Eve: Hey guys. Sorry it took me so long to update. I was trying to make a
game. But is keeps breaking so if you want to play it it'll be the RPG word
version. Instead of the little Zelda character we changed to look like
James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter.
Mike: It dducked, you're better off not even knowing about it. Anyway-
Sirius: Shut up already!
Eve/Mike: !
Sirius: No one cares, they just want to read the fic! Have comentary AFTER the story!
eve: *small voice* On with the fic
****
That night four figures stood, still and silent. Peter was in rat form. Sirius as a dog, and both James and Remus stayed human. The half moon cast just enough light to see by, so they didn't dare light their wands. James's eyes were set and determined. He had been through years of training, but had never wanted to complete a mission as much as he did now.
"It's time." He breathed.
Peter set out first and then James on the back of Gyriph. After them went Sirius, and Remus. Peter checked for an entrance, he found one. A pile of rubble with a tinny bit of light streaming from it, only visible to a rat. James found the secret switch that opened it in only a matter of seconds. He opened it and Peter went down first. There was a guard, two guards. Peter told Sirius through thought speak about the two guards. Sirius paws the ground two times. James nodded as Remus and him disappeared beneath the cloak. James and Remus snuck up between the guards, they stunned them as silently as possible, and Peter squeaked that the coast was clear. They put the guards out of sight and then ran down the hall with Sirius in the lead. He wasn't too fond of anyone messing with his best friend and was ready to do some serious damage. Remus looked about ready to change into a werewolf and go for people's throats, James looked like hexing every single person in this building would only make him slightly amused, and Peter... looked like a rat, a pissed off rat.
"I hope they're careful" Lily worried; she stared out the window upon the starry moonlit sky.
"Don't worry about them" Dumbledore comforted. "They are together and together they are unstoppable"
Cota had nothing to contribute to this conversation. He was a tad annoyed at not even being told they were leaving tonight. Now, he wasn't stupid, he suspected it. However, being told would have been nice. Lily knew that pacing around and worrying wouldn't help. She knew it wouldn't, but she didn't know what else to do. Dumbledore was annoyingly calm, I think he thought it helped, but really it made everyone more agitated, like he was sucking all the calm from the room. It might have been better if he would pace or fidget or something. Cota looked over at Harry, who seemed to have sucked all the rest of the calm out of the room and was sleeping peacefully. Harry seemed to feel eyes on him and woke up. He'd been having trouble sleeping ever since Kira was taken. Harry whimpered and Lily looked over at him 'please don't cry' her eyes begged. She wanted him to rest.
"Born on the end of July. I hope you will never die" Cota whispered in a singsong voice and tilted his head from side to side. "Someday you'll chase a snitch. I hope you don't crash in a ditch" Harry smiled and giggled slightly. "Someday you will fly. On a broom up in the sky. Above the great big crowd, why am I singing out loud?"
"Amusing" Dumbledore smiled as Harry went back to sleep.
"I liked the last one better" Lily grinned.
"Don't start" Cota shook his head, embarrassed enough as it was.
Lily glanced at the clock; they'd been gone for three hours. "That place is bound to have a security system" She worried.
Cota looked up. "Kira said something about automatic doors" Cota mumbled.
Dumbledore looked at them both. Lily looked worried and Cota looked restless. Cota trusted James deeply, but he couldn't stand feeling helpless. He'd been hurt while fighting. He was like Sirius in the fact that he hated letting other people fight, while he stayed on the sidelines. An owl flew in through the window, dropped a letter into Cota's hand, and swooped right back out. Cota broke the seal and ripped open the letter.
"Blah, blah blah. James, Blah, this is in response to your request. Blah blah" Cota read, trying to get through the worthless fluff as quickly as possible.
"Well?" Lily asked, standing on her toes and leaning over the sofa in anticipation.
"Blah" Cota read, aggravated. "The information on the lab you requested was found, blah, blah, some guy, blah! They operate like Muggles, blah, security system like none I've ever seen, blah, blah. It is an electrical system, don't use magic on it. It had a curse on it that will electrocute you if you even touch it with a wand. Blah about the security system. I recommend you watch out. The system had an auto self-destruct watcha-ma- call-it. In addition, I have absolutely no idea how it works. I highly recommend you do not set this thing-a-majig off... That, ladies and gentalmen, is the technical term, and it was said by the best mind in the academy when it comes to Muggle devices" Cota shook his head in disgust.
"And in laymen's terms it means?" Lily urged.
"Trip alarm, you explode" Cota stated. "Along with everything else"
Lily pailed and opened her mouth as if to say something. However, she was silent. There was no way to warn James. They would be able to hear if someone apperated, an owl would be easily noticed, as would a phoenix. The Floonetwork was out of the question and an unauthorized port key would just be stupid. She shook her head rabidly. Dumbledore twitched andstared at the ground, as if waiting for a portal to open up and allow him to contact James with it.
"...Alright, well... See ya" Cota stated simply, waving as he stepped out of Lily's reach and exited out the door.
"Wha- what?" Lily and Dumbledore rushed out after him.
Cota strode up to the fence and Lily let out a sigh. He couldn't go, not with his shoulder hurt. James had made sure of that. Cota, however, simply sent an owl to Derek and backtracked to the fence.
"Seems like James has blocked the last way we have to communicate with him" Dumbledore stated, as if to remind Cota that he was stuck.
"The thing about Lord James" Cota stated, letting out a loud whistle. "Is that he underestimates what people can accomplish when they must. Oy! Pat!"
