Chapter 13
'collision'
Touya pressed his thumb against the panel by the door and turned the knob, crossing the threshold and kicking off his shoes in two well-practiced steps, his mind still back in the chemistry lab at school.
"Tadaima," he announced wearily, but there was no reply. He really was going to have to put in for a new partner, the moron he'd been paired with had just mixed up the observation notes again, and a failing grade threatened. If his chemistry score took a dive, then he might not make valedictorian after all, and then maybe the Solarian Science Academy in D.C. wouldn't offer that scholarship, and then…
His gloomy thoughts trailed off as he shuffled into the empty kitchen and slung his bag into a chair. The rice cooker sat silent and cold on the countertop; nothing was on the stove. He checked the board again on the wall just to be sure, but there was no mistake.
"Hey kaijou, it's your turn to be making dinner! Did you forget?" Again no answer. Touya rolled his eyes and with a groan turned to the stairs.
So far the ship had not swayed its course. Rino watched it chug steadily through space from his view on the bridge, still at the same pace it had been at three hours earlier. Either the occupants weren't aware of the beacon signal they carried, or it didn't occur to them that anyone would be inclined to follow it. In any case, though they must be visible on radar now, the freighter didn't even twitch.
Any closer, and they were bound to trip a proximity alert. "Options?"
"Sir, it's clear that they're headed to Little Heavens. It would be a simple matter to drop back and then corner them there, once they've docked."
Rino rejected this impatiently. In his gut, he already knew that this ship had the Kinomoto siblings on it and he wanted it now, was ready to end this frustrating search and finish his career with the honorable discharge he deserved.
"Negative, I don't intend to give them any chance of running. I want a ship-to-ship takeover, can you handle that?"
His second lieutenant was an expert in demolitions and nodded. "It's not dissimilar from the method pirates use to board their victims; if we maneuver close enough and latch a seal to the front hull, I can blow a hole right into their cockpit. Allows us entry and disables the ship in one blow, they'll be crippled."
"Excellent. Pilot, you heard him. Get us closer."
"But, ah, sir." The lieutenant cleared his throat. "The procedure is highly destructive, I believe a Class A warrant is necessary for -"
"Warrants do not concern you, Lieutenant, getting us into that ship does. I have all the authorization we need from D.C."
He turned around to address the rest of the bridge. All field agents had assembled with their weapons, looking tense and ready.
"Pilot, you will move in quickly and decisively and assume a parallel course with the freighter in question. I want a minimum of one minute from tripping their alarm to latching a seal to their hull."
"Sir!"
"When we have access, I will give the direction and you move in. Sweep the ship from front to rear and apprehend anyone you find – no injuries, no fatalities. The faster you move the cleaner this will be; I want it over within five minutes. Are my orders clear?"
"Yes sir!"
"Good." Rino narrowed his gaze at the unsuspecting ship in the window one more time, then he turned away to don his protective vest. "Pilot, take us in."
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Tomoyo admitted defeat and sat up again, her plaintive sigh echoing in the tiny dark bunk. She was exhausted but sleep refused to come and put her out of her misery. Sakura's cries still echoed in her head, drowning out the normally soothing hum of the engines below. Touya's cold anger, too, haunted her memory, and the distant shouting that she wished she had not been able to hear. Never in their year on the Wildflower had she heard Touya and Yukito yell at one another.
Everything was falling apart.
No wonder she couldn't get any sleep. Wearily Tomoyo pulled on her robe and climbed out of her bunk. Maybe Sakura had refused a little medication to help her sleep but Tomoyo was desperate enough to try some on herself, if it would just allow her some rest. The dimly lit ship was quiet, almost absurdly so after all that had happened that evening, and she slipped silently down the corridor and into the galley. She would need water, and leaned over to open the fridge. When she selected a small bottle and stood up, something hard bumped against her thigh.
What…? She dipped her hand into the smallish pocket and found herself dangling Li's pendant from her fingertips. She'd dropped it in there after hiding the green shirt amongst her own clothes, with the intention of returning it to Sakura later. But was that really such a good idea? Li was gone, out of their lives as quickly and unexpectedly as he'd arrived, and it might take Sakura a long time to understand that. A reminder like this would probably make it worse and yet… could she just throw it away?
Tomoyo could not make a decision like that on Sakura's behalf, could not bring herself to repeat Touya's mistakes. She would keep the pendant safe. She would stay loyal to Sakura to the end.
