The Fall and Rise of Creed Diskence
An Alternate Universe Redemption Fic based on Yabuki
Kentaro's Black Cat series
Black Cat and pretty near all the characters in
this story belong to Yabuki Kentaro
Author's Forward:
I will be posting author's notes at my Live Journal (username: KosagiNoLegion), so as not to take up space here. Answers to any questions or comments and various trivia involved in creating this massive piece of fanfic will be posted there. As another note, after some backing and forthing with I think I've found a satisfactory voice change oOo with long line between major scenes. Oh, and if you'd review here, even if you discuss the fic on my LJ with me, it'd be really great. Thanks!
A Day to Remember
January 14, 2005
Creed gazed down the ramp and grinned broadly at the man glaring up at him from the lower landing. Not only was he distracting Naizer, permitting his former compatriot time to escape, but he was getting to do something he'd never done before. He tightened his grip on the rope and pushed off.
"YEEEHAAHHHH!" The wind whistled in Creed's ears as he leaned from side to side. Small stinging bits of snow struck his face and goggles and he felt like he was flying. Fun! This is FUN! THIS IS SO MUCH FUN!
Beneath Creed, the toboggan slid sideways and he giggled as he strove to pull it back under control. It was pretty obvious, though, which was likely to win, inertia or his inexperienced reflexes. When the sled turned sideways and he tumbled off and down the rest of the way he was howling with laughter.
As he slid to a halt at Naizer's feet, the Chronos Number shook his head sadly. "That was pathetic, Diskence."
"Good thing I don't drive, isn't it?" Creed answered perkily, getting to his feet and brushing snow off his ski suit. Then he took off his goggles and wiped them clean. "One time behind the wheel was quite enough. No hedgehogs here for me to run over."
"I have no idea what you're talking about but I'm still scared." Naizer sighed. "From your reaction I take it you're going to be doing this for a while?" At Creed's grin, he muttered something under his breath, then pointed at the small lodge that had been built between the toboggan runs. There was a café inside where one could get hot drinks and sit by a fire. "I'll be in there. Don't get any ideas, I can see you from the window."
Creed nodded. "But can you see my house from there?" As Naizer growled another curse he grinned even more broadly and grabbed the sled's rope. As he ran up to the top of the kiddie slide again he sang happily. "Here we go loop de loop, here we go loop de lie..."
.oOo.
Naizer looked at his watch, then out at the man who was still horsing around outside, though he'd moved from the kiddie slide to the tougher adult one. The madman's stamina was, he had to admit, impressive. He'd been out there for over an hour and a half now, sliding down and running back up. Over and over again, like a toy with its spring wound tight. Though his nano-machines may have something to do with that. Naizer was suddenly very glad that he didn't have to fight Creed again. He remembered that nano-machine created were-wolf he'd fought on that disastrous attempt to capture the man and wondered just how much that skinny little body could take.
Though he was pretty tough even when he was physically normal. Naizer remembered how long and how hard the young Creed could work, how much energy he'd put into his efforts, as if he somehow needed to push himself far beyond the abilities of most people just to prove himself. Naizer had been careful not to tell the kid that at the time, but while the rest of Creed's personality was about the most irritating thing he'd come across, Creed's physical skills had been remarkable.
Watching Creed slide down, body responding to the speed and twists in the ramp with growing skill, Naizer reflected that - if he'd been sane - Creed would have made a fine Number. He learned physical tasks quickly and handled himself well in a fight. It's almost too bad. What a waste. What a total waste of a life. Admittedly, there was something appealing to being allowed to live like an overgrown child, to not have to worry about the important things and to just enjoy life as it came. Appealing but not the way of life Naizer wanted or thought was good for anyone. Duty was far more important.
Two figures walking up to where Creed was about to come down caused Naizer to frown. What are those two doing here? He got up hurriedly and grabbed his coat, heading out to join them. He got there just barely before Creed did, meaning that he was in time to see the two men receive a good portion of the spray of snow that fountained up when Creed halted his sled in front of them. Creed. You stupid...
Creed stood up and stared wide eyed at the two. "Oh dear. Oops? Sorry?" The last two words were offered weakly, sure sign that he knew how pissed they were.
"Are you sure we can't drown him in the toilet?" Balder asked grimly.
"I'm sure," Krantz answered, equally grim, wiping snow off his helmet.
"What if we let him back up before he drowns?"
"It's a thought."
Blinking at the two Numbers, Creed took a deep breath. "If I let you stick my head in a toilet will you stop threatening it afterwards?"
"They're not going to do anything of the sort and they know it," Naizer said grimly. "What are you two doing here?"
"There's a rumor that a Hoshi member was spotted here," Balder said, glancing at Naizer with an irritated look. He popped his bubblegum and sucked the remnants back into his mouth. "We figured since Diskence was here, we'd ask him. Just in case it was a rendezvous."
.oOo.
Creed somehow kept his smile from disappearing. Balder and Krantz were after Sheldon. I could tell them he was here, but he's left, but... That would send the two men hunting elsewhere but the risk that Sheldon hadn't gotten far enough away was fairly high. "I haven't seen any Hoshi members since I quit," he protested. "That was two years ago."
