*Author Notes: D.g., Brat, and Erika, I have a question. Why would you all be dead? I can understand your suspicion about Brat, but the others? Niether D.g. nor Erika were the target of any attacks. Why would you be dead? (I wouldn't kill you off anyway. I'm scared of the retribution from Brat and D.g. if I did kill you off. Dont hurt me!). Oh that and, Seproth, your coming.*
Chapter 30:
Return of Girl power
"Cough...cough...OUCH!"
Brat threw the broken piece of metal away, and looked down at the new cut on her hand. It wasn't too deep. She looked around her in the flickering light of a broken light. The area was a mess. She could just make out the broken bunks of the crew quarters. She pulled the large metal piece that was holding down her legs until it moved, and she climbed out from, under it. She stood and brushed herself off, losing balance and stepping back, then gasping and throwing herself forward. The entire back of the room was just a dark hole. It dropped off till she couldn't see anymore. She picked herself up again, before remembering Miroku and Inuyasha. She looked around franticaly, seeing no sign of either of them. Thats when she saw the blodd at her feet. It led to the hole and dripped off into darkness.
Miroku had been there.
She stepped back, away from the hole, scared of what she might see if she looked any more. She turned and carefully stepped toward the front of the room. The door had been ripped off its hinges. She stepped through into the control room. Small lights still blinked from the broken panel and lights. She walked over to the broken window. The hanger was still pretty well lit. A sad image of a shattered, broken gundam was off to one side. She tried not to think about who had been in it. The room was littered with debris. Large craters with dark bottoms littered the floor. Her thoughts turned simple.
"I have to find Cloud."
She ran over to the elevator. It had no power. She looked around, till she found a maintnence hatch leading to the ladder outside. She stared to climb down. She was about halfway down when she noticed a body. She reached the floor ands ran over to it, finding D.g. sleeping quite peacefully. She shook her, tickled her, and poked her, but no amount of effort could wake her up. Brat pulled the pistol from the cargo crate out with a sigh.
POW!
D.g. jumped awake, and stared gloomily at Brat.
"Funny."
Brat nodded.
"Very."
Brat gave her a hand up. D.g. looked around.
"Ouch."
Brat nodded.
"Very. Where's Cloud and Ashitaka?"
D.g. looked at her, and her eyes saddened.
"Brat...Cloud is dead."
Brat just stared at her. D.g. walked past her over to the gundam wreck. She stopped close to something on the ground. When Brat saw it, she...started to cry. It was his buster sword. When she looked over at D.g., she was crying too.
"Kenshin...also died..."
D.g. watched as Brat crouched down, and grabbed the huge sword by the handle. Then she did something that would have scared anyone who saw it. She picked it up. Not a struggle to lift, no grunt of exertion, she lifted it like it weighed nothing. She turned and looked at D.g., who looked back. Brat didn't know what to say. She looked along the ground, searching for word to express her sorrow. Thats when she saw it. Glowing like a ball of water, it hovered in the middle of the debris of the gundam. A portal.
"D.g.!"
D.g. turned quickly and saw it, a slow smile across her face.
"So thats how they did it..."
Brat turned and smiled at her.
"You dont think a little fire could kill off those two?"
D.g. shook her head.
"I guess not, but Erika and Ashitaka..."
"Here and accounted for!"
Brat and D.g. were both started by the sudden yell from behind them. There was Erika, carrying Ashitaka on her shoulder, smiling like a young child. Brat slapped her own forehead.
"Knew it, saw it coming, hoped it wasn't true."
D.g. smiled at her.
"C'mon Brat, lets go help Erika with her load. And I need a gun. A big one with gold and silver and stuff!"
***
"What do you call this?"
Cloud sighed.
"Potato chips. Not the same as I remember though. This is a bit...ancient."
Kenshin smiled.
"What, is the feudal too early for you?"
Cloud shook his head.
"Not for me, just chips."
"We all alright, that we are. Some chips taste good now."
Cloud laughed.
"Kenshin, we made it out of there by pure luck. We are lucky, and thats about it."
Kenshin shrugged.
"Oh well. Relight the oil candle, its kinda dark in here."
They continued sipping tea and sake, and talking. Despite their talk, they were saddened by the uncertainty of the others. The last thing Cloud saw of them was a red beam blowing up the control room. Bad last image to see. He had lost his buster sword there too. The blacksmith in the town had been gracious enough to sell him a broadsword, but that just wasn't the same. He wore the Broadsword on his back, in place of his last sword. Kenshin had gotten a cheap reversed blade sword, since they weren't very popular it wasn't very expensive. Cloud took another sip of his sake.