Whispers of love. A gentle touch, kind blue eyes that he didn't know but remembered anyway… a guarded warning for what the future might hold. Half-memories flickered and pestered his dreams, causing Yuki to twitch uncomfortably in his sleep. A promise to rescue, to protect at any cost… Feathers brushed impatiently at his skin, trying to get his attention and buzzing with frustration. Anxiety blossomed and he felt his heart beat faster, but he didn't know why and in his confusion he balked.
A pair of extraordinarily vivid silver eyes opened and stared directly into his own.
Danger.
Yukito jerked so violently that he fell off his chair and hit the floor of the cockpit with a thud. The console buzzed insistently, still trying to get his attention, and shakily he pushed himself to his knees. Why… why was he in the cockpit, sleeping in his chair? What was going on? What was that noise?
He stared blankly at the flickering screen without comprehension, mind still waking, still trying to understand why he was here instead of in bed with Touya.
"Proximity Alert!" flashed the screen incessantly, a dizzying blur of yellow on black.
What? Ship… too close. Moving in, coming up alongside –
Understanding finally crashed over the pilot and he jumped to his feet, too late. And then everything exploded.
He was surprised to discover that her bedroom was empty, upon pushing open the door. This lab experiment had kept him at least two hours after school and it was late, Sakura really ought to be home. His eyes fell to her unopened book bag, thrown carelessly on the floor next to her stuffed animals like always. So she had come home. But now that he concentrated, he could feel she was nowhere in the house.
Touya heaved an exasperated sigh. Trust Sakura to conveniently forget she was in charge of dinner and run off somewhere. He really was going to let her have it when she came home, but meanwhile someone had to get things started in the kitchen. And homework awaited. He turned to leave the room and then hesitated. In that small motion he'd seen something… not right, some kind of discrepency. Uncertainly he looked over the room again but he couldn't place what it was that bothered him.
Huh. He shrugged and left the room.
The explosion rocked the ship and Touya was thrown right out of bed, onto the cold and unforgiving floor. The unexpected pain was a rude awakening and he yelped, before his thoughts collected enough to remember where he was.
"Sakura," he gasped, out of habit, and scrambled to his knees to check the bed. It was empty, his sister gone. Underneath him, the ship shuddered and became still again. But what was that explosion? Panic fluttered in his stomach and he slapped at the panel that opened the door, his one thought to get to the cockpit and save his ship.
And then he heard the shouts.
"Ship is breached!"
"First team, move in!"
"Go, go, go!"
For the second time in one night the ship had been invaded, and Touya's worst nightmare had come true. They had found them.
Footsteps pounded down the cockpit steps and Touya bolted in the opposite direction. Gun, he must get to his gun, he'd left it in the galley. Get to his gun and then get to his sister, that's what he had to do.
"Sakura!"
He heard nothing but the shouts of federal agents swarming up the corridor, right behind him, and he ran blindly into the galley. Men – coming – take her away – kill them. His gun had skittered clear across the room with the turbulence and he grabbed wildly at it, some detached part of his mind noticing it was wet. Someone had dropped a bottle of water in here.
Kill them. Touya threw himself at the galley doorway and fired two shots down the short passage, forcing the agents back for just a few seconds. Had to find Sakura, where did she go? He could not stay here, they'd kill him. Frantically he raced to the back of the ship and the engine room, praying that she might have come here but no. There was nothing but machinery, and behind him he heard a shout to freeze and get down. Before they could shoot, he slammed the door shut.
Rino waited until his point men moved out of the cockpit before he too stepped through the gaping hole. The pilot, his demolitions man, and the rest of the team had carried his orders out to the letter and done so perfectly. The ship was crippled and helpless, its occupants theirs for the taking. So far, a flawless raid.
Almost. The lieutenant was kneeling on the floor of the devastated cockpit, next to the body of a lean male crumpled against the far wall.
"What happened?"
"I'm sorry, sir, he must have been caught in the blast. I know you ordered no fatalities, but I was sure they were flying on autopilot. I didn't think anyone would be in the cockpit." Rino recognized him as Kinomoto's companion at Crossworlds, and guessed he must be the pilot of the ship. A cursory check revealed no pulse and a limp and cool hand.
"Never mind," he grunted, unconcerned. "This one wasn't important. You can return to the bridge; I'll go see what the team's found." The commander uncocked the safety on his gun and descended into the lower hall of the ship.
How did – do it – find her. Touya stumbled past the stilled turbines in a fog of panic and threw himself against the rail that overlooked the cargo bay below. Whether it was brotherly instinct or some unconscious call to his forgotten magic he didn't know, but he knew he'd found her before his eyes could see her. Sakura sat crying in a forlorn huddle on the floor not far from the stairs, in the same place and position she'd been in when Li fled their ship.
