relief in his self as the realization of closure finally washed over him.
Makoto gulped, her heart suddenly stalling at his words. She looked away, the static dissipating as she nodded silently. She felt something placed in her hand, her eyes curiously dropping to see what it was. It was a wrinkled picture, lines and cracks rippling through a photo of Wufei and a slender female beside him with striking dark eyes that stood out against her fair cream skin. She was proud, just as he was, with the strong frame of a fighter. Makoto looked to him and immediately understood, a watery downpour threatening to escape. She stifled the tears and gripped the picture as her heart somehow felt the first sensation of comfort she had ever witnessed since that day.
"Thank you," she whispered.
Minako looked perplexed from the door, her ears unable to pick up on what was said. Nevertheless, Makoto moved towards her, now a bit more at ease as they finally took their leave. Soon after, Heero and Wufei departed to reunite with their comrades in hopes that Makoto and Minako would find Black Star before relocation and end their activity.
Quatre and Duo were speechless. The story of the senshi and the idea that other worlds existed apart from their own was mindboggling. Hotaru and Usagi smiled as they patiently waited for the story to settle and peered curiously at the nearly invisible pilot of Heavy Arms who stood in the outside hallway. Since they returned from the fight, he was even more distant and unresponsive. Quatre had tried to get him to speak with his polite mannerisms, which didn't seem to be of much use and Duo had punched him at first sight in anger for his lack of help on the battlefield. Still, Trowa just shrugged him off, his cheek slightly red from the blow, and walked away, finding a place against a wall where he leant, folding his arms and closing his eyes.
Duo was then fuming once more but Quatre brought him down and convinced him to leave Trowa alone for the time being. That was when the girls had commenced their explanation, receiving looks of disbelief and skepticism. But with the display of inexplicable power, the boys thought it best not to question their history.
Minako had contacted them, the small watch communicator earning a grin as Duo found it ingenious. She informed them that she and Makoto would be scoping out the coordinates for Black Star's main base and that with luck they would be able to complete the mission once and for all. Usagi was glad and even relieved that Makoto had appeared to be fully functional but Hotaru for some untold reason was beginning to become anxious. She hid her uneasy feelings with small smiles and laughs but she could not deny the hazy cloud of discomfort swelling in the pit of her chest.
At first she wanted to help, but Minako was afraid that more attacks would be sent in the direction of the pilots and that it would be best for Hotaru and Usagi to stay with them as back up once again. She agreed of course, but such turmoil intensifying inside was never a comforting sign especially since she doubted it was to do with the pilots.
"Hey!" Duo let out happily at the sight of Heero and Wufei walking in.
They each stood to greet them with smiles until noticing Wufei's concerned features.
"Heavy Arms wasn't in the hangar," he said. "Where's Trowa?"
Quatre's heart dropped heavily in his chest, the room engaging in a desperate search for Trowa. While in their flurry of questions he had slipped away, his motive and destination far from comprehension. Desperately they searched as he grew further in distance and in mind.
Black Star was not fast enough to evade the intercepting attack of the two senshi. Their super powered soldiers were no match for age and wisdom as Minako and Makoto wove through the defenses to find the central command center. Minako was alleviated by the fact that Makoto appeared much more focused after Wufei's small exchange of words. With a light heart she was glad and with determination, Makoto continued to fight.
"We'll have to split up," Minako voiced as they reached a crossroads. "I'll contact you if I find anything."
"Me too," Makoto muttered.
"Oh and Mako-chan," Minako said in mid-step. "Be careful."
Makoto smirked, sprinting away in her given direction. The picture given was safely tucked away in her pocket, her eyes skimming the halls for some sort of key. She slowed as she reached the end of the hall, a keypad placed on a wall in control of a door. With ease she short-circuited the box, the door sliding open as a result.
Bullets barreled towards her and she shot them down with her electricity, hastily hiding behind a wall to try and get a feel for how many were in there. She counted three. The place looked like some type of laboratory, her instincts telling her she may have stumbled upon something important.
She froze as she heard feet clinking to get away. This she could not have. She came from her hiding to meet with one who stayed behind to stall her. With a sharp dispersion of thunder, she rendered him temporarily paralyzed, death never being the first option in situations such as these. She went to find the pair that had tried to escape and quickly caught up. It was a soldier and a scientist.
The soldier turned to shoot her not realizing that she was so close and met with a harsh knee to his gut. He stumbled momentarily as Makoto grabbed his gun away from him and jabbed a sequence of pressure points to leave him unconscious. Decades of fighting had made simple human contact quite easy to handle. Her emerald eyes darted upward in time to notice that the scientist was in the process of entering an escape pod.