Naizer considered that. "The hotel's practically empty," he pointed out. "It'd be easy to check the guest list. And for God's sake, would you try not to make your usual mess?" He turned back to Creed. "You're sure you haven't seen any Hoshi here?"
"Neither hide, nor hair," Creed answered with assurance. It was the truth, too. Even if Sheldon decided that - with Creed no longer in charge - he could rejoin his former compatriots, he wasn't a Hoshi again yet. He could only hope that creative following of the letter of the law but not the spirit wouldn't be noticed. "Anything else? Got a need for sweet." He pointed towards the café.
Balder and Krantz eyed each other but before they could say anything, Naizer nodded. "About time you finished up. You two can come and keep questioning him if you want, but I doubt you'll get much useful."
The two men frowned as Creed picked up his sled and put it away. He had a sinking feeling that Naizer doubted his honesty as well. Fortunately, possibly for the sake of not starting a fight, the Number was keeping his doubts to himself.
As Creed entered the lodge and sloughed off his ski-suit, Naizer came up beside him. "Who is it?" the man asked quietly. "And don't lie because you suck at it now."
Creed glanced worriedly at the Number as he put his scarf back on and straightened his silk shirt. "A fallen star. Not Hoshi anymore." He forced himself to make sense. "I can't tell them he was here. He's gone anyway. Train and I told him to leave." At Naizer's irritated expression he continued hurriedly, "What do you expect? I don't work for Chronos. I don't even like Chronos. I won't interfere with them if they find Sheldon but I'm not going to help them either." He was speaking so fast that he nearly ran out of breath and he panted to a halt.
"Be quiet." Naizer glanced back over his shoulder. "They're coming. We'll discuss the question later. Suffice it to say that I don't believe you're plotting anything. They would." As relief swept over Creed, Naizer added, "But don't think I'm done with you."
Creed winced.
.oOo.
"He's hiding something." Krantz whispered to his partner grimly.
"You think so?" Balder watched Naizer speaking quietly and urgently to Creed, his tone as grim as Krantz's. As grim and as filled with distrust for the white-haired lunatic. The man's lips were moving so slightly that it was impossible to read them, his body blocking Creed's face. "Naizer thinks so, too, I bet."
What Balder didn't like, though, was that while Naizer obviously knew Diskence was up to something, he wasn't trying to force the man to talk. If anything, his glance at his fellow Numbers suggested that he was going to help conceal whatever it was that the lunatic was keeping to himself. "I think we'd better keep an eye on Diskence. Just in case whomever he's protecting makes contact."
Krantz nodded. "One thing doesn't make sense. If Diskence is trying to make contact with the Hoshi, why would he do so right under Naizer's nose, and why would Naizer let him?" Balder had to agree with the question, but shrugged helplessly in response. At last Krantz continued. "Anyway, let's get inside and dry up. We can have a hot chocolate with our fellow Number and our dearly beloved friend Creed Diskence."
Balder sniggered at the sarcasm.
.oOo.
"And then you have to find your way through an old pirate ship. You get attacked by a giant hawk - I still can't get past that without my GameShark - who can fly higher than you can. Gets really cool, though, when you turn into a demon and start flying around too."
Naizer forced himself not to listen to Creed's blow by blow account of his Playstation game. Fortunately, his audience didn't seem to mind. The young blonde probably had to listen to far worse and far more boringly told life-stories than Creed's animated description of his new game. Particularly when he did so with gestures and perfect imitations of the spoken parts. He's such a child.
Glancing at his two compatriots, Naizer continued his conversation. "The point remains. Unless you find this Hoshi member - and you're not even sure which one it might be - your usual methods aren't necessary." Those usual methods included an amount of bloodshed rather more extensive than was strictly needed by circumstances. Balder and Krantz enjoyed their work, possibly too much.
"There's a simple solution. Make him tell us who it is and where they are."
Naizer sighed. This was a difficult state of affairs. He couldn't really tell these two what he'd learned. They were sure to assume Creed had deliberately contacted Sheldon, and that was obviously not the case. "In case you haven't noticed, Creed Diskence is as pig-headed as they come. If he doesn't want to tell you something he won't - and no amount of beating will force it out of him." He gave the two men a sharp glare. "And sticking his head in a toilet, used or otherwise, won't help either."
Balder sighed in annoyance but Krantz frowned. "You know, I had the strangest feeling he meant what he said about letting us do it if it meant we'd stop threatening it."
Naizer had to admit he thought so too. "Doesn't make it a good idea," he added. "No matter how tempting it might be." He had to wonder why Creed had made the offer and while he wouldn't have revealed the idea to his fellow Numbers, rather thought it was because being constantly threatened hurt the little lunatic's feelings. Naizer shrugged the thought off. Understanding what went on in that fluffy white head wasn't really his job. Keeping that fluffy white head from getting in trouble was. Isn't my job to make him feel all loved and cared for either.
Balder was about to speak when a high moaning sound rose somewhere outside the building. Naizer lifted his head and looked over at the bartender, whose face had paled. "Avalanche warning, right?" He remembered reading about that in the brochure. The high pitched sirens were set at a frequency least likely to set off more avalanches and were used to warn when there were slides that might put the lower areas at risk.
"Yes sir." The man went to the doorway and glanced outside, then sighed in relief. "We're the only ones up here. We should go downstairs - there's a tunnel system connecting to the chalet. It's safer there then it is here."