"Sakura!" She didn't look up at his cry, didn't seem too concerned with the yells he could hear moving down the corridor and toward her. Frantic, he vaulted over the edge and dropped to the floor far below. He landed less gracefully than Li had, and braced a hand against the floor to stay upright. Touya didn't have a chance to take more than a step toward Sakura before a warning bullet whistled past his head.
"Stop where you are! Drop the weapon!"
Touya shot blindly at the top of the stairs and dove for the cover of the ship's supply crates; knowing that to remain out in the open in the lower room meant certain death. And Sakura was still out there.
He peeked over the wooden frame and fired again, nailing one agent right in the chest with a grim satisfaction. Kill them, he'd kill them all before he lost Sakura to them and he didn't care. All that mattered was her.
"Hold your fire, hold your fire!" someone snapped, a voice comfortable with authority and one that sounded vaguely familiar to Touya. "Do not, I repeat, do not fire your guns without my command. That female is to be taken in with no injuries!"
Touya edged one eye around his cover and got a brief glimpse of the new arrival before firing again. He nearly made it, but the bullet plunked off the stair rail and merely sent the commander sprawling to the floor with the rest of his men.
"Make one move for her and I swear to god I'll shoot you," Touya warned, forcing the trembling from his voice.
"Surrender your weapon, Kinomoto, you know you don't have a chance."
"I don't care," he bit out, and warily took a peek. Sakura hadn't moved, still huddled listlessly in the middle of the floor, tears dripping off her face. "Sakura," he tried in a low voice, and she looked up. "Sakura, come here."
Touya hung up with a frustrated groan, his earlier irritation rapidly growing into real anger. Twilight had set in with no sign of Sakura, and it wouldn't be long before their father was home from the university. He'd finally taken to calling everyone on her phone's number listing, but that yielded no results. Even Tomoyo, inseparable though the two girls were, had come straight home from choir practice and seen no sign of her since school. Again he mentally rehearsed the rich and colorful scolding she was in for, but this time it didn't give as much comfort.
Something about this was not right, and Touya decided it was the shell-pink phone dangling on its cord from his fingertips. Sociaizing chatterbox that she was, Sakura adored this phone and never went anywhere without it. So why was it here, left tucked in the outer pocket of her bookbag? Why was he starting to worry?
Touya fired again as a deterrant and risked a quick exposure to reach the keypad just in front of him. The escape pod's opening, set into the far back corner of the cargo hold and forgotten until now, had become their only chance of freedom. The code was Sakura's birthday, and he rapidly punched the digits before throwing himself back behind his cover again. No one fired, but he had the feeling if he gave them another opening like that the commander wouldn't hesitate to put a bullet in his head. He could still dive in, if he moved fast enough, but he wasn't going without his sister.
Get her – away – have to.
"Sakura, please!" he tried again, desperation lending volume. "Come here. Come to Onii-chan, okay?" She looked right at him and sniffled. "Come give me a hug."
"Yes," she whispered, and rocked forward to crawl toward him. His heart lifted and he thought he heard someone above try to move.
"I said stay back!" he snarled, and fired again. He was the only thing keeping them at bay and he was down to the last bullet, they needed to hurry. "Come on, Sakura, keep coming, that's a good girl."
She whimpered and hesitated, then, of all things, actually drew back. "Yes. No." Tears were still flowing freely down her face but she didn't seem to be aware of it as she looked from him to the men at the top of the stairs.
Touya stiffened. "No, Sakura, don't stop. Keep coming -"
"Want to," she said softly, and made another motion to crawl forward before she stopped again. "Go- go with Brother, safe, he keeps the bad men away." She whimpered with pain and gripped her head in her hands, snarling her fingers in her hair. "No, can't! Can't stop the lines, have to let the lines weave the picture. Can't stop it, can't mess up the picture!"
Oh – god – no. Not now, please not now. Helplessly Touya watched the familiar panic kindle in her eyes.
"Sakura, please -"
"Want to go with him, yes, yes I do but that's not the way it happens. See one and I want to stop it but it's too important can't touch it have to let the lines weave the picture."
"Sakura, please! Listen to me, listen to your big brother. It's going to be all right, I promise, just please come to me."
"He tries so hard," she sobbed. "He gave up everything to save me and I trouble him so much. He gave up everything and it all comes to pain for him, so much pain."