Patrick's head shot up and it climbed awkwardly to its feet. Pat looked out the stall door and whinnied in delight at his master's call. Cota whistled again and Pat gripped the latch with his teeth and pulled. He opened the latch and trotted out of his stall.
"C'mon boy, stop dawdling!" Cota called over to Patrick, his voice light and smooth. His voice seemed to explain the entire mission as it chimed like a movie star saying he accepted the task in some spy movie. Lily could almost imagine Cota standing infront of an exploding building and calmly walking back to headquarters. His stride full of attitude and a cocky smile on his face. Dumbledore smiled in an amused fashion and watched as Patrick reached full stride and leapt over the gate. Cota stroked Patrick's forelock as Lily gaped in surprise, which was unlike her. Lily quickly regained composure and gave Cota a meaningful look. Cota smiled nervously at the look and swung his leg over onto Pat. Cota barely hid a twitch of pain and let out a breath, instead of a groan. Satisfied with concealing any torment, Cota smiled egotistically down at Lily and Dumbledore. But let's face it, he deserves to be proud, how many people have such well trained horses, and how many people can climb onto that horse after having their shoulder broken. Lily watched, biting her lip and absolutely HATING the fact that she was helpless. That wasn't her, she was fighting the fights just as much as any of the Order's men. She could out charm Sirius anyday. So now her husband was in danger, and she couldn't do anything.
"Don't worry; I highly doubt they actually have a self destruct command. What would be the point?" Cota stated in an effort to calm Lily. Lily nodded slightly in agreement and Cota took off in the smoothest, yet fastest canter he could.
About an hour or so later. At Takai's base, known as Eden. (Eden: The beginning of a new world. The Garden of Eden was paradise... I don't think there is a garden here.)
"Five minutes until self destruction" A female voice stated calmly, as alarms howled and flashed.
"Ever heard of stealth!" Sirius hissed.
"Ever heard of an alarm!" James yelled.
"Ever heard watching your step!" Peter squeaked. They had no idea who had caused the howling sirens and flashing lights, or even how. A verbal fight broke out as all attempts at being unnoticed vanished. Sirius was yelling at James, James was yelling at anyone within hearing range, and Peter was yelling at Sirius. Confusion and chaos had taken over their minds, they figured, find who did it, make them stop it, then try to salvage the mission.
"Ever heard of move before that red beam cuts a hole through you!" Remus barked, interrupting all fights.
They all leapt in different directions as a flash of red shot at them and burned the floor where they had been gathered. Sirius got up, Peter was pulled up, and Remus had never fallen down, he had leapt for cover behind a wall, not under something. James ran, he had to find Kira and be out before that clock ran out of time. North or South? Down that hallway. Left or right? And then which door? He didn't have time to check them all. Sirius flung open a door and then swiftly closed it, shuddering as a decaying arm reached out to grab him. "That's just disgusting" Sirius twitched. "Maggots eating it alive, and the smell, and the puss-"
"Enough! Enough!" Peter covered his ears.
Sirius blasted open another door and jumped back in grotesque horror. Peter kicked and slammed the door before anyone could see what it was, no one really wanted to see what it was anyway.
"Four Minutes until Self destruction. Areas four zero seven, and five zero three, will be unavailable. Please do not take the lifts, please do not stay in the cafeteria. This is not a test" The voice said, annoyingly calm. James imagined an airplane flight attendant smiling and tilting her head slightly as she said "The pilot wishes to inform everyone that we are going to die" Pause and smile. "You can assume crash positions if you want. If you don't know what those are, just get in a position you want to be found dead in. Thank you for flying with this airline, and have a nice death"
Remus was also throwing caution to the wind and opening random doors. Peter took to standing slightly behind Remus and firing spells at anything that moved and looked... 'Icky.' James commanded them to stop, they did. "This isn't going to do anything!" James yelled over the sirens. "What if they changed her? The files said that most of these things used to be human! Can you really risk killing her?"
"If she's one of hose monsters she's better off dead!" Peter shrieked before he could stop himself. He saw Remus twitch and quickly knew he'd made a mistake. He idolized James, he should have known better then to say anything about abandoning Kira.
"I don't care what she looks like! She's still my daughter!" James hissed.
"I don't care if they've turned her into one of those strange animal things, she didn't ask for any of this, and she doesn't deserve it!" Remus howled, werewolf mode even though he was human.
"Three minutes until self destruction, please make your way to the exits" The voice reminded them, ever so politely.
James raced down the hall and read the sign. It was a map, he scanned it for anything that looked like it might have something to do with Kira. He saw a sign that read 'Special projects.'
"That works, that works" James muttered. Nothing happened and he couldn't find anyway to make the map show him where or what the special projects were. James banged it with his fist and the screen changed, it asked 'special projects?' James smacked the yes icon and it enlarged to show a detailed map of that area.' Creation lab', 'Training center', 'School.' James's mind focused only on the things he though might be dealing with Kira. He wasn't sure what state they'd find her is, but he didn't care, as long as they found her.
"Two minute untill self destruction"
James panicked, the info about each area flashed onto the screen. James tapped 'Creation Lab' and a small journal type document popped up. It read:
It's been over a year now and the second attempt has yet to improve. 'No name,' as she is called, knows fighting techniques, but does not have the instinct of how or when to use them. It will takes years of dedicated training to introduce her to the many different types of moves, counter moves, and 'instinct' it takes. No name, cannot live yet out of the tank for more then an hour. First attempt at this proved her lack of instinct, and infuriated Takai. First attempt 'Kira' has been brought back. She was been sent to training. Takai is very pleased with her potential and is planning to develop her skills to their maximum.
"Yes, yes, but where!" James asked, tapping the label as fast and as hard as he could.
