Trigun: Rescue Mission 8
It had been a traumatic event since Iris' absence. It came to the foursome's attention, since the next morning that Vash came to wake her from the comfortable bed. His eyes widened with surprise to observe the sword resting on the table and cloak settled to the chair. "Where could she be?" he muttered and departed from the bedroom.
He walked down the hall to observe Meryl that approached him. "Hey, Meryl. Have you seen Iris around?" he asked as they stopped in the middle of the hall. "No, not since last night. Why do you ask?" Meryl inquired curiously. "Well, she's not dozing in her bed because she is usually a heavy sleeper." he replied. "Hmmm...That is odd. I didn't see her in the usual daily spots. Do you think she wandered off without saying good bye?" she inquired once more. "Not her style. She would leave a note before doing that." he said. "Let's go ask Milly and Wolfwood if they have seen anything unusual. We can report back here and share notes." she suggested. "Good idea! Let's get to it!" he exclaimed.
Meryl and Vash briskly walked past each other in haste to acquire any important information. Moments later, they have returned to the same spot. "Well....anything?" she asked. "Nothing...What did you get?" he asked. "Milly told me that the only thing she saw that was unusual was Iris waltzing with a man in a white coat." Meryl answered.
"White coat, huh? Was there any one with him at the time?" he asked. "No, just her and that guy. She didn't seem to like him very much." she replied. "Was he an ogre-like guy?" he asked again. "No, he seemed normal except he had these strange yellow eyes." she answered. "Where is Iris now?!" he asked sternly. "I don't know! That's we have started this investigation in the first place!" she shouted. "Let's quit wasting our time and look!" he said impatienly. Vash grabbed Meryl's arm and ran down the hall with her in tow. "Get your hands off me! Let's calm down and rethink what we should do!" Meryl yelled. They stopped in their tracks in the middle of the saloon tables. "Then what should we do then?" he asked. "Let's get the others and form a plan to find her." she said while pulling her arm away from his hand. "I'll go outside and get Wolfwood while you go get Milly. We have to act fast! Time is very short..." he said..
The four friends gathered in the very office of Ferguson Rockerfeller in a moments notice. "Iris is missing. We need to find her." Meryl said. "There's a lot of area to search. What's the best to method try?" Wolfwood asked. "We can split off into pairs and search. If we do it by ourselves then we are the ones that will get lost." Milly suggested. "Where was she seen last?" Meryl asked. "Last time I saw her was at the Halloween dance." Milly answered. "One of our group should go over and search that area thoroughly." Wolfwood advised. "Who should pair up with who?" Milly asked.
"How about Vash and I work together and you girls pair up as well." Wolfwood said.
"Aw but I wanted to search with the pretty ladies!" Vash complained. "We don't need any distractions because this matter is serious." Wolfwood said. "He's right again!" Meryl shouted and smacked Vash at the back of the head.
The two rescue parties departed from the Rockerfeller Saloon. Meryl and Milly walked to the former dance area to investigate. The men watched the women leave. Wolfwood turned to Vash and asked, "Where to begin our investigation?" "Well she was seen last with a man in a white coat with yellow eyes. So I have an idea of where this person could be. He could be a minion of Knives." Vash said. "Who's Knives?" he asked quizzically. "That's not important. What we need to do is find her as soon as possible. If I know him well enough he could be in the middle of the desert." Vash replied. "Alright! Let's hop in the jeep and get a move on! I've got some ice water left in the trunk so we can find her first!" Wolfwood exclaimed cheerfully.
The men hopped into their jeep in front of the Saloon and drove off at top speed to the desired destination. From the corner of Wolfwood's eye, Vash pocketed a small silver canteen into his red trenchcoat. "What's in your pocket?" he asked. :"Oh nothing
special." Vash replied casually. "Come on. It's booze isn't it?" he insisted. "Are we going to search for Iris or are we going play the game: What's in my pocket?" he said sternly. "Sorry. Forget I asked." Wolfwood muttered. An hour passed since their search, as Vash stood on the passenger's seat with a pair of binoculars to serve as part of their equipment. "Any sign?" Wolfwood asked. "Nothing..." Vash answered with a sigh, "I don't know if we could find her out here in all this endless desert." Wolfwood quietly and instinctively drove towards one of Knives' lairs. Vash continued to survey the area with his binoculars in frustration. "Come on, rainbow girl. Where are you?" he muttered.
Meanwhile, Meryl and Milly arrived to the former dance floor of the Halloween party.
They spotted an elderly janitor sweeping orange and black confetti with a push broom.
"We should ask him, Meryl. Maybe he must know something." Milly suggested.
"Good idea. Let's ask." Meryl agreed. The women approached the elderly gentleman.
Meryl cleared her throat and tapped him gently upon the shoulder. "Excuse me, sir. May we have a moment of your time please?" Meryl asked politely. "Sure, what can I do for ya?" he asked. "We are looking for someone and she was last seen here at the Halloween party." Milly said. "Well I see many faces. Could you refresh my memory?" he asked.
"She has long curly dark red hair, wore a black dress, with fangs in a vampire costume. If it helps she also has blue-greenish eyes. She was last seen with a man in a white trenchcoat that had dark hair and yellow eyes." Meryl answered. "Well I don't remember the woman you speak of but I do remember that man you mentioned. You don't forget anybody with yellow eyes. Come to think of it I did see him leave with someone that could be the woman you speak of." he answered. Meryl grabbed the man's shoulders and asked in a loud, stern manner,"Did you see which direction he left?!" "Yes, I saw them head out west to the desert." he replied. "Right! Let's go Milly!" she exclaimed. Meryl released the man and they ran off into the western direction out towards the desert.