"No, Sakura," Touya choked. "I'm fine, I'm not hurt. See? Just come over here, and it'll all be okay."
"No!" she shrieked unexpectedly, and he flinched. She pounded the floor beneath her with her little fists, beginning to come undone. "No, not okay. No Hope! No Hope! Took him away and now can't stop the lines, have to let them weave the picture." She collapsed in a heap and started crying again in earnest.
"Your sister is right, Kinomoto," the commander spoke up. "The situation is hopeless, you have no chance. Your ship is too damaged to fly and your pilot is dead. Give it up."
The brisk words exploded in his ears like a ship's launch, and all the air fled his lungs. Pilot – dead – no.
He slumped to the floor and struggled for breath. "You're lying," he heard himself say, the words thin and unreal over his pounding heart.
"I assure you I'm not, Kinomoto. He was caught in the blast, killed instantly. Unless you want the same thing to happen to you, you'll surrender and come quietly."
In his single-minded panic to get his sister to safety, Touya hadn't allowed himself to think about what happened to the others, wouldn't let himself consider the possibilities. And he didn't want to believe it but there was a horrible feel of truth to the commander's words, the truth that the man he loved more than anything was lying dead somewhere.
Dead. Gone. Yuki.
Pain threaded through his chest like the spreading web of fissures in cracked glass, pulling so tightly that it hurt to breathe. Distantly, he could still hear Sakura crying.
"You knew what the consequences would be when you made the decision to break into a federal satellite, Kinomoto, you've been running and hiding from them for a year now. It's over now, your time's up. I will not say it again: surrender your weapon."
Loved – his smile gone – killed. Kill them.
Hatred consumed Touya and he forgot about everything else, could only see the gentle smile of his lover, his kind and trusting eyes. Dead. Touya almost threw himself right over the top of the supplies crate, blatantly exposing himself to fire and not caring. He would put a bullet in the man that killed his Yuki, and then he would probably die.
They were taken by surprise at his sudden movement, and for just a heartbeat he had a beautifully clear shot of the commander at the head of the stairs. He pulled the trigger, the hammer fell, and that was when he remembered where he'd met this man before.
He was out of bullets. He'd forgotten to count the one he'd shot at Li.
"He's out!" the head agent shouted, when realization washed over them both. "Move in, move, move, move!"
Too stunned to do anything, Touya watched them spill down the staircase and rush to subdue him, faceless strangers in black that all blurred in his vision. He didn't resist as they knocked the empty gun from his hands and hauled him over the crate, then twisted his arms behind him to slap on handcuffs. But then he saw them swarm over his sister and try to pick her up off the floor. She shrieked through her tears and writhed in terror when someone dragged her to her feet.
"Stop it." No one paid any attention to him. Why didn't they listen; who- who were these strangers groping his sister? "Stop it!" he shouted, and threw himself forward in a futile attempt to reach her, but his captors' grip on his arms wouldn't give. "Just let me hold her," he begged the commander, "please. She doesn't like it when strangers touch her, just let me – please you're scaring her!"
The agent's flinty gray eyes didn't blink. "There's no need to worry about the subject, Kinomoto, she won't be harmed. Which is more than I can say for you."
Touya barely heard the words over Sakura's broken cries. He'd failed her, again. He'd lost her, again. For one brief moment her face turned toward his and he tried to tell her he was sorry, tried to form the words. But he never had the chance.
Her terrified, beautiful face was the last thing he saw before something hard struck his head and everything went black.
Touya watched the first stars appear in the growing darkness outside Sakura's window and leaned back against her cushions, fingers restlessly tapping against his leg. Enough. Dad would be home any minute, ready to eat dinner with his family, and he still didn't have a clue where Sakura could be. She knew perfectly well that she ought to be home before dark, no matter what, and even if she'd been sidetracked by something after school she knew to call home and say so. Since none of her friends had seen her, it seemed he didn't have any choice but to get on the bike and go look for her.
He really was going to give her hell once he'd tracked her down, but not before he gave her a hug.
Touya braced his hands against the blanket to push himself upright, and his eyes fell on her bedside shelf. He wasn't quite sure why, but a memory clicked and he realized what it was that was different in here. Almost a month earlier, when Sakura turned ten, Tomoyo had hand-sewn a stuffed doll for her present. It was meant to be a replica of the recipient, complete with a fringe of brown yarn for hair and green circles for eyes. Sakura loved it, and arranged in a place of honor above her pillow, but there was no reason for her to take it anywhere.
But just like its owner, the doll was gone.
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Disclaimer: I do not own these characters