A picture apeared on the screen, it showed a girl with black hair, sitting on a marble wall. She looked like a doll being posed for an advertisement. She was sitting up straight, her eyes were closed, her hands rested at her sides and curled slightly at the fingers, her legs were tilted slightly, and her feet were together. She was dressed in a black, short, sleeved dress that had black ribbon laced around it, it bound her feet together and her arms to her sides. Her hair was tied in a ponytail, it was long and fell onto the wall. A second glance revealed a collar around her neck, it was some sort of machine. The beauty in the photo mixed in with the hauntingness of it proved that whoever did it enjoyed his work, and was insane. The girl and pose was beautiful at first glance, but look again and your brain notices strange things, like the fact that she looked asleep, yet was upright and her head, though tilted downward and to the right, was not dropped as far as normal, where the chin rests against the body. The tilt was very slight. Then you noticed the fact that she was tied and then your eyes traveled to the collar. James looked at the label, it read: No name. James tapped the picture again and it disappeared, replaced by the map of the special programs department. James tapped the heading and was back at the original map. He tapped 'human resources' and a new map opened up. 'Cafeteria', bedroom.' James didn't bother with the rest, he clicked bedroom. He looked to the right to read the info on it, he only cared about the first three words though. Third. Floor. North.
"One minute until self destruction"
James's mind reeled, he poked the panel, reopened the map and his eyes whirled around in every direction as he tried to scan the map for a staircase or lift. Sirius was beside him in an instant. They had to go, now. He grabbed James's arm and pulled, James however, wasn't ready to give up.
"She's still in here somewhere!" He protested.
"Damnit, James!" Sirius yelled. "I care about her too, but you've got a son and a wife to think about! You can't just say 'to hell with it all!' You know that! You know they need you! Being in the Order means you'd give your life to end Voldemort's reign of terror and protect this country and its people. You know there is a great chance you'll die! But you can't just go out in a hopeless search! It takes longer then a minute to reach the exit. Apperating we can do if we leave now"
James stood, rooted to the spot. He felt weak suddenly and Sirius was able to pull him toward the exit hall. If they made it to the next floor up, they could apperate. They ran, James being pulled along behind Sirius.
"Fifteen seconds untill destruction"
"Thanks for the warning!" Peter cursed.
"Starting countdown at T-minus 10.......9.......8-"
"Holy-!" Sirius cursed.
"We're doomed" Peter squeaked.
"6......5......4......3-"
"Goodbye house, goodbye job, goodbye life" Peter muttered as they bolted up the stairs.
"2....-" There was a long pause in which nothing blew up! Sirius had duck and covered, pulling James down with him. Remus was holding his breath and had his eyes tightly closed as he kneeled on the stairs. James's mind was swimming with thoughts of his family and friends; and Peter shuddered, whimpered, and curled into a ball.
"Hey guys" A familiar voice broke over the intercom. It was smooth, bright, and as refreshing as cool water on the hottest day. It was serene, it was enough to make your heart skip, it was-
"COTA!" Sirius yelled, laughing and clutching his chest.
"Thought you guys could use a hand" Cota's voice was a tad staticy (Eve:is staticy a word? Mike: Now it is. Everybody use it!) over the intercom, yet rang with such relief that it flooded over them like ice across burning tar, smooth and elemental.
"Is Dumbledore that sure we'll mess up?" Remus asked, finding himself strangely annoyed after his close call with death..
"No, he trusts you to save Kira. However, I don't trust you to know anything about computers" Cota stated as if it was obvious.
"Why do YOU know anything about computers?" James asked, reviving and finding himself confused.
"My uncle, and besides, think about it. The electronic device on Kira's arm. The scientists are mostly Muggles. So of course they have a vast computer system. It's all electronic. So I read up on it" Cota stated in a 'duh' tone of voice.
"That's what you've been doing" James nodded as if it was all becoming so clear.
"Yep" Cota's voice was relaxed, as if he'd kicked back, threw his feet up and was about to take a siesta. "It took me forever to get the detonation sequence and cancel it" Cota stated, sounding a tad annoyed.
"Who the hell cares how long it took you, you have great timing in my book" Sirius cheered, he'd fought guards, faced death... this was a good day for him.
"Anyway, there's a security system up here. The entire place is covered with security cameras" Cota stated.
"So? Sirius asked, figuring it didn't matter if they were seen.
"So" Cota seemed to think it was obvious. "Where are the guards? I see two that are three rooms down from you, about seventeen fled for the exits. There were two guarding the doors here-"
"They saw is come in, why not stop us?" Remus finished.
"Exactly" Cota said.
"Who cares?" Sirius asked, though it was obvious that Cota and Remus cared.
"Geeze" Cota sounded frustrated, James could imagine him rolling his eyes and slumping back into the chair. "The self destruct alarm gives time for staff to get out. But it also automatically saves data onto disks and sends copies of the data somewhere else"
"Can you recover it?" James asked.
"It's encrypted. It wouldn't help us to get it. They have a code breaker at the place where they receive the files" Cota stated, they could here the faint tap tap tap as he typed and searched. "Says they have one here too, but I can't find it yet. Besides, they'll probably have a tracking device on it" He typed more. "They have everything set up so if someone breaks in, they send the info away. They were prepared to blow this place up in a second. However, the people in the bottom level stayed put" Cota stated.
"That's odd... did any information files get sent from the bottom floor?" Remus asked, an idea quickly forming in his mind.
There was a pause. "No" Cota understood what Remus was thinking. "No files down there, or on the second floor either. Which means-"
"It isn't data down there. But rather the experiments themselves" Remus finished.
