Chapter 5: A Different Sort Vision
Hikaru was becoming angrier, he wasn't showing any sign of wanting to go away. All she really wanted was to be alone; not even getting back to Cephiro took precedence to sorting out her feelings, alone. Hikaru was about ready to using magic to blast him out of the room when the door opened. The short, rumpled looking kid stuck his head in.
"Geo wants you, Eagle," he said respectfully, as if he could stop them from glaring at him by being polite.
"I'll be down in a few moments," Eagle waited until the mechanic was gone before turning back to Hikaru. "There is more water on the table behind you, if you need anything, call. There will be somebody within earshot at all times." He left; cloak swishing behind him as the door snapped shut.
1 I bet there'll be somebody in earshot. Probably armed and ready for me to try to get out, oh yes, there will definitely be someone right outside the door. Hikaru tried to ignore the lonely feeling of the room. You wanted to be alone. She had to remind herself.
To distract herself from the pessimistic thoughts brought on by the fact that she could hardly bear to be alone in a strange room anymore, she reached out with a little difficulty and grasped the water glass. Surprised she could move without screaming she cautiously tried to move out of the bed. It didn't work she discovered this as her legs protested at any and all movement in the painful manner.
I guess my legs are still sore from that fight. Well, I was hit pretty hard, but I guess I'm still too tired to be walking much anyway. Shaking off her depressing thoughts, Hikaru lifted the glass of water to her lips, looking at it thoughtfully. They could decide that I'm too much trouble and poison me. But. I don't think he would. no, she wasn't going to think about that either.
Surprised that she actually trusted the odd, golden eyed man who had managed to defeat her, Hikaru drank without thinking, trying to escape her disturbing thoughts. Feeling no ill affects from the water, she drank again, this time a bit more cautiously.
She sipped the water thoughtfully; it had a harsh metallic taste, making her grimace. She hadn't really paid attention to it the first time she had drunk it, being too tired to really even notice it. It was amazing how different the water tasted in different places. The first time they went to Cephiro the water had tasted pure, pure and cold. Now that water tasted bitter. But here the water tasted more like the water one got out of the sink, metallic and sterile.
Guess I'll be here a while yet. She put the water glass back on its table before lying back down to sleep. I'm more tired than I thought. Oh well he won't be back for a while. Her head rested lightly on the pillow, and Hikaru fell softly back into sleep.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Eagle found Geo and Zazu waiting in the meeting room, Geo was tapping his fingers impatiently and fiddling with his computer. Geo looked up when his commander entered, ceasing his annoying tapping.
"Is she asleep yet?" he asked bluntly, surprising Eagle.
"No. She wasn't when I left. should she be?" he asked suspiciously, Geo and Zazu's uncomfortable looks made him glare at them. "Out with it, you two. What is it that you didn't tell me?"
"Well." Geo was looking very uncomfortable.
"I thought you knew, Eagle," said Zazu, looking innocently back at him. "We put gentince in her water." Eagle stared at him, aghast.
Gentince was a powerful drug that, when used properly, could be used to send the victim into a trance-like sleep. After that, once awoken, the subject would have no mental barriers. In other words, you could ask them any question you liked and they would tell you anything, anything. After that, they wouldn't remember they would recall going to sleep nothing else.
Invented by Autozam's best, gentince was the perfect thing for interrogating enemies. It was almost too good to be true, and that was why there was one catch. If the person took in too much, or they were subjected to it for a long period of time, the person could lose most or all memory of what happened to them before going to sleep.
If that happens to the Magic Knight. well, it is highly unlikely unless Geo had forgotten they were using it on a small girl, not an older, stronger person who would be less susceptible to the drug. Eagle didn't want to think about what would happen if they had.
"Next time you want to do something as foolish as that, you will tell me first. Then you will double-check your measurements. Then you will recheck them. And only then will you give it to the prisoner. I do not want anything like this to occur again, do you understand?" Eagle's voice was calm and cold.
Usually he would glare at them and threaten to send them back to Autozam. But then he would always smile in his friendly manner and forgive them after a few moments of fuming. This time he glared at them so fiercely that Geo was actually a little scared of him.
His point made Eagle turned and left, his shoes clicking on the metal hallway. Geo and Zazu stared after him, not a little confusedly. Eagle himself was confused at his behavior. He had never been so close to losing his control in public before, not even when his mother had died. Rather frightened that the small Knight could affect him in such a way, he headed toward her room, knowing that Geo and Zazu would follow behind very shortly.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Hikaru saw only a fine gray mist, nothing else was real at the moment. When Princess Emeraude appeared to her, floating and insubstantial, she didn't feel any regret, only a quiet kind of peace. Emeraude was smiling, and smiling fully, her eyes were no longer as sad as they used to be. But when she saw Hikaru her eyes looked unhappy and she almost seemed to be guilty.
