A/N: It's been over 16 long months of writing on this one chapter...and here is the result. This is one of the longest chapters I have ever written. I have no idea how many discontinuities there might be since I stopped, started, rearranged and reworked so much of this chapter over the past year, but I wouldn't be surprised to find several of them. Hopefully it flows halfway decently. Any suggestions that anyone has, please don't hesitate to throw them out. I want to make sure that heading into the last chapter, I have the right focus and right aim or else I'm going to wind up screwing this all up. :P
And thanks to everyone who continues to read and support me as I finish this half-decade long marathon of a story. I'm not promising anything, but I really expect to get the final chapter done in relatively short order. :)
AFA Part 2
Falling from Grace
Ch. 20 – "Stricken"
From the World News Network, here's entertainment news for July 12th, 2041. With her domination of North America complete, the Aoede "Human Golem World Tour" now takes aim on Europe once again. And just as three months ago when the anointed "Goddess of Sound" first invaded the US, hordes of fans are following her every stop. By some estimates, the population of Switzerland, her first tour stop, has almost doubled due to the swell of fans just hoping to catch a glimpse. And we won't even get into the ticket availability and pricing, although we have heard rumors of scalpers fetching BMW's and even entire estates just for prime seating in the outdoor venues there. In other "Goddess" related news, reports continue to circulate throughout the Far East of a possible secret tour stop. Hong Kong and Beijing are among the most rumored sites, although one persistent notion and a possible "feel good" story is a fundraising stop in the boomer-ravaged city of Tokyo, Japan.
And that's it for entertainment news. Now back to our headline story, today marks the beginning of week three of the European Union's hearings into the worldwide power grid/cube failure, and the focus is shifting back towards the former world conglomerate Genom once again…
Washington DC, USA
"So you're absolutely sure? They are an exact match?" the US Senator asked from across the meeting room table.
A pair of dark suited men sat at attention on the other side of the heavy mahogany table. "They are close enough to be almost certain. The material recovered from the Wiz Lab wasn't in prime condition, and certainly not in as good of shape as the sample from Switzerland. However, our agency isn't in the business of 'almost'. We took the liberty of comparing live notes with an ex-Genom researcher living in California. He was able to confirm our findings."
"And how fast is this advancing our program?" the Senator queried again, his hands clasping just at the edge of a large CIA emblem molded into the table.
"It has been accelerated as expected."
"That's good, but is it keeping pace with the Chinese?"
The two men paused, then glanced at each other briefly.
"Well, is it?" the Senator queried, impatiently.
"Our latest surveillance suggests that they are still ahead. The boost from acquiring one of the original Hardsuits is proving difficult to overcome."
"I see. However, I'm confident you have a recovery plan, correct?"
"Yes Senator Howard. We just need your approval to initiate the plan." One of the two suited CIA operatives reached below the table and lifted up a folder, the words "Top Secret" labeled several times over. He slid it to the Senator, raising his eyes to meet the older gentleman's.
The Senator didn't even bother to unclasp his hands, still joined together just at the rim of the CIA emblem. "I'm quite sure your team is aware of the importance of this project," he stated matter-of-factly. "Our committee met just before I came over for your briefing and we have already discussed this possibility. You have the Defense Commission's permission to initiate the plan."
"Yes sir. We will commence immediately. We will brief your team with updates every twelve hours."
Over Central Europe
The private jet flew low over the ice-capped mountains, giving the VIP passenger a gorgeous view. That passenger soaked in the beauty of the landscape, reveling in its majesty. The child-goddess smiled, her crimson eyes flashing in the bright summer sun blazing through the jets windows. "It's almost time for the family reunion," Aoede mused to herself, her smile growing as she considered the likely surprise on the rest of her 'relatives' faces.
On a whim, she closed her eyes and focused inward, projecting through the sky and into the land ahead. It didn't take her long to find the signs she was searching for. But then…
"Four? This is intriguing. Why four?"
In a very human manner, Aoede opened her eyes to the outside window again and curiously rubbed her chin.
"Four would make six. Which would mean… I have another stop to make," she smiled even a little more crooked than before.
Kumamoto, Japan
"No. I'll just stay here."
Priss' words didn't surprise Linna. But they still hurt just the same. "Okay then. I… I guess we'll see you when we get back. Bye," Linna waved awkwardly, walking towards the front door with her body turned sideways.
Priss didn't bother to reply. In fact, as Linna reflected on it after getting into her mother's new car, she couldn't remember the last time Priss had gone out of her way to even acknowledge her existence. It was as if Priss was nothing more than a shadow in the Yamazaki house. Always there, always silent, always hiding from the light. But as Linna thought back, she remembered that Priss didn't normally go out of her way to draw attention to herself. However, she certainly hadn't been afraid of the spotlight back then. Especially when it came to getting up on stage. It was then that Linna realized something else. "I haven't heard her sing. Not once."
"What's that dear?" Misa asked, stealing a glance over at her daughter as she drove the plainly decorated car.
"Oh! Sorry, I didn't mean to say that out loud," she blushed. "It's just…" Linna paused, her mind fumbling with the words to express her feelings.
"Wondering why Priss didn't want to come into the city with us?" Misa broke in.
"Yeah, sort of," Linna sighed, "And just thinking about how different she still is from the Priss that I used to know."
"You of all people should know just how much trauma she's been through Linna. Just try to be patient, and to keep an open mind."
"An open mind?" Linna asked, worried.
"Just, try to be happy for who she is and what she can do now."
"What are you saying? That I should just be happy that she's staying in my house and barely remembers who I am?? No. That's not good enough mom!" Linna fought back defiantly.
Misa sighed softly. She brought the car to a stop at an intersection, and then turned left, merging with other traffic flowing into Kumamoto. "Traffic is light for a Thursday," she commented idly.
Linna stared silently out the window.
"Hopefully the stores aren't too crowded then," her mother continued after a kilometer or so.
She still received no other comment from her daughter.
"You know that I'm just worried about your well being Linna."
"And all I'm worried about is Priss," she spoke into the window, still staring out the passenger side, her voice pale and distant. It was a clear contrast to the fiery words spit forth earlier.
"But don't you think you might be too worried about her?"
That drew Linna's attention from the countryside and nearly into her mother's face, the fire quickly returning. "She almost gave her life to save me! She loves me! I love her and I want her to get back to the way she was… because I know she's a fighter inside and that's what she really wants!"
"But how do you know that's what she really wants now? You said yourself the mental link you shared was broken. You may not recognize it, but you are much different now than you were a year ago Linna. What makes you so sure that Priss hasn't changed too?"
"Because… because…" But she couldn't keep up the argument when they played so hard to her own fears.
"Linna, people do change. But you have to give them room to change on their own or else they'll find a way to change away from you."
"Away from you?" Linna asked, just a little confused.
"I know you love her Linna," her mother continued. "Just don't hold on too tightly. If you trust that she'll still love you in the future, you have to give Priss her own space, her own room."
Linna thought hard on that last statement, and thought back to her own reflections. "I love her so much… but I don't want to let her go, not after we fought so hard to stay together. I just don't want to... no, I can't let her go."
Secret Testing Facility, Remote Western China
The group of men huddled in the control room, focusing intently on the monitors and displays set up in several locations. Several small monitors were part of stations, manned by white-coated technicians. A couple of the huddled men standing behind them wore white lab coats as well. A few more were decked out in contrasting Chinese military uniforms.
One of the technicians turned in his seat and spoke to another lab worker standing behind him. "The team is ready and in position, director sir."
"Very good," he replied, turning to the four starred military officer next to him. The Test Director bowed slightly, the only request needed after months of preparations and testing.
"Commence the test," the officer ordered.
"Commence the test," the Director repeated to the entire control room.