"And a computer that can only be accessed by the code breaker" Cota grinned.
"Are you both done?" Peter asked, sounding annoyed by not having any part in the conversation. "Shouldn't we get Kira and then get out?"
"Those security cameras... did they send the pictures from them anywhere?" James asked.
"Yep, and guess what. The file 'No name cam' came through. Followed by..." Cota paused as if waiting for a dramatic drum roll. "Kira cam"
"Yes! Now all we need to do is get down to the bottom level. The bedrooms-" James announced, turning towards his friends.
"James" Cota said.
"Once we reach that it should be easy enough to get her-"
"James" Cota said again.
"Hold on. That map thing said it was the bottom floor. That means they didn't hurt her, because she's in the normal bedrooms. There are humans sleeping in adjacent rooms, they wouldn't put a monster in there"
"James!" Cota snapped.
"What" James asked, already showing them the map. It said experiment cages. Then far away from that and one floor down. Bedrooms.
"Kira is on the second floor" Cota said. "I... I hacked into the security cameras... she..." He trailed off and only typing was heard.
Everyone was silent. Was she? Could she? James shook his head. Whatever happened, they'd fix, whatever she was, they would accept. "Where?" He asked, surprised to hear his three friends say the exact same thing at the exact same time as he did. They didn't care what had been done to her. She was still his daughter, and nothing would ever change that.
****
Mike: ...
Eve: ...
Sirius: Come off it!
Eve/Mike: ...
Eve: Accident Reports. Accident insurance claim forms ask for a brief statement about how the accident happened. The combination of the finger pointing instinct and the small spaces provided on the forms can lead to some curiously phrased explanations. "A pedestrian hit me and went under my car." "The other car collided with mine without giving warning of its intention."
"Coming home, I drove into the wrong house and collided with a tree I don't have." "I thought my window was down; but found it was up when I put my hand through it." "I saw the slow-moving, sad-faced old gentleman as he bounced off the hood of my car." "I had been driving for 40 years when I fell asleep at the wheel and had an accident." "I was taking my canary to the hospital. It got loose in the car and flew out the window. The next thing I saw was his rear end, and there was a crash." "I was backing my car out of the driveway in the usual manner when it was struck by the other car in the same place where it had been struck several times before." "The indirect cause of this accident was a little guy in a small car with a big mouth." "The accident happened when the right door of a car came around the corner without giving a signal." "I was on the way to the doctor with rear end trouble when my universal joint gave way causing me to have an accident." "I was sure the old fellow would never make it to the other side of the road when I struck him." "I told the police that I was not injured, but on removing my hat, I found that I had a fractured skull." "To avoid hitting the bumper of the car in front, I struck the pedestrian."
"The accident occurred when I was attempting to bring my car out of a skid by steering it into the other vehicle." "When I could not avoid a collision, I stepped on the gas and crashed into the other car." "In my attempt to kill a fly, I drove into a telephone pole." "My car was legally parked as it backed into the other vehicle." "As I approached the intersection, a stop sign suddenly appeared in a place where no stop sign had ever appeared before. I was unable to stop in time to avoid the accident." "The telephone pole was approaching fast. I was attempting to swerve out of its path when it struck my front end." "I pulled away from the side of the road, glanced at my mother-in-law, and headed over the embankment." "The guy was all over the road. I had to swerve a number of times before I hit him." "An invisible car came out of nowhere, struck my vehicle, and vanished."
Sirius: At least your not mad at me. Eve:*smiling* I'm pissed at you. But I'm not imature enough to take it out on the helpless readers. Mike: Church Bul... bulitin... signs that turned out horribly wrong. "Say 'hell' to someone who doesn't like you." "Mr. Smith is also a close relative of his brother Wilbur in the church." "Thursday night - Potluck supper. Prayer and medication to follow." "Remember in prayer the many who are sick of our church and community." "O come all ye faithful, sin in exultation." Eve: Exultation- Ecstasy. Happiness. Joy.
Mike: Oh! Now it's funny.
Sirius: ...
Mike: "After today's service, coffee and donuts will be served in the basement. Please come down and say hell to the pastor." "Don't let worry kill you -- let the church help." (Hee hee) "For those of you who have children and don't know it, we have a nursery downstairs." "The rosebud on the altar this morning is to announce the birth of David Alan Belzer, the sin of Rev. and Mrs. Julius Belzer." (It's supposed to be son. duh... though it is right either way) "Children will be led in sinning and Bible study." "This afternoon there will be a meeting in the South and North ends of the church. Children will be baptized at both ends." "This being Easter Sunday, we will ask Mrs. Lewis to come forward and lay an egg on the altar." "There will be a baked bean supper next Sunday at 6:00 p.m. Music to follow." "At the evening service tonight, the sermon topic will be 'What is Hell?' Come early and listen to our choir practice." (Ha ha ha!) "Life groups meet on Wednesday evening at 7:00 PM for food, fun, and fellowwhipping." (Yikes) "Marriage: An Institution To Be Endured." -- The subject of a sermon that should have read, "An Institution To Endure." Sirius: Ha ha, it's right the first way.
Eve/Mike: ...
Sirius: ...
Eve: A preacher was completing a temperance sermon: with great expression he said, "If I had all the beer in the world, I'd take it and throw it into the river." With even greater emphasis, he said, "And if I had all the wine in the world, I'd take it and throw it into the river." And then, finally, he said, "And if I had all the whiskey in the world, I'd take it and throw it into the river." He sat down. The song leader then stood very cautiously and announced with a pleasant smile, "For our closing song, let us sing Hymn #365: 'Shall We Gather At the River.'"
