This chapter may be a little short. My bad! It's the chapter just before we go into the Ultimate Stage of Project Meteor, which will be all-out war. We'll also be meeting Generation Zero next chapter (though you have already seen them…)! It gets very fun this chapter with a battle with the famed Akio and Rona!
We also bring forth the fantasy portion of this story in this wonderful chapter! I am such an addict to fantasy stories…I'M ON FUCKING DRUGS! MUAHAHAHAHAHA!
I hope you've figured out what I do and don't own by this time….
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D.S. al Coda
Chapter Nine: Over the Break
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"What's the end of the world?" 0017 blurted out. Verita shifted her weight.
"I'm not sure." She answered forwardly. "I've never really been there. I know how to get there, but I've never really been to the end of the world."
She thrust a finger forward. "That waterfall. Go through it."
008 awkwardly changed the Dolphin's direction to pass through the wide falls.
"Just keep going straight. In about an hour, I'll tell you what to do next."
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A pair of sharp, stone-gray eyes looked around. The saw a white room, and as they looked down, they took in their black clothes.
"Raven," Pierre dared breath. The eyes' owner looked at her brother. Odd, the last time she had seen him, he had been at least seven years younger. He was much taller now, and had a look of evilness that he hadn't carried before. Next to him stood a much older Josephine. She had grown her hair so much, and her face was growing to become more adult-like.
The girl batted her eyelashes once. She was a much prettier version of Alexa, even though they were identical. Alexa's gray eyes had faded to a stone color and her face had worn into harshness. This girl, Raven, was still the pretty young nine-year-old Alexa had once been. Her mind was untainted by the realities that her family bore.
"Pierre, Josephine," Raven asked, puzzled. "I fell asleep only…ten hours ago, right? What's going on?"
Pierre sat down next to his sister. "It's a very long story, Raven. You see…you've been asleep for the last seven years. We woke you up so you could help us."
Raven curled herself up with her knees to her chest. "Project Meteor, right?"
Pierre did a double take. How did this…child, for lack of a better word, know? Alexa was too young to know about it, and Jessica was in the exact same state.
"You told me right before I fell asleep." Raven answered, as if reading his mind. "I can remember."
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The area behind the waterfall was sparkling with crystals. Many were precious stones, and some weren't even Earth elements.
"Verita…what's going on?" 0017 asked, craning her neck back to look at the other girl.
"We've been transported off Earth. We're getting close." Verita replied lazily. She was dozing off. "When you see two people, stop…"
"This is definitely interesting, Verita." 0015 commented. "We suddenly got swept off Earth…how long ago?"
"When you passed through the cave where the walls were water…" Verita said. Her eyelids closed.
0017 gasped.
For before them was a dazzling sight to behold. It was like a city with whimsical spires that flew up into the heavens and sparkling towers. Most of the buildings were made from rubies, diamonds, emeralds, sapphires, aquamarines, peridots, and other such glass-like gemstones. The spires were constructed from silver and gold, and many of their tops flagged an orb of some gemstone. The ground was solid glass. Everything was glittering majestically in the bright beams of moonlight. ((FYI, this is on my English binder right now...everyone likes to read it...strange people...))
But, in front of it all sat a simple, regular-sized, wooden door. Sitting next to it on either side were two people.
The person on the right was a female. She had wavy, waist-length coffee bean-brown hair and eyes of the same shade. Her skin was tanned royally. As a headband to restrain the strands of hair, she wore a golden tiara adorned with a single ruby in its heart. She wore a long-sleeved emerald green dress with gold trim, and the skirt was full and long. The neck scooped down in a low V-shape and was lined with gold. Her sleeves were held at her elbows by golden bands, and then fell the rest of her way to cover her fingertips. They saw a golden bracelet inlaid with rubies around her left wrist. Around her neck hung a golden chain with a ruby star at the end. Her shoes – nearly hidden by her dress – were golden high heels.
On the left was a boy. He wore a pale green tuxedo. His hair was the same color as the girl's was, but his eyes were a calm shade of green. He could have passed for her sister. Around his head was a golden circlet, with an emerald at the center of his forehead. His tie was bottle green and his shirt was a regular white button down one. On his feet were ordinary black dress shoes. He wore on his right index finger a golden ring inlaid with a ruby.