Creed's voice quavered momentarily. "What about the mountain lodge?" He glanced at Naizer then out the window towards the mountain. "That's where..."
Naizer nodded, Sven and the others were supposed to head up the trail that way an hour ago. "I know. They're smart enough. They'll take precautions." He got to his feet and started towards the stairway the barman had indicated. A soft choking sound came from the pale-haired lunatic and Naizer realized Creed was still staring up the mountainside. "I said come on!" He grabbed his charge by the nape of the neck, intending to drag him along, only to realize it wasn't just Creed staring but everyone else. He followed their gaze.
"Oh. Crap."
Barreling down at them from the heights was a wall of snow.
.oOoOoOo.
Train moaned and pulled himself upright. The last thing he remembered was being grabbed and thrown clear by Sven's hand, then explosive sounds somewhere high above them. He could feel Sven behind him, breathing hard and in a panicked sort of way. "Eve?"
"Up here," Eve's voice said and he realized their partner was using hastily formed wings to keep her above the rush of snow. "Are you two okay? I would have grabbed one of you if I'd been closer."
"It's okay, Eve, thanks to Sven." Train glanced over his shoulder. "Partner?"
"I think it's high time I learned how to use the Eye properly," Sven grumbled from underneath a pile of snow. "I might have avoided this mess entirely if I paid better attention to it." His hand shoved weakly at the snow and Train realized that his partner had instinctively covered his body with a thick layer of nano-machines to keep himself from being injured. That hand was gleaming a pale silver in the snow.
Eve landed beside Train. "We were right at the edge," she said quietly. "Luckily." Looking upwards at the lodge, she frowned. "I think that thing had help." She formed a shovel and began digging Sven out.
Nodding, Train used his hands to scoop more snow off his partner. "Oh, look. He's so shiny I can see myself!" He peered into the mirror finish on Sven's face, grinning with relief.
"VE...ry funny Train..." Sven lowered his voice quickly, apparently realizing that he risked causing a new avalanche. "I agree, Eve. It's not the usual season for avalanches and it hasn't even been all that warm." He worked his way out from under the snow and finally stood up, shedding a fine dust of nano-machine skeletons as he did so. Then he sat down. Hard. "Whoa. Headrush."
"You okay?" Train knelt beside his friend, worried.
Eve nodded. "He used more nano-machines than he's used to. Remember when I used to pass out if I overdid it?" She put a hand on Sven's arm and nodded again, more to herself this time, her air that of a doctor examining a patient. "He'll be fine."
"Yeah. Just dandy." Sven looked at Train. "Did you hear some sort of explosion a bit before the avalanche?" At Train's nod, Sven glanced up at the lodge, or rather where the lodge had been. "Then I think Eve's right. That slide had help."
.oOoOoOo.
Silence filled the air. The sort of silence that could only follow a sound so vast as to overwhelm every sense. The sort of silence that suggested that nothing was left behind. Creed, tumbled underneath rocks and snow, realized it was also the sort of silence that came of having been temporarily deafened.
Cautiously, Creed took a breath and was relieved when it came without pain, or rather without much pain. Now. How exactly did this happen? Oh, yes. The avalanche. There'd been just barely enough time. He and the others had made a wild rush for the stairs and had somehow managed to make their way into the basement before the avalanche had hit, ripping the lodge from its foundations and spilling snow and the shattered remnants of the building on top of them.
Opening his eyes, Creed found himself lying in darkness, lit only faintly by a blue tinted light coming through a hole somewhere above. The basement had - mostly - survived the snow crashing in on it, the solid roof holding back the worst of the slide. The room was filled with shattered cement and snow only on one side. Train. Oh God, Train. Please be alive. He wondered if his sense of Train's existence, his conviction that Train was indeed all right, was merely his own madness showing its unwillingness to admit to any other possibility.
"Quit that whimpering and help me." Naizer's voice cut through the silence, softer to Creed's deafened ears than it probably really was. Creed searched around and found the man half buried beneath the snow, a block of stone trapping him.
Blinking away tears, Creed forced himself to his feet, swaying a little as broken ribs protested. He could feel them healing as he moved. "Hold still. Very still." Adrenaline and the associated endorphins were surging through his system and synapses connected. He held his hand out, focusing his ki into the Imagine Blade, then pushing himself a bit harder. Level Two.
"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING WITH THAT!"
"Hold still," Creed reminded Naizer. "I don't want to hurt you." He looked at Kotetsu, at the sharpened fangs that formed his Imagine Blade's mouth. The eye that met his reflected himself, confused and bewildered and more than a little excited. "Very still. This isn't easy."
Cautiously, Kotetsu giggling softly to himself, Creed worked the blade between Naizer and the stone that trapped him, the shape of the weapon twisting its way along as it slowly cut Naizer free of his prison. At last, with a gasp of relief, Creed sliced the last bit of stone free and released his blade, dropping to his knees in exhaustion. "Push it off, now."
With an angry grunt, Naizer pushed and shoved at the rock trapping him, then pulled himself out from under the remaining snow. "Does that thing have to giggle like that?"
"It's an exciting option," Creed whispered and forced himself back to his feet. "The others?"
