Twenty-One
Somewhere, in an unknown location, a young white-haired girl with large golden eyes slowly closed a door behind her, taking extra care not to make a sound. She then locked it and turned to examine the tiny storeroom in which she was now standing. It was no more then six by eight metres and was illuminated by a single light bulb, currently under siege from an army of moths. Shelves lined the walls, each one cluttered with flimsy boxes filled with machine parts, broken tools, dead batteries, several coils of hosepipe, worn fan belts and other assorted junk. A layer of dust coated everything, implying that no-one had come in here for a while.
Perfect, it would suit her needs well. She dumped her backpack on the floor, took out her laptop and deftly snapped its screen into position. While she waited for it to start up, she rummaged around in her bag, taking out an extension cable, a few discs and some rope. It was time to get to work.
She set up her terminal quickly and immediately set to finding the information she was looking for. This kind of hacking had become second nature to her by now, so she hardly even had to look at the screen anymore. It took her less then ten minutes for her to find what she was looking for and display it on the screen.
The blueprints for what would be the most powerful battleship in the world were there in front of her. Here was the Nergal Five in all its glory.
Running her eyes over the plans, she could see just how powerful this ship was. She counted sixteen full P-T engines. Incredible. The Nadesico had only had four at its peak. Sixteen was ridiculous – this monstrosity had more P-T engines than she had fingers on her hands. What's more, it had two P-T cannons - one on each side of the hull, two multi-barrelled gravity blast cannons and a hanger with enough space to furnish over sixty Aestivalis frames. One couldn't help but be awed by its destructive potential.
"You cannot be allowed to exist,"
Ten tiny white finger-tips descended onto the keyboard, united in their common purpose. In contrast, the girl's face was blank and motionless in spite of the significant, but uncertain, consequences her current actions would have of the future of many, many people.
* * *
It was amazing how the little things changed. Just over a year ago, he'd relied on his bike and public transport to get around. Now here he was behind the wheel of a slick blue convertible, doing eighty miles per hour down the motorway. Sure it was just a rented car, but with the vast sum of money that had built up in his account while he was aboard the Nadesico he could actually afford to buy one himself, should he choose to do so. It was certainly a far cry from his younger days, when he struggled to even make rent.
It was now just gone nine o'clock and they were two hours into their journey back to Hiratsuka. Minato had suggested they find a motel then travel back in the morning, but Yurika had wanted to leave tonight, so they could visit the UEAF base and Nadesico hanger first thing tomorrow morning. The others hadn't argued with her.
At the moment his girlfriend was asleep in the front passenger seat. Yukina, sitting behind her, was also dozing and Minato was fading fast too. Akito himself was struggling to stay awake and concentrating on the road ahead was becoming harder all the time.
"Don't know if I can stay awake for another two hours," he thought, dismally.
That thought was interrupted by a request from the back seat. "Hey Mr Akito? Can we make a bathroom stop?"
"Sure Yukina," That was actually a very sound idea - he desperately needed a break from driving too. The never-changing road ahead was sending him to sleep.
The young Jovian girl was grimacing in discomfort. "Soon, yeah?"
"Yeah, we're not far from a service station," said Akito, reading the large sign by the road. "Can you hold on for ten minutes?"
"I guess I'll have to!" Yukina muttered, clenching her teeth and fists. Akito winced and put his foot down.
Like he had promised, they arrived at the service station ten minutes later. Akito had dropped Yukina off at the entrance, whereupon she'd shot off like a bullet. He'd then taken the car round the back and found a parking spot. Once the car had stopped moving, the two women began to wake up, rubbing their eyes and yawning.
"Are we there already?" Yurika asked sleepily, but then answered her own question when she saw the service station.
"No, we've a while to go yet," said Akito, helping her out.
The three adults walked over to the small service station. By the looks of things it had little more than a seedy café, a shop (closed), a petrol station and a few run-down arcade machines. The neon sign at the entrance had long since burnt out and the sticky floor clearly hadn't been cleaned for many a month. Akito wasn't very impressed and had he been on his own, he would have turned on his heel and driven on to another place.
"I'll go and find Yukina," said Minato as they walked through the automatic doors. "Why don't you two get us a table in the café? I don't know about you, but I'm starving!"
"Yeah, we never did get around to dinner, did we? Sure, we'll meet you there," said Yurika. Minato smiled at them and walked off.
The couple entered the café. At this late hour it was empty, but still open for business. A pungent burnt smell hung in the air – unpleasant to most people, but to a chef like Akito it was disgusting. The atmosphere wasn't exactly great either, with flickering lights, tacky decor lining the walls and cheesy retro music quietly piping from somewhere in the room. A solitary waitress sat in the corner, chewing gum and reading a magazine. She glared at them as they were entered, obviously not relishing the prospect of having to serve someone this late at night. Nevertheless, Akito sat down at one of the tables by the window. Yurika sat down opposite him without a word. With a loud sigh of exasperation the waitress came over, took their order (grunting after each item to show her disinterest) and trudged off back to the kitchen.
"Not been a good day for her, has it?" said Akito with a quick laugh. Yurika smiled back at him, but remained silent.