008 and 0017 landed the Dolphin. The two people seemed to take no notice to this fact, and so continued to stare blankly off into space. 009 jumped out of the Dolphin and the two people focused on him.
"Welcome," The girl said. Her voice was commanding and like a lovely tenor saxophone playing. "You've come to reach the end of the world. But before you can reach it, you must pass through us."
The boy put in his ten cents. "Rona, you're so negative! She's right, though. To reach the end of the world, you must fight us."
"What you see is what you want to see. Some see an empty void; some see a field, while others can see a city. In all our years guarding the door, Akio and I have never met a soul who can see what truly lies at the end of the world." The girl, Rona, said. "The lot of you are those who wish to see a city – so you see the most magnificent possible."
By then, the rest other sixteen awake cyborgs had left the Dolphin. Akio and Rona rose from their seats. Standing, they looked like nobility. Their posture was straight, though Akio's was a more relaxed one. He smiled at them.
"Welcome to your end. Only those who can beat us are able to reach the end of the world," Akio said. He drew a sword from thin air and struck 0015.
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The seven young members of the Scarl family sat in their meeting room. Raven and Jessica were listening intently. The topic of today's discussion was how to get them to two of the bases, which were currently orbiting Earth.
"I thought you had this all planned out, you moron." Josephine snapped to Alexa. Alexa shoved the file at her sister.
"Well, God dammit, you find it! The hell with it!" Alexa shouted, throwing her hands into the air.
"Alexa, Josephine, calm down. Project Meteor is nearly at the Ultimate Stage. All we need to do is ask Diana and 0019 to teleport them." Marco said calmly, shoving Alexa back into her seat. Raven and Jessica looked on as their – now much so – older siblings fought.
"I agree with Marco," Pierre remarked. "It seems logical, since Diana's been feeling much better since stage two."
0061 entered. "Sorry for interrupting this happy reunion, but it's important. The Dolphin has left all our radar…and none of us can pick up their transmitting signals."
Raven, Jessica and Alexa were once again the set of triplets they had always been. "Go. Send them off into the satellites." Alexa said. "We need to keep communications with them, so we know if we can get the ball rolling. I'm off to go get 0018 and 0020 to help re-scan. Andrew, go get 0019 and Diana."
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"Oh…this should be good."
"For once, you speak the truth. They're the first to dare and enter Akio and Rona's realm for about fifty years. This should be a good fight."
"Fate, you already know what's going to happen. Just let us watch!"
"Well, Omega…"
"The three of you! Just shut up!"
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"For a girl, you fight pretty good!" 002 shouted to Rona. Rona tossed her head back and gave him a barking laugh.
"You fight like one, so why are you talking?" Rona retaliated, sending a thousand crystal shards flying toward him. She turned on her heel and darted off.
She moves pretty fast for a bitch in a skirt, 0016 thought. She held up her hand to try and hit Rona with her ice.
Rona whipped around and held her hand up as the blue ice flew toward her. A green shield shot up around her entire body. The ice couldn't get through it, or even near it for that matter. 0016 cursed under her breath and tried flames.
This also proved a failure.
The cyborgs had come to the conclusion that Akio and Rona were inhuman. They had to be cyborgs. Magic didn't exist, so it couldn't have been that. Was this "end of the world" merely something put up by Black Ghost to haul them in?
Akio and 0015's swords clashed again. Sparks flew from the metal as the swords were pulled away, only to meet again. Akio laughed.
"Your technique is amazing, 0015," He complimented. 0015 only struck him once more, but he quickly defended himself. "Who did you learn from…and where did this sword come from?"
He didn't wait for a reply. He threw his sword back to Rona, who caught it deftly. Akio held out his hand, and a surge of bright green light flew from it. 0015, taken aback, quickly regained her composure.
"HIKARU NO RYU!" 0015 shouted. Akio tried to defend himself this time, but it didn't quite work out. He got about half a shield up in time, resulting in only half the damage that her attack would have normally caused.