Naizer was searching around the room. "Here's Balder. He's okay, just stunned." As Creed watched, Naizer pulled his fellow Chronos agent over to a safer spot. "That bartender's here. Unconscious too. Got a broken leg but I think he'll be all right." Rising and staring into the pile of snow, Naizer frowned. "No sign of Krantz."
A sigh escaped Creed's lips. There was no help for it, then. "I'll find him." As Naizer stared at him, Creed summoned Kotetsu once again.
.oOo.
Watching the crazed menace to sanity work through the snow, giggling all the way, Naizer reflected that he was very glad not to have to fight with Creed Diskence again. He'd seen the Imagine Blade at work and the fact that it was currently on his side didn't make things any better from his point of view. It's even scarier because Creed himself is about the calmest I've ever seen him.
He turned his gaze on the man wielding the Imagine Blade. This is what he might have been, if he'd been sane, he thought. Dangerously capable and completely in control. It was frightening and almost exhilarating to see. He wondered if this was what had drawn the Hoshi to Creed in the first place, that utter strength of personality that - despite all the damage done to it - had been able to stay its course. For that matter, without the madness, without the obsession and the shattered mind, Creed Diskence might have become a true power in Chronos. This is a man one could follow.
"This is not a state of mind to admire, Naizer." Creed's voice was grim and cold. "What is the point of living like this?" He glanced Naizer's way and the look in his eyes was sheer unadulterated agony. "What joy does this give you? The joy of being the one in control? The joy of the kill, like those two? The joy of bullying those weaker than you? What good does it do?" Tears filled his eyes and spilled down over Creed's cheek. "Where are you when you're done? Who cares if you live or die?"
"It doesn't matter. I'll have helped make the world a better place..."
"For whom? For you? For those three old geezers who want the world for themselves and are willing to send killers like yourself to get it? Ask Leon sometime what he thinks of this world. Or Sheldon. Or Shiki. There's a reason the Hoshi hate Chronos and all you stand for." Creed took a deep breath. "What sort of rulers use fear and death to sustain their rule? What sort of rulers use someone like me as a weapon? Ask yourself that, sometime, Number Five. They knew I was mad. They knew what I was. And. They. Still. Used. Me."
"Your madness was the sort they thought they could use," Naizer pointed out. "Not that different from Balder and Krantz', really." He didn't like that aspect of Chronos but he had to acknowledge that sometimes fear, shock and awe were the only things the forces of chaos could understand.
Creed's black eyes met his, still filled with tears and yet horrifying in the cold emptiness of their expression. "Indeed? And - like them - if it were up to me I would leave your compatriots, and you, where you lie - to freeze to death while I go about my business. So which would you prefer I be? The cold and deadly leader of men, heartless and efficient, or the fool and the mountebank?"
As Naizer struggled to find an adequate answer Creed suddenly paused and that frighteningly sweet smile crossed his face. "Oh. I've found him." He blinked. "Such language, Krantz. Really. Kotetsu's only a few years old. You shouldn't talk like that in front of him."
.oOo.
Krantz struggled the last few feet out of the trap of snow and rocks that had held him, working his way through the tunnel created by that damned sword. He snarled at Creed. "Does that... that thing have to giggle at me like that?"
"You all keep asking that. Of course he does." Creed's voice was sweetly bewildered. "He is a reflection of my personality. My very soul, given the form that is what little remains of my mind. When he giggles, it's because I'm happy, or think I am. When he weeps..."
Krantz took a step back. Creed in this state of mind was a sound not for the faint of heart. How is he managing to control himself? Shoving that thought out of his head, Krantz searched through the chill area for Naizer, a dim 'light' in the cold. "Balder?"
"Unconscious, as is the bartender." His fellow Number's voice had an odd note, confused and disturbed at the same time. What had Creed been doing to break even Naizer's composure?
Creed turned. "The door to the tunnel is over there. Kotetsu found it while he was hunting for Krantz. You two carry those two. We should be leaving, now." Without bothering to wait for an answer he turned and walked to the side of the room and began slicing snow and stone out of the way.
After a long moment of staring after the man, Krantz shrugged and went to get his unconscious partner. Naizer picked up the bartender and walked to where Creed was standing. "One of you surely has a flashlight?" The pale-haired man pointed into the darkness of the tunnel beyond.
Krantz searched his partner's pockets and pulled a small mag-lite out, putting it in Creed's outstretched hand. It occurred to him that he was being awfully cooperative, but there was just something about Creed's tone and attitude that made him unable to do anything else. A kind of overwhelming sense of personality that he'd never felt from the man before. Of course, the first time I met him was when he was completely mad. Or mad in a different way. This Creed wasn't any saner, just easier to put up with, without the blithering nonsense. Though I don't think I want to find out what happens if I refuse to listen to him.
"How long can you stay like that?" Naizer asked as Creed led the way through the tunnel. "You haven't had to use your training for a sustained period in a while."
Creed sighed softly. "I have no idea. I want to find Train. I have to find Train. I can't do without Train." He shuddered suddenly and Kotetsu whined softly, a keening little cry of sadness. "Sorry. That's... the obsession talking. I can sustain, I think, as long as I don't have to fight. I'm so tired..."
"There's no reason to be fighting," Naizer said. "It's just an avalanche. You could probably put the sword away, too. That'll give you more time to stay clear-headed, right?"
