The Usual Disclaimer: I do not own Trigun, Meryl, Milly, Wolfwood, Rem, Knives, or Vash, as much as I wish I owned one particular character. . . .Oh, well. I can dream, can't I?

Glory

Chapter Fourteen: Mental Health

"Alone again," Glory whispered, looking around the room. No Knives, no Vash, no Meryl or Milly or Nicholas. She was alone.

And she hated being alone. She remembered her thoughts, wondering how she had ever gotten along without being with her brothers. And now that she had them, she couldn't be separated anymore. She had to find them and bring them back. And they had to be on board; the steamer hadn't stopped. At least not yet.

Where are you? Vash? Knives? she thought. She checked Meryl's room first, searching as fast as she could - which is pretty damn fast when it came to her and her brothers. She found nothing she could use, not even a single derringer or Milly's stun gun. Not only that, but she didn't find a single clue left behind as to where anyone went to.

Milly probably gave in without a fight for her baby, and Nicholas. Meryl likely didn't put up much of a fight for the same reason. Vash was trying for a clean break of that part of his life, so he wouldn't have resisted, either. But Knives. . .Knives was the question.

On the one hand, there was no way he would have let the bandits catch him or tie him up. But on the other, he would if it meant Glory wouldn't be found. Fighting would only suggest that there was somebody else hiding somewhere, someone that needed to be protected.

Glory almost laughed at the thought. Protected. Like her brothers, the last thing she needed was protection. A little help every now and again, but not protection. They were plants; they didn't need guards or warriors to watch over them.

Ignoring the thoughts and an overwhelming urge to begin singing again, Glory stood and walked out of the room, straight across the way into the dining room. No one was here, either. She looked around carefully, picking up everything she could, before moving on. Kitchen: nobody. Control room: empty. Captain's room: rather creepy, but empty.

She already knew everyone had been cleared out of their rooms, so that left cargo and the deck to be checked. Cargo was entirely filled; not a worm could get in and not be squished by something else. With the areas narrowed down so far, she didn't have to second guess where everybody was - had been taken to. The deck.

Glory began a trek back up to the control room. She looked over the buttons, switches, dials and other assorted controls before pushing a button and pulling a lever. The steamer gave a strong jerk and swayed before slowing down and then speeding back up. It didn't really do anything except put the bandits on alert, which is what she wanted. They'd be hurrying now, thinking that something was wrong with the steamer and it would undoubtedly crash.

Stepping back, Glory eyed the ceiling, one hand lifting to the side of her head to steady the spinning thoughts and feelings. "Cut it out," she whispered. Her head began leaning left, eyes blinking and brows drawing together. With a strong shake of her head everything settled and she looked up again.

"The vent," she said aloud, "will take me to an outside screen. I can kick it out and climb onto the deck with little problem." Then she blinked. "No. I should get higher than the deck - the lookout. They won't expect for someone to be looking down on them. No. Yes. Yes," she said again, firmer. "But what then?"

Without giving it too much thought, she began weaving her way through the steamer, up stairs and down corridors. She emerged through a round opening to look down on the deck, maybe fifteen or twenty feet higher. Her eyes picked out a multitude of people, about three quarters tied up and sitting down. The rest were either bandits or people standing due to the lack of room. A few were dangling dangerously near the edge of the deck, probably there because of the jump Glory caused.

And then her eyes picked out two blonde heads, side by side and with their backs against the railing, sitting. Before she could even smile in relief, Vash's voice was in her head.

Don't move, he said.

Glory blinked confusedly at him. Vash -

Don't move, he repeated. Just stay there.

But I have to -

Stay there, Knives' voice interrupted. We've already come to an agreement. After these human bandits leave we can simply forget the entire thing and go about our lives.

Don't make a scene, Vash added.

You two can't just - Glory argued, only to get cut off again.

Get down and -

Stay put!! both brothers finished.

