Author's note: Others own the rights to the G-Gundam characters. All other characters are my creations. Please do not use them without my permission.
Shadow Life – Part 19
By: Diane Maher
The next morning, Karla sat on the cold, stainless steel examination table in the medical room and waited while Niklas and the doctor prepared to rid her body of the nanobots. She had no idea what they could do to remove them. She then heard footsteps approach outside the room, pulled on her mask, the door opened and Niklas and the doctor entered.
"We think we can remove the nanobots from your body, Frau Geist," the doctor said.
"How?" Karla asked.
"The doctor synthesized a compound that will, when injected into your body, seek out and dissolve the nanobots," Niklas replied.
"Will it hurt me?" Karla asked.
The doctor and Niklas looked at each other. The doctor replied, "All we know is that neither the compound nor the reaction products seem to harm the blood cells in any way."
Karla crossed her arms over her chest and said, "In other words, you have no idea."
"Um, yes," Niklas admitted sheepishly.
"We won't know until we try it on you," the doctor said.
Karla lay on the examination table and said, "Let's get it over with. I guess I'll take one dose and you can scan me to see how well the compound is working."
"Karla..." Niklas whispered, concerned.
Karla's voice was soft as she looked at him and said, "Don't worry, Niklas. I'll be fine."
Niklas looked at the doctor for a moment, nodded once, turned, lifted her mask slightly and kissed her. The doctor injected her at the same time. Niklas pulled back and Karla yawned. For a few minutes, everything seemed fine.
"How do you feel?" Niklas asked.
"I feel...queasy," Karla replied.
"I think we must allow Karla to rest for a while. I will stay here and watch her vital signs," the doctor said.
"Karla, I'm going to work on the gundam. The modifications you asked me to do are taking a while," Niklas said.
Karla nodded weakly, yawned and mumbled, "I guess I'm going to sleep while this stuff takes effect."
"That's probably the best thing for you to do," the doctor said. "It may take several doses to remove all of the nanobots from your body."
Over the course of the next four days, Karla watched the gundam fight broadcasts from the medical room in the Neo-Austrian hangar. The doctor administered the compound two more times before he informed her that the nanobots were gone from her body.
While Domon Kasshu is fighting against the Shuffle Alliance, Karla knows that her body needs time to recover from the effects of the nanobots. The cure to dissolve them weakened her body in much the same way as her last bad bout with the flu did.
At the same time, Claus was in his office at the Neo-Austrian embassy, conducting business as usual. He was on the phone making the final arrangements for Karla's next fight. As far as he was concerned, it would be her last fight. If she survived, he owned her. If not, he had not lost anything.
"Thank you, Herr Prime Minister; I'm sure that we won't be disappointed by the fight between Neo-Austria and Neo-Switzerland that is to take place after Domon has finished fighting all the members of the Shuffle Alliance."
Claus listened for a few moments as Wong said something to him. He nodded and replied, "Good-bye, Prime Minister Wong."
Claus hung up the phone, turned and looked out the window. The sun was setting and he decided to return to the residence. He wanted to spend a romantic night with his secretary. As he stood to leave the office, he decided to stop by the hangar and inform Karla of her next opponent.
His personal bodyguard accompanied Claus as he walked to the presidential limousine. When he was situated in his car, Claus ordered the driver to take him to the Neo-Austrian hangar. The car soon came to a stop in front of the building.
Claus entered the hangar and found Niklas hard at work on Midnight Gundam. Niklas looked down and saw him. He stopped what he was doing and came down on the platform.
"Ah, Niklas!" Claus greeted.
Niklas frowned and narrowed his eyes in suspicion. "What are you doing here? What do you want?"
"Well, that's some greeting for the man who controls Karla's destiny," Claus responded coolly.
"Humph! You mean the man who ruined her life," Niklas muttered under his breath.
Claus didn't see the point in arguing with Niklas. "Where is Karla?"
"She's resting. She hasn't felt well lately and the doctor from Neo-Japan recommended that she rest," Niklas said.
"What happened to Karla?" Claus asked.
"She isn't feeling well," a voice from behind him replied.
"Who are you?" Claus asked. "Come out so I can see you."
"I am Schwarz Bruder of Neo-Germany," Schwarz replied.
Claus became nervous. What is he doing here? "Keep me informed of her condition, Niklas. Oh by the way, Karla's next match will take place after Domon Kasshu of Neo-Japan finishes fighting the other members of the Shuffle Alliance."
"Who will Karla fight?" Niklas asked.
"She is scheduled to fight against Neo-Switzerland," Claus replied. "I'm sure that it will be an interesting match." Claus narrowed his eyes as he looked towards Schwarz before turning and leaving.
When Claus left, Niklas turned to Schwarz and asked, "What are you doing here?"
"I'm concerned about Karla. How is she doing?" Schwarz asked in reply.
"Karla is still recovering, but the doctor believes that she will be well enough to fight," Niklas replied.
"Good. I'm glad the doctor could help. I will be at the fight, but I may not get a chance to speak with Karla beforehand. She has improved greatly and I expect that she will win this match," Schwarz said.
"Was there another reason that you came?" Niklas asked.