One technician keyed his microphone. "Xiana, begin!"
On the largest monitor in the room, a side view detailing a silver humanoid shape took form. Pixilated at first, the resolution quickly cleared to show the female, humanoid shape hunch down in spring like fashion. Then, a blue blast of rockets exploded from the back of it, shooting it high into the air. Several monitors tracked the progress of this humanoid shape from several different angles as it leapt high above mock buildings constructed in a desert area.
"Phase one complete. Hardsuit response within normal parameters," one of the seated technicians announced.
"Good. Initiate phase two," the director ordered.
Two technicians to the right both nodded and began manipulating the keyboards at their stations.
On two screens, gun and missile batteries popped from hidden parts of the mock buildings and began to track the hardsuit. Within seconds, they both opened fire on the flying object. Instantly the hardsuit began evading the gunfire and missiles with relative ease. The thrusters pivoted on the back of the suit, pushing the pilot towards the ground and away from the high arcing fire. The hardsuit gracefully landed on two feet and a hand as the pilot swiveled her head side to side, scanning the immediate area.
"Hardsuit response still within normal parameters. Phase two complete," a technician reported.
"How is the pilot," one of the military men queried.
"Vitals and biorhythms are good sir," another technician off to the side quickly replied.
The Test Director nodded, glancing over at a few of the screens, appearing to inspect the silver hardsuit, one shoulder emblazoned with the red Chinese Star. "Begin phase three."
"Beginning phase three," a technician replied in turn.
On cue, two bulky mechs ripped through walls on either side of the hardsuit. Each was easily twice the size of the sleek female form, but more than twice as slow. One charged the hardsuit from the front, its sledgehammer arms swinging wildly in its direction.
The coiled hardsuit sprung up and over the advancing mech, tapping on the top of its helmet as she flipped over. Landing on deft feet, the Chinese hardsuit spun away from an attempted punch and kick from the lumbering attacker. The pilot took a line and pushed the hardsuit through the gap between the two mechs. Her plan was simple. Take the least expected route and maneuver around the unsuspecting mech for a counterattack. It was a well thought out and calculated plan.
"Sir, we have signs of feedback!" one of the techs yelled out.
"Abnormal brain activity confirmed."
"Hardsuit response erratic. Primary algorithm failure!"
The test director didn't waste any time, immediately punching the red button on the panel just in front of him. "Abort the test!"
Xiana didn't hear the order to abort. She couldn't hear anything except for the sharp pain that rang her ears like a drum…just when she was directly between the two large foes. Her hardsuit stopped jarringly, her back arched almost into a "U" shape, her hands holding the sides of the helmet trying vainly to block out the invisible sounds.
The two mechs were already taking advantage of her vulnerable position. Both of them swung down at her small, prone frame. The stop signal caught the closer mech first, its armored fist dodging up and out of the way just in time. The signal to the other mech was a fraction of a second late though. Its fist pounded into the side of the hardsuit, smashing it several meters sideways into the air. It slammed hard into the concrete wall of the false one story building, collapsing the wall and sending tons of material crashing down onto the hardsuit.
"No! Xiana!!" one of the techs yelled out. Several other lab people and even one of the military members audibly gasped as the wreckage piled on top of the test pilot, the cloud of debris blocking the view on all the cameras.
The director quickly took action. "Pilot status!"
"High screech feedback still!"
"That means she's still alive under there. Shut down all the suits systems remotely except for life support. Direct the mechs to clear the debris immediately. Send out the standby recovery unit."
"Recovery unit already deployed sir," one of the techs reported in.
As the screens began to clear away, the picture of two robotic mechs pulling chunks of concrete and steel beams became visible.
Behind the chaos of the failed test, one of the military attaché's stepped out of the control room and pulled a phone from his pocket. Whispering into the device, he flashed his eyes through the glass window of the door over to the four star, making a slight gesture with his free hand.
The senior officer nodded, then turned and tapped on the test director's shoulder. "Can I have a word with you outside?"
"But… but we need to…"
"This is more important. Its about the second prototype," the officer added.
The director gave a couple of pained glances back at the screens, watching the debris being cleared away. He sighed and then followed the officer out into the hallway. Bowing his head, he started on the apology. "I know these failures are unforgivable…"
The high-ranking military man cut off his apology with a matter of fact tone. "The plan is still on schedule even with these delays. However the Americans' are forcing our hand."
"The Americans'?" the director asked.
"Yes," the other officer nodded, placing his phone back into his jacket pocket. "They've initiated a recruiting sweep."
"We have to respond as soon as possible," the senior officer summarized. "How soon will the second prototype be ready?"
The white-coated scientist closed his eyes, his hand rubbed on his chin. "I think we can have it ready in a week with accelerated core sync's… pending the lessons learned from today's testing of course."
The four star bowed in response, then shoved both hands into his jacket pockets and started to walk past the scientist. But he turned his head sideways just as he crossed in front of the elder technician. "You have two days."
"Two days!?! But that doesn't leave even enough time…"
"Give me the best that you can in forty eight hours from now," the military man reiterated, turning away and walking down the hall with his attaché in tow, leaving the technician scrambling in his wake.
Kumamoto, Japan
She sat into the bed and folded her arms over her knees. Sinking her short brown hair low, Priss rested her forehead onto her wrists. Closing her eyes, she did what she had done numerous times over the last few days. Priss pictured herself back in Tokyo, sitting on top of the Lady 633 building. Sylia and Nene sat at the table opposite of her. And to her right, Linna sat quietly, paying attention to the conversation at hand. Priss focused harder on Linna's features, trying to draw forth the essence of the moment. There was something in particular about that moment which kept pulling her back to the past, back to that time.
And like she had done so many times in the last few days, Priss thought back to the words, the conversation.
"So you do want a litter of your own?" Her own words, spoken nearly a year ago. They seemed to be spoken in an out of body experience now, not by herself but by someone else, a stranger in the mirror of her memories.
"When the time is right…" Linna's reply. She could picture her violet eyes struck with fire and determination.
But, the harder she focused back on that memory, the more unreal it seemed. She could mentally picture everything, but she couldn't remember how she felt at the time, or if she even felt anything at all. Then fast-forwarded in time, another memory, at the hospital after the accident holding Linna in her arms after the injured Saber had fallen out of bed. And again, even with the vivid pictures… no emotion… none at all.
Her eyelids lifted open to pass the soft light, slipping in through the bedroom window. The present filled her consciousness again, pulling her head upright. Priss flipped both hands over and stared into her palms, studying them as if the hidden clues of the lost parts of her mind would magically appear in the lines in her hands. But they didn't. It wasn't frustration that laid her hands back down again, just a tiring sense of soreness in her weakened forearms. Daily exercises with her workout demon friend had helped the last few months, but she knew she wasn't where she wanted to be. Not yet, anyway.
But physically she was a lot closer to her old self than her fragmented mind was. Every day brought some of those fragments together again. Two months ago she barely had a few pieces in place. A month ago it was about half the picture. Now, most of the frame of her old life was back intact… but everything was painted in black and white. It was as if the color of emotions from her past had been sucked from her soul.
Priss' eyes panned up from her lap, falling onto Linna's computer sitting atop a small desk. With Linna constantly fawning over her, the computer really hadn't caught her attention before. Not that computers interested Priss much anyway. That was Nene's thing, or Sylia's, or even Nigel's. Suddenly, a thought struck Priss as she remembered one more piece to her past… Nigel… and what had become of him. He was part of the reason she joined the Knight Sabers in the first place. And then, during the final battle with Galatea, he had been attacked for his knowledge of the child-god's creation. A faint pulse of sorrow rose from the depths of her soul, and then quickly faded back into the grey fog again.