Mike: Cool! Reviewers Review!
Mike: It dducked, you're better off not even knowing about it. Anyway-
Sirius: Shut up already!
Eve/Mike: !
Sirius: No one cares, they just want to read the fic! Have comentary AFTER the story!
eve: *small voice* On with the fic
****
That night four figures stood, still and silent. Peter was in rat form. Sirius as a dog, and both James and Remus stayed human. The half moon cast just enough light to see by, so they didn't dare light their wands. James's eyes were set and determined. He had been through years of training, but had never wanted to complete a mission as much as he did now.
"It's time." He breathed.
Peter set out first and then James on the back of Gyriph. After them went Sirius, and Remus. Peter checked for an entrance, he found one. A pile of rubble with a tinny bit of light streaming from it, only visible to a rat. James found the secret switch that opened it in only a matter of seconds. He opened it and Peter went down first. There was a guard, two guards. Peter told Sirius through thought speak about the two guards. Sirius paws the ground two times. James nodded as Remus and him disappeared beneath the cloak. James and Remus snuck up between the guards, they stunned them as silently as possible, and Peter squeaked that the coast was clear. They put the guards out of sight and then ran down the hall with Sirius in the lead. He wasn't too fond of anyone messing with his best friend and was ready to do some serious damage. Remus looked about ready to change into a werewolf and go for people's throats, James looked like hexing every single person in this building would only make him slightly amused, and Peter... looked like a rat, a pissed off rat.
"I hope they're careful" Lily worried; she stared out the window upon the starry moonlit sky.
"Don't worry about them" Dumbledore comforted. "They are together and together they are unstoppable"
Cota had nothing to contribute to this conversation. He was a tad annoyed at not even being told they were leaving tonight. Now, he wasn't stupid, he suspected it. However, being told would have been nice. Lily knew that pacing around and worrying wouldn't help. She knew it wouldn't, but she didn't know what else to do. Dumbledore was annoyingly calm, I think he thought it helped, but really it made everyone more agitated, like he was sucking all the calm from the room. It might have been better if he would pace or fidget or something. Cota looked over at Harry, who seemed to have sucked all the rest of the calm out of the room and was sleeping peacefully. Harry seemed to feel eyes on him and woke up. He'd been having trouble sleeping ever since Kira was taken. Harry whimpered and Lily looked over at him 'please don't cry' her eyes begged. She wanted him to rest.
"Born on the end of July. I hope you will never die" Cota whispered in a singsong voice and tilted his head from side to side. "Someday you'll chase a snitch. I hope you don't crash in a ditch" Harry smiled and giggled slightly. "Someday you will fly. On a broom up in the sky. Above the great big crowd, why am I singing out loud?"
"Amusing" Dumbledore smiled as Harry went back to sleep.
"I liked the last one better" Lily grinned.
"Don't start" Cota shook his head, embarrassed enough as it was.
Lily glanced at the clock; they'd been gone for three hours. "That place is bound to have a security system" She worried.
Cota looked up. "Kira said something about automatic doors" Cota mumbled.
Dumbledore looked at them both. Lily looked worried and Cota looked restless. Cota trusted James deeply, but he couldn't stand feeling helpless. He'd been hurt while fighting. He was like Sirius in the fact that he hated letting other people fight, while he stayed on the sidelines. An owl flew in through the window, dropped a letter into Cota's hand, and swooped right back out. Cota broke the seal and ripped open the letter.
"Blah, blah blah. James, Blah, this is in response to your request. Blah blah" Cota read, trying to get through the worthless fluff as quickly as possible.
"Well?" Lily asked, standing on her toes and leaning over the sofa in anticipation.
"Blah" Cota read, aggravated. "The information on the lab you requested was found, blah, blah, some guy, blah! They operate like Muggles, blah, security system like none I've ever seen, blah, blah. It is an electrical system, don't use magic on it. It had a curse on it that will electrocute you if you even touch it with a wand. Blah about the security system. I recommend you watch out. The system had an auto self-destruct watcha-ma- call-it. In addition, I have absolutely no idea how it works. I highly recommend you do not set this thing-a-majig off... That, ladies and gentalmen, is the technical term, and it was said by the best mind in the academy when it comes to Muggle devices" Cota shook his head in disgust.
"And in laymen's terms it means?" Lily urged.
"Trip alarm, you explode" Cota stated. "Along with everything else"
Lily pailed and opened her mouth as if to say something. However, she was silent. There was no way to warn James. They would be able to hear if someone apperated, an owl would be easily noticed, as would a phoenix. The Floonetwork was out of the question and an unauthorized port key would just be stupid. She shook her head rabidly. Dumbledore twitched andstared at the ground, as if waiting for a portal to open up and allow him to contact James with it.
"...Alright, well... See ya" Cota stated simply, waving as he stepped out of Lily's reach and exited out the door.
"Wha- what?" Lily and Dumbledore rushed out after him.
Cota strode up to the fence and Lily let out a sigh. He couldn't go, not with his shoulder hurt. James had made sure of that. Cota, however, simply sent an owl to Derek and backtracked to the fence.
"Seems like James has blocked the last way we have to communicate with him" Dumbledore stated, as if to remind Cota that he was stuck.
"The thing about Lord James" Cota stated, letting out a loud whistle. "Is that he underestimates what people can accomplish when they must. Oy! Pat!"
Patrick's head shot up and it climbed awkwardly to its feet. Pat looked out the stall door and whinnied in delight at his master's call. Cota whistled again and Pat gripped the latch with his teeth and pulled. He opened the latch and trotted out of his stall.