Glory struggled for a moment, watching them. On one hand, they together knew a lot more than she did, despite her learnings from Rem and all the knowledge she was born with. You just couldn't compete with twin geniuses. On the other, they could be in danger and she was, well. . .insane. The very thought that her brothers might be in trouble, even the slightest bit, rises above what they tell her to do.

And as such, she stood from her crouched position and leapt, even as her brothers mentally yelled at her, even as they turned to see her. She landed on one bandit and shoved another into a third, moving as fast as possible and aiming directly to disarm the men first, so that they wouldn't get a chance to shoot at her.

And someone was staring at her. Not threatening, not measuring her up, not scared. Just staring in something like. . .like odd wonder. And not only that, he was coming forward between thrown bodies.

Glory managed to spin and swing at him before he entirely reached her. He jerked back and she swung twice more and spun again, aiming a kick for his gut. He caught her foot and Glory was thrown off balance, reaching back to grab the railing and push harder.

"Glory?" he asked, still with that wonder in his eyes and now his voice. "Don't you recognize me?"

"Apparently not," she replied, and then kicked with her left foot, hitting his chin and flipping backwards. Her feet planting on the railing, catching it between the joint in her boots. She stood and wavered, trying to catch her balance again.

And then that man did something that amazed her. He hit one of his lackeys that was going after her, grabbed her hips and set her on the deck again. Glory stumbled as she got her footing and - still within the state of mind to attack - swung at him again, repeatedly. When she went to trip him, he even did a back handspring.

"Don't anybody touch her," he snarled as some bandits came forward.

Glory eyed them all as carefully and quickly as possible before turning her eyes back to that man.

"Come on, Glory, think," he urged her, much more calmly this time. "You used to babysit me every day. Remember?"

Glory thought about it and came up with thirty names. "How long ago was it?"

"Twenty two years," the man replied.

That narrowed it down to seven. "Where?"

"May City."

Three. By looking at him, she noted brown hair, ice blue eyes and a certain freckle on his left collar bone. . . "Marcus," she said at last.

Marcus grinned. "Ha, I knew you'd remember!"

"Little Marcus that refused to let go of my leg?" Glory went on, shocked.

He laughed. "That was me. My God, Glory, look at you! Is blonde your natural hair color?"

"It is for now," Glory laughed back. "At least till I get tired of it. Next it should be red."

"This is all very fascinating," Knives interrupted, "but perhaps we could skip ahead?"

"What your mouth!" somebody snapped, aiming a gun at Knives.

"Drop it!" Glory yelled and dashed forward, hitting him in the jaw and sending him flying.

"Hold it!" Marcus snapped, right arm out to hold off attacks from his men. "I said nobody touch her," he warned them, sending a searing gaze to every bandit present.

The rest of the captives were getting restless. People were shifting, murmuring. The crew were getting antsy, ready to get up and attack at any moment to win back their ship.

Marcus looked pointedly at Knives. "Who's this guy to you?"

"One of my big brothers," Glory returned, evenly.

"One of?" Marcus asked. "How many do you have?"

"Two that I know of."

"I take it he's the other one, then?" Marcus went on, gesturing Vash, who was barely seen behind Glory's left leg.

"Yes," Glory said, and then leaned her head left, eyes closing. There were those spirits again, trying to speak all at once. "Would you shut up and let me handle this?" she hissed.

Marcus noticeably straightened, and Knives and Vash looked up at Glory worriedly.

"Glory," Marcus began slowly, "are you alright?"

She looked at him. "I had a mental breakdown," she explained. "It's still rebuilding."

"How?"

"I was shot. Thirty two times, and barely survived." The words were hard to say, nearly impossible. Glory found she had to whisper to get them out.

Marcus' eyes widened, both in shock and recognition. "You're her, then. Glory the Immortal."

"What?" Glory asked, sharply.

"It's been everywhere," Marcus explained. "The rumors are all a bit different, but the message is the same. Shot more than thirty times, maximum loss of blood, possible organ transfers. . .Supposed to have died by all standards, but she lived. Glory the Immortal."

