AN: Sorry it took so long to get the next chapter up... I like to think of writing as coming in waves... But I'm just weird like that. Anyway, I took some plot liberties with this chapter, so please don't skewer me! That being said... Enjoy!
Although the sound of my heavy, plodding feet pounded against the floor beneath me, I could hear nothing but the dull throbbing of my heart in my chest. All thought was focused inward, and nothing outside of my own head registered in the slightest. Only the pounding in my chest and the thoughts tearing through my mind. That strange girl... Miltia... MOMO and her father... Jr. and Shion facing their demons... And yet, it was still up to me to face my own. I knew she had been speaking to me when she had said that we were not ready to embrace our pasts. She had not been looking singularly at me, but I could feel her eyes -those strange, staring eyes- peering deep into me. Shion had spoken to her as if she were a friend, and yet... I could not bring myself to shake the sense of foreboding and shrouded mystery that she held for me. And those eyes... They seemed to look everywhere at once, even piercing into one's very soul. She could see everything. Even I could not hide my thoughts from her.
"Ziggy," a tiny whisper from outside my train of thought penetrated through the cloud of my consciousness. I blinked a few times, trying to figure out where the voice had come from. Then the faint touch of a cold hand on my human arm brought me from my own realm of thought and into the real world once more.
The delicate, pink bobs of MOMO's hair were the first things I saw. She was beside me, and it was her hand that rested on my arm. We were traveling through the Durandal's halls, on our way to deliver the fruits of our travels to Captain Lapis Roman on the bridge. Shion and Allen led the way, with KOS-MOS in tow. MOMO and I were behind them, with chaos and Jr. making up the rear. The bright eyes of the 100-series Realian stared up at me fixedly. She stared at me for a while, her tiny boots clicking softly on the tiled floor as we continued walking. Slowly, she opened her mouth to say something, then closed it again. I stared back. Slowly, her soft eyes grew worried, and she opened her mouth again. I took this opportunity to tweak one of her pigtails gently.
"What's wrong?" I asked her. I felt her grip on my arm increase slightly. And when she spoke, her voice was only a thin whisper, as if she did not want anyone else to hear.
"What did she say to you?" Her face was pale as she gazed expectantly at me. "That girl... Did you hear her inside your head too?" A sharp feeling welled up in my chest, and the dark thoughts about that strange girl resurfaced.
"What did she say to you, MOMO?" There was a tone in my voice that almost scared me. Her grip tightened, and she glanced around herself to make sure that no one else was listening.
"She... She said something about Daddy and-" She cut herself off abruptly with a short whimper. I wanted to say something to calm her, or even something to take her mind from those evil thoughts, but we were interrupted. We had reached the bridge. We all stepped onto the lift, and it started without a noise. As soon as it came to a halt, Captain Lapis Roman spun around from her spot at the helm. Her face was set, but her dark eyes smiled at us. Shion stepped forward, holding out a small device toward the Captain.
"I present to you the memory bank data from the Anti-Gnosis Humanoid Weapon System KP-X, KOS-MOS. Protection Level AAA, with no possibility of alteration." There was pride in her voice. And why should there not have been? All of us had gone through our own personal hells to get those data for her. Though her face showed no change, the aura of Lapis Roman seemed to sigh with relief.
"Memory bank data accepted. Please remain within the Miltian star system until you're cleared of all charges." A cheer went through those assembled. The blue-haired Realians came up to personally congratulate Jr. on his success. I would have normally expected him to feast gladly on the praise of others, but he was unnaturally silent. When they had passed and Lapis Roman left the bridge, he exhaled loudly and leaned against one of the control panels near him, his arms folded neatly across his chest. Mary's flaxen locks bounced as she bounded up toward the red-haired boy.
"Phew, well I am sure glad that escapade's over and done with!" She said with a sigh. Jr. made no response but to look at his shoes. I felt MOMO peek past my arm to see why he had not spoken up. Shelley turned to face Jr., her face unchanged.
"You don't look very happy." She paused, only for a moment. "Did something happen?" Slowly, Jr.'s eyes looked up, paused on MOMO momentarily, then moved to Shelley.
"Huh? Yeah. You could say that..." He trailed off, his focus now off of the woman. "I still can't believe it..." With a whirr and a soft hum, the elevator returned, and I turned to see it carrying two familiar people.
"We've got another friend of yours to release, too," Lapis Roman said, with the first smile I had ever seen her use. Gaignun Kukai stood next to her, straightening his tie. Both of the Godwin sister ran to him, calling his name and embracing him. I would have expected a giggle from the girl at my arm, but she did not stir. Stared at the top of her head worriedly. What that girl aid to her... Did it really hurt her that badly? I was shaken from my thoughts when Jr. addressed Gaignun.
"Hey," he said simply. His senior smirked.