The words Rona and sword were dangerous in the same sentence. Especially when the sentence detailed how she could seriously do damage with it. By the time you could have said this sentence, Rona had gotten around to doing damage to 0016, 0014, and 0021. Rona, through it all, still remained in perfect condition. The two guardians walked to one another and stood next to each other, right in front of the door.
"Look at the city now," Rona said. The cyborgs looked.
The city seemed to be protected by a glass bubble now. The moonlight was fading away on the horizon.
Akio took his sword back from Rona. Rona held out her hand and a double-bladed two-ended sickle appeared there. The blades faced opposite ways. One was silver, inlaid with rubies, and the other gold, sprinkled with emeralds. She tossed her hair over her shoulder and turned the blades so they were at a straight line at her waist.
"You may fight well," Rona said. "But you are no match for us. All you have to do is believe what you see and you will defeat us."
As she talked, 0014 tried to attack her from behind. Rona spun around and caught her neck in the curve of the golden blade.
"One move is all it will take me," Rona said.
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"Here, I'll leave you off here. Okay?" Diana asked through a speaker to Jessica.
"Yes, thank you, Miss Diana." Jessica responded dutifully. Her feet lightly tapped down onto the small base. It was rather like a greenhouse. There were paved streets, thousands of planters, and a large computer network set up next to where she stood. There was glass protecting her from the airless environment outside, although the nine-year-old could see it very clearly.
"If you have any problems, Jessica, don't hesitate to call us." Diana said. "We'll let you know when we start the Ultimate Stage so you can be sure to tell us if that place is livable. If this is successful, Jessica…."
"You don't need to tell me," Jessica cut her off. Diana, back on Earth, clasped her hands to her chest. This poor child had to do this all alone, knowing that her entire family could be killed in the process.
"I'll talk with you later, then," Diana said.
"Later," Jessica echoed sadly.
Diana flipped off the headset and laid it down. She still felt slightly woozy.
"Why don't you go and get yourself something to eat?" Andrew asked. He laid a hand on Diana's shoulder. She turned her head to get a better view of his face.
"Okay…then I'll help search for the Dolphin some more." Diana replied. She stood up from the gray swivel chair. "Even with 0019 searching, we can't seem to locate it. It doesn't make any sense."
"Not much does, these days," Andrew muttered under his breath.
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"She just told them how to get through! I TOLD YOU!"
"ISV, calm down! There's no need to get pissed off about it!"
"…"
"Now, just watch. One of them is bound to realize it sooner or later."
"But OV?"
"OV has no clue what's going on. She's asleep right now."
"Maybe one has the power we've been searching for…"
"Start hoping, Pandora."
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"You could have just listened and made this a lot easier on all of us," Rona said. "I said that you had to accept what you saw and you would defeat us. Instead…"
She waved an arm. In its wake were the scarred bodies of 0021, 0016 and 004. 0017 registered what Rona had just repeated.
"THAT'S IT!" 0017 exclaimed. She looked at the city, which was no longer glittering. It vanished and only the glass bubble remained. Akio turned his head.
"Well, how about that," He said. He held his blade up. "You're a smart child. They're waiting for you."
Rona lowered her sickle. She walked to 0017 and placed the tip of the golden blade to 0017's right shoulder.
"Excellent," Rona said. 0021, 0016 and 004 sprung back up, completely well once more. The other cyborgs who had been injured were healed. "I wish you luck. You will see us again. Should you have any trouble, they'll help you."
She stepped back to stand in front of the door with Akio. Her sickle vanished.
The two clasped hands, waved, and vanished.
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"Still doing okay?" Diana asked.
"Yeah," Jessica replied. "Everything seems to work fine up here. Is Raven okay?"
"Yes. We're about to join you up there, since they're calling the meteorites in right now." Diana said. She heard the child sigh in relief. "Have you seen a red and white ship flying around out there?"
"No, I haven't. Why?" Jessica answered.
"Oh…okay. Don't worry about it, but if you see it before we get up there, call." Diana said, letting a little air out.
"I'll see you soon," Jessica's voice said before static washed into Diana's ears. Diana took the headset off once more and leaned back in the chair. She placed a hand to her forehead and over her eyes.
