44: Better Sorry than Safe

Tobias sat on a windowsill, staring blankly out at the blanket of snow covering the ground. White flakes drifted down from the grey sky, spiraling in the dim light. He could hear the chatter of his companions deeper inside the wooden building. They weren't worrying about his parents... At least, not on the same level he was.

After they had escaped from Cassiopeia Syndicate that night and returned to the hotel, he had fallen ill. He spent a few days in bed with a debilitating cold and a very high fever. He had had some strange dreams during the few days... one was of his parents fighting a giant monster with green hair, another of him standing on top of a skyscraper while countless gold fireworks went off around him. He awoke from those dreams in a cold sweat and terrified out of his mind, but he did gain something from them: his missing memories.

"Mom..." he muttered, his breath fogging on the glass."You'll find Dad and stay safe, right? The Syndicate is large, but I believe in you... in both of you. Make sure you come back home... I miss you."

"I'm sure she's fine, Toby," Santi's voice said gently. He glanced at her briefly and returned to gazing out the window.

"It makes me feel better if I think things like that," he said coolly.

"I know, I just hate seeing you like this," she mumbled, shifting her weight onto one foot and looking at the floor.

"Because you love me?" he asked.

"Everyone loves you," she replied, a small grin tugging at her lips.

"I meant because you're in love with me," he clarified.

"Yes, because I'm in love with you," she admitted.

"I'm still a kid, Santi. I do love you, but I'm not ready for something like that. I'm sorry," he said, his blond bangs falling into his eyes as he moved his head.

"I know... that's what makes it hurt so much," she nodded, leaning back against the wall. "I feel really terrible because of my feelings and the fact that you're eight, but I can't seem to control it." She stuffed her hands in the pockets of her deep purple blazer and concentrated on the floorboards, doing her best to hide her blush behind her hair.

"It's not your fault," he replied. Santi heard him stand up and waited for him to say something else. She wasn't expecting him to suddenly kiss her. "That's as far as it can go. I'm sorry."

She watched him walk away down the hall and brought her hand to her mouth. It wasn't like she hadn't been kissed before - she had, plenty of times - but never had she tasted one so... sad. Not depressed or lonely or even angry... just sad. She let her knees give out and sank to the floor. She was supposed to be this powerful being descended from a god... so why couldn't she make one person happy? Hot tears stung her eyes as she thought about all this.

"There are things even gods can't do," Josiah's voice said suddenly, making her jump.

"What?" she asked.

"Do you know why we had to make the Godchildren? Because we couldn't control what we created. It developed a mind of its own and we lost control. The Godchildren are the last hope for the world, but only if they work together. Right now one Godchild and one consort have been taken captive. If anything happens to them, everything will come to an end. Neither I nor my love could have seen this coming. If we had, we never would have made what we did," he said.

"The Godchildren have consorts? What does a consort do?" Santi inquired, rubbing her eyes.

"The consorts help in the... how do I put this... the Godchildren's power is fueled by positive emotions, whereas Homunculus' power is fueled by negative ones. Ed and Al need the twins, otherwise their powers won't work properly. Love is one of the most powerful emotions on the planet. Their powers come from the love they feel for everyone around them, especially people who can return their feelings to the fullest," he continued, pushing his half-moon specs further up the bridge of his nose.

"This doesn't really make much sense," she pointed out.

"Yeah... Katie is the one who's good at explaining things. I'm, uh, not. She'd always make me shut up if something needed explaining," Josiah replied, embarrassed.

"But... if Ed's so important, why did you abandon him? And Christin, after all she's been through, all she's been putting herself through? You let the 'hope for the world' get captured by the enemy!" Santi shot back.

"I know... that wasn't something we planned. Moreover, Christin wasn't supposed to lose her body like that. Her affinity for machines went haywire because of Rio... she's being changed into a machine... a weapon of mass destruction Homunculus plans to use to wipe out all life. If things continue as they are, Rio will cease to exist."

"That's sick... that girl is barely a year old... this whole thing is sick," she spat, crossing her arms.

"This is war... or it's going to be. You best get some rest while you can. The next few days are going to be very, very busy," the brunette said, adjusting his glasses again.

"Oh really? How so?" she asked, standing up.

"Well, first we need to go back to the apartment the Techno-Cretins trashed oh-so-long-ago. Then we have to find out why the Syndicate is celebrating the completion of what they're now calling 'phase one of the Valor Project' and see what can be done about getting our saviors back," he rambled.

"You make them sound all high-and-mighty when you call them 'saviors'. You know as well as anyone here that those people are nothing like the masses' concept of a savior or god or whatever the hell you wanna call them," she said hotly. "Christin once told me that Edward said flaws make us human. Those two are as human as you can possibly get. You just sit around here ordering us around like the 'Grand Creatrix' you claim to be while your so called saviors are being put through hell!"

"Do you really want to pick a fight with me, child?" Josiah demanded, glowering at her. She took a step backwards as faint blue sparks appeared in the air. "My power may seem depleted because of Homunculus, but it has not dissipated. It is still very potent and I assure you I will not hesitate to use it."

"I... I'm sorry..." she squeaked. "I-I..."

"Don't worry!" he laughed, the sparks fizzling out into nothing. "Things are bad enough as it is. I'm not going to make it worse on purpose!"

"Please don't. We don't have time to waste on things like that," Belphoebe announced. "God or not, you are within perimeters of my land and you follow my rules."

"Even Belphoebe is more of a god than you are! Gods are supposed to be merciful and absolute and protect the weak. As far as I can see you're just a layabout!" Santi snapped.

"That's enough, Santi," Josiah said firmly. "You're still a child. You know nothing of being a god... you barely can fulfill your role as a Kali-rah. All your actions so far have been selfish. I allowed, no, I arranged for you to come along thinking that you would be able to think of others. We needed a contact in this world so I chose you, who had the most potential, to bring them here so we could tell them what they have to do."