Over the course of his time on the Nadesico, Akito had become pretty good at reading Yurika thoughts from her body language. Of course most of the time it was obvious since she was typically so open with her feelings, but when she did become more introverted, Akito could usually work out why. This time it was clear that she was worried about Ruri, but it wasn't just that. Akito knew there was something else there – kind of a more immediate nervousness in addition to the underlying worry. He could tell from the way she kept on twitching her fingers and constantly swapped her gaze from him, to her placemat, then over to the kitchen. Yes, she was anxious about something. There was something she wanted to say to him, but hadn't yet plucked up the courage. Akito let his inner smile show on his face – it would have to be something really big for Yurika to be tense in front of him of all people. He thought he knew what it was about, but he didn't let that on yet. He did, however, decide to give her a nudge.
"Are you feeling okay, Yurika?"
"Yes, I'm fine Akito dearest," she said with a forced smile. The waitress interrupted them by setting their drinks down roughly in front of them. Yurika instantly picked up her lemonade and drank half the glass in one long, nervous swig. Then, as if the drink had given her some inner strength, she interlinked her fingers, adopted her 'serious, but emotional' voice and spoke.
"Akito, there's something I've been meaning to ask you about,"
He'd seen this coming a mile off. He'd waited a good few weeks for her to make this confession, and therefore knew what the question, and his eventual reply, would be. Despite that, he forced himself to appear curious.
"What is it Yurika?"
Yurika hesitated. "Akito, I…" she started apprehensively, before cutting herself off by placing her connected index fingers on her mouth.
"Go on," urged Akito.
Yurika swallowed, took a deep breath and then forced out the phrase.
"I want to adopt Ruri."
Even though he'd been expecting it, he didn't have to fake the immediate shock on his face at actually hearing her say it. He initially remained silent, showing astonishment on the outside while he inwardly congratulated himself for guessing it right. When he looked over to her again he saw something close to terror in Yurika's eyes. She had ceased all movement and breathing as she awaited his all-too-important response. She had never been as good at reading him as he could her, Akito noted with a private chuckle. He decided to put her out of her misery.
"Yurika," he murmured, bringing his hand forward and warmly placing it on top of hers. "I would love to do that for her,"
Her reaction was electric. First her face rocketed into an insanely happy grin and she started laughing. Then without warning she suddenly hurled herself across the table and smothered him with her arms.
"Oh Akito!" she exclaimed, delightedly pulling him close. "Really? You're okay with it?"
"Yeah, absolutely," said Akito, struggling to speak with her unyielding hold on him. "But there a few conditions I want to run by you first."
"Huh?" Yurika drew away so she could face him, her eyes wide with curiosity and just a bit of anxiety.
"Yeah," Akito coughed, feeling guilty to have burst her bubble of instant happiness so quickly. However, a few things had to be addressed before he could give a definite 'yes'.
"Er, you're sure you've thought this through right?" he started uneasily. "You're not just doing it out of sympathy for her, are you?"
"No, I really have given it enough thought," said Yurika, without even the tiniest shred of doubt in her voice. "To tell the truth I've been thinking about it ever since I heard she was in an orphanage. You have to believe me, Akito! I want her to be our daughter!" Her face was creased up with desperation as she said, "Don't you want that too?"
"Yes I do Yurika, I'm with you one-hundred percent," said Akito. "But remember that this is Ruri's life we're talking about. It should be her decision. The last thing I want to do is to force her to join our family against her will." He met Yurika's eyes again. "Let's not forget she already has parents. She may want to go back to them instead." He spread his arms. "Hell, for all we know she already has gone back to them!"
"No," Yurika shook her head. "She hasn't."
Akito regarded her with narrow, scrutinising eyes. "How come you are so sure?"
"Well if she really thought they could be a family to her, wouldn't she have gone to them in the first place and not the orphanage?" said Yurika, leaning forward as she posed that thought. "Besides, do you remember what she was like when she came back from Peaceland? She wouldn't speak to anyone about it! It was as if she just wanted to forget about it and pretend it never happened."
"Well, yeah," admitted Akito. He knew that more then anyone. He'd spent an awkward ten minutes waiting in the courtyard of the palace of Peaceland while Ruri had gone to tell her family that she was leaving them to return to the Nadesico. When she had returned, her face had been strictly emotionless even by her standards. She hadn't even looked back as they left. Yurika was definitely making a good case here.
"We're the only family she has, Akito!" she cried, clutching her hands to her chest. "She doesn't know anyone else! It's our duty to give her a real life!" She bowed her head slowly and continued in a subdued, almost gloomy voice.
"And I really want to give it to her you know. I really do."
Well, that did it for him. Whether it was the deep emotion in her voice, her atypically sound reasoning or some inner fatherly instinct, he knew that he had been convinced and from then on his life would change forever. Having resolved the matter in his own mind, he set both his hands on Yurika's shoulders. At his touch, she slowly brought her eyes up to his, her lips parted in anticipation.
"Okay, Yurika," he said calmly. "Let's do it. Let's adopt Ruri."