A lone tear rolled down her cheek and fell onto her lap. Priss gazed down at the watery mark, and then back at the computer, thinking. After a few moments, she had an idea. Pulling out the chair to the desk, she turned on the machine and found it not password protected… not surprising knowing Linna. A few clicks and she found what she suspected. Files stored on the computer included some badly shot live footage of Sekiria. She clicked on a longer one and sat back in the chair, taking in the sounds of her band… and herself. Priss closed her eyes and imagined herself on stage, the pulsing lights, the fist-pumping crowd, the pounding stage. But as real as it seemed, as intense as the memory was… the adrenaline was still missing. Priss opened her lips, her vocal cords flexed… but no song would come… no emotion was inside, screaming to explode out as it had in her past.
The former singer sighed, closing the video files. She paused for a second more, then glanced at the computer desktop. A file folder caught her attention there… "e-mail archive" it read. Another thought passed her mind and she double clicked the file. The window opened and a list of hundreds of files scrolled across the screen. Priss knew which ones to look for though, and it didn't take long for her to locate them. Three particular files she opened all at once. As she read the first one, a few more of the pieces of her past clicked into place.
The files were the three e-mails that Linna sent to her after the accident. They were the e-mails that had drawn Priss to Kumamoto, to that fountain. But Priss wasn't focused on those events now. She struggled to pull back her memory of the e-mails, and the song that they had spawned. She read those e-mails for an hour trying to relive the ebb and tide they had caused her in that library back in Tokyo.
But in the end, an hour later, all she could do was push herself back from the desk. She rolled into the bed and settled onto her back. She remembered her old trailer, lying in bed the same exact way, sleepless for hours. That had forced a ride out in the city, which in turn helped create the song. Perhaps it was the freedom she didn't have now. No transportation, no independence. But those e-mails… the words rolled in her mind. The memories, the actions they had put into motion. The first meeting at the fountain wasn't what she was looking for when she rode out to Kumamoto. But when she shared the mental link with Linna, in the space umbrella, after rescuing Linna from Galatea and herself. Then they had recreated the meeting at the fountain. And then…
The front door slid open with a loud clunk. "We're home!" Linna's expectant voice.
Priss waited for a moment, but only heard steps in the kitchen. Shuffling and more steps told her they were likely unloading groceries from town. She stared into the ceiling, recalling the memories of the fountain, the e-mails, the band, Linna's desperation and anguish.
Approaching footsteps drew Priss from her introspection and into Linna's warm face.
"Hi. How are you feeling?" Linna asked, stopping at the doorway and inspecting her friend. The younger Yamazaki leaned against the doorframe, dressed in blue jeans and a light green tank top.
Priss noticed her clothes this time, taking in the slim woman with careful eyes. Still lying on the bed, she turned her head towards Linna and looked her up and down.
"Um, Priss? What are you doing?" Linna asked nervously, feeling somewhere between a fashion model and a piece of meat by the gaze of the other woman's eyes. She was just about to cross her arms over her body when Priss swung her legs off the bed and stood up.
With deliberate steps, Priss slowly walked up to Linna without saying a word.
Linna swallowed hard, nervously shifting her eyes away from the brown ones still intensely staring at her. "…priss?…"
Priss searched into Linna's eyes for a moment, pulling her pale violet eyes focus back to the front, their faces separated by the thinnest of margins.
Linna held her breath, unsure of what Priss might say or do next. She certainly wasn't expecting for Priss to do what she actually did… which was to take the sides of Linna's face with her hands and plant a soft kiss directly on her lips.
Linna's eyes closed and for just a moment, every agonizing, painful memory of the last brutal year faded away into serene nothingness. The simple feel of Priss' moist lips lifted her spirits higher than she could have ever imagined. Her beating heart thumped loudly in her ears. Her skin crawled with goose bumps even while her cheeks flushed with radiant sunbeams of heat. And her soul knew, this is all she ever wanted… to be loved by the person she so admired for so very long now.
Then it ended. The kiss was broken as Priss backed away. Linna opened her eyes and found confusion written over Priss' face. "What? What's wrong??" she pleaded, panicking.
Priss didn't answer verbally. Instead she did what usually did during these uncomfortable moments lately… and that was to just walk away. Except this time Linna wasn't going to just let her leave.
"Wait! Priss, talk to me dammit!!" Linna kept up with her stride for stride as Priss walked past her out of their bedroom, through the hallway, into the foyer and out the front door. "Priss! Priss, stop! Please!!!"
But she wouldn't… at least not yet. She turned right and walked around the side of the house, still not responding to Linna's begging voice.
Linna's desperation finally boiled over. Stepping up her pace she caught up to Priss and grabbed onto her. She hadn't thought about the consequences until her hand slapped down hard on Priss' shoulder, causing the other woman to suddenly stop in her tracks.
"Um… err…" Linna stammered, now very aware of her rash act. At the first sign of movement from Priss, Linna flinched, shutting her eyes tightly, expecting a harsh reprimand. That's the reaction the old Priss would have probably delivered. Instead, after a few moments of silence, Linna opened her eyes to someone else… an indifferent Priss.
"That's the problem," Priss spoke calmly.
"Wha…?"
"I can see the confusion. It's practically scribed on your forehead. Your wondering, 'What is she thinking? What is she feeling?' The problem is the answer: nothing."
"Nothing? Then… the kiss…" Linna's words froze in her heart. She didn't want to think about what they really meant.
"I had to find out. I had to know. I can remember everything now. I can see it all like a moving picture… just with no sound… with no emotion."
"No… no emotion?!"
A hint of sadness crossed the back of Priss' eyes for just a moment, and then faded into the blank nothingness of her pale sideways stare. "I remember the accident. I remember the fountain. I remember Tokyo bay and I remember fighting in space. I remember all those things… but I can't feel any of it. Worse yet, I… I can't feel anything for you, Linna. Not even when we just kissed. It's just not there anymore. Just an empty hole, that's all that I can see now… just empty."
A cold still settled in from the mountains as the reality of the words sank deep into Linna's heart. But yet… she gripped the pendant around her neck tightly and let out a small crack of a smile. "It's okay. You've been through so much and come so far. It'll come with time. I know it will."
"But what if it doesn't?"
"Then I'll wait until it does."
Priss turned her back on Linna, facing the tall tree in the back yard of Linna's home. Her eyes turned past the tree and onto the trail to the lake. "I'm going for a walk."
"Then I'll go with you…" Linna added encouragingly.
"…alone," Priss finished, raising a hand to stop her.
Linna silently held her ground, her mind churning furiously, trying to think of a reason to go with her. Her eyes darted side-to-side, uncertain. But she knew that Priss was familiar with the trail by now. They had walked it together nearly a hundred times now. Linna looked up to spot Priss already disappearing behind the first line of trees. Then she was gone. "I have to do something… something…" she chided herself, biting on one finger. "Wait!" In that desperate moment, an idea did materialize in her head. She turned around and strode purposely back into the house.
A few minutes later, the new Yamazaki car sped off the grounds and into town for the second time in the day.
Brugg, Switzerland
Jill pulled her business jacket into place, buttoning the two halves of the navy blue material together. "How do I look?"
Katsumi glanced through her holo-display for the computer terminal to inspect her business partner. "Sharp as usual. You never disappoint," she winked at her friend.
"Hey! We've got to pull every string we can to win more business, right?" she winked back.
A two-tone ring from the front drew Jill's attention.
She glanced at her watch. "It's probably them."
"Syrinx corp?"
"We'll find out in just a minute." Jill turned and walked into the front room, letting the automatic door to their office slide shut behind her. In the room stood two men dressed in plain dark suits. One carried a leather briefcase. The other a couple of folders tucked under one arm. Something about their appearance didn't sit well with the former special ops member.