Instantaneously, she grabbed him, using her thunder and lightning to cling to his form and pin him against a wall.
"Please," he begged. "Let me go! I did nothing wrong!"
Makoto scoffed in disbelief, ascending the steps to get a clear view of his face. She would have knocked him unconscious if it hadn't been for his sudden reaction of recognition.
"You," he exasperated. "It can't be."
The hairs on the back of her neck stood on end, an uneasy feeling sweeping across her as she found his reaction disturbing. Her heart pounded with anxiety, her conscience immediately telling her to flee but a stronger sensation forcing her to stay and chance curiosity.
"You know me?" She asked awkwardly, her feet shifting as small tendrils of lightning tauntingly caressed the palms of her hands.
The scientist stayed pinned in disbelief, his clouded mind unable to sense the rising tension as he was overcome with incredulity, consistently battling his logic.
"You can't be the same woman," he wheezed, "You haven't aged a single year."
Makoto's teeth grit, anger suddenly springing forth as she found it difficult to contain herself. With speed she didn't even know she was capable of, she zoomed to him, her hand harshly wrapped around his neck as he now noticed his dangerous position.
"How do you know me?" She seethed through grit teeth.
The metal around the room started to tremble, her powers seeping out voluntarily, provoking a threatening indoor storm.
"I-I don't know you at all," he tried to lie, only for her grip to tighten.
"Ack," he struggled, her eyes glaring dangerously as threatening torrents rippled around his skin. Fearful, he sputtered his responses. "V-videos from the mobile suit in our first trial run for dimensional travel recorded you."
"First trial run?" She felt sick, the event flashing through her mind in crashing waves. Her grip loosened as she temporarily started to get dizzy.
The mobile suit that had stepped through and destroyed her home and the people around her was a trial run?
The scientist used the opportunity to escape, and stabbed her with a syringe and injected. Her attention was earned back ten folds, the fury rising as she ripped out the needle and slammed him harder, indenting the wall at impact.
He whimpered.
"Please," he begged. "Please don't kill me."
She growled in respite, a pulsing of energy emitting dangerously as her thoughts of restraint were now abandoned completely.
"Why not?" She questioned. "You killed all those people in my world without hesitation. Why should I spare you?"
She was far from stable and she knew it but the information that he had leaked was too closely rooted to her psyche for her to just let him go. The man started to cry, his tears doing nothing in Makoto's spiteful eyes.
"A-a survivor," he let out nervously, desperately throwing out whatever he could that might save him.
Makoto winced, her hands growing with power as it slowly started to sear his skin.
"What?" she let out in a dangerous whisper, moving her ear closer.
"There was a survivor who was brought back from your world," he gasped, breathing heavily.
"Don't lie to me," she growled, the heat on his skin rising as he felt the slow burn intensifying in pain.
"I swear," he whimpered. "A brunette with green eyes…had outstanding physical conditioning but couldn't remember a thing."
Makoto's heart was wild, the similarities too much as she struggled to decide whether she should believe him or not. Her mind suddenly was pulled back to the room, the sound of a gunshot echoing in her ears. Confused, she blinked, sighting a cylindrical hole buried within the scientists' skull. She released his body, turning sharply to see the one responsible.
There stood a woman oozing with an unnatural aura, the gun in hand returning to its holster, as she stood unfazed. And behind her, was a male figure baring a warming brown mane with striking emerald eyes.
The soldier of Jupiter was frozen with disbelief.
Thank you for reading. I had to revise this chapter, so if you happened to be reading it and it sounds really familiar it's because I took it down and am now reposting it. There are only a few differences, mainly more descriptions and a different ending for this chapter. I am also revising chapter 12 which was on here but I took down since I was slightly perturbed by it. Nevertheless, it will be posted soon. Thanks again for taking the time to read this and the reviews are much appreciated!
Pink Rabbit: Thank you for your review. I am truly flattered by your comments and am glad the suspense of Makoto's arrival was evident. As always, I hope this chapter keeps up with the quality of the other chapters.
nadeshiko-yuna: Thank you for your review. I'm glad you love the story so far and hopefully it continues to be lovable ^^
Nerf-or-Nothing: Thank you for your review. Sorry about reposting this ^^; though there aren't many differences in this revision, it has somehow become more bearable for me since the previous unrevised chapter just bothered me for reasons I cannot quite articulate at the moment. But that aside, thank you again for your reviews, they are always so kind ^^
Thank you again for reading! Suggestions and criticism welcomed,
4Shame