"C'mon boy, stop dawdling!" Cota called over to Patrick, his voice light and smooth. His voice seemed to explain the entire mission as it chimed like a movie star saying he accepted the task in some spy movie. Lily could almost imagine Cota standing infront of an exploding building and calmly walking back to headquarters. His stride full of attitude and a cocky smile on his face. Dumbledore smiled in an amused fashion and watched as Patrick reached full stride and leapt over the gate. Cota stroked Patrick's forelock as Lily gaped in surprise, which was unlike her. Lily quickly regained composure and gave Cota a meaningful look. Cota smiled nervously at the look and swung his leg over onto Pat. Cota barely hid a twitch of pain and let out a breath, instead of a groan. Satisfied with concealing any torment, Cota smiled egotistically down at Lily and Dumbledore. But let's face it, he deserves to be proud, how many people have such well trained horses, and how many people can climb onto that horse after having their shoulder broken. Lily watched, biting her lip and absolutely HATING the fact that she was helpless. That wasn't her, she was fighting the fights just as much as any of the Order's men. She could out charm Sirius anyday. So now her husband was in danger, and she couldn't do anything.
"Don't worry; I highly doubt they actually have a self destruct command. What would be the point?" Cota stated in an effort to calm Lily. Lily nodded slightly in agreement and Cota took off in the smoothest, yet fastest canter he could.
About an hour or so later. At Takai's base, known as Eden. (Eden: The beginning of a new world. The Garden of Eden was paradise... I don't think there is a garden here.)
"Five minutes until self destruction" A female voice stated calmly, as alarms howled and flashed.
"Ever heard of stealth!" Sirius hissed.
"Ever heard of an alarm!" James yelled.
"Ever heard watching your step!" Peter squeaked. They had no idea who had caused the howling sirens and flashing lights, or even how. A verbal fight broke out as all attempts at being unnoticed vanished. Sirius was yelling at James, James was yelling at anyone within hearing range, and Peter was yelling at Sirius. Confusion and chaos had taken over their minds, they figured, find who did it, make them stop it, then try to salvage the mission.
"Ever heard of move before that red beam cuts a hole through you!" Remus barked, interrupting all fights.
They all leapt in different directions as a flash of red shot at them and burned the floor where they had been gathered. Sirius got up, Peter was pulled up, and Remus had never fallen down, he had leapt for cover behind a wall, not under something. James ran, he had to find Kira and be out before that clock ran out of time. North or South? Down that hallway. Left or right? And then which door? He didn't have time to check them all. Sirius flung open a door and then swiftly closed it, shuddering as a decaying arm reached out to grab him. "That's just disgusting" Sirius twitched. "Maggots eating it alive, and the smell, and the puss-"
"Enough! Enough!" Peter covered his ears.
Sirius blasted open another door and jumped back in grotesque horror. Peter kicked and slammed the door before anyone could see what it was, no one really wanted to see what it was anyway.
"Four Minutes until Self destruction. Areas four zero seven, and five zero three, will be unavailable. Please do not take the lifts, please do not stay in the cafeteria. This is not a test" The voice said, annoyingly calm. James imagined an airplane flight attendant smiling and tilting her head slightly as she said "The pilot wishes to inform everyone that we are going to die" Pause and smile. "You can assume crash positions if you want. If you don't know what those are, just get in a position you want to be found dead in. Thank you for flying with this airline, and have a nice death"
Remus was also throwing caution to the wind and opening random doors. Peter took to standing slightly behind Remus and firing spells at anything that moved and looked... 'Icky.' James commanded them to stop, they did. "This isn't going to do anything!" James yelled over the sirens. "What if they changed her? The files said that most of these things used to be human! Can you really risk killing her?"
"If she's one of hose monsters she's better off dead!" Peter shrieked before he could stop himself. He saw Remus twitch and quickly knew he'd made a mistake. He idolized James, he should have known better then to say anything about abandoning Kira.
"I don't care what she looks like! She's still my daughter!" James hissed.
"I don't care if they've turned her into one of those strange animal things, she didn't ask for any of this, and she doesn't deserve it!" Remus howled, werewolf mode even though he was human.
"Three minutes until self destruction, please make your way to the exits" The voice reminded them, ever so politely.
James raced down the hall and read the sign. It was a map, he scanned it for anything that looked like it might have something to do with Kira. He saw a sign that read 'Special projects.'
"That works, that works" James muttered. Nothing happened and he couldn't find anyway to make the map show him where or what the special projects were. James banged it with his fist and the screen changed, it asked 'special projects?' James smacked the yes icon and it enlarged to show a detailed map of that area.' Creation lab', 'Training center', 'School.' James's mind focused only on the things he though might be dealing with Kira. He wasn't sure what state they'd find her is, but he didn't care, as long as they found her.
"Two minute untill self destruction"
James panicked, the info about each area flashed onto the screen. James tapped 'Creation Lab' and a small journal type document popped up. It read:
It's been over a year now and the second attempt has yet to improve. 'No name,' as she is called, knows fighting techniques, but does not have the instinct of how or when to use them. It will takes years of dedicated training to introduce her to the many different types of moves, counter moves, and 'instinct' it takes. No name, cannot live yet out of the tank for more then an hour. First attempt at this proved her lack of instinct, and infuriated Takai. First attempt 'Kira' has been brought back. She was been sent to training. Takai is very pleased with her potential and is planning to develop her skills to their maximum.
"Yes, yes, but where!" James asked, tapping the label as fast and as hard as he could.