The bandits were shifting uneasily now, and all eyes were riveted to Glory. Glory herself could hardly move, staring directly at Marcus but not seeing him, shocked. Her name was spread around the planet, with the suffix 'the Immortal'. She was Glory the Immortal, likely feared, just like Vash the Stampede and Knives Millions.

The thought occurred to her that if everyone here found out about Vash and Knives, they'd be the most famous family in the Universe's history. Vash the Stampede, Knives Millions and Glory the Immortal. Famous and feared above anyone else, even the Nebraska family.

"What else do you know?" Glory asked, her defensive pose relaxing with each second she remained stunned.

"Well, so far you haven't broken any laws or anything, so there's no warrant for your arrest or bounty," Marcus began. "But people keep looking out for an Immortal, scared witless. You see?" he added, gesturing the people still tied up and staring at Glory in the same type of shock that she was feeling.

A mother cried out when Glory's eyes met hers and lunged forward to try and hide a child. Glory's knees gave out and she found herself breathing quickly. "I'm - but I can't be - it's not. . .I shouldn't. . ." She looked at Marcus with a type of panic. "I've been hiding my entire life! I can't be widely known now! I can't be - someone has to - oh, god," she finished, dropping her head into her hands.

Dimly, she heard Marcus coming forward, and Vash and Knives shifting, undoubtedly getting their hands free.

And then her ears were buzzing loudly, and she could feel her eyes unfocus. She knew she was still muttering, breathing fast and shaking, although she couldn't feel it anymore. The knowledge of her being renowned and feared after only helping for so long - it was overwhelming. She just couldn't take it all.

Jerking herself back to reality sharply, she focused entirely on the threat of her family, and got up. Staring directly at Marcus, she spoke. "Get off this ship now and you'll get away with all your limbs intact," she told him.

Marcus seemed stunned by her words. "Glory - don't you still remember me? Glory?"

"Get out of here," she told him. "And all your men. Don't make me attack you."

"Wait a minute," Marcus said, hands lifting and coming forward.

"Stop where you are," Vash warned sharply.

"Who are you to -"

"Shut up and listen," Knives interrupted. He stood, hands untied as Glory knew he'd done. Beside him, Vash stood as well, and their heads leveled with Glory's. Together they looked like triplets.

"Glory already told you she had a breakdown," Vash went on.

"She only can focus one thing at a time," Knives continued, and Vash picked up again.

"A moment ago it was that name you gave her."

"But I didn't -" Marcus began, but Knives continued, heedless.

"Now it's us. Her brothers. If you want to leave with your limbs intact, as she put it, then -"

"You shouldn't take another step forward."

"She won't hesitate to disarm you if you come any closer."

"She can be very brutal if she has to."

"Nothing you do can stop her."

"Nothing you could say, either."

"So it's best you take our - and her - advice and -"

"Leave now," the two finished together.

The passengers were wide-eyed now, if they weren't before. The crew were all scared, and the captain staring. The bandits were noticeably shaken, guns wavering as they held them in white-knuckled grips. Glory hadn't moved once since she stood up. And Marcus himself was looking a bit pale. Nonetheless, he tried to speak.

"W-we can't leave," he started. "Not yet. We have to stop first and - somewhere populated, I mean. We can't get off because we don't have cars or anything."

"So?" Glory asked, her voice darker than usual. Especially towards a man who once was a boy who had a crush on her and she babysat. "You're so big and strong, you could just strut to the next town."

"You don't understand - we're going to December," Marcus stated firmed. "Right now we're twenty iles into the middle of nowhere."

"Twenty, is that all?" Glory asked him.

"That can't be too far for a bandit," Vash went on.

Knives smirked. "Perhaps we could wait a bit, until we're thirty iles in the middle of nowhere."

"Great idea," Vash conceded. "How about forty?"

"Fifty?"