The man with the suitcase held out his free hand for the typical handshake greeting. Jill joined her human hand with his. "Jill Anderson. Glad to meet you…" she drew out expectantly.
"David Richards," he quickly replied, then nodded in the direction of the man next to him. "And my Associate Sales Rep of Europe, Sergei Kolov."
Sergei thrust out his hand and replaced David's as Jill welcomed him as well. "Good to be your acquaintance," the man spoke in English, but with an odd Russian accent.
"Thanks so much for considering our services," Jill began on her pitch. She turned to the side and held out her mechanical arm, directing the two men to the small conference room directly ahead of them, just to the right of the main office. "If you'll come this way, we will get started right away."
Brugg, Switzerland
In the alley behind the JNK Security Consultants office, a medium sized package delivery truck sat parked at one end blocking the only entrance to the alley. Its rear cargo door was facing the alley, but remained shut for the moment. Inside the truck, three Americans prepared for their 'delivery'.
"I'm patched into their network. It's top notch, no doubt," the lone woman stated.
"So the other is occupied now?" a man dressed in package delivery worker clothes asked.
"Affirmative," the computer specialist replied, checking her screens as she double checked the video feeds from the other two agents already inside the office.
"We have twenty minutes to pull this off," the other man dressed as a delivery worker announced.
"Roger that," the woman replied. "I should be ready to go in two minutes. Com check."
The two men looked at each other and nodded. "Check," the replied in unison.
"Let's go," the taller of the two men announced. They opened a door in the hidden command center and walked into the 'normal' delivery area in the back of the truck. From there, they opened the back doors, stepped out of the truck and nonchalantly walked into the alley.
Inside the office Katsumi scratched her head, her eyes switching between several odd readouts on her network status. "This doesn't make any sense. Why is there a pack error with a blank log file? Nene? Nene what do you…" The woman turned to her left to face Nene's desk, where she had dutifully aided her every day for the last six months. It was only when she saw the empty desk that she remembered the conversation they had had last evening.
A solemn mood took hold of Katsumi as she thought back to the words from Nene. Today was the one year anniversary of Nene meeting Mackey, the young being that she had grown to love… and the love that kept her visiting the Stingray home every night for the last six months, keeping an eye on Mackey for any sign of change. Katsumi bowed her head for a moment and reflected on that dedication, mentally picturing Nene by Mackey's bedside at this very moment… which she told both her and Jill that she would do on this milestone. It was in that moment with Katsumi lost in reflection that all hell broke loose.
The back door to the office burst open and two suited men dove through. One rushed right for the stunned Katsumi. Her rusty reflexes were still quick enough to get her out of harms way… at least initially. She jumped out of the chair and ducked under the path of first attacker who went high. The Japanese woman rolled onto her back, her eyes searching for the second intruder by the door. He wasn't there. "Where did he…"
A firm grip on her arm caused her to panic. Jerking her arm free, Katsumi swiveled her head around to spot the other assailant. That was just the opening the first attacker was looking for.
Something buried itself into Katsumi's gut, knocking the breath from her. The next thing she felt was a jarring electric shock. Her body spasmed on the floor for a few moments before falling unconscious, the two men standing up and dusting themselves off afterwards. One of the men pocketed his taser, while the other sized up the limp body on the floor.
Just then, the previously undisturbed front door of the office flew open, the two men immediately assuming a defensive posture. However, both relaxed as they were greeted by the site of their two comrades, one with the blond haired target, on his broad shoulder. In his other hand, he held carefully the paper 'proposal' with a thick, protective paper… a special paper designed to barrier the poison laced on the documents' surface.
"Mission accomplished then." The man with the briefcase pressed a finger to his ear and spoke to the communicator hidden inside. "Ready the truck. We are inbound with the packages."
"Roger that," the female voice spoke into his ear.
The crew swiftly moved out of the back of the office and towards the waiting truck. Once the team was back in place with their 'packages' secured, one of the men moved through the door from the rear of the van up into the drivers area. He settled into the seat of the van, clicking the safety belt into place. With the push of a button the engine turned over. He raised a hand up to shift the vehicle into gear when his eyes caught glimpse of a very odd obstruction at the end of the alley.
A fashionably dressed woman of slight build and average height stood at the mouth of the alley a few meters in front of the van. And in the narrow alley she definitely blocked its path.
"Who is that?" the man whispered out loud. He scooted up in the seat to get a better view above the steering wheel when the woman pulled down her oversized sunglasses, revealing bright crimson eyes framed with flowing, wavy blond hair. "… wow…" was as much as the man could say.
With a purposeful gesture, the woman raised one arm behind her head and somehow "drew" a tall sheet metal curtain across the entrance to the alley. Meanwhile, she gracefully raised her other arm towards the other end of the alley, flipping her hand up and curling one finger at the man, gesturing him to come to her.
The American agent found himself opening the door of the van before he even knew what his body was doing. Back in the recesses of his conscience, whispers of doubt begged for a voice. And yet his legs still propelled him out of the van without a moment's hesitation. Even the sudden questions from his other teammates in his earpiece wouldn't halt his body. He strode directly up to the woman with every intention of sweeping this goddess up into his arms.
That goddess held out her one hand to him, continuing to beckon him closer. Then he reached her. The man raised his hands to encircle her slender waist, her hand coming up to cradle his cheek ever so gently. Then, contact.
The leader of the group stormed to the front of the van just in time to see the his driver embracing a young woman a few meters in front of the van. His blood boiled over at the unprofessional acts that endangered their mission. He leapt out of the van and took one stride towards the back of his driver. At that moment the woman shifted her gaze to him, crimson eyes burning a hole in his resolve. His feet instant froze to the concrete, his breathing difficult, shallow and rapid. "… what… what's happening…"
The man in her other arm methodically turned his torso around, pulled a pistol out of his jacket. With eyes burning with passionate emerald flame, he raised the weapon at his supervisor. Without a second thought, his finger squeezed the silent trigger, placing a muzzled bullet directly into the frozen man's forehead.
The group leader was dead before he hit the ground.
From the surrounding rooftops, a faint shadow flashed to the edge of the building peering into the alley and scanning the scene. It focused its energy onto the female shape and then immediately leapt into the air, its outline filling out into another form. A grey hardsuit dropped from the sky, landing between the van and the couple standing in its path. Its visor flashed towards the cooling body on the pavement, then back at the man and woman nervously.
The man started to raise his weapon towards the hardsuit until the blonde stopped him with a mere finger on his forearm. She slid the finger up the arm, around his shoulder, trailed it further up his neck and to his forehead. Gently she pushed on the man's head with that one finger… and he immediately closed his eyes and slumped down to the pavement, all but unconscious. She then turned her crimson eyes back towards the hardsuit with a sly smile. "Now then, I think we need to have a woman to woman talk." Aoede reached into a deep pocket on the outside of her vest, pulling out something small enough to be concealed with her fist.
The hardsuit raised a cautionary arm, a small caliber gun popping out of the wrist area. "Don't move," the Chinese agent spoke in heavily accented German. She struggled to understand what her eyes and sensors were attempting to communicate to her.
Aoede gave a questioning glance at first, then shrugged her shoulders. "Whatever," she threw out calmly… while letting a small red metal ball roll out of her hand. It bounced a couple of times harmlessly on the ground, rolling a meter off to her side before coming to a rest.
The hardsuit tracked the object rolling along the ground the entire way, all the while keeping one cautious eye on the other woman on her left.
The only thing that other woman continued to do was smile innocently… until the marble-sized ball liquefied and began to expand.