A picture apeared on the screen, it showed a girl with black hair, sitting on a marble wall. She looked like a doll being posed for an advertisement. She was sitting up straight, her eyes were closed, her hands rested at her sides and curled slightly at the fingers, her legs were tilted slightly, and her feet were together. She was dressed in a black, short, sleeved dress that had black ribbon laced around it, it bound her feet together and her arms to her sides. Her hair was tied in a ponytail, it was long and fell onto the wall. A second glance revealed a collar around her neck, it was some sort of machine. The beauty in the photo mixed in with the hauntingness of it proved that whoever did it enjoyed his work, and was insane. The girl and pose was beautiful at first glance, but look again and your brain notices strange things, like the fact that she looked asleep, yet was upright and her head, though tilted downward and to the right, was not dropped as far as normal, where the chin rests against the body. The tilt was very slight. Then you noticed the fact that she was tied and then your eyes traveled to the collar. James looked at the label, it read: No name. James tapped the picture again and it disappeared, replaced by the map of the special programs department. James tapped the heading and was back at the original map. He tapped 'human resources' and a new map opened up. 'Cafeteria', bedroom.' James didn't bother with the rest, he clicked bedroom. He looked to the right to read the info on it, he only cared about the first three words though. Third. Floor. North.
"One minute until self destruction"
James's mind reeled, he poked the panel, reopened the map and his eyes whirled around in every direction as he tried to scan the map for a staircase or lift. Sirius was beside him in an instant. They had to go, now. He grabbed James's arm and pulled, James however, wasn't ready to give up.
"She's still in here somewhere!" He protested.
"Damnit, James!" Sirius yelled. "I care about her too, but you've got a son and a wife to think about! You can't just say 'to hell with it all!' You know that! You know they need you! Being in the Order means you'd give your life to end Voldemort's reign of terror and protect this country and its people. You know there is a great chance you'll die! But you can't just go out in a hopeless search! It takes longer then a minute to reach the exit. Apperating we can do if we leave now"
James stood, rooted to the spot. He felt weak suddenly and Sirius was able to pull him toward the exit hall. If they made it to the next floor up, they could apperate. They ran, James being pulled along behind Sirius.
"Fifteen seconds untill destruction"
"Thanks for the warning!" Peter cursed.
"Starting countdown at T-minus 10.......9.......8-"
"Holy-!" Sirius cursed.
"We're doomed" Peter squeaked.
"6......5......4......3-"
"Goodbye house, goodbye job, goodbye life" Peter muttered as they bolted up the stairs.
"2....-" There was a long pause in which nothing blew up! Sirius had duck and covered, pulling James down with him. Remus was holding his breath and had his eyes tightly closed as he kneeled on the stairs. James's mind was swimming with thoughts of his family and friends; and Peter shuddered, whimpered, and curled into a ball.
"Hey guys" A familiar voice broke over the intercom. It was smooth, bright, and as refreshing as cool water on the hottest day. It was serene, it was enough to make your heart skip, it was-
"COTA!" Sirius yelled, laughing and clutching his chest.
"Thought you guys could use a hand" Cota's voice was a tad staticy (Eve:is staticy a word? Mike: Now it is. Everybody use it!) over the intercom, yet rang with such relief that it flooded over them like ice across burning tar, smooth and elemental.
"Is Dumbledore that sure we'll mess up?" Remus asked, finding himself strangely annoyed after his close call with death..
"No, he trusts you to save Kira. However, I don't trust you to know anything about computers" Cota stated as if it was obvious.
"Why do YOU know anything about computers?" James asked, reviving and finding himself confused.
"My uncle, and besides, think about it. The electronic device on Kira's arm. The scientists are mostly Muggles. So of course they have a vast computer system. It's all electronic. So I read up on it" Cota stated in a 'duh' tone of voice.
"That's what you've been doing" James nodded as if it was all becoming so clear.
"Yep" Cota's voice was relaxed, as if he'd kicked back, threw his feet up and was about to take a siesta. "It took me forever to get the detonation sequence and cancel it" Cota stated, sounding a tad annoyed.
"Who the hell cares how long it took you, you have great timing in my book" Sirius cheered, he'd fought guards, faced death... this was a good day for him.
"Anyway, there's a security system up here. The entire place is covered with security cameras" Cota stated.
"So? Sirius asked, figuring it didn't matter if they were seen.
"So" Cota seemed to think it was obvious. "Where are the guards? I see two that are three rooms down from you, about seventeen fled for the exits. There were two guarding the doors here-"
"They saw is come in, why not stop us?" Remus finished.
"Exactly" Cota said.
"Who cares?" Sirius asked, though it was obvious that Cota and Remus cared.
"Geeze" Cota sounded frustrated, James could imagine him rolling his eyes and slumping back into the chair. "The self destruct alarm gives time for staff to get out. But it also automatically saves data onto disks and sends copies of the data somewhere else"
"Can you recover it?" James asked.
"It's encrypted. It wouldn't help us to get it. They have a code breaker at the place where they receive the files" Cota stated, they could here the faint tap tap tap as he typed and searched. "Says they have one here too, but I can't find it yet. Besides, they'll probably have a tracking device on it" He typed more. "They have everything set up so if someone breaks in, they send the info away. They were prepared to blow this place up in a second. However, the people in the bottom level stayed put" Cota stated.
"That's odd... did any information files get sent from the bottom floor?" Remus asked, an idea quickly forming in his mind.
There was a pause. "No" Cota understood what Remus was thinking. "No files down there, or on the second floor either. Which means-"
"It isn't data down there. But rather the experiments themselves" Remus finished.
"And a computer that can only be accessed by the code breaker" Cota grinned.