Using magic like that when you're sick…it's insane, I know… She thought. Diana was still tired and didn't feel like she was on top of the world quite yet. Her body was still tired from using so much energy at phase two. Hell, she was mad at herself for even waking up that morning.
"Jessica still fine?" Andrew asked, laying his hands over Diana's. "And more importantly, are you?"
Diana moved her hand. "Not really. Well, I mean, she is…"
"We need to leave. Josephine, Marco, Alexa and Pierre left about five minutes ago with 0018 and 0020. Do you feel able to transport four more people with your sister's help?" Andrew said. Diana sat up.
"I guess…" She said. "Wait, but isn't 0019 going to take Black Ghost?"
"No," Andrew replied. "My father is going to leave with some of his scientists later on."
They heard something hit the roof. 0019, 0037, 0049 and 0061 appeared in the doorway.
"Let's go. It started." 0019 said. The sisters joined hands. The group was engulf by bright blue light, and was teleported to Raven's base just as another bunch of meteorites hit the roof.
Raven turned to face them. "Welcome."
Andrew looked to Diana. She was leaning against 0019 for support.
"Rae," He asked, "Is there anywhere where Diana could lie down for a while?"
Raven nodded and ran ahead of them. Diana gazed forlornly into 0019's eyes.
"No way," 0019 said sharply. "You have at least an hour or two before we have to start fighting with the ones who attempted an escape. Besides…Generation Zero is supposed to be showing up."
Diana faltered. She was too tired to move. Andrew scooped her up into his arms and followed Raven to a shady tree. Raven watched as the older girl was laid in a sitting position against the trunk, then as her brother sat down next to her.
"Is she okay?" Raven asked. Andrew looked to his youngest sister, and smiled a little at her.
"She's just tired, Rae. Thanks," He answered.
0019 looked up into the stars, through the glass. In a few hours, they would rule all of them. Diana could have cared less for it, but the Scarl family wanted it. 0019 saw the meteors falling to Earth, several too large to burn up in the atmosphere.
"Alexa," Andrew said into a headset he had taken.
"I'm right here, fool," Alexa snapped into her own headset. She was not happy. "What the fuck do you need?"
"Well, shit, I can call to see if you're ready, can't I?" Andrew demanded.
At the moment, Alexa was sitting on Jessica's base. Her long, black hair was tied into a half-bun and pinned by black chopsticks, which had black flower beads dangling from their ends. The rest of her hair fell smoothly to her waist. She wore a sleeveless black dress with a full skirt. Her arms were covered by black kid gloves, and she wore a silver necklace with a black diamond star on it. From her ears hung a black die with colored numbers on the faces, and strappy high-heeled black sandals adorned her feet. No one would see them, since the skirt was so long. She wore mascara to highlight her gray eyes, but that was all on makeup.
"I am," Alexa snapped back. "It's sixteen years of my life that's finally catching up to me. I'm not ready to do this, Andrew. I'm not ready to die!"
Andrew could hear emotion coming from Alexa that he hadn't heard in a long time. She was alone, he gathered. He could hear that she was crying. As much as she wanted power, she wasn't willing to risk her own life to obtain it.
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Verita jumped out of the Dolphin. "Did I fall asleep?"
"Why yes, you did," 0021 said. "I think I did too, for a while…"
She looked at the door. It was unguarded. There was no longer a city behind it, either.
0016 grabbed the doorknob. "Well, everybody, we've made it this far,"
0017 smiled to 004. 0021 and 0014 smiled to 009 and 002. 0016 gave a secretive smiled to 008. They had all reached the end of the world – alive.
0016 turned the knob. She pulled the door open and peered inside.
"Welcome to the end of the world."
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HERE WE GO! IT'S TIME!
Oh my God, I'm so excited! Next chapter will be so much insanity! Shall I take the risk and write it in songfic format? ((evilly smiles)) I'll think….
START POPPING POPCORN NOW, FOOLS!
0015: We, the members of Generation Three, were meant to bring back what the Black Ghost Organization wanted for Generation One. In chapter ten, D.S. al Coda…I'm serious, that's the title of the chapter…we have to attack Black Ghost once more before they take off into space. And when 0016 opened the door, what was behind it? Find out next time!