"You've done well."
"Ahh, no big deal... But..." He trailed off, staring into the stars above, "It sure brought back a lot of bad memories..." After another moment of reflection, he turned to Shion. "Hey, Shion... That girl... She called herself Nephilim, right?" Nephilim... So that was her name... At least now I had a name for that enigma of a girl.
"Uhh... Yeah," Shion said slowly. Jr.'s eyes changed suddenly, to a sharper blue.
"You sure?" His tone was grave.
"Yes, but..." She stopped to watch him as the thought seemed to sink in. "What's wrong?" She asked at last. Jr. seemed shaken from his thoughts, and he gave Shion a look of gravity.
"Well... If that girl is somehow connected to what I'm thinking of... Then things are gonna get real busy, real soon..."
I had failed to notice, in my observation of their conversation, that MOMO had left my side. I turned just in time to see her use the elevator to go down to the bottom floor. I felt myself involuntarily move toward where she disappeared, and I stopped myself short. The sudden movement caught the eye of chaos, who was standing nearby. My eyes glanced up to him briefly, and I saw him give an almost unperceivable nod in the direction MOMO had gone. Again, my feet took me without my asking them to. I took the lift down from the bridge without asking leave, and followed MOMO's thermal trail. I tracked her all the way to the Elsa, where I caught a glimpse of her pink hair stealing into the main doorway. I followed. She lit to the cabin that she and Shion had slept in and closed the door behind her.
I must have stood in front of the door for minutes on end. I could hear her inside, sniffling to herself. I was torn. I wanted to enter, to intrude, and to comfort. I wanted to take her pain and keep it to myself. I wanted to curl every worry and every pain into a ball and place it where it could never be found again. Then again... I had told myself long ago that I would never entangle myself in someone's life again. But just the other day, I had made another promise. And this promise was the one I would keep. I raised my hand to the door and rapped at it quietly with my knuckles. There came a soft, low cry as a response. Worry tugged at my heart, and I knocked a bit louder.
"MOMO," I said quietly. Her sniffling stopped short, and I heard her shuffling quickly to the door. But she hesitated at the door. "You don't have to let me in," I assured her. "I just want to know..." I paused, searching for the right words, "if you're all right." There was a choking cry from the other side of the door, and it slid open effortlessly. MOMO's soft face was streaked with tears, and her eyes swam with fresh pain ready to pour over her cheeks. She made a soft sound in the back of her throat, and the tears spilled from her eyes.
"Ziggy," she choked. Before I could say anything else, she had clamped her arms around my midsection. I had been taken by surprise so many times that day, it was hard for much else to take my breath away. But this had done it. Effortlessly, I scooped her from where she clung and took her into her room. It was dark inside, and none of the lights were on. I left them as they were. I took MOMO to the bunk she slept in and sat at the foot of the bed. I lay down the girl that was shivering in my arms into the folds of the blankets beneath her. Her tears were fresh on her cheeks, and her quiet, hushed sobs escaped through clenched teeth. I pulled a blanket around her and made an involuntary shushing noise. Once she settled down and her cries quieted, I spoke in as quiet a voice as possible.
"What did she say to you?" I asked, feeling my own voice resonate in the darkness. There was silence, and then a sharp intake of breath.
"Sh-she told me I-I-I had to accept what D-Daddy was, and th-that he did b-b-bad things," MOMO said, stuttering on account of her tears. In the dark, I heard the blankets rustle as she moved and curled herself up next to me at the foot of her bed. Before I could stop myself, I opened my mouth and spoke.
"She spoke to me of the past, and how I mustn't keep locking it away."
I realized I had let it slip all too late. But it didn't seem to effect her. Though her breathing calmed and her tears stopped. I felt her yawn widely against me.
"Do you think that what she said was true? That we can change the future... And KOS-MOS?"
"I don't know, MOMO," I told her honestly. We didn't speak then for a long time, but just being there, knowing she was safe, feeling her slow breathing as she lay curled next to me, was enough. The darkness closed in around us, and it was only her I saw. She was all that mattered. I shifted my weight and moved of the foot of the bed. "You need your rest. It's been a long day." I turned to leave, but her small voice called out as I stood in the doorway.
"Ziggy?"
"Hm?" I asked, turning slightly.
"What do you want to keep locked away?"
It was a simple question, but, right now, there were no simple answers. I tried to form some words -any words- to explain... But I couldn't. Finally, I shook my head.
"You... You should get some rest," I repeated. The door slid shut behind me, and I felt as if a heavy weight was lying on my chest. I tried to shake off the feeling, but it would not leave. I gave up quickly, and trudged out of the Elsa and back to the Durandal. Every moment, I checked back to find MOMO's thermal scan. And every time, she was where I had left her.