"Oh, Magic Knight, I am so sorry," Emeraude said when she had come near enough to be heard. Hikaru shook her head, puzzled.
"Why should you be sorry? We were the ones who hurt you," she still felt slightly detached, like her sorrow was hovering just on the edge of her emotional consciousness.
"No. I have caused you more grief than ever. You helped me to have my wish, it was not your fault." Hikaru looked unhappy, it was true, they both knew it. But Hikaru would always have a sense of guilt when she thought about it, no matter what Emeraude said. Still her feelings seemed unreal, too hazy to affect her.
"And now, now, your grief has caused you to be here. Here you will find a great challenge. But you can overcome it if you have the strength of heart." Hikaru frowned, she remembered someone else asking her something, something about her heart and its strength. She couldn't remember it, it seemed so far away, too far away. Emeraude's voice faded, growing softer as she and the mist blackened.
"Remember, Magic Knight Hikaru Shido, you can overcome this challenge. But you first you must learn what you can. You will understand what I mean when the time comes. But you cannot lose hope, you cannot." Hikaru's vision went dark, the words of Princess Emeraude fading as they were spoken. Her mind went black too, and nothing penetrated that darkness for a long time.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Eagle waited, he couldn't start until he knew how much time they had before she would come out of the trance induced by the gentince. Geo and Zazu entered a few minutes after him, looking carefully at him to see if he was still mad at them. His face showed no expression as he looked at them expectantly.
Zazu looked at the glass of water on the small table. The Knight had drunk about a fourth of the water, which gave them about two hours. Zazu considered fast. If they had spent an hour or so waiting for her to wake up and talk to Eagle then they had seven more hours before the other countries would answer. That gave them plenty of time to question the Knight and do whatever else needed to be done. He spoke.
"She'll be in the trance for two hours. That gives us about five hours 'till the Dream Child and the Bravada answer," Eagle nodded, it was about what he had figured.
"Then let us begin," he said, turning his back on them, they all looked at the Knight.
Hikaru was becoming angrier, he wasn't showing any sign of wanting to go away. All she really wanted was to be alone; not even getting back to Cephiro took precedence to sorting out her feelings, alone. Hikaru was about ready to using magic to blast him out of the room when the door opened. The short, rumpled looking kid stuck his head in.
"Geo wants you, Eagle," he said respectfully, as if he could stop them from glaring at him by being polite.
"I'll be down in a few moments," Eagle waited until the mechanic was gone before turning back to Hikaru. "There is more water on the table behind you, if you need anything, call. There will be somebody within earshot at all times." He left; cloak swishing behind him as the door snapped shut.
1 I bet there'll be somebody in earshot. Probably armed and ready for me to try to get out, oh yes, there will definitely be someone right outside the door. Hikaru tried to ignore the lonely feeling of the room. You wanted to be alone. She had to remind herself.
To distract herself from the pessimistic thoughts brought on by the fact that she could hardly bear to be alone in a strange room anymore, she reached out with a little difficulty and grasped the water glass. Surprised she could move without screaming she cautiously tried to move out of the bed. It didn't work she discovered this as her legs protested at any and all movement in the painful manner.
I guess my legs are still sore from that fight. Well, I was hit pretty hard, but I guess I'm still too tired to be walking much anyway. Shaking off her depressing thoughts, Hikaru lifted the glass of water to her lips, looking at it thoughtfully. They could decide that I'm too much trouble and poison me. But. I don't think he would. no, she wasn't going to think about that either.
Surprised that she actually trusted the odd, golden eyed man who had managed to defeat her, Hikaru drank without thinking, trying to escape her disturbing thoughts. Feeling no ill affects from the water, she drank again, this time a bit more cautiously.
She sipped the water thoughtfully; it had a harsh metallic taste, making her grimace. She hadn't really paid attention to it the first time she had drunk it, being too tired to really even notice it. It was amazing how different the water tasted in different places. The first time they went to Cephiro the water had tasted pure, pure and cold. Now that water tasted bitter. But here the water tasted more like the water one got out of the sink, metallic and sterile.