They sat in the tavern of an inn, in a small town called Tenei, somewhere in Japan. It was pretty late at night, the exact time was unknown. They had a single oil candle lit, unlike most of the other tables that were dark and uninhabited. They were in the far corner from the door. Other people sat at the tables by the bar, laughing, drinking, celebrating something or another.
Kenshin sipped at his tea, watching people come through the inn.
Kenshin sighed, trying to relax his mind. The thoughts of leaving the others behind was troubling him. He raised his hand to call the waiter, before an aura spiked up. He spun in his seat and looked toward the door. There was a bang, and a few people stumbled into the tavern.
People he knew.
Cloud dimmed the candle of the table quickly till it was a far glow. Kenshin gave him a look of confusion, and cloud leaned forward to talk quietly.
"Kenshin, we can't regroup with them."
Kenshin was confused.
"But why? The girls are probably looking for..."
"Us. Yes they are, but Kenshin, do you want to take those girls to die?"
"What are you talking about?"
"Kenshin, we fight enemies almost every day. We risk our lives to fight for our beliefs. I don't want them to get hurt because they were near me when Naraku attacks or something."
"..."
"Think about it. What would happen if Naraku got ahold of one of the girls? I dont want to think about it. I dont want them to get hurt. I couldn't forgive myself if they did."
"But what happens if Naraku catches them when we aren't around to save them?"
"We have to make ourselves lone targets, without them beside us. That way, it wont happen."
"I dont want to just leave them..."
"We aren't leaving them, we're protecting them by getting as far away from them as possible. I know it seems cold-hearted, but its the only way I can truly protect them."
"...Your right."
"We need to find Inuyasha and Kagome. I hope Miroku is with them. We're going to head west, back to where we all met in the beginning. Thats probably where we will find Inuyasha. We need to finish this quest so the girls can go home, alright?"
Kenshin nodded, and pulled out a piece of paper.
"Whats that for?"
"A note. Ashitaka sees us. It wont be long till the girls do. I'm going to leave a note for them, telling them to go home."
Cloud nodded.
"Alright."
Kenshin looked back at Ashitaka and the girls. Ashitaka raised four fingers with his left hand. They had four minutes before he would point them out. He went back to his note.
"You know Brat has your sword, right?"
"Does she? How is she carrying it?"
"On her back, strangely, considering the weight."
"So it found a new master, eh?"
"Huh?"
"I'll explain later. Hurry up."
Kenshin finished writing out the note with a charcoal stick and left it on the table. Cloud put out the candle, and the two of them slipped out the back door into the night.
***
"Don't you have any spare rooms?"
The innkeeper shook his head. D.g. sighed.
"What about a storage room. We are willing to get anything."
The innkeeper pointed to the storage room on the far side of the tavern, and D.g. gave him a few gold pieces. She led Erika and Brat, who were supporting Ashitaka, toward the storeroom. Ashitaka mumbled something.
"There they go..."
Brat heard it.
"Huh?"
"There they go..!"
"Who?"
Ashitaka pulled his arm from over Brats shoulders. He stood, supported by Erika.
"Cloud and Kenshin."
Brat jumped.
"Where?!?!"
Ashitaka shook his head.
"They are gone now."
Brat jumped.
"Lets go after them!"
D.g. sighed and shook her head.
"Girl, you should know better. Those two are masters at fihgting, and probably masters at survival. They are long gone by now."
Brat started to punch things in anger.
"But they left something on the corner table."
Brat charged through the darkness to the corner table, knocking over chairs and tables. The reached the far table and picked something up. D.g. watched as she ran back, tripping over the newly overturned furniture to get back in the light. She waver something. It was the note.
"Its a note!"
She ran over to the others and opened it to read...
'Dear friends,
I recommend you all go home. We dont want you girls to get hurt in the crossfire from our fights. Go home. We will come to see you when its all over. I'll bring the others too. Best of luck to you.
From Kenshin and Cloud'
"Noooo!!!"
Brat started jumping up and down in anger.
"They are sooo mean!"
Ashitaka sighed.
"They are so predictable. Brat calm down. We'll go after them tomorrow. I know where they are going."
Brat turned and stared at him.
"What?!?! How!?!?!"
He sighed.