"I just wanted to make sure that both of you were safe from Claus and his so-called security," Schwarz replied. He reached out and touched Niklas' shoulder. "Your hair is longer. Does Karla approve?"
"She hasn't demanded that I cut it yet. I think she likes it longer," Niklas grinned. "Thanks for checking on us. As soon as I finish what I was doing before Claus showed up, I'm going to go see Karla. She's been sleeping so the compound the doctor administered could do its work."
"I see. I'll leave you to your work. Be careful, Niklas, my son; beware of Claus and Wong," Schwarz said. He turned and vanished into the shadows.
After he finished working on the gundam, Niklas went to do his daily check of the recording from the bug in Claus' office. He recalled the last conversation that Claus had with someone called Master earlier this morning. He had to play it back several times before he believed what he heard. Niklas decided to tell Karla about what Claus had said the next morning.
As Niklas listened to the recording tonight, he heard Claus' end of a phone call with Prime Minister Wong of Neo-Hong Kong. Niklas' eyes widened with fear as he heard Claus say something about this upcoming match being Karla's last match. What did Claus mean? How can he know the outcome of Karla's next match when she hasn't fought it yet?
"Karla, I was reviewing the recordings from that bug you planted in Claus' office," Niklas said the next morning.
"What about it?" Karla asked.
"Claus mentioned something about the Neo-Swiss gundam being equal to your own Midnight Gundam," Niklas replied.
"Not just equal, Niklas. That gundam was Midnight Gundam mark I," Karla said.
"What? How do you know?" Niklas asked.
"There was a mysterious gundam that appeared at the Neo-Japan campsite just after you were healed by George," Karla said. "I used the information on my data card to search the gundam database, past or present and that's when I found out about it being my old gundam."
Niklas frowned. He decided not to tell Karla about Claus' latest call to Wong. There was no reason to worry her before her fight. He was confident that she could handle herself against any opponent.
When the day of the fight arrived, and he was atop the Neo-Austrian platform, Niklas looked down at Claus and narrowed his eyes in contempt for an instant before turning his gaze back to the ring where Midnight Gundam stood in anticipation of the match today.
"This match Between Neo-Switzerland and Neo-Austria will determine who will fight against Neo-Germany in the semi-finals," the emcee said over her public address system.
"Karla, are you ready?" Niklas asked.
"Yes," Karla replied softly.
"Midnight Gundam's systems are ready to go and there's no sign of nanobot activity either there or in your body," Niklas said.
"Good. I don't need anyone interfering with my fights," Karla said. "I fight my own battles."
"You sound confident, my little sex kitten," her opponent said.
"What?!?" Karla and Niklas exclaimed simultaneously.
The pilot of the Neo-Swiss gundam laughed evilly. Karla's eyes widened as she recognized the man's voice and what he said. He was the police officer who had sexually assaulted her following her arrest! She remembered being so angry after he called her that when he had finished with her in Claus' apartment.
Niklas' face appeared on the screen. He said, "Karla, I want you to ignore what this man is saying and focus on my voice."
Karla started trembling with fear. "Nik...las?" she whispered.
"I want you to focus your mind on beating this man. If you win this battle, you'll be able to fight Schwarz next. That's what you've wanted for so long and it's nearly in your grasp." Niklas shouted, "Listen to me! Karla!"
Karla blinked. Prime Minister Wong called, "Gundam fight all set, ready, GO!"
The Neo-Swiss fighter charged. Karla moved sluggishly and his sword made contact with her right arm. This was enough to get her mind into the battle. She knew she wouldn't make it to the next round if she didn't win.
Karla pushed away the Neo-Swiss fighter, she charged him and her two swift sword strokes cut off both of his gundam's arms.
A moment later, green tendrils shot out of the arms of the Neo-Swiss gundam, reattached to the arms that she'd just sliced off, pulled them up and reattached them.
Karla inhaled sharply. "It can't be!"
"What's going on?" Sai Saici asked.
Domon looked and then cried out, "That fighter has been infected with DG cells!"
"Karla is in serious danger!" George exclaimed.
"What can we do? We can't interfere with the fight!" Sai Saici said.
"She will have to defeat him, one way or another," Argo said. "She may have to kill him to survive."
"What is this? How and why did you get infected with DG cells?" Karla asked as she blocked another charge from her opponent, sliced off one of his arms only to have it reattach before her eyes.
"Infected? No, I was injected with DG cells," the man replied. "It doesn't matter why."
"Of course it matters! You're a human being; okay you're a raping scumbag, but you're still a human being," Karla said.
Niklas came on the side screen and said, "You have to end this match, Karla."
"How? I am not a Shuffle Alliance member who can eradicate the taint of the Dark Gundam from someone!" Karla exclaimed.
"True. You must do what you need to in order to survive," Niklas said. "Even if it means you attack his cockpit."
Niklas ceased transmission and Karla moved with a speed only previously demonstrated by Schwarz. Her midnight sword sliced off the arms of her opponent's gundam and before the tentacles came zipping out of the shoulders to pick them up again, her fist slammed into the cockpit and withdrew the pilot who was entwined in the green tentacles. Karla sliced the connection between him and the gundam. The tentacles fell away from him for a moment before new ones shot out of the gundam, yanked him out of her hand and back into the cockpit.