"Are you both done?" Peter asked, sounding annoyed by not having any part in the conversation. "Shouldn't we get Kira and then get out?"
"Those security cameras... did they send the pictures from them anywhere?" James asked.
"Yep, and guess what. The file 'No name cam' came through. Followed by..." Cota paused as if waiting for a dramatic drum roll. "Kira cam"
"Yes! Now all we need to do is get down to the bottom level. The bedrooms-" James announced, turning towards his friends.
"James" Cota said.
"Once we reach that it should be easy enough to get her-"
"James" Cota said again.
"Hold on. That map thing said it was the bottom floor. That means they didn't hurt her, because she's in the normal bedrooms. There are humans sleeping in adjacent rooms, they wouldn't put a monster in there"
"James!" Cota snapped.
"What" James asked, already showing them the map. It said experiment cages. Then far away from that and one floor down. Bedrooms.
"Kira is on the second floor" Cota said. "I... I hacked into the security cameras... she..." He trailed off and only typing was heard.
Everyone was silent. Was she? Could she? James shook his head. Whatever happened, they'd fix, whatever she was, they would accept. "Where?" He asked, surprised to hear his three friends say the exact same thing at the exact same time as he did. They didn't care what had been done to her. She was still his daughter, and nothing would ever change that.
****
Mike: ...
Eve: ...
Sirius: Come off it!
Eve/Mike: ...
Eve: Accident Reports. Accident insurance claim forms ask for a brief statement about how the accident happened. The combination of the finger pointing instinct and the small spaces provided on the forms can lead to some curiously phrased explanations. "A pedestrian hit me and went under my car." "The other car collided with mine without giving warning of its intention."
"Coming home, I drove into the wrong house and collided with a tree I don't have." "I thought my window was down; but found it was up when I put my hand through it." "I saw the slow-moving, sad-faced old gentleman as he bounced off the hood of my car." "I had been driving for 40 years when I fell asleep at the wheel and had an accident." "I was taking my canary to the hospital. It got loose in the car and flew out the window. The next thing I saw was his rear end, and there was a crash." "I was backing my car out of the driveway in the usual manner when it was struck by the other car in the same place where it had been struck several times before." "The indirect cause of this accident was a little guy in a small car with a big mouth." "The accident happened when the right door of a car came around the corner without giving a signal." "I was on the way to the doctor with rear end trouble when my universal joint gave way causing me to have an accident." "I was sure the old fellow would never make it to the other side of the road when I struck him." "I told the police that I was not injured, but on removing my hat, I found that I had a fractured skull." "To avoid hitting the bumper of the car in front, I struck the pedestrian."
"The accident occurred when I was attempting to bring my car out of a skid by steering it into the other vehicle." "When I could not avoid a collision, I stepped on the gas and crashed into the other car." "In my attempt to kill a fly, I drove into a telephone pole." "My car was legally parked as it backed into the other vehicle." "As I approached the intersection, a stop sign suddenly appeared in a place where no stop sign had ever appeared before. I was unable to stop in time to avoid the accident." "The telephone pole was approaching fast. I was attempting to swerve out of its path when it struck my front end." "I pulled away from the side of the road, glanced at my mother-in-law, and headed over the embankment." "The guy was all over the road. I had to swerve a number of times before I hit him." "An invisible car came out of nowhere, struck my vehicle, and vanished."
Sirius: At least your not mad at me. Eve:*smiling* I'm pissed at you. But I'm not imature enough to take it out on the helpless readers. Mike: Church Bul... bulitin... signs that turned out horribly wrong. "Say 'hell' to someone who doesn't like you." "Mr. Smith is also a close relative of his brother Wilbur in the church." "Thursday night - Potluck supper. Prayer and medication to follow." "Remember in prayer the many who are sick of our church and community." "O come all ye faithful, sin in exultation." Eve: Exultation- Ecstasy. Happiness. Joy.
Mike: Oh! Now it's funny.
Sirius: ...
Mike: "After today's service, coffee and donuts will be served in the basement. Please come down and say hell to the pastor." "Don't let worry kill you -- let the church help." (Hee hee) "For those of you who have children and don't know it, we have a nursery downstairs." "The rosebud on the altar this morning is to announce the birth of David Alan Belzer, the sin of Rev. and Mrs. Julius Belzer." (It's supposed to be son. duh... though it is right either way) "Children will be led in sinning and Bible study." "This afternoon there will be a meeting in the South and North ends of the church. Children will be baptized at both ends." "This being Easter Sunday, we will ask Mrs. Lewis to come forward and lay an egg on the altar." "There will be a baked bean supper next Sunday at 6:00 p.m. Music to follow." "At the evening service tonight, the sermon topic will be 'What is Hell?' Come early and listen to our choir practice." (Ha ha ha!) "Life groups meet on Wednesday evening at 7:00 PM for food, fun, and fellowwhipping." (Yikes) "Marriage: An Institution To Be Endured." -- The subject of a sermon that should have read, "An Institution To Endure." Sirius: Ha ha, it's right the first way.
Eve/Mike: ...
Sirius: ...
Eve: A preacher was completing a temperance sermon: with great expression he said, "If I had all the beer in the world, I'd take it and throw it into the river." With even greater emphasis, he said, "And if I had all the wine in the world, I'd take it and throw it into the river." And then, finally, he said, "And if I had all the whiskey in the world, I'd take it and throw it into the river." He sat down. The song leader then stood very cautiously and announced with a pleasant smile, "For our closing song, let us sing Hymn #365: 'Shall We Gather At the River.'"
Mike: Cool! Reviewers Review!
