It's my 19th birthday tomorrow. I feel old... O.o
A/N 1: As in the previous chapters – ideas for fic and character development, questions, plotbunnies, suggestions, flames, character pictures, corrections, additions, comments, and everything in between can be mailed to hack_heaven@usa.net
A/N 2: VFgirl: It means that if Jhonen gets paired up, I'll go with your idea ^^
WritingMoose: I'd considered a slash-pairing later on because it fitted with two of the characters, but it's unlikely it will show up since it's not important to the plot.
J.DeLuca: Oh, Erik will show up again. He has his own agenda, and he's quite determined to make sure that things work out as he wants them to.
'...' Indicates a conversation between Jhonen and Erik
/.../ Indicates Laetitia's use of her powers
* * *
Chapter Thirty: The Best-Laid Plans
* * *
It was early morning, an hour or so before dawn, when Suzuka and Deirdre drove into the parking lot in front of the Shadow Alliance's current residence. They'd turned off the lights on the car, and done the best they could to stay out of sight.
Deirdre looked at the hotel, and then at Suzuka.
"Are you sure you want to do this?" she asked, and cast an anxious look at the surroundings.
Suzuka leaned back in her seat and took a deep breath to calm down her nerves.
"Yes," she replied. "I'm sure."
Deirdre nodded and kept watching their surroundings.
"You got a plan, or are you just going to improvise?" she finally asked.
Suzuka sent her a faint smile.
"They're staying on the first floor, in the opposite end of the open window," she replied and nodded at a window in the end of the building. "I'll transform into a large owl and fly up there. And once I'm inside, I'll turn into a snake. The rest should be easy," she said confidently.
"A snake? Why not a mouse or something around that size?" Deirdre asked.
Suzuka shook her head.
"Because there's a lower limit as to how small I can make myself. I *could* probably turn into a mouse, but it would hurt too much to remain in that shape for long. A snake isn't pleasant, but it's tolerable," she explained. "Besides, that way I'll have a bit of protection. Very few people wants to annoy a poisonous snake."
"Point taken," Deirdre said and smiled despite the tense atmosphere in the car.
Suzuka took another calming breath, then opened the door.
"Let's do this."
Deirdre nodded and watched as Suzuka got out of the car.
"Oh, and 'Dre..." Suzuka added.
"Yeah?" Deirdre replied.
"If anything happens, I want you to get out of here as fast as you can. There's no reason for both of us to get captured."
"But-" Deirdre tried to object, but Suzuka cut her off.
"No buts. I want you out of here at the first sign of trouble, have I made myself clear?"
Deirdre sighed.
"Yes."
Suzuka smiled faintly, then closed the door and disappeared into the night.
* * *
The air was chilly, but Suzuka didn't notice as she stood beside the hotel and watched the open window. It was a fairly large window, but she would still have to watch the size of the shape she chose.
She looked thoughtfully at the window, then finally decided on a shape. The owl she'd chosen would be slightly larger than ordinary owls, but it would be more comfortable for her - the large the difference between her human shape and her animal shape, the larger the pain that followed. She'd learned that pretty fast, and had quickly decided to stick to near-human sized animals whenever possible.
But sometimes, like tonight, a painless new form was a luxury she could not afford.
Suzuka closed her eyes and called up an image of a large owl. She felt her muscles stretch, and her bones bend as her body slowly, excruciating slowly, transformed into its new shape. Ten long, agonizing seconds later, a magnificent owl shook its head and flexed its wings experimentally.
Satisfied with the result, the large animal spread out its wings completely and soared through the air. It closed in on the window, then planted its claws in the solid wood of the frame. It hesitated for a second, then flew down in the hallway, careful not to hit anything. It landed safely on the carpet and quickly took a look around to make sure it was completely alone.
Suzuka-the-owl paused, then made her decision. Ever since her powers had manifested, she'd read every book about animals that she could get her hands on. The more she knew about a particular animal, the easier it would be to turn into it, and she'd grown familiar with quite a few species.