If I believed that wishes would be granted, I would have wished then and there that the statement would always be true... That MOMO would always be there, always where I left her... Always.
Although the sound of my heavy, plodding feet pounded against the floor beneath me, I could hear nothing but the dull throbbing of my heart in my chest. All thought was focused inward, and nothing outside of my own head registered in the slightest. Only the pounding in my chest and the thoughts tearing through my mind. That strange girl... Miltia... MOMO and her father... Jr. and Shion facing their demons... And yet, it was still up to me to face my own. I knew she had been speaking to me when she had said that we were not ready to embrace our pasts. She had not been looking singularly at me, but I could feel her eyes -those strange, staring eyes- peering deep into me. Shion had spoken to her as if she were a friend, and yet... I could not bring myself to shake the sense of foreboding and shrouded mystery that she held for me. And those eyes... They seemed to look everywhere at once, even piercing into one's very soul. She could see everything. Even I could not hide my thoughts from her.
"Ziggy," a tiny whisper from outside my train of thought penetrated through the cloud of my consciousness. I blinked a few times, trying to figure out where the voice had come from. Then the faint touch of a cold hand on my human arm brought me from my own realm of thought and into the real world once more.
The delicate, pink bobs of MOMO's hair were the first things I saw. She was beside me, and it was her hand that rested on my arm. We were traveling through the Durandal's halls, on our way to deliver the fruits of our travels to Captain Lapis Roman on the bridge. Shion and Allen led the way, with KOS-MOS in tow. MOMO and I were behind them, with chaos and Jr. making up the rear. The bright eyes of the 100-series Realian stared up at me fixedly. She stared at me for a while, her tiny boots clicking softly on the tiled floor as we continued walking. Slowly, she opened her mouth to say something, then closed it again. I stared back. Slowly, her soft eyes grew worried, and she opened her mouth again. I took this opportunity to tweak one of her pigtails gently.
"What's wrong?" I asked her. I felt her grip on my arm increase slightly. And when she spoke, her voice was only a thin whisper, as if she did not want anyone else to hear.
"What did she say to you?" Her face was pale as she gazed expectantly at me. "That girl... Did you hear her inside your head too?" A sharp feeling welled up in my chest, and the dark thoughts about that strange girl resurfaced.
"What did she say to you, MOMO?" There was a tone in my voice that almost scared me. Her grip tightened, and she glanced around herself to make sure that no one else was listening.
"She... She said something about Daddy and-" She cut herself off abruptly with a short whimper. I wanted to say something to calm her, or even something to take her mind from those evil thoughts, but we were interrupted. We had reached the bridge. We all stepped onto the lift, and it started without a noise. As soon as it came to a halt, Captain Lapis Roman spun around from her spot at the helm. Her face was set, but her dark eyes smiled at us. Shion stepped forward, holding out a small device toward the Captain.
"I present to you the memory bank data from the Anti-Gnosis Humanoid Weapon System KP-X, KOS-MOS. Protection Level AAA, with no possibility of alteration." There was pride in her voice. And why should there not have been? All of us had gone through our own personal hells to get those data for her. Though her face showed no change, the aura of Lapis Roman seemed to sigh with relief.
"Memory bank data accepted. Please remain within the Miltian star system until you're cleared of all charges." A cheer went through those assembled. The blue-haired Realians came up to personally congratulate Jr. on his success. I would have normally expected him to feast gladly on the praise of others, but he was unnaturally silent. When they had passed and Lapis Roman left the bridge, he exhaled loudly and leaned against one of the control panels near him, his arms folded neatly across his chest. Mary's flaxen locks bounced as she bounded up toward the red-haired boy.
"Phew, well I am sure glad that escapade's over and done with!" She said with a sigh. Jr. made no response but to look at his shoes. I felt MOMO peek past my arm to see why he had not spoken up. Shelley turned to face Jr., her face unchanged.
"You don't look very happy." She paused, only for a moment. "Did something happen?" Slowly, Jr.'s eyes looked up, paused on MOMO momentarily, then moved to Shelley.
"Huh? Yeah. You could say that..." He trailed off, his focus now off of the woman. "I still can't believe it..." With a whirr and a soft hum, the elevator returned, and I turned to see it carrying two familiar people.
"We've got another friend of yours to release, too," Lapis Roman said, with the first smile I had ever seen her use. Gaignun Kukai stood next to her, straightening his tie. Both of the Godwin sister ran to him, calling his name and embracing him. I would have expected a giggle from the girl at my arm, but she did not stir. Stared at the top of her head worriedly. What that girl aid to her... Did it really hurt her that badly? I was shaken from my thoughts when Jr. addressed Gaignun.
"Hey," he said simply. His senior smirked.
"You've done well."