Taking no chances, the hardsuit aimed and fired directly into the liquefying mass. The shot splattered bits of red matter all over the wall behind it leaving a motionless puddle in its wake. The Chinese woman quickly returned her aim back to the mysterious blonde while trying to decipher the clues. "Is she one of the Americans?" she asked into her communicator. On her HUD, the onboard processors worked to identify the material on the ground. A couple of warning beeps alerted her to the findings, which displayed in front of her. She read them to herself at first, then out loud when she didn't understand the results. "Equivalent hardsuit?"
"Now about that talk… have you figured it out yet Chizang?" the other woman called to her, shocking the Chinese woman.
"How… how do you know that? … my name… Who are you??" she screamed through the hardsuit speakers, leveling her arm mounted weapon squarely between the crimson eyes staring back at her.
"I can't believe it. After everything I've done the last few months… you still don't recognize me," the singer mocked. "Well, I suppose I have some work to do then," she commented with a smirk. Her eyes suddenly flashed a bright green light, then burned back to their natural Crimson shading.
That unnatural act, on top of everything else she had just witnessed, was more than Chizang could stand. Aiming, she pulled the trigger… and pulled again… and again… Nothing happened.
"What??" Her eyes flew over the HUD, nervously scanning for any signs of problems. "Ammo, systems, locks… what's wrong??"
"Nothing is wrong," a familiar voice boomed in her helmet. Chizang focused on the face of the woman standing a few meters away… and found no movement on any part of it… even her lips… even as the woman's voice somehow continued to play in her ears. "I've just decided to reclaim this boomer from you. I'm sure you won't mind... at least not for much longer, anyway."
"Reclaim… boomer…" the Chinese agent repeated, trying vainly to understand. But her thoughts soon turned to more immediate concerns as her HUD suddenly winked out. Reflexively, she tried to bring one hand up to tap the side of her helmet, but the armor grew heavy, her arm movements slowing and slowing. In just moments, her arm froze… along with the rest of her body she quickly found out. With her power out, panic set in as her eyes flashed all around her visor, looking for anything to tell her what was happening. Then, just to the side of her vision, things got much worse.
The red puddle rippled, then contracted in on itself, flowing and molding as a bloody stump rose from the center of its pit.
The Chinese agent swallowed hard, trying to focus. Then she remembered… "The emergency latch!" Her left index finger pushed back in a practiced motion and found the trigger. Pushing the safety with her pinky, she fumbled with the latch even as her eyes tracked the hideously growing blob over to her left. "Why won't it work!" she screamed in frustration.
"Well, if you want out…" the other woman idly commented, a twisted smile forming between her emerald lips just as her eyes flashed their own bright emerald glow.
From all around Chizang, everything immediately liquefied. Her visor, the armor, everything just melted off of her skin. In just seconds, the shell-shocked Chinese agent found herself standing in the puddling remains of her own hardsuit. Vulnerable, feeling next to naked standing in her red softsuit, her gaze was pulled from the woman standing at the mouth of the alley and over to the flowing, rippling crimson blob.
It oozing mass began to flow across the pavement, creeping towards the Chinese's shaking feet.
Her eyes pulsed in horror, her legs buckled from underneath her. Stumbling, Chizang backed into the wall of the alley, trying to force herself through the cold, unmoving bricks. "… no… no… Stop It!" she cried, her frayed sanity on the verge of collapse. Then, a voice reached out to her and gave a glimmer of hope to the woman's drowning soul.
"It's okay. It's going to be okay."
Chizang couldn't resist the voice, pulling her eyes away from the terror at her feet and into the endless depths of the other woman's crimson gaze. It was then that the other woman began to sing.
She started with a soft hum, then elevated the melodious pitch before rolling into a few, quaint harmonies.
The Chinese woman stood mesmerized by the sound of Aoede's voice. Her eyelids grew heavy. Her body fell slack, resting against the wall. All the while the red puddle continued to flow in the direction of her still feet. Within moments, the puddle coalesced around her ankles and began flowing up her legs, coating her body with its thick mass.
Aoede smiled even as she continued to softly weave her song… her handi-work was complete… the Chinese agent's slim female body completely covered with the enveloping red coating. With a brief crescendo, she halted the song. She lifted her right arm out and drew the unconscious American agent upright once more and to her side. "It's time to finish what I started here, my darling," she cooed to him.
His emblazoned eyes agreed and followed Aoede's beckoning form towards the van.
Over her shoulder she tossed out a command to the frozen red female statue. "Go back to your people and spread my word."
With her command, the form briefly liquefied again before taking another shape… a shape mirroring the hardsuit previously worn by the Chinese agent. The hardsuit's visor flashed as the woman inside mindlessly acknowledged her order. "Yes Aoede." With a white-hot blast of thrusters, the blood red hardsuit shot into the night sky and towards the Chinese agency from which she previously came.
The smoke cloud left behind by the hardsuit surrounded the van, fogging over the windows and leaving the people inside blind to their fate… until the rear door slid open and their former comrade stepped inside, only one sinister word emanating from his lips… "Aoede… Aoede… Aoede…"
Brugg, Switzerland
It seemed as if every single muscle in her body was throbbing in rhythm. And when Katsumi finally woke up, she quickly realized that she had a headache to match. "Unnngh, what happened…" she mumbled before sharp memories pierced her mental fog. Immediately her eyes flew open, darting back and forth looking for her assailants. She didn't find them, but someone else was sitting across from her. Inside the lounge of their own company office, a young woman with blond hair and reddish eyes intently stared back at the confused Katsumi.
"Ah, finally awake now I see," she said.
"Our office?" Katsumi stammered out, rubbing her stomach as memories replayed in her mind. "But…" Just then Katsumi glanced over to her left and found Jill lying unconscious next to her on the couch. "Jill!" She gently shook her partner's shoulder, taking stock of her condition.
"She should be waking up soon," the other woman announced. "But, in the meantime…" the blonde started to speak, standing up from the chair opposite the couch and gliding across the small space to take a seat next to the dizzy Katsumi. "… I need something from you while we are waiting."
"Need something?" the suddenly nervous Katsumi repeated before the other woman gently took Katsumi's right hand with one of her own. The contact shocked her at first, leading Katsumi to stare down at the foreign hand. She almost expected to see sparks flying when she looked. Then, the other woman raised her other hand up, bringing it towards Katsumi's face. Her eyes locked in as the back of her pale flesh made contact with her cheek. "Who… who are… wait… don't I know you?"
Aoede smiled softly. "Just close your eyes and relax," the other woman gently ordered, lulling the confused Katsumi into a small sense of security with her words as much as her touch.
Katsumi closed her eyes as she was told and took in a deep breath, her shoulders heaving before sagging down low. She let her mind wander off for just a moment, her thoughts evaporating into a light green cloud of nothingness…
Brugg, Switzerland
It was the low moaning sound that finally pulled Jill from the abyss. Her eyes cracked open and a neon green glow slammed them back shut again. More carefully, she slid her eyelids apart just enough to make out two figures sitting next to each other. It only took another second for Jill to recognize Katsumi… and to recognize she was in trouble.
Katsumi sat with her head back against the couch, her mouth open, slack, eyes closed. And she was the one moaning in apparent pain. Dominating over her was a blond haired young woman in a strapless red top, black miniskirt… and one glowing green hand clamped onto Katsumi's forehead.
"What the hell?!?" Jill sat straight up and started to reach out with her human arm when her mechanical one suddenly "tingled"… then froze completely. Her head snapped around to see a horrifyingly numbing sight… her own arm pulsing, ripping, tearing itself apart. She tried to scream, but her mechanical arm burst forth with metal vines, wrapping around her torso and throat, cutting off her cries deep inside her lungs.
"Now that sort of noise isn't necessary in the least," the blonde commented rather calmly.
Something deep within that voice had a calming effect on the previously shocked Jill. The metal vines relaxed around her neck and her body, letting Jill take in a shallow breath. It was even enough for her to momentarily get her voice back. "Who are you? What are you?"