What she needed was something dangerous, something that people wouldn't want to get too close to. A poisonous snake was the perfect choice. Suzuka created an image in her mind, and kept a firm grip on it as she slowly transformed into her new shape. The large own slowly disappear, and in its place was a five feet long tiger snake, its black scales blending into the shadows.
The snake took a moment to recover from the transformation, then slithered through the hallway, guided by scent alone. She paused momentarily in front of one of the larger rooms, having caught the familiar scent of a male. The forked tongue swiped out, tasting the air, and she recognized one of the scents as Jhonen's. She hissed angrily, then slithered further down the hallway.
The snake paused at another door, this time recognizing Laetitia's vaguely exotic scent. She hesitated for a second, then continued. She was most likely to find useful information in Blade's room, and her tongue swiped out, searching for the scent of the male.
She found what she searched for two rooms further down the hallway - the intermingled scent of a male and a female, both familiar to her. The snake took a careful look at the door, and looked for a possible entrance. A small set of vents beside the door caught her attention, and the forked tongue swiped out again, this time a sign of curiosity. She slithered closer and inspected the vents. The holes were small, but the metal between two of the cracks had given in, leaving a hole just big enough for her to get through.
With the almost liquid movements characteristic to her species, she slid between the two metal plates and into the room. She paused and listened for any suspicious sounds, but only silence greeted her, along with the slow, steady breathing of two sleeping persons.
The snake took a slow look around. Part of a map could be seen sticking out from the edge of the table. Clothes were tossed on one of the chairs. Several guns and knives lay on another chair, within easy reach of the bed. In the bed itself, Blade and Jordane were asleep, Blade with his arm wrapped possessively around Jordane's waist.
The snake hissed angrily at the two mutants, then slithered towards the maps on the table.
* * *
'Jhonen! JHONEN!'
The sudden, mental shout nearly made Jhonen fall out of his bed. It took him a moment to remember where he was, and only fragments of a second later to identify the reason for his brutal awakening.
'Erik!' Jhonen growled mentally. 'What are you *doing*?!'
'Jhonen, just for once, shut the fuck up and listen to me. Suzuka is here.'
'What?!' Jhonen demanded. 'Here? But what-'
'We don't have the time for that,' Erik interrupted sharply. 'She transformed into a tiger snake and used the vents to get inside Blade and Jordane's room. If she bites them, they're as good as dead.'
'Wait! I know Suzuka, she wouldn't do something like that!' Jhonen objected.
'Well, how else would you explain why she picked the shape of one of the most poisonous snakes in the world?' Erik snapped.
Jhonen didn't reply, and Erik continued.
'You have to trust me. She's in their room right now. It's only a matter of time before one of them gets bitten.'
Jhonen hesitated for a second, then quickly got out of bed, pausing only to put on a shirt. He hurried out of the door, down to the room Blade and Jordane shared.
'I hope you're right,' Jhonen sent to Erik, then knocked on the door, hard and repeatedly.
"Blade! Jordane!" he shouted, and knocked hard on the door again. "Wake up!"
* * *
Ten years of living outside the law tended to leave their mark on a person. Amazingly quick reflexes, constant suspiciousness, bordering on paranoia, finely honed instincts, and a habit of sleeping very lightly. That was why Blade had already reached for his gun with one hand and turned on the light with the other, even before the sound of the first knock had faded away.
Jordane reacted only moments later, and driven by pure instinct she got out of the bed and grabbed her own gun.
And only then did the two mutants get the change to look at their uninvited visitor.
"Fuck," Jordane breathed, and Blade could only agree with her.
The snake was curled up on the carpet, less than six feet from their bed. Black, about five feet long, and angry. Very angry. Blade and Jordane exchanged a look, and came to the same conclusion.
Suzuka.
Another knock, and Blade motioned towards the door, while carefully watching the snake. Jordane nodded and unlocked the door, and Jhonen hurried into the room.
"Suzuka's here! She-" Jhonen noticed the angry snake on the floor, and his eyes widened.
"We know," Blade replied tensely and kept his gun aimed at the snake.
The reptile hissed at Jhonen and slithered a bit away. It watched the three mutants warily, then hissed again, and Jordane raised her own gun slightly.