Guess I'll be here a while yet. She put the water glass back on its table before lying back down to sleep. I'm more tired than I thought. Oh well he won't be back for a while. Her head rested lightly on the pillow, and Hikaru fell softly back into sleep.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Eagle found Geo and Zazu waiting in the meeting room, Geo was tapping his fingers impatiently and fiddling with his computer. Geo looked up when his commander entered, ceasing his annoying tapping.
"Is she asleep yet?" he asked bluntly, surprising Eagle.
"No. She wasn't when I left. should she be?" he asked suspiciously, Geo and Zazu's uncomfortable looks made him glare at them. "Out with it, you two. What is it that you didn't tell me?"
"Well." Geo was looking very uncomfortable.
"I thought you knew, Eagle," said Zazu, looking innocently back at him. "We put gentince in her water." Eagle stared at him, aghast.
Gentince was a powerful drug that, when used properly, could be used to send the victim into a trance-like sleep. After that, once awoken, the subject would have no mental barriers. In other words, you could ask them any question you liked and they would tell you anything, anything. After that, they wouldn't remember they would recall going to sleep nothing else.
Invented by Autozam's best, gentince was the perfect thing for interrogating enemies. It was almost too good to be true, and that was why there was one catch. If the person took in too much, or they were subjected to it for a long period of time, the person could lose most or all memory of what happened to them before going to sleep.
If that happens to the Magic Knight. well, it is highly unlikely unless Geo had forgotten they were using it on a small girl, not an older, stronger person who would be less susceptible to the drug. Eagle didn't want to think about what would happen if they had.
"Next time you want to do something as foolish as that, you will tell me first. Then you will double-check your measurements. Then you will recheck them. And only then will you give it to the prisoner. I do not want anything like this to occur again, do you understand?" Eagle's voice was calm and cold.
Usually he would glare at them and threaten to send them back to Autozam. But then he would always smile in his friendly manner and forgive them after a few moments of fuming. This time he glared at them so fiercely that Geo was actually a little scared of him.
His point made Eagle turned and left, his shoes clicking on the metal hallway. Geo and Zazu stared after him, not a little confusedly. Eagle himself was confused at his behavior. He had never been so close to losing his control in public before, not even when his mother had died. Rather frightened that the small Knight could affect him in such a way, he headed toward her room, knowing that Geo and Zazu would follow behind very shortly.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Hikaru saw only a fine gray mist, nothing else was real at the moment. When Princess Emeraude appeared to her, floating and insubstantial, she didn't feel any regret, only a quiet kind of peace. Emeraude was smiling, and smiling fully, her eyes were no longer as sad as they used to be. But when she saw Hikaru her eyes looked unhappy and she almost seemed to be guilty.
"Oh, Magic Knight, I am so sorry," Emeraude said when she had come near enough to be heard. Hikaru shook her head, puzzled.
"Why should you be sorry? We were the ones who hurt you," she still felt slightly detached, like her sorrow was hovering just on the edge of her emotional consciousness.
"No. I have caused you more grief than ever. You helped me to have my wish, it was not your fault." Hikaru looked unhappy, it was true, they both knew it. But Hikaru would always have a sense of guilt when she thought about it, no matter what Emeraude said. Still her feelings seemed unreal, too hazy to affect her.
"And now, now, your grief has caused you to be here. Here you will find a great challenge. But you can overcome it if you have the strength of heart." Hikaru frowned, she remembered someone else asking her something, something about her heart and its strength. She couldn't remember it, it seemed so far away, too far away. Emeraude's voice faded, growing softer as she and the mist blackened.
"Remember, Magic Knight Hikaru Shido, you can overcome this challenge. But you first you must learn what you can. You will understand what I mean when the time comes. But you cannot lose hope, you cannot." Hikaru's vision went dark, the words of Princess Emeraude fading as they were spoken. Her mind went black too, and nothing penetrated that darkness for a long time.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Eagle waited, he couldn't start until he knew how much time they had before she would come out of the trance induced by the gentince. Geo and Zazu entered a few minutes after him, looking carefully at him to see if he was still mad at them. His face showed no expression as he looked at them expectantly.
Zazu looked at the glass of water on the small table. The Knight had drunk about a fourth of the water, which gave them about two hours. Zazu considered fast. If they had spent an hour or so waiting for her to wake up and talk to Eagle then they had seven more hours before the other countries would answer. That gave them plenty of time to question the Knight and do whatever else needed to be done. He spoke.
"She'll be in the trance for two hours. That gives us about five hours 'till the Dream Child and the Bravada answer," Eagle nodded, it was about what he had figured.
"Then let us begin," he said, turning his back on them, they all looked at the Knight.