"Oh, yes. Sorry. I forgot." The sword disappeared, much to Krantz' relief. Then Creed shuddered again, his teeth chattering suddenly and uncontrollably. Krantz blinked and realized just how thinly the man must be dressed. He could see the heat signature rising from Creed's body, brilliant in the chill air. The pants aren't so bad and he's still got his boots on, but that shirt... Whatever the material was, it was very thin. Creed's body was trembling and his upper torso was losing heat fast.
.oOo.
Naizer frowned, annoyed at the boy for not speaking up. "Creed. Take my jacket. That shirt's too light for this cold."
"I don't need it."
"Take it." Naizer stopped, setting his burden down and pulling off his suit coat.
"I don't need it. I'm not that cold." Creed kept moving, but Naizer grabbed him by the arm and forced him to stop. "I said..."
"Sephiria said we couldn't kill him, Naizer. She didn't say anything about letting him die of his own stupidity." Krantz returned the glare Creed gave him with interest, though much of his expression lost something when half hidden beneath his helmet.
"I'm not being stupid, I..."
"TAKE THE GODDAMN COAT BEFORE YOU FREEZE YOUR STUPID ASS OFF!" Naizer threw the jacket at Creed. It hit the man in his face and seemed to knock the sense back into him. A strange little smile, half frightened, half conciliatory, crossed the pale-haired man's face and he backed up from Naizer, eyes wide and a bit scared. It was an expression Naizer had seen on his face before, the frightened-little-boy look that he used to get when Naizer got mad at him back in the old days. Which was pretty damned often.
"I don't want you to freeze, Creed," Naizer added more quietly. "You don't have to like having to accept my help, but if you don't want to die of exposure before you see Train again you'll stop letting your balls talk over what's left of your brain." Oddly, finding himself back in the position of command after Creed's momentary take-over was something of a relief. Just as it was something of a relief to see the more easily cowed and fragile personality taking over. Some things are better left alone, he thought.
Creed sighed and nodded, sliding the coat. His nostrils flared, then pinched together as if he were trying to avoid a scent. "Let's go."
.oOo.
The tunnel wended its way through the solid rock of the mountain, a carefully carved escape path that was too deep for an avalanche to affect. Creed, leading the way through the chill passage way, felt rather like they were driving their way deeper into the mountain, rather than escaping. Only the constant chill breeze flowing from behind them was a comfort. There had to be an opening ahead. Please let there be an opening ahead.
"There will be," Krantz said quietly behind him and Creed realized he'd spoken aloud. Again. It was such a terrible habit. Before Creed could answer, though, Krantz reached out and grabbed his arm. "Listen."
In the silence that followed, Creed swallowed. "Gunfire," he whispered, focusing his attention on his hearing. From somewhere in the distance he could hear the faint echo of shots being fired. A man's voice, screaming in pain. "Damnit."
"It might be Train and the others," Naizer pointed out but Creed shook his head. "Why not?"
"Because, I'd know the sound of Hades firing. There's nothing in the world like it." It was disappointing, too, because it meant he still had to worry about his beloved. He clung to that feeling inside, that sense that Train was okay, even though he knew it was probably just a madman's dream. Please. For once let my instincts be right about him. Creed put his hand to his forehead, whimpering a little. His head was starting to hurt.
"What's wrong?" Krantz' low voice was mildly concerned - though Creed suspected it was due to the situation rather than anxiety for himself.
"My brain hurts." Sinking down to the floor, Creed moaned. "...can't... ...can't..." Dimly he was aware of Naizer setting his burden down again and kneeling beside him. "Should go in. Should stop what's going on. I can't..." The effort to hold on was too much. He curled up into a ball and sobbed. "I'll do something bad. I know I will."
Naizer's hand was on his shoulder, struggling to pull him upright. The man's aggravated voice in his ear wasn't helping. He needed to rest. He needed to retreat. He needed... TRAIN.
.oOoOoOo.
Making his way down the mountain side, Train paused to stare at the damage. The chalet and its surroundings had been hidden by a twist in the pathway but now the result of those slides was obvious. "Creed. He was going to be at the toboggan run..." He felt a surge of fear as he stared at the snow that had obliterated both the runs and the lodge that had sat below them. No. He can't be dead. I'd know if he was dead.
Sven looked as sick to his stomach as Train felt. "I don't... don't know."
Train started down the slope faster, only to stop when Eve grasped his arm. "Eve, we have to get down there. People need our help. Creed may be alive and trapped." That the last was the most important was something he forced himself not to consider.
Eve pointed at the chalet. Protected by a fortified wall and by its position atop a rise beside the mountain, the worst that had happened was that the slide had blocked the road. There were people moving about outside and at first Train thought they were just gawking at the damage. Then he realized they were in what appeared to be dark reddish-brown combat suits. He couldn't see them very clearly, but what he could see worried him.
Pulling out his binoculars, Sven examined the scene. "Damn. Three men. The uniform looks the same as those guys Creed met at Madame Freesia's. No bodies. Looks more like a hostage situation."
Train took a deep breath. He was still very worried about Creed but if their friend was under all that snow he was either dead or very nearly so. And I don't believe he's there. I refuse to believe he's under that. "Okay. Let's get down there and see what we can do."