Yurika didn't reply with words. She let her rising smile speak for her. Then a second later she too rose to place her arms around Akito and kiss him with a passion that told him just how much this meant to her.
As he felt Yurika's lips press against his own, Akito's mind was struck by the implications of his agreement. He knew from that moment onward he would see Ruri in a very different light. Yurika too for that matter. A month ago, all three had been just friends and co-workers. Now they planned to unite as a family; father, mother and daughter. Their roles would shift so their bonds would strengthen. Ruri would share in the joy that he and Yurika had found in each other. A new life for all three waited in limbo, one which could bring great happiness to each one of them. All it needed to become a reality was a positive response from Ruri.
Wherever she was.
* * *
Akatsuki was annoyed. Right now he felt just like he had when the Jovians had destroyed his Shakuyaku before it could even launch. A huge investment of time, money and resources had been reduced to nothing in an instant. And it was the same with Ruri's assassination. That obstinate brat could have been so useful at the helm of his glorious battleship. But she'd chosen filthy death over his generous offer. No-one could argue that she hadn't deserved her fate, but the chairman of Nergal still saw it as a gigantic waste of potential.
They'd already assigned a replacement for her – some company guy who'd apparently been their computer-systems administrator for four years now. Erina had assured him earlier that he was a real computer whiz, and his personal files backed up her statement. But nevertheless, he was mere cloth compared to Ruri's silk. Good workers could be found anywhere. Akatsuki had wanted the very best for his project.
He'd tried hard to think positively. It was the Nergal Five that would defeat the Jovians, not Ruri alone. At the end of the day, a P-T cannon would be just as devastatingly destructive not matter who fired it. So while Ruri wouldn't be with them, the operation was still a guaranteed success. But it irked Akatsuki that Ruri wasn't with them – she'd been part of his perfect vision for this project. He'd wanted to take the ultimate crew-member and use her to her full potential. And he'd been confident that she'd agree to work with him, on the grounds she would be fulfilling the purpose she had been born to, not to mention the fact she had nowhere else to go. But he'd underestimated the effect that her Nadesico crewmates had had on her. During their time together, they'd given her many virtuous beliefs. Beliefs which had killed her in the end. Such a waste of brilliance, for such trivial principles.
Why worry about something you couldn't change, he kept telling himself. He'd made his decision and he had to stick by it. There was no turning back now, the only way was onwards and upwards. Akatsuki tried to focus on the on-screen documents to take his mind off the Ruri situation. Four papers needed to be read and signed before tomorrow, if the N5's development was to progress according to schedule. He'd barely begun reading the first of them when he was interrupted by his personal communicator.
"Sir, you're receiving an incoming call from an anonymous caller,"
Akatsuki exhaled in annoyance. "Put him through," he grumbled, taking a sip from the glass on his desk.
The communication screen flashed up instantly. Akatsuki choked on his wine when he saw the familiar face on the display.
"You seem surprised to see me Mr. Akatsuki," stated Ruri, not blinking once.
Akatsuki tried, with difficulty, to assume his standard composure. Setting his wine glass down, he crossed his legs and sat back. "Frankly I am, Miss Hoshino. I was under the impression that you wanted nothing to do with Nergal. Have you finally had a change of heart?"
"Hardly," said the albino girl. "But I need to meet with you urgently,"
"By all means Ruri, dear." Akatsuki said. "Anything for an old friend. Why don't we do lunch tomorrow? It won't take more then an hour, will it? I'm a busy man you know."
"How about right now?" Ruri asked, her face motionless except for her mouth.
"Huh?"
In that moment the communication screen vanished and a muffled scuffling came from somewhere in the room. Then Akatsuki watched disbelievingly as the grill covering the ventilation shaft fell off the wall with a metallic 'clang', allowing a familiar young girl with white hair and golden eyes to crawl out and lower herself to the floor. The Nergal chairman gaped as she walked casually towards him, dusting herself off as she did so.
"Well, you sure know how to make an entrance," Akatsuki murmured as the girl approached him. "You know, you could have come in the conventional way if you'd let me know you were in the city."
"It wouldn't have been wise to let you know where I was," replied Ruri, standing before his desk with her arms by her side. "I didn't want you to try anything stupid."
"Why, whatever do you mean?"
"I mean getting another of your hired goons to make another attempt on my life." Ruri's expression was set in stone. "Don't deny it Mr Akatsuki. I know what you tried to do."
Akatsuki considered pressing the alarm button under his desk, but then decided against it. He could deal with an eleven year-old girl, even a prodigal one. "I swear I don't know what you're talking about," he said, making a casual motion with his arm. "Are your suspicions getting the better of you again?"
"No. I know for a fact that you sent an assassin after me. I met him twice. But in any case, that doesn't matter now," Ruri continued steadily. "What needs to be resolved is between you and me,"
"What is there to resolve if you're not signing up for the N5?"
"Our little conflict," she replied simply. With that, she reached into her uniform and brought out something which made Akatsuki gasp in horror. Ruri's hands were freakishly steady as she raised the sleek black pistol so that it was aiming directly at his chest.
"It's time to level the score," she whispered, her voice reflecting the deadly ice of her expression.