The other woman frowned at her, crimson eyes brimming with rage. "Why does everyone keep asking me that? Your partner knew. Why don't you know???" she asked incredulous, releasing Katsumi and stalking over the top of the shocked Jill.
Jill caught sight of Katsumi collapsing onto the armrest of the couch before the blonde pressed her face close enough to completely fill her vision. "After everything I've done around the world, I would expect my face to be most recognizable! And especially to someone who's had such close contact with me for years now," she winked at Jill and touched the tip of Jill's nose with one finger before standing up from the couch. The strange blond woman turned her back on Jill and faced the far wall, her head bowed slightly.
Something about that word rang loud for Jill. "Contact?" she questioned to herself. Suddenly her eyes shot over to the disfigured remains of her arm. "You!" she shouted. "But, why? Why are you here?"
But her question wasn't answered the way she expected. A slight hum resonated through the small lounge area, instantly captivating Jill. Something from the back of Jill's mind screamed at her to resist, but as the humming persisted, her willpower vanished. The last thing her conscience recognized was a small phrase from the woman calling herself Aoede… a phrase that filled the inside of her mind. "Now lets take a short trip through that small gate Sylia left open …"
Kumamoto, Japan
Lost in her own thoughts, Priss didn't realize that the car was gone until she was inside the Yamazaki house. And in looking around the quiet country home, she quickly realized she was alone.
And that suited her mood just fine.
She quickly showered, letting the dirt and grime from the hiking trail flow down the drain. But as much as she wanted them to, the memories of her earlier encounter with Linna wouldn't wash away so easily. Priss toweled off, then changed into some borrowed jeans and a plain white t-shirt Linna had picked up for her in town. Drying off the rest of her short hair, one hand lingered on the back of her neck, tracing the healing vertical scar through the ruffled brown scuff. Testing the raw skin with a fingertip, she became aware of a persistent dull ache from the area… one so faint that it was only when she concentrated that it was noticeable.
A chill ran down her spine as memories of the likely source of the pain attempted to bubble up to the surface of her repressed nightmares. Some things Priss wanted to relearn and relive. Other things she had decided were best left dead and buried. And those events around the Knight Sabers, Sylia, Galatea and the battle in space all fit tightly into that category. Priss closed her eyes and blocked out those thoughts with a focused effort, squeezing hard on the back of her neck to mask the low throbbing. But as the pressure relieved, the pain returned. A short grumble and back to the bathroom she padded. A couple of pills and a glass of water later, she was satisfied that the condition would be remedied shortly.
Priss trudged back into Linna's bedroom, collapsing backwards onto the bed, losing herself in the plain ceiling above her once more. It didn't take long for her to realize that act was a mistake. But it wasn't neck pain that was the problem this time, but more troubling thoughts of Linna… and what she would have to face when the country girl returned from wherever she had run off to this time.
She sighed deeply, exhaling the depressive thoughts from her mind for just a moment. And in that instant of clarity, an idea formed in the back of her mind… a relic from the earlier excursions on Linna's computer. The once lead singer brought one finger to her lips, pressing them closed for just a moment. Then, she focused and tried to flex her vocal cords. A squeaky, raspy broken hum was all that spilled out. Concentrating, she coughed, cleared her throat and recalibrated her voice, trying again to find that elusive tone practiced so many times in the past. This time an off key, but constant, note flowed across the tight passage. She held it for a few moments then stopped, inhaling deeply then exhaling her small victory.
Concentrating further inside, she pictured the clubs she frequented back in Tokyo with Sekiria. Her chest rising high, stretching the thin white fabric of the shirt, she sought out the tone one more time. This time she was much closer to the note, a constant vibration resonated through her body and her mind. And for the first time in a long time, a twinge of something flickered in her soul, something deep, something strong. Priss drew out the chord, her lips parting slightly as she licked them to keep them moist. Inside the note, she saw, and more importantly actually felt, herself on stage again. The rush of the crowd, the pounding drums, the screaming guitar, the whipping frenzy of the beat. Even further inside her subconscious memories of song, Priss found a hint of something lost but not forgotten… something that had once defined her very being. She transformed the stage beneath her into a two-wheeled flight of freedom. Once more Priss Asagiri screamed along the streets of Tokyo...
… virtually, at least. In the bedroom, her voice rang loud, reflecting off the walls, doors and windows. In her soul, she tore through traffic, around corners, and under the streetlights with her jacket flapping in the cool midnight breeze. Her companion rumbled and roared, answering her call for speed with rubber claws ripping chunks of pavement up by the city block. She opened the throttle on her vocal cords, the music in the house growing in amplitude as the cycle in her mind sped even faster along the highway. The engine revved faster and higher, then a curve and a downshift with the willing machine answering her beckoning needs. Her heartbeat pounded, her blood raced, skin tingling as the images fed into her need for release. And the engine roared again… and again… and…
Priss' eyes shot open, the music dead in her throat. And yet the engine roared again. Except it wasn't in her head. This roar was in her ears… coming through the walls, the doors, the windows… Outside?
Her feet were racing for the front door faster than her mind could comprehend what it all meant. She flung the door open. What she saw in the driveway nearly brought her to her knees.
Just dismounting a shining new red sport motorcycle was a woman wearing a black leather jacket and a blue helmet with red stripes down each side.
Priss could barely speak. "…wow…"
The woman pulled the helmet off… and Linna held it out in front of her, now sporting a satisfied grin. With a flick of her wrists she tossed the helmet into Priss' gut.
Priss reflexively caught the helmet, her hands and eyes inspecting it gleefully. Then a question popped into her head. She wasn't sure how to voice it though. "But… what…"
"So are you just going to stand there or are you going to take it for a spin?" Linna answered her unfinished question, nodding towards the bike.
A timid Priss edged close to the machine, her eyes running up and down the minted frame. In the back of her mind, all the details and specs of the bike flipped by like pages in a magazine. But none of that really mattered to her at the moment. She raised the helmet onto her head and slid it on. It fit perfectly. Standing next to the bike, she carefully let one finger make contact with the tip of the handle bar. A shock of static electricity jolted up her arm and into her spine, shrill goose bumps flowing across the bare parts of her skin. Her hand jerked away momentarily and she paused, looking up into Linna's pale violet eyes for direction.
Linna nodded her reassurance, the grin on her face growing slightly longer. But as Priss' hungry vision returned to feast on the bike, the scene watered over for Linna. The former biker's reaction was more emotional than she could have hoped for… and also her worst nightmare come true. However, she still managed to blink away the tears because she knew what she had to do, and she knew it couldn't be with any strings attached.
Carefully, Priss gripped one handle of the bike and slid one leg over the top. Balancing on her toes, she sat astride the machine, bouncing lightly to get a feel for the suspension. The HUD appeared to be a lower grade mix of holo and digital panels. The curves, lines and trim all spoke to a mid level entry motorcycle. It was much smaller than her last bike, but much bigger than Linna's old scooter. "It should be perfect for you," Priss commented idly. She reached for both grips of the handle bar and squeezed tight. Priss was so focused on the feel of the bike that she was caught off guard when Linna reached from behind her and placed her right hand over Priss'.
Through her t-shirt, Priss could feel the warmth from Linna's body on her back as she pressed into her. She glanced down into their intertwined hands and noticed Linna moving her thumb and pushing Priss' own thumb into place over what appeared to be a print reader just below the grip. Then Linna tickled Priss' ear with her voice.
"Just hold your hand there."
Priss was going to ask why when Linna reached around with her left hand and activated the controls of the bike. She watched as Linna brought up a small virtual keypad and entered a five-digit sequence. The bike beeped three times before the controls automatically turned off. "Why did you do that? You could have started your bike for me."