"Then why did you say Christin was the one who would save the world? You said nothing about Edward," she sniffed.

"He wasn't ready to accept his power, not even be aware of his role in this damned plot! He wasn't born with that power like the others. Something went wrong and he developed differently, resulting in the loss of his Godchild powers. They were stored in a nearby vessel until he was ready to obtain them. That is why he was such a genius as a child, and why he was able to enter the military at age twelve." Josiah turned to scowl at her. "The closest you've come to thinking about others is falling in love with his son. Change your ways or I will be sending you back to your tribe."

"You can't do that!" she cried, her hands clenching into fists. "I've worked too hard to turn back now! I'm not selfish or vain or anything else you might imply... I do care about others... I don't want anyone hurt because of this. I don't want to see the world end any more than you do!"

"Santi, that's enough!" Belphoebe barked. Santi closed her mouth and averted her eyes.

Tobias turned and continued down the hall to his room. He had heard enough of that conversation. They made the situation sound so horrible... it couldn't really be that bad, could it? Everyone kept calling this a war, but nothing warlike had happened. There had been attacks by monsters, but unleashing a hoard of half machine half animal creatures was a common thing in stories. The whole thing seemed too unreal... the only way he could describe it was a story. Like some sick author was making them all suffer, just for the enjoyment of others. He heard Josiah describe it like a game of chess when he was sick. Maybe that's what it was... a sick, twisted game in which he was one of the pieces.

A lingering glance out the window made him oddly depressed, more so than he already was. He missed his parents terribly. He wanted them back, now that he finally remembered who his mother was. He hated that she had went through all that pain, just to stay close to him... to his dad. All that time spent masquerading as someone different, just so they could still be together...

He ground his teeth and stormed down the hall, pausing only long enough to snag his jacket off a coat hook by the front door. He tugged it on as he made his way down the front steps of the house, not caring what anyone else would say. There was a heavy coating of snow and dead leaves on the car they had abandoned here when they first met Santi. A quick swipe of his hand sent it all to the ground. It felt good to have that much control over his powers. He hadn't gotten the chance to use them much, but it felt good just the same. He had a feeling that he'd be using them quite a bit soon. He buckled the seatbelt of the driver's seat and jammed the key into the ignition.

"Where do you think you're going?" a deep voice asked.

"I'm going to save my parents," Tobias replied firmly, gripping the steering wheel firmly. "I'm surprised that you, who have known my dad longer than any of us, haven't done anything yet."

"I'm still waiting for my body to heal," Roy replied. "Josie said it'd be good as new within the hour."

"That's nice, but I've got to go," the blond said stiffly. He didn't want to waste any more time.

"You're gonna be sorry if you just rush into it without a plan. You are exactly like your father, running away without bothering to ask for help," the older man grumbled.

"I don't need help. I can do this on my own," Tobias hissed.

The sound of boots crunching in the snow faded away and he started the car. He paused, not knowing exactly how to drive. It shouldn't be too difficult. He had watched his parents often enough. While he was busy trying to determine the gas pedal from the break pedal, he heard the sound of the trunk being opened and closed. He looked up to see Roy climbing into the passenger seat.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"Making sure you don't kill yourself. Both parents would have my head if they knew you did something like this without telling anyone. Do you even know how to drive?" Roy replied.

"I can learn," Tobias insisted, blushing.

"Sure you want to leave your girlfriend?" the elder asked.

"She's not my girlfriend, I'm only nine," the blond replied vehemently.

"Nine? I thought you were eight."

"My birthday was a yesterday. I was still recovering from my illness and I didn't want to make a big fuss about it when it's a celebration about getting one year closer to death," Tobias said glumly.

"That's your mother's genes talking. She hated birthdays, especially as she got older," Roy chuckled.

"Oh my god, I'm so stupid," Tobias snickered, rolling his eyes.

"What?" Roy asked.

"Computer, find the fastest route to the apartment and get us there as fast as possible," he said.

"Affirmative," a female voice replied. The vehicle began backing out of the driveway silently and swiftly before shooting down the main road. "Estimated time of arrival, two hours and fifteen minutes."

"What the hell is that?" Roy demanded, looking around for the mysterious voice.

"Okay, Grandpa, in this world they have things called 'computers'. Computers are automatic data storage bases, like a big file cabinet smushed inside a one by one inch plastic square. They can download and retrieve data. Now, this data can be anything from pictures to directions. Some really fancy ones are interactive, like the computers in most cars. They allow the driver to sit around and do nothing while the computer does all the work," Tobias explained in a very snotty, know-it-all tone. "You happen to be inside a computer right now. That body is a giant machine, like my dad's automail, or cybernetics as he'd been calling it lately, and you've been put inside there while your body heals. What's in the trunk, by the way?"

"My body," Roy replied grimly. "I wasn't about to leave it behind when I'm so close to getting it back. Why are you doing this? Better safe than sorry; turn this thing around and go back."

"I'm not going back. If I have a chance of seeing my parents again, I'd rather be sorry than safe. You got in this car of your own volition. If you want out, I can pull over and you can freeze to death out there," Tobias nodded towards the window, indicating the frozen world beyond it.

"Exactly like your father," Roy grunted, shifting his weight so he was comfortable. "Wake me when we get there."

"Right," Tobias grinned. He thought he heard Roy mutter that he should've been named after his father because they were so similar.


A/N 10-2-10: okay, now things are gonna get crazy... well, crazier then they already are.

This song title is from Halestorm's Better Sorry than Safe.

If something doesn't make sense, please let me know and I'll try to fix it.

REVIEW PLEASE!

Until chapter 45...