"They are going to meet the others. Due west, back to the spirit of the forest. Where they all met. Obviously. Get me to the room. I need sleep.
Erika was smiling.
Her love was so smart!
*Author notes: THis chap is long. lucky you.*
Chapter 30:
Return of Girl power
"Cough...cough...OUCH!"
Brat threw the broken piece of metal away, and looked down at the new cut on her hand. It wasn't too deep. She looked around her in the flickering light of a broken light. The area was a mess. She could just make out the broken bunks of the crew quarters. She pulled the large metal piece that was holding down her legs until it moved, and she climbed out from, under it. She stood and brushed herself off, losing balance and stepping back, then gasping and throwing herself forward. The entire back of the room was just a dark hole. It dropped off till she couldn't see anymore. She picked herself up again, before remembering Miroku and Inuyasha. She looked around franticaly, seeing no sign of either of them. Thats when she saw the blodd at her feet. It led to the hole and dripped off into darkness.
Miroku had been there.
She stepped back, away from the hole, scared of what she might see if she looked any more. She turned and carefully stepped toward the front of the room. The door had been ripped off its hinges. She stepped through into the control room. Small lights still blinked from the broken panel and lights. She walked over to the broken window. The hanger was still pretty well lit. A sad image of a shattered, broken gundam was off to one side. She tried not to think about who had been in it. The room was littered with debris. Large craters with dark bottoms littered the floor. Her thoughts turned simple.
"I have to find Cloud."
She ran over to the elevator. It had no power. She looked around, till she found a maintnence hatch leading to the ladder outside. She stared to climb down. She was about halfway down when she noticed a body. She reached the floor ands ran over to it, finding D.g. sleeping quite peacefully. She shook her, tickled her, and poked her, but no amount of effort could wake her up. Brat pulled the pistol from the cargo crate out with a sigh.
POW!
D.g. jumped awake, and stared gloomily at Brat.
"Funny."
Brat nodded.
"Very."
Brat gave her a hand up. D.g. looked around.
"Ouch."
Brat nodded.
"Very. Where's Cloud and Ashitaka?"
D.g. looked at her, and her eyes saddened.
"Brat...Cloud is dead."
Brat just stared at her. D.g. walked past her over to the gundam wreck. She stopped close to something on the ground. When Brat saw it, she...started to cry. It was his buster sword. When she looked over at D.g., she was crying too.
"Kenshin...also died..."
D.g. watched as Brat crouched down, and grabbed the huge sword by the handle. Then she did something that would have scared anyone who saw it. She picked it up. Not a struggle to lift, no grunt of exertion, she lifted it like it weighed nothing. She turned and looked at D.g., who looked back. Brat didn't know what to say. She looked along the ground, searching for word to express her sorrow. Thats when she saw it. Glowing like a ball of water, it hovered in the middle of the debris of the gundam. A portal.
"D.g.!"
D.g. turned quickly and saw it, a slow smile across her face.
"So thats how they did it..."
Brat turned and smiled at her.
"You dont think a little fire could kill off those two?"
D.g. shook her head.
"I guess not, but Erika and Ashitaka..."
"Here and accounted for!"
Brat and D.g. were both started by the sudden yell from behind them. There was Erika, carrying Ashitaka on her shoulder, smiling like a young child. Brat slapped her own forehead.
"Knew it, saw it coming, hoped it wasn't true."
D.g. smiled at her.
"C'mon Brat, lets go help Erika with her load. And I need a gun. A big one with gold and silver and stuff!"
***
"What do you call this?"
Cloud sighed.
"Potato chips. Not the same as I remember though. This is a bit...ancient."
Kenshin smiled.
"What, is the feudal too early for you?"
Cloud shook his head.
"Not for me, just chips."
"We all alright, that we are. Some chips taste good now."
Cloud laughed.
"Kenshin, we made it out of there by pure luck. We are lucky, and thats about it."
Kenshin shrugged.
"Oh well. Relight the oil candle, its kinda dark in here."
They continued sipping tea and sake, and talking. Despite their talk, they were saddened by the uncertainty of the others. The last thing Cloud saw of them was a red beam blowing up the control room. Bad last image to see. He had lost his buster sword there too. The blacksmith in the town had been gracious enough to sell him a broadsword, but that just wasn't the same. He wore the Broadsword on his back, in place of his last sword. Kenshin had gotten a cheap reversed blade sword, since they weren't very popular it wasn't very expensive. Cloud took another sip of his sake.