Blade looked at the snake and quickly reached a decision. They could just kill it, but it would be a waste. It would be much more useful to them alive.
"Jhonen! Tell Nike to get in here right how!" he snapped, never taking his eyes off the snake.
Jhonen blinked confused.
"But wh-"
"Just do it!" Blade interrupted sharply, and his voice left no room for arguments.
Jhonen hurried out of the door, down to the room the girls were sharing. He hammered hard on the door and desperately hoped that Laetitia was a light sleeper.
"Nike! NIKE!" he shouted. "Laetitia, damnit, wake up!"
He raised his hand to hammer on the door again, but before he could finished the motion, the door was practically torn open, and Jhonen found himself face-to-face with a very annoyed Greek mercenary. Her black hair was tousled, and her dark, violet eyes still looked a bit bleary, but even in the middle of the night she was armed with a small gun, and seemed like she was itching to use it on the poor soul who'd dared to wake her up.
Jhonen sank and his determination faltered.
"What?!" Laetitia demanded, clearly not happy with being dragged out of bed in the middle of the night.
"Trouble. Suzuka's here."
* * *
Outside, in the safety of the car, Deirdre watched with a feeling of growing helplessness as the lights were turned on inside the hotel, in the rooms where the Shadow Alliance were staying. It could only mean that Suzuka had been discovered and was now in trouble.
A part of Deirdre wanted to ignore Suzuka's order and hurry inside the hotel to help her, but the other, more analytical, part of her mind stopped her. Yes, Suzuka was in trouble, but Deirdre wouldn't do much better herself. She could control light - not a very good defense against people who were notorious for their abilities with firearms. If she ran into the hotel to save Suzuka, she would get caught as well, and the situation would look even worse.
Bravery battled with sanity, loyalty with survival instincts, until Deirdre finally surrendered to the more analytic part of her mind. She wanted to help Suzuka, and the best way to do that would be to warn the rest of the Guardians.
With a silent prayer for Suzuka's safely directed to whatever gods might hear her, Deirdre started the car and raced away from the hotel.
* * *
Laetitia hurried into the room followed by Jhonen, but stopped dead in her tracks as she saw the snake on the floor. A brief flicker of surprise could be seen in her eyes, only to be replaced by a cold fire as she realized just whom the scaly visitor really was.
Blade sent her a quick look.
"Knock her out!" he snapped, still with his gun aimed at the snake.
Laetitia nodded and took a step towards Suzuka. The snake hissed angrily and slithered closer, but Laetitia just smiled coldly. She was well aware of the fact that it took Suzuka at least half a dozen seconds to transform into another shape, and that it would leave her completely vulnerable. It meant that the young Guardian was pretty much stuck in her current shape, and that suited Laetitia just fine. Sure, the snake was deadly, but at least they knew where they had her.
The snake hissed again and moved closer, and Laetitia focused on the scaly animal.
/Sleep, Suzuka. Sleep.../
The snake shook its head, a decidedly human trait, and tried to fight its sudden tiredness.
/Give up, Suzuka. You can't fight me forever. Surrender...it'll be the best thing for all of us,/ Laetitia whispered tauntingly in her mind.
The snake hissed angrily and lashed out at Laetitia, but it was already too dazed to do any harm. Laetitia easily stepped aside and watched as their scaly visitor tried to fight the tiredness, but to no avail.
/Sleep.../ Laetitia mumbled, almost inaudibly, and this time the snake stopped moving.
Several long moments passed, and then the snake slowly transformed back into Suzuka's human shape. The four mutants looked at each other and drew a relieved breath. In the door behind them, the remaining four members of the Shadow Alliance appeared, attracted by the commotion.
Pheonix noticed Suzuka and blinked.
"Twilight? What the fuck is *she* doing here!?" she asked.
Blade shook his head.
"I don't know. But I intend to find out."
* * *
Coming up: How's the Shadow Alliance going to react to their unwanted visitor? What's going to happen to Suzuka? And what's Ryan going to do when he finds out about the crazy stunt?