Before he could start moving, Eve touched Train's arm. "Try phoning him." As Train blinked at her, she pointed to his pocket and he realized what she meant.
"A bit risky," Sven pointed out. "What if he's hiding somewhere?"
Eve shook her head. "He's got his phone on vibrate, like we do." As Sven raised a brow, she pointed out, "I figured he should act like he's working even if he isn't."
It was somehow both humorous and touching that Eve would treat the matter so seriously. "Good job," was all Train said, however, as he pulled his phone out and dialed Creed's.
.oOoOoOo.
Naizer leaned against the wall and watched Creed toss and turn with his usual wild abandon. Exhausted to the point of collapse and he still can't keep from jerking around like that. He had to wonder how the man managed to rest at all when his body refused to lay still.
Krantz, who was keeping an eye out for their unknown enemy, glanced Naizer's way. "Maybe we should tie him up and gag him?"
"No."
"He keeps whining like that, he's going to attract attention."
It's true. But if he can rest long enough to get his brain functioning again, we might have a chance at getting out of this. Naizer shook his head. "They probably know about the tunnel. If they haven't checked it out it means they're just waiting to see if anyone comes through. Balder's wrecking ball could help here, but since he's still out cold, Creed's the only one with any sort of distance weapon."
"Given we can trust him to keep his head on straight," Krantz nodded agreement. "So, how long do we give him?"
"I don't want Balder and this other fellow to stay down here in this cold too long. Fifteen more minutes." Naizer looked at the other two men, knowing that the longer they stayed in this chill air, the more likely they would die of their injuries. He was about to say something more when he realized something was buzzing, very softly, in Creed's pants pocket. Realizing what it was, he hurried to try and reach it before it stopped.
Creed's hand came up and slapped Naizer across the face. "Keep your hands to yerself, suhr! I hahdly know you!" he said in English, words oddly accented. Then his eyes focused a bit better and he sat up. "Oh... Oops."
"Answer your damned phone, brat!" Much of Naizer's irritation was with himself, though. He ought to have expected Creed to overreact. Should consider myself lucky he didn't come up with his Imagine Blade, or using that left arm for God knows what.
Creed pulled his phone out of his pocket and stared at the display. "I missed it." He looked confused for a moment, still groggy from his so-called nap, and his tone was disappointed. Then he pushed a button on the front and his expression shifted to a look of joy. "It was Train. He called me. He's okay!" He hit another button and held the phone to his ear, clutching it like a lifeline.
Somehow, Naizer was very glad. He wasn't sure what Creed would do if Train were killed. Whatever it was, he had a feeling it would be very, very bad for someone. As Creed's eyes lit up and tears started flowing down his cheeks Naizer sighed in relief and waited to find out what the situation was.
.oOo.
Creed forced back deep sobs. "Oh... Train..."
"Easy, Creed. I know." Train's voice was a bit unsteady, probably due to the static on the line. "What's your situation?"
Taking a deep breath helped and Creed managed to tell his beloved what had happened. He finished with, "What... what should we do?"
"Have Naizer or Krantz give themselves up with the two injured. They can't stay in the cold. You stay hidden with whomever's left, sleep for a while. I'll phone you when or if we need backup." As Creed stared at the phone, wide-eyed, Train continued, "Hand the phone to Naizer. I'll tell him."
"But..."
"It's obviously not a mass-kill situation. There'd have been a lot more gunfire and we'd have heard it up here. These people are after something or someone specific. That means the hostages should be safe for the moment." Train added, comfortingly. "Once you've rested you should be able to handle things if we need help. Okay?"
Creed sighed. He didn't like the idea and he knew the other two were going to hate it. Still, he needed to rest longer. He'd never be able to handle the stress of fighting if he tried to do something now. "Okay." He held out the phone to Naizer and lay back down, hugging himself happily. His Cat was safe and that was all that mattered to him.
Dimly, Creed was aware of Naizer arguing with the man on the phone, but he was too tired to contemplate the reason for the man's anger. He curled up, making a face at the scent of Naizer in the coat he wore, and closed his eyes, letting sleep claim him again. He trusts me. Please don't let me screw it up.
.oOo.
Damnit. It's Naizer's job to watch the brat. So why am I here? Krantz glanced sideways at Creed's heat signature. The lunatic was kneeling on the other side of the doorway, posture intent as he listened to what was going on inside. Right now the man seemed calm, competent and totally in control. If Krantz hadn't known Creed in his more manic moods he wouldn't have been worried. As it was, he kept waiting for the giggling psycho to show himself.
The trouble was, while Krantz could have managed carrying Balder he couldn't have handled the barman as well. He, himself, could have cared less but Naizer had been insistent. That was the trouble with Number Five. He worried a bit too much about collateral damage. You can't make an omelet without breaking eggs, can you? It occurred to Krantz that that was the other reason Naizer had left him behind, to keep his natural temper from creating what the other Number liked to call a 'situation'.
"Someone's coming." Creed's whisper broke through Krantz' worried thoughts. "Get ready."
And who died and made him boss? Somehow, when Creed had woken from his nap, the man had managed to convince him that it was high time they did something to help out. Of course, it'd been a choice between wrestling the man to the ground and tying him up - not a prospect to look forward to - or letting him go. Well, Krantz admitted to himself, that and sitting around in the cold waiting for rescue isn't exactly my cup of tea either.