As the fight between the Neo-Austrian and the Neo-Swiss Gundam raged, Chancellor Heinrich von Geist watched as the Midnight Gundam slowly took control of the fight from the Neo-Swiss.
"Do you think that Karla has a chance to win this match?" his son Wolfgang asked.
Von Geist lowered his binoculars, turned to his son and replied, "No."
"Why not?" Wolfgang demanded.
Von Geist pulled out a device that he turned on and allowed to warm up. He pressed a button and waited for Midnight Gundam to stumble and fall like it had before during the fight against Neo-France.
"Your device no longer functions," Schwarz said from behind him.
Von Geist turned to face his nation's fighter. "What do you mean?"
"They have either removed or destroyed your nanobots," Schwartz replied.
"That's impossible!" von Geist exclaimed. When nothing happened, he anxiously pressed the button on the device several more times, to no effect.
"You will not interfere with the gundam fight anymore. The skills of each nation's fighters get them to the finals and there they either win or lose. No outside influence should try to change that," Schwarz said.
Von Geist gaped at Schwarz who took the device from his hand, dropped it on the floor, and smashed it to pieces under his boot.
"I hope you're satisfied," von Geist muttered, angry.
"I will fight one of these fighters in my next match and I will win or lose based on my skills alone, not because some technology hinders my opponent," Schwarz said coolly. "Any further attempts by you to sabotage the gundam fight and I will expose your schemes not only to Neo-Germany, but also to the rest of the world." He turned and left.
"Oh no!" George cried out.
"Hmmm..." Argo muttered.
"She's going to have a tough time winning this match," Domon observed.
"Domon!" Rain admonished. "Don't say that!"
"It's the truth. I know it and everyone else here knows it," Domon said.
"There are people who do not wish Karla to survive this fight," Schwarz said.
The Shuffles turned toward him and gaped in amazement at what he'd said. "What?!" they exclaimed in unison.
"There are people who do not wish Karla to survive this fight," Schwarz repeated.
"How do you know?" Domon asked.
"Humph. I'm a ninja," Schwarz replied.
"But..." Domon said.
Schwarz folded his arms across his chest and watched as Karla fought against the infected fighter. He thought, You know what you must do to survive, Karla.
Claus watched from the observation platform as Karla fought against the Neo-Swiss fighter.
"I didn't think she'd last this long against him," Claus muttered several minutes later. "Didn't Master train the Neo-Swiss fighter well enough?"
Claus had the feeling of being watched and looked up. Niklas was working with Karla to try and help her to win. That was why he'd been hired. Claus recalled that Niklas had been infected with DG cells. Why isn't he still infected? With a shrug, Claus turned his attention back to the fight. Just then, the tentacles from the infected fighter had almost taken over Karla's gundam and would soon infect her.
Claus grinned evilly. Karla would be forced to obey him, if she wanted to be cured of the DG cells. Of course, he would see to it that there were always some DG cells in her body. She would be given to the men on his staff who had been watching the footage of Karla and Niklas making out and lusting after her themselves. They could take her one at a time and she wouldn't be able to escape.
Karla moved back out of the range of those tentacles, or so she thought. Her obsidian stars chopped off the tentacles only for them to immediately grow back. The next instant, one of them poked through her leg and two others were tearing at her cockpit door. She mobilized her midnight swords and activated her super mode. Her swords lengthened to twice their normal size. The tentacles were slowly pushing their way into the cockpit.
"I have no choice Niklas; I've got to go for his cockpit before the Dark Gundam infects me!" Karla shouted. "These tentacles are entering my cockpit!!"
"Don't let it get you!" Niklas shouted.
Karla charged toward her opponent and shouted, "AAAAHHHH!!!!!"
Her sword pierced her opponent's cockpit, there was an explosion and the green tentacles fell away from her gundam. In a separate part of her mind, she heard Niklas' gasp as she ferociously attacked her opponent's cockpit. Karla's breathing was heavy as she stared at the spot where the Neo-Swiss gundam had stood. All that was left was a pile of charred metal.
The emcee called out over the public address system, "The winner of this match is Neo-Austria's Midnight Gundam. She will fight against Neo-Germany's Schwarz Bruder in the semi-finals!"
"Was that level of ferocity justified?" Domon asked.
"Yes. Think of how you would feel if you were fighting the Dark Gundam in the Guiana Highlands and you didn't have your super mode or the abilities that Shuffle crest gives you," Schwarz said.
"Hmmm. I see. So you get to fight her next?" Domon asked.
Schwarz watched as Midnight Gundam turned and stared at him. "Yes, Domon. I have been looking forward to this fight against Karla even more than the fight I will inevitably have against you."
The Shuffle Alliance members gasped. Domon turned to leave. "Good luck, Schwarz. I will be interested to see who wins this next match as they will fight against me."
The next instant, Midnight Gundam stood in front of them. The cockpit opened and Karla jumped down to where the group stood. "Well Schwarz, it's you and me in the next battle," Karla said.