They sat in the tavern of an inn, in a small town called Tenei, somewhere in Japan. It was pretty late at night, the exact time was unknown. They had a single oil candle lit, unlike most of the other tables that were dark and uninhabited. They were in the far corner from the door. Other people sat at the tables by the bar, laughing, drinking, celebrating something or another.
Kenshin sipped at his tea, watching people come through the inn.
Kenshin sighed, trying to relax his mind. The thoughts of leaving the others behind was troubling him. He raised his hand to call the waiter, before an aura spiked up. He spun in his seat and looked toward the door. There was a bang, and a few people stumbled into the tavern.
People he knew.
Cloud dimmed the candle of the table quickly till it was a far glow. Kenshin gave him a look of confusion, and cloud leaned forward to talk quietly.
"Kenshin, we can't regroup with them."
Kenshin was confused.
"But why? The girls are probably looking for..."
"Us. Yes they are, but Kenshin, do you want to take those girls to die?"
"What are you talking about?"
"Kenshin, we fight enemies almost every day. We risk our lives to fight for our beliefs. I don't want them to get hurt because they were near me when Naraku attacks or something."
"..."
"Think about it. What would happen if Naraku got ahold of one of the girls? I dont want to think about it. I dont want them to get hurt. I couldn't forgive myself if they did."
"But what happens if Naraku catches them when we aren't around to save them?"
"We have to make ourselves lone targets, without them beside us. That way, it wont happen."
"I dont want to just leave them..."
"We aren't leaving them, we're protecting them by getting as far away from them as possible. I know it seems cold-hearted, but its the only way I can truly protect them."
"...Your right."
"We need to find Inuyasha and Kagome. I hope Miroku is with them. We're going to head west, back to where we all met in the beginning. Thats probably where we will find Inuyasha. We need to finish this quest so the girls can go home, alright?"
Kenshin nodded, and pulled out a piece of paper.
"Whats that for?"
"A note. Ashitaka sees us. It wont be long till the girls do. I'm going to leave a note for them, telling them to go home."
Cloud nodded.
"Alright."
Kenshin looked back at Ashitaka and the girls. Ashitaka raised four fingers with his left hand. They had four minutes before he would point them out. He went back to his note.
"You know Brat has your sword, right?"
"Does she? How is she carrying it?"
"On her back, strangely, considering the weight."
"So it found a new master, eh?"
"Huh?"
"I'll explain later. Hurry up."
Kenshin finished writing out the note with a charcoal stick and left it on the table. Cloud put out the candle, and the two of them slipped out the back door into the night.
***
"Don't you have any spare rooms?"
The innkeeper shook his head. D.g. sighed.
"What about a storage room. We are willing to get anything."
The innkeeper pointed to the storage room on the far side of the tavern, and D.g. gave him a few gold pieces. She led Erika and Brat, who were supporting Ashitaka, toward the storeroom. Ashitaka mumbled something.
"There they go..."
Brat heard it.
"Huh?"
"There they go..!"
"Who?"
Ashitaka pulled his arm from over Brats shoulders. He stood, supported by Erika.
"Cloud and Kenshin."
Brat jumped.
"Where?!?!"
Ashitaka shook his head.
"They are gone now."
Brat jumped.
"Lets go after them!"
D.g. sighed and shook her head.
"Girl, you should know better. Those two are masters at fihgting, and probably masters at survival. They are long gone by now."
Brat started to punch things in anger.
"But they left something on the corner table."
Brat charged through the darkness to the corner table, knocking over chairs and tables. The reached the far table and picked something up. D.g. watched as she ran back, tripping over the newly overturned furniture to get back in the light. She waver something. It was the note.
"Its a note!"
She ran over to the others and opened it to read...
'Dear friends,
I recommend you all go home. We dont want you girls to get hurt in the crossfire from our fights. Go home. We will come to see you when its all over. I'll bring the others too. Best of luck to you.
From Kenshin and Cloud'
"Noooo!!!"
Brat started jumping up and down in anger.
"They are sooo mean!"
Ashitaka sighed.
"They are so predictable. Brat calm down. We'll go after them tomorrow. I know where they are going."
Brat turned and stared at him.
"What?!?! How!?!?!"
He sighed.
"They are going to meet the others. Due west, back to the spirit of the forest. Where they all met. Obviously. Get me to the room. I need sleep.
Erika was smiling.
Her love was so smart!
*Author notes: THis chap is long. lucky you.*