The door opened slowly, but no one was standing in the doorway. Krantz could sense body heat beyond, his infrared sensors showing him three human shapes in the room. He gestured at Creed, using the silent code he knew the former Chronos agent would know, One on the left, two on the right.
Creed nodded and gestured in return. On my count. Go low. One. Two. Three. As his hand made the final motion Krantz rolled into the room beyond and dodged sideways, evading the gunfire easily. He came up on his feet, dodged again and drove his blade deep into the throat of one of the men attacking him. Spinning around to take on another man, he watched their stunned expressions as their gun barrels fell apart.
"What th..."
"If you surrender now you'll be all right." Creed's voice was calm, but it didn't stop the two men from spinning and rushing at him. There was a flurry of motion and the next thing Krantz knew, Creed had leapt over the two and spun around. His left hand was raised in a gesture Krantz had seen before. Ecthelon? Janos? Then that hand twisted sideways and the two men stopped short, every inch of their clothing stripped away as if by threads as fine was those extruded from Janos' glove, their weapons falling apart as well. "I repeat. Surrender and you'll be all right."
.oOo.
Once their two opponents had been tied up, Creed turned to look at Krantz. "I can't control you and I'm not in a position to stop you. But please. Don't kill anyone anymore?" His voice was shaking more than he wanted it to, trembling with reaction. I should have knocked him out and left him behind.
"This isn't a game."
"No. It isn't." Creed swallowed, "I don't care about people dying. But that's part of what's wrong with me. You're normal. You don't have a missing chunk of brain tissue to excuse yourself. Don't go around killing and pretending it doesn't matter." He felt like crying. He wanted so much to be able to understand, to really feel inside what it was to value a life. "You have a soul. You're capable of understanding. How can you throw it away so casually?"
Krantz just stared at him and Creed sighed, speaking in a more steady voice. Sometimes you just have to make the stakes high enough. "Let me put it this way. If you kill anyone else I'll strip you as bare as I stripped them."
"You... wouldn't dare."
"Yes. I would. Yes. I will."
Krantz' lips tightened and he growled. "You do and I will stick your head in a toilet."
"Fine. As long as you're not killing anyone, I don't care what you do to me." That wasn't entirely true, but Creed didn't care if Krantz knew how much the thought disgusted him. No more killing. Somehow. Please.
At last Krantz shrugged. "Whatever. Let's go."
.oOoOoOo.
Train moved slowly into position, preparing himself. Somewhere behind the chalet Sven was doing the same. Eve was already inside, having flown in from above and gone down the chimney. It was her reconnaissance that had given them a working plan.
Now. Train pulled out some of his stun bombs and tossed them through the window of the café. Inside he could hear shouts of dismay from the men who were on watch. Further away he could hear other explosions and he knew Sven was doing much the same thing he was. Meanwhile, in the meeting room on the second floor, Eve was doing her thing to the men guarding the hostages.
Into the building, Hades firing off stun bullets and taking men down left and right, Train dashed through the chaos. One after another fell and Train grinned with excitement. Admittedly, it was an excitement mildly tinged with worry over Creed, but his friend was safe enough, down in the basement.
Whoops. Unexpected. Train found himself coming up on a barricade at the top of the grand stairs leading to the second floor. Either the Princess had missed this one or the noises from downstairs had caused these terrorists to hurriedly dig in their heels. He dodged backwards, just in time, as a hail of bullets narrowly missed him. This is a problem.
Hiding behind a wall, Train considered his options and picked off a mook who was attempting to work his way into a clear shot by coming around the walkway that surrounded the chalet's entrance hall. He'd have to move fast, find another way to the second floor.
Before he could act, though, a very familiar voice echoed through room. "Once more into the breach, dear friends, once more, or close the wall up with our English dead!" Looking upwards, Train saw his housemate standing on the balcony across from him, Kotetsu giggling in his right hand, his left arm shaped into a shield that - unsurprisingly - had a cat's face on it. Oh for...
Bullets pinged into the shield, ricocheting all over. At least one made it past, digging a bloody furrow in Creed's right cheek. "Hey. Ouch. That hurts."
Train bopped himself on the forehead, then rolled out from cover and headed for a spot underneath the stairs where the mooks were hunkered down. Creed's voice, once more declaiming Shakespeare, was strained only by the madman's efforts to dodge the gunfire. "CRY HAVOC AND LET LOOSE THE CATS OF WAR!" With those words the man leapt onto the rail, swinging Kotetsu. The Imagine Blade cut through the enemy's barrier, scattering it to the four winds, howling joyously.
Now. Train leapt for the balcony, stun grenades in his free hand. He swung himself over and wasted no time in throwing them into the small crowd. As the things exploded, he made a leap that carried him across the room and over to Creed. The man was bleeding here and there from where his sword and shield had failed to protect him, standing stock still in wide eyed admiration of 'his' Cat. Train grabbed him quickly, knocking him over and down to the floor as the final grenade, hurriedly placed under the stairway, went off.
.oOo.
Creed pressed his face into Train's shirt, the scent of the man overwhelming the less pleasant scent of Naizer's now discarded jacket. Then he hurriedly pulled away. "Sorry."