Linna let go of Priss and moved back, shaking her head silently. It was then that Priss noticed the signs, Linna's violet eyes watering, nose a slight rose tint.
Linna took off the leather jacket and handed it out to Priss. "You'll probably be needing this," she said, her voice cracking at the end.
Priss couldn't take the jacket. Her eyes flashed between the bike and Linna. "You didn't…"
The country girl nodded, holding the jacket out emphatically. "I'm not always going to be where your bike is Priss."
"… linna…"
"Here," she said, lifting the jacket up over her shoulders and fitting it through Priss' arms one at a time while the other woman balanced the bike. Once Priss' left hand pushed through the sleeve, Linna gently touched one finger, giving it one quick squeeze before letting go. Linna quickly turned around and marched toward the house, vowing not the look back… no matter how much she so desperately wanted to.
Priss watched in disbelief as Linna walked up to the porch, slid the front door open and walked through before closing it quickly behind her. She stared at the front of the house for a full minute. There was no sign of Linna… and Priss knew she wasn't coming back out. Part of her begged to go in the house and talk this through. But in Priss' heart, she knew what she should do. Linna's smile when she first laid eyes on the bike told her everything she needed to know.
She pressed her thumb down and activated the starter. The bike responded with a high-pitched roar. Gently squeezing the throttle, the wheels slowly dug into the gravel driveway and turned the cycle around towards the road. Priss kicked up the stand, looked both directions, picked left, then opened the throttle full and screamed down the road, heading out for the highway once again. With Linna on her mind and doubts in her heart, she knew she had much to work through… and many, many kilometers to travel to get there. But before she even finished her first kilometer, Priss did find a friend on the road. A few notes joined her journey, collecting and condensing in her soul in the form of a song.
And inside the blue and red helmet, Priss Asagiri actually let out a small smile.
Brugg, Switzerland
The humming permeated through the immaculate bedroom, filling the space with her love and hope. Nene threw the curtains open, flooding the room with light as well. Wearing a bright yellow dress patterned with flowers, the young blond girl was determined to celebrate the day for everything she had in the present. She turned to the lone occupant of the room with a smile, but had to fight back the dark mood that had suppressed her for so many months now. "No, no I won't," she willed herself to think optimistically. "Good morning Mackey. I hope you are resting good today." The young woman moved away from the warmth of the window and over to the bed where the still comatose Mackey lay. She sat on the foot of the bed, her torso turned sideways to face her unconscious love.
Looking at his pale face, she let herself think back for a moment. "One year… its been one year today that we've known each other." Her mind wondered back to happier, naive days… days with her as just a member of the ADP by day… Knight Sabers by night. Happier days where she wasn't concerned with anyone but herself. Happier days where she didn't understand the depth of the evil conceived by Genom… or Galatea…
Nene looked up from her memories and into Mackey's silent face. She slid along the side of the bed and closer to Mackey, taking his lone remaining hand in her own. It felt cold, distant. Still she clutched it tightly. Her eyes focused for just a moment on the remains of his other arm… and the place where Sylia had severed the damning link flowing between Galatea, Mackey, and Nigel. Even now she couldn't understand exactly why it had happened. But that instant had changed everything. That was the last time she had actually seen Mackey 'alive' and conscious, and the last time Nigel had been as well.
A tear escaped from one eye, rolling down her warm cheek and onto the freshly laundered bed sheet beneath her. But wiping away the streak, she gave one more squeeze of Mackey's hand and then stood up again. "No, I won't worry about the past," she resolved. She moved to the dresser next to the door and picked up the cleaning spray and rags she had just put there a few moments previous. "Now it's time to clean up present and get ready for our future," Nene spoke to the silent boy in the room.
But no sooner had she sprayed the first horizontal surface than a strangely foreign sound in the house peaked her curiosity. "The doorbell? Who could be here now?"
Nene walked through the bedroom door and to the top of the stairs. Looking down at the front door, she was surprised to find no sign of Henderson. "I wonder where he is?"
The doorbell rang again and Nene decided not to wait any longer. She started to walk down the wooden staircase and was about halfway down when the unlocked door handle turned. She paused for a second, something in the back of her mind making her a little uneasy. The door opened, revealing two very familiar faces on the other side.
"Jill, Katsumi! What are you guys doing here?" Nene hopped down the remaining stairs. "I thought…" Her feet froze in place when she got within a couple of meters of her friends… or forms that looked like her friends. The two women continued to stand in place at the doorway, not moving, not reacting, not even blinking. It was the eyes that sunk Nene's spirits… the eerily, terrifying glow that had haunted her nightmares for so many months now. And then, behind them a face that nearly stopped her heart.
"Hello Nene," said a blonde haired version of Priss.
"… galatea…"
"Not exactly," the being replied in Japanese, stepping between her two escorts and up to the shorter human. "And please don't tell me that you don't know my real name now, because I'm really starting to get upset."
Nene shut her eyes tightly. "Wake up! Wake up! Wake up!" she begged herself, clinching her fists tightly in front of her, until a faint touch on the bottom of her chin sprung her eyes open… and into the crimson eyes of her tormentor.
"I don't think that's going to help," she smiled. "Now, would you please just answer this question for me? Who is the fasting rising, most influential singer in the entire world? Who is the officially crowned goddess of sound?"
The remaining color drained from Nene's face. Of course she knew. Everyone had heard the stories and the music. She had just been too preoccupied with other things to take notice of the details of this being standing before her. "… aoede…"
"Very good! Well, its not exactly instant recognition, but its still close!" the singer clapped her hands together.
And then the rest of the pieces started to click into place for the shell-shocked blonde girl. "But then… you… Priss… and, then… Jill, Katsumi… how… how are you controlling them? You're a sotai! What about the boomers???"
Aoede gave a curious smile and brought one hand to her chin. "Well, I suppose I could tell you now. But I would rather have you discuss those details with him," she emphasized, nodding in a direction just past Nene.
She didn't even have to turn around to understand the horrible implications of the word. Her eyes flared in total shock. "…no…" Then her body reflexively jerked as two hands touched her shoulders from behind. Nene's neck creeped around to the side, her eyes shook as they peered over to a glowing, fluid hand, up a pulsing, rippling arm and into the stoic, zombie-like eyes of Mackey Stingray. "… no… Mackey…"
"She has returned to claim what was her past," he pronounced to the lone conscious human in the room.
And that was as much as Nene's tortured soul could take. Her scream filled the house with sound loud enough to wake the dead…
…but for just an instant. A muffling hand from Mackey closed over her mouth, silencing the screams. In unison, the two boomer prototypes voiced out a concern.
"Something's coming."
Then Nene heard something as well, from below her feet. And for just a moment her hopes were lifted. Could it be? She didn't have to wait long to find out.
The wall exploded behind the stairwell, and through the smoke and debris flew out what had to be a hardsuit, thrusters blasting full bore from some lower level of the house, searing the walls with their heat.
Nene was slammed down hard to the side by Mackey just an instant before the hardsuit barreled into Aoede…or at least tried to. Aoede never moved… because she didn't have to. The hardsuit attacked with a blade drawn… but it was met by another blade. And that blade was attached to the arm of Jill, who strained but was able to hold her ground just in front of her new master.
"Nice try Sylia," the new boomer goddess remarked with an idle smile.
"Damn you Galatea. I'll kill you if it's the last thing I do!" Sylia roared over the speakers of the plain gray hardsuit. She pushed hard up on the saber from her left arm, pushing Jill's arm up in the process. Then without hesitation, she kicked up with one power augmented leg, squarely connecting into the unarmored woman's midsection and sending her flying back out the doorway and down the front stairs hard onto the ground.