Another hour passed since the men's investigation. Each took turns driving and surveying the area through the binoculars. Vash was ready to give up hope when he spotted a figure upon a sand dune in the far distance. "Wolfwood! Look to the forward right! Take a look at this!" he exclaimed and offered the binoculars. Wolfwood received the binoculars and peeked through the lenses. "By God! I think we found her!" Wolfwood shouted with joy and slammed his foot into the accelerator. Their vechile sped off into the figure's area. Vash snatched the binoculars from Wolfwood and surveyed the figure closely. To his surprise and horror, he observed Iris to be in a white nightgown laying face down upon the sand. Vash screamed hysterically, "Hurry! Hurry! It's her!" "We're going as fast as this damn thing will go!" Wolfwood shouted. Vash jumped out of the vechile and ran from behind it. His arms forcefully pushed the jeep to increase velocity. "I'm coming, Iris! I'm coming, Iris!" he shouted while whining. Wolfwood took a glance in the rear view mirror to see Vash be successfully forcing the jeep to proceed at a faster rate. "What the hell?!" he exclaimed in surprise. He reached from behind him, grabbed Vash by the bristly hair, and forced him into the vechile. "Sit down you retarded feret! We're almost there!" Wolfwood shouted. "I'm not a retarded ferret! I'm more like a misunderstood pretty ferret!" Vash objected. "Either way you will be road kill tonight if you don't shut up and calm down!" Wolfwood said.
They parked the jeep beside Iris'sprawled form. Vash jumped from the vechile with a soft thud from beneath his boots. His hands gently turned Iris onto her back. "Oh no! She's dead! Why her?! She was so young!" he bawled at the top of his lungs.
Wolfwood's fist struck the back of his skull and said firmly, "She's still alive, moron. Look she's breathing." Wolfwood shooed Vash aside and lifted her limp form from the sand and placed her upon the back seats of the vechile. "Let's get her to town. She needs water now." Wolfwood said as he claimed the driver's seat. "I have something that can help her." Vash said confidently while removing the canteen from his trenchcoat.
He unscrewed the cap, supported her head with his left hand and poured the amber fluid into her open mouth. A few harsh coughs escaped from her lips, as her eyes opened immediately. "Ungh...what...what happened..." she said in a dry voice. Vash hugged her close and yelled with joy: "You're okay! You're okay! Thank goodness!" Iris, being squeezed, said to Wolfwood, "Uh...a little help here...please?" she asked meekly. Wolfwood grabbed Vash by the hair once more and said, "Damn it! Bad ferret!" He hurled him out of the jeep, hopped into the driver's seat, and turned the key within the ignition. Vash, shaking sand from his ears,muttered, "Perhaps a little warning next time?!" "Quit goofing off in the sand, ferret! Let's get in the jeep!" Wolfwood insisted. "But you threw me!" Vash shouted. "That's not in the point. Let's get back!" he said. Vash obeyed Wolfwood and leaped into the passenger seat.
Iris began to regain her composure and released several coughs. "Uh...I feel like a sandsteamer ran over my head..." she said in the midst of sitting erect. "I imagine...You probably took a nasty spill because we found you with your face in the sand." Wolfwood said. "Thanks for finding me and not let me bake under the blazing suns like a cookie..." she said. "Could you tell us what happened to you and why you are not wearing that black dress?" Vash asked. "It's a long story. I don't think you would believe the ordeal I went through if I were to tell it." she replied. "I would believe it if it starts with a man named Knives." he said curtly. "Then I really don't need to explain much then." she said with a chuckle and coughed harshly once more. "Who's this fellow Knives you keep speaking of?" Wolfwood asked impatiently. "He has the ego the size of the Nebraska family!" Iris exclaimed in an aggravated manner. "Did he hurt you?!" Vash asked sternly. She laughed hysterically and said, "I hurt him instead!" "Doesn't surprise me, feisty one!" Wolfwood said and joined her laughter. "Hey I think see Milly and Meryl over yonder!" Vash shouted. They reached the women and halted the jeep once more. Meryl and Milly ran towards the motionless jeep. "Guys we spoke to a janitor who was there last night and said that he spotted Iris leaving with a man in this direction!" Meryl shouted frantically. "We know! We found her!" Wolfwood said. Iris waved to them and her arm plopped upon her lap in a weak manner. "Oh thank God!!!" Milly shouted with glee and cried. "I didn't mean to make you guys worry to death over me. I'm really sorry I caused such a fuss." Iris said apologetically. "All that matters is that you came back in one piece." Meryl said with a hand to her shoulder. "Yeow!!!!" Iris exclaimed from the sunburnt skin. "Oops.." she said and laughed nervously. "What is it?!" Vash yelled hysterically. "She's just got a sunburn that's all. I've got some lotion back in the room." Milly said calmly. "Now I'm a doll again..." Iris muttered. The women jumped into the jeep with Iris in the very center of Vash and Wolfwood. Her petite form allowed her to sit comfortably between them without any contact to her skin. She rode among the four of them upon their return.
The group had successfully found their valuable friend. This day did not deter their friendship yet strengthened it with the love that they shared. Iris had never experienced this kind of attention from more than one person which brought warmth to her heart.
Is this what true friendship is really about? I'm usually doing all the favors but now they are doing me a favor! So this is how it feels to be appreciated not for what I am but rather who I am she thought as a smile surfaced.