"We're passing at an ile a minute," Glory added. "An hour wouldn't be too long."

"Sixty iles, what a thought!" Knives agreed, grinning broadly.

"That should be quite an exercise," Vash continued.

Glory's mind was shifting again. As usual, her head tilted left and her left hand lifted to press the back of her hand against her forehead. She moaned, hearing lyrics in her head and singing them. "She gave you everything she had, but she was young and dumb she'd just turned twenty one. She didn't care to hang around, so when the shit came down why she was nowhere to be found. This life can turn a good girl bad, she was the sweetest thing that you had ever seen. You're such a delicate boy, in a hysterical realm, of an emotional landslide, in a physical -"

"Glory?" Marcus said, stepping back, but Glory was going on.

"With your cherry lips your golden curls, you could make grown men gasp when you go walking past them. In your hot pants and high heels, they could not believe that such a body was for real. It seemed like rainbows would appear, whenever you came near the clouds would disappear because you look just like a girl - your baby blues would flash and suddenly the sky was cast."

Marcus was looking more and more scared by the second. "Glory, you know me!" he tried.

"Your such a delicate boy, in a hysterical realm. Of an emotional landslide, in a physical terms. You hold a candle in your heart, you shined the light on hidden parts, you make the whole world, wanna dance you bought yourself a, second chance."

"She's almost done with the song," Vash observed.

"As soon as she's done, so are you," Knives warned Marcus.

Marcus threw a sharp glance over his shoulder. "Untie the crew and have them stop the steamer."

Four bandits snapped themselves out of stupor to do so.

Glory gasped and collapsed while the steamer was slowing, head in hands and panting. The passengers were all untied and now there was a crowd around Glory, staring oddly. Besides Vash and Knives Meryl, Milly and Nicholas all gathered close and tried to calm her.

They had a game they played when Glory was especially off. Vash would begin, listing off a few random things, and Glory would say the first thing that came to mind. He would keep listing faster until Knives took over, still speeding up and leaving Glory behind as she fumbled with her words. It would continue to switch between the brothers until Glory begged them to slow down, and by then, her mind was always back - at least to an extent.

Marcus stared at her the entire time as though she were someone completely different from the woman who had raised him more than his own parents did. When at last the steamer stopped, his bandits began stepping off, scared witless as he'd described the people when referring to Glory the Immortal.

Glory stopped him on his way off, just jumping up and running over to him to grab his arm. "Wait, Marcus," she said.

He looked sharply at her, half expecting her to try and 'disarm' him. "Glory?" he managed.

"I freaked you out, didn't I? I told you my mind -"

"You told me you were insane," he cut her off. "I get it. Look, Glory -"

"Stay."

Both 'stunned' and 'surprised' were too mild to describe him now. "What?"

"I want you to stay. You calmed me down. That small talk - I needed that."

"But you -"

"Snapped," Glory finished for him. "But you knew me long before my brothers did. I think. . .I think I need all three of you to get through this."

Marcus looked over at her brothers. He still didn't know their names, but judging by the way the two of them had looked at him earlier, the platinum blonde was the eldest of the three. Or, at least, he assumed that position. "I don't think they like me. And what about my men?" he asked, looking at Glory again - who was eye level with him.

"They'll be fine. I'm sure my brothers are willing to share some of the duty."

"You're not duty," Marcus chuckled. "Whatever made you think that way - you're not some job. Do you. . .honestly think I can help?"

"Undoubtedly," Glory said, easily.

Marcus let out a laugh. "You're always serious when you use those words."

"I'm glad you remembered."

"And the captain?"

"I'm pretty sure he'd even pay you if it meant keeping me calm and - sane."

"Damn straight," the captain said, standing off to the side and watching the rest of the bandits wander off.

Everyone got a laugh from that.

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Until next chapter, here I am, saying good night!

Song: Cherry Lips by Garbage (female).

Date: May 19th. Time: 11:41 pm.

DL