Sylia didn't stop there. Before Jill's body could even hit the ground outside she was pivoting on her planted foot, spun around and threw out a spin kick right at the blonde boomer goddess' head. It never made it to the intended target.
Katsumi threw up a blocking kick, somehow managing to match the hardsuit's power with her own human body. Her eyes were emblazoned with green rings of fire.
Aoede continued to smile, standing perfectly still among the maelstrom around her. "I believe you are running out of time."
Sylia growled out in frustration. "Out of the way!" She ducked down, grabbing one of Katsumi's wrists and then cleanly tossed the former Knight Saber all the way out of the house.
Katsumi landed with a sickening thud next to her partner, who was just starting to get back to her feet.
The gray saber then stood tall, took aim and thrust out with her blade.
This time Aoede moved, sidestepping the hardsuit at just the right moment.
Sylia didn't even get a chance to continue her attack as a pounding blow to her back knocked her through the doorway. She stumbled on the stairs and landed just past Jill and Katsumi. Looking back, she saw Mackey with one foot still thrust up from where he attacked her from behind. Damnit!!!…. uh… oh…." The gray hardsuit attempted to stand again, but a mind splitting pain crippled her momentum.
"Ah, it appears that the drugs are starting to wear off already," said the boomer goddess. But as Aoede looked down at Sylia, she also took note of her other subjects now just outside the house. She sensed that the one with the mechanical arm was bleeding internally from Sylia's kick. Also, her companion had a broken arm and leg from her attempts to stop Sylia. And yet, Aoede could still sense their desire to continue, to resist their 'former master', despite their injuries.
Sylia struggled to get to her feet, but willed herself upright. She was not going to stop this time until either the Sotai was dead… or until she was herself. One way or another this fight was to the finish. …don't have time… for pain… In front of her, she saw Jill coughing up blood, and Katsumi favoring one leg heavily and holding up an arm with a grotesque extra joint. But neither displayed any other symptom of pain. It was only then that Sylia began to wonder just how this Sotai was able to influence humans. It was as if they had become zombies, almost a type of human 'boomer'. But her questions were short lived because even though a small part of her did feel pity for whatever might be causing their current state, it only served to fuel her desire to finish the fight, and to stop the monster from being able to control anything or anyone else.
The gray knight saber checked her crude readouts inside her helmet confirming a limited supply of power left but with minimal damage taken thus far. have to move now She took one step forward and readied her blade for one more pass. But Aoede had other plans for Sylia.
The 'Goddess of Sound' opened her vocal chords and poured forth a virtual sonic tidal wave. One affect was to incapacitate her human rival, which was highly effective as it brought Sylia to her knees once again, her helmet held on both sides by shaking arms. But the effort was only a small part of her plan. With both hands, she reached into both of her vest pockets, pulling out small colored spheres in each palm. Tossing them to the feet of Jill and Katsumi, Aoede modulated her voice causing the spheres to liquefy and grow, spreading up both women's legs.
After nearly of minute of stereo torture, the singing finally stopped. Sylia was finally able to raise her head again… and quickly wished she hadn't. Now standing between her and Aoede were two more nightmares from her past. A pair of hardsuits, one red the other green, stood tall and ready where Jill and Katsumi had been previously disabled.
"You left quite a mess inside their minds, Sylia," Aoede explained for the confused woman. "Fortunately it was something quite repairable… much like their injuries of a few moments ago in fact. But instead of just telling you, I will let them show you first hand exactly how well they can adapt to your hardsuit technology when it is properly tuned."
The red hardsuit raised her right arm at the gray saber, leveling her cannons into Sylia. And to her right, the green hardsuit assumed an attack pose, crouching to strike.
"And to think this was actually their idea, too," Aoede taunted further, tormenting the outnumbered and outgunned Sylia on as many levels as she could.
Meanwhile, the only other person that could lend Sylia any help whatsoever appeared unable to. Nene lay unconscious at Mackey's feet at the bottom of the stairwell, oblivious to the coming carnage about to be dealt between her friends and former teammate.
Kumamoto, Japan
Linna's head perked up again, a distant noise rousing her from her semi-sleeping state. She stood from the front porch steps and adjusted her eyes to the dim light of dusk, stretching her stiff arms, legs, and back. She checked her watch… five hours … she counted mentally. The noise from the south grew louder and Linna was able to pick up a single headlight in the distance. Her heart lifted as the source of that light grew more apparent by the second.
"It's her!" she said to herself.
The small red bike slowed and pulled into the driveway, gliding to a stop just at the end of the gravel. The rider kicked out the stand, sat the bike over cautiously then turned off the engine. Priss dismounted and removed her helmet, setting it down between the handlebars carefully.
Linna jumped down the stairs but managed to stop herself from grabbing Priss into a bearhug. "So, how was it?" she asked innocently, from a modest distance away.
Priss wasn't looking directly at her, and continued to avoid direct eye contact as she spoke. "Good," she answered cryptically.
"Um, great! So, are you feeling any better now?"
Priss took a step back away from Linna and turned towards the bike, inspecting the seat for something… or at least that's what Linna wanted to think she was doing. That hope didn't last for long though. "Listen Linna," Priss began, finally looking the country girl in the eyes.
The instant she saw into Priss' crimson eyes, Linna knew it was over. She didn't have to say another word… but she did anyway.
Priss looked to the side as she continued. "I'm going back to Tokyo. I need to find myself again, and…" Priss glanced up and caught Linna's sudden desperation. But she knew this wasn't going to be easy. For the last hour she had driven in circles, trying to decide the best way to say it. But, in the end, there was only one way she remembered. "… and I have to do that back where I belong, back in Tokyo."
The tears welled up strong in her pale, violet eyes. And yet, deep down, Linna almost expected this. Riding back on the bike herself earlier, she knew the temptation was too great for Priss to drive off again. "I…" Linna choked up, but gathered herself after a few moments, sniffling hard. "… I knew you'd want to go someday. I just hoped… just hoped it wouldn't be for a little while."
Priss bowed her head, gripping one handle of the bike for support. "I'm sorry Linna." Keeping her head bowed, she ducked past Linna and strode up the stairs and into the house. After a few moments, Linna followed her inside.
In Linna's room, Priss pulled out a small backpack and took out the handful of things from her single drawer that she had accumulated in her short stay. Linna silently stood at the doorway, tears flowing freely down both cheeks. Once full, Priss slipped the backpack over her jacket and walked slowly up to the crying woman. She lifted on hand and cupped the side of Linna's face, wiping away the tears with her thumb. "I promise I'll stay in touch."
"You'd better," Linna tried to smile, her nose red and running, sobbing again. "I know… I know the faster you go, the quicker you'll find what you need there," she tried to reason with herself more than Priss. She lifted her hand and placed it over Priss' own hand. Then pulling it off of her cheek, Linna brought Priss' palm to her lips and planted a soft kiss there… then lowered it to her heart and pressed it firmly in place. "I love you Priss Asagiri."
Priss let out a small smile. "I know," she whispered quietly.
Even though it wasn't as much of an answer as she wanted, Linna knew that was as much as Priss was capable of now and didn't press any further. She released the hand and let Priss draw back within herself, turning to the side to allow the singer to pass
Priss bowed her head again and nudged quickly past Linna and out the front door of the house. Linna stood at the doorway and watched as Priss smartly mounted the bike, started it up and turned out the driveway. This time, she turned right… turning back towards Tokyo, the engine revving as fast as Priss could open the throttle.
And even though she knew she had done the right thing, Linna returned to the steps on the front porch. She sat back down in the same spot as before, curling up her legs, and dropping her face into her hands. But this time, she didn't hold back. Letting it all out, Linna Yamazaki choked up sobs of pain and loss over losing the love of her life one more time.
To be continued…