"Ahh, no big deal... But..." He trailed off, staring into the stars above, "It sure brought back a lot of bad memories..." After another moment of reflection, he turned to Shion. "Hey, Shion... That girl... She called herself Nephilim, right?" Nephilim... So that was her name... At least now I had a name for that enigma of a girl.
"Uhh... Yeah," Shion said slowly. Jr.'s eyes changed suddenly, to a sharper blue.
"You sure?" His tone was grave.
"Yes, but..." She stopped to watch him as the thought seemed to sink in. "What's wrong?" She asked at last. Jr. seemed shaken from his thoughts, and he gave Shion a look of gravity.
"Well... If that girl is somehow connected to what I'm thinking of... Then things are gonna get real busy, real soon..."
I had failed to notice, in my observation of their conversation, that MOMO had left my side. I turned just in time to see her use the elevator to go down to the bottom floor. I felt myself involuntarily move toward where she disappeared, and I stopped myself short. The sudden movement caught the eye of chaos, who was standing nearby. My eyes glanced up to him briefly, and I saw him give an almost unperceivable nod in the direction MOMO had gone. Again, my feet took me without my asking them to. I took the lift down from the bridge without asking leave, and followed MOMO's thermal trail. I tracked her all the way to the Elsa, where I caught a glimpse of her pink hair stealing into the main doorway. I followed. She lit to the cabin that she and Shion had slept in and closed the door behind her.
I must have stood in front of the door for minutes on end. I could hear her inside, sniffling to herself. I was torn. I wanted to enter, to intrude, and to comfort. I wanted to take her pain and keep it to myself. I wanted to curl every worry and every pain into a ball and place it where it could never be found again. Then again... I had told myself long ago that I would never entangle myself in someone's life again. But just the other day, I had made another promise. And this promise was the one I would keep. I raised my hand to the door and rapped at it quietly with my knuckles. There came a soft, low cry as a response. Worry tugged at my heart, and I knocked a bit louder.
"MOMO," I said quietly. Her sniffling stopped short, and I heard her shuffling quickly to the door. But she hesitated at the door. "You don't have to let me in," I assured her. "I just want to know..." I paused, searching for the right words, "if you're all right." There was a choking cry from the other side of the door, and it slid open effortlessly. MOMO's soft face was streaked with tears, and her eyes swam with fresh pain ready to pour over her cheeks. She made a soft sound in the back of her throat, and the tears spilled from her eyes.
"Ziggy," she choked. Before I could say anything else, she had clamped her arms around my midsection. I had been taken by surprise so many times that day, it was hard for much else to take my breath away. But this had done it. Effortlessly, I scooped her from where she clung and took her into her room. It was dark inside, and none of the lights were on. I left them as they were. I took MOMO to the bunk she slept in and sat at the foot of the bed. I lay down the girl that was shivering in my arms into the folds of the blankets beneath her. Her tears were fresh on her cheeks, and her quiet, hushed sobs escaped through clenched teeth. I pulled a blanket around her and made an involuntary shushing noise. Once she settled down and her cries quieted, I spoke in as quiet a voice as possible.
"What did she say to you?" I asked, feeling my own voice resonate in the darkness. There was silence, and then a sharp intake of breath.
"Sh-she told me I-I-I had to accept what D-Daddy was, and th-that he did b-b-bad things," MOMO said, stuttering on account of her tears. In the dark, I heard the blankets rustle as she moved and curled herself up next to me at the foot of her bed. Before I could stop myself, I opened my mouth and spoke.
"She spoke to me of the past, and how I mustn't keep locking it away."
I realized I had let it slip all too late. But it didn't seem to effect her. Though her breathing calmed and her tears stopped. I felt her yawn widely against me.
"Do you think that what she said was true? That we can change the future... And KOS-MOS?"
"I don't know, MOMO," I told her honestly. We didn't speak then for a long time, but just being there, knowing she was safe, feeling her slow breathing as she lay curled next to me, was enough. The darkness closed in around us, and it was only her I saw. She was all that mattered. I shifted my weight and moved of the foot of the bed. "You need your rest. It's been a long day." I turned to leave, but her small voice called out as I stood in the doorway.
"Ziggy?"
"Hm?" I asked, turning slightly.
"What do you want to keep locked away?"
It was a simple question, but, right now, there were no simple answers. I tried to form some words -any words- to explain... But I couldn't. Finally, I shook my head.
"You... You should get some rest," I repeated. The door slid shut behind me, and I felt as if a heavy weight was lying on my chest. I tried to shake off the feeling, but it would not leave. I gave up quickly, and trudged out of the Elsa and back to the Durandal. Every moment, I checked back to find MOMO's thermal scan. And every time, she was where I had left her.
If I believed that wishes would be granted, I would have wished then and there that the statement would always be true... That MOMO would always be there, always where I left her... Always.