Train glanced over to the wreckage he'd left behind. "Sven's not going to like that. Oh well. They're down anyway." Then his gold eyes glared at Creed. "Now. You."
"Uhm... Did I do something bad? I didn't kill anybody."
Train flicked Creed in the middle of the forehead with his forefinger. "You. You... You..."
It occurred to Creed that Sven would have hit him for fooling around at such a dangerous time, that Train was fighting a similar urge. Hopefully, he offered, "Idiot? Dork? Moron?" Maybe he could defuse the situation before Train forgot that he couldn't take that sort of treatment. Not yet, at least.
To Creed's relief, a soft, reluctant, chuckle escaped Train's lips. "Now I know how Sven feels. Guess I deserve to." He shook his head. "Doofus. You don't have to put yourself in that much danger just to provide a distraction. I would have figured a way in."
"I got carried away in the excitement," Creed admitted. Somewhere in the depths of his mind he had realized how dangerous what he was doing was, but it had also been so much fun that he couldn't help himself. "I'm never going to work in this town again, am I?"
Now Train really did laugh. "We'll have to do some situational training before the next job," he said, smiling. "Though, really, for what was supposed to be a simple job for us, it did turn out to be quite a bit more. All things considered, I don't think you did that badly."
Krantz, who'd been forced by all the gunfire to hang back, came up. "Aside from being so damned namby pamby about killing, that is."
"You're just sore 'cause I promised to pants you if you killed anyone else." Creed got to his feet, and shook several bullets free of his sleeve. His wounds were healing nicely, forcing the things out of his flesh.
"You're a spoilsport, that's what you are." Krantz made a face and Creed just grinned at him.
Train raised a brow, but said nothing except, "Come on. Let's go finish wiping up the mess. Without killing, Krantz. Or I'll let Creed pants you."
"I take that back. You are both spoilsports."
.oOo.
"No. I don't know how he managed to stay in control, but he didn't kill anyone, Sephiria." Naizer gazed down at the police cars carting away the terrorists who'd attacked the chalet with a sour look. Behind him, Eve and Creed were arguing over a two person Playstation game while Sven growled at Train over the mess he'd created. Thank God they're not ours anymore.
"Then you think he's safe?" Sephiria's tone was doubtful.
"Safe? No. I think the little maniac is more likely to get himself killed than kill anyone else, though. He'd never make it on his own. Without someone to keep him on track he'd wind up falling over his feet and ending up dead." Naizer paused. "On the other hand, he's pretty committed to keeping his promise to Train. I don't think he's going to be a danger to anyone else."
"Balder and Krantz say he did contact a Hoshi member."
"As near as I can tell, it was a chance meeting and he simply didn't want to betray someone who'd been a compatriot. I think it was that Sheldon guy, and we already know he quit." Naizer shrugged, though he knew Sephiria couldn't see it. "I wouldn't worry too much about that. Besides, next time we can have someone else watching for Hoshi people and if they contact him, follow. He might make good bait."
Sephiria considered that for a long moment. "It's still against my better judgment, but... very well. Unless we see signs to the contrary we will continue as if he is reasonably controlled."
Naizer glanced back at the giggling maniac behind him. "Understood." As he hung up he shook his head. Against her better judgment and mine. Not because I think he's ever going back to the crazed megalomaniac but because he's just not the type of person who should be put in a position of responsibility like this. Still, it was Sven, Train and Eve's call and he was just glad he didn't have to deal with the consequences.
.oOo.
Sven glanced over at where Creed was playing his game with Eve, then sighed. "Well, it worked out," he admitted. "And I can't think of anything he could have done better, except maybe sitting tight."
"We both know he couldn't have." Train's eyes on his friend were amused. "That's why we gave him that license in the first place. And he didn't do too badly, after all."
With a nod, Sven smiled wryly. "No. Though I think you're teaching him bad habits. Still, I suppose your bad habits are better than his old ones. Would he really have pantsed Krantz, you think?"
"I'm certain of it. So was Krantz." A broad grin crossed Train's face. "Best way to get to a man like that. Through his dignity." At Sven's laugh, Train continued, "Still, all things considered, I think Creed's best off sticking with us next time around. Just to keep him out of trouble."
Sven gave Train a look. "Between you and him, trouble is going to be inexorably drawn straight to us." He sighed at the look in Train's eyes. "Yeah, I know. It just means the jobs come to us instead. At least he didn't blow up half the building trying to get to you." After a long moment, Sven nodded, eyes on the pale-haired figure excitedly trying to get his skier down the hill faster than the pale-haired girl in black who was far ahead of his icon in the monitor. Eve's icon bore a more than passing resemblance to the girl herself, for she was literally inserting her 'self' into the game with the help of a nano-machine 'cable' formed from her hair. "Okay. I think you're right. Naizer's not a very good baby-sitter, anyway."
Train's expression soured a bit. "Naizer makes him too nervous. I don't want him browbeaten - especially not on the job. He's just getting an ego back. I don't want him to be all puffed up and self-important but he doesn't need to be cowed and defeated either."
That was something Sven agreed with wholeheartedly. Naizer had tried, but Creed wasn't easy to deal with. "All right. Then we're agreed. Next job he goes with us." And, as Naizer says, 'May God have mercy on our souls.'
To Be Continued...
