Raven stalked down the hallways of the Valhalla building like a panther on the hunt. A very angry panther. Each time she met someone in the hall, they hurriedly looked away and sped around her. Her teeth clenched. Cowards, she thought.
She knew she was beyond angry; she also knew that that was not a good thing. She hardly ever got this mad anymore; she could feel the anger coursing through her blood like an icy poison. Raven knew that eventually, it would probably make her sick, but right now, that didn't matter. Because when she'd heard Odin, of all people – Odin, her best friend, practically her brother – give the mission assignments, she'd nearly launched herself across the desk and choked him with his own tie.
To say the news had upset her was an understatement. So many innocent people, killed for no apparent reason…it made her heart ache. She had always been very sensitive to things like that. Death had always affected her badly, and this time was no exception. The reactions seemed to be getting worse; she had almost been able to feel the pain and sorrow, and only from listening to the recording. There was no doubt, she had to find the reason behind the crashes, and stop the threat before it could consume any other civilian lives.
What she'd said had been true, was true. She hadn't gotten her position on Sperare just because she was one of the Leaders' daughters. None of them had, for that matter. They had been through hell to get to where they were, and in exchange, gave up their lives for the future. If there was a future. It was purely coincidence that they were all practically related. Kale was she and Stars' cousin, of course, and Lander's family was so close to her own that they had might as well have been brother and sister. And Odin, well, they five of them had been inseparable growing up, every summer in the Sanc Kingdom.
A flash of pain seared through her, and she stopped, a hand going to her forehead as she fought to rid her mind of the memories. A feeling of being watched caused her eyes to spring open, and she saw several people peering at her curiously as they went about their business. She brushed a stray lock of hair out of her eyes and made sure to glare defiantly at them before starting her prowl again.
The past was gone, and all there was was Sperare. The four of them, along with Odin, had a bond that was unrivaled by anyone or anything; they trusted each other without question, and that was the key factor that elevated Sperare above all the other task forces. As long as they were together, there was nothing they could not do.
She glowered unconsciously as she rounded another corner, sending a young page scurrying away from her. So why where they all turning on her? She had seen it in their eyes: a steely resolve that said they agreed with Odin's orders.
"Stupid, chauvinist morons!" She burst out, not caring who was listening. The only downside to being the only girl on the task force was that she acquired four very protective brothers, who seemed to find it greatly amusing to put her in a cage. For her own good, they said.
She could kick all of their asses. They needed her.
"My, I hope you're not including me in that." A soft feminine voice said amusingly.
Raven jerked her head up. Without realizing it, she had walked into the 'Net', a series of antechambers outside Leaders' offices. She turned toward the sound of the voice, an involuntary flush rising to her cheeks. "Hilde! I'm sorry, I was…thinking aloud." The older woman had obviously been leaving her husband's office as Raven was walking to Heero's.
Hilde Maxwell had the same laughing look in her eyes as her husband and son, but had an underlying no-nonsense way of going about things that set her apart from most women. She didn't at all look to be in her forties – her indigo-black hair didn't have a hint of gray.
Hilde, along with Lucrezia Noin, had been a surrogate mother to Raven after the Fall. Now, those all-seeing blue eyes sharpened on her in the way that only a mother's could.
"They must've done something dreadful this time," Hilde smiled. "But don't you worry about it."
Raven tensed. It wasn't like Hilde to just drop an issue like that. Usually, she would have insisted that they talk about it, then she would have helped Raven plan her revenge, usually in the form of a good prank. But she hadn't; that meant one thing: she knew about the orders. Which meant that they all knew. Raven's anger was dissipating; now, she just felt sick. "It's been awhile since you've been down to the MI building. We've got some really interesting stuff going on that I'm sure you'd love to see." Hilde worked in the Mechanical Intelligence Department, and she was always eager to talk about its projects.
Raven automatically soothed the anger from her face, but wasn't able to take the edge out of her voice. "I'm sorry, Hilde, but I'm short on time. Have you seen Leader Yuy?"
"No, I'm not sure where he is. Probably to the same place my husband has wandered off to." A vague, annoyed look crossed her face. It wasn't convincing enough. There was a reason that Hilde wasn't an actress.
Raven put on a false smile and reminded herself to be tolerant. This was Hilde's way of helping. "If I'm not mistaken, some of the Special Forces trainees are scheduled to have weapons combat practice today. Duo is probably with them in the Pyramid." Which you already knew, she added silently.
"Oh, you're right! Well, since both of our men are probably there, we might as well walk together. I'm not certain I remember the way." Hilde started to walk away, and Raven reluctantly followed, clenching her fists. They both knew that there was no way Heero would be in the Pyramid today, and they both knew that there was a snowball's chance in hell that she would ever forget where the damned building was.
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Raven waved absently to Hilde as the older woman walked past her and out the doors of the Pyramid. Hilde had suddenly remembered 'something she had to do' the moment they arrived. The building was, actually, pyramid shaped, and was located on the north-eastern side of the grounds, among the many buildings of the defense department. It was huge, and served as the main gym for the Special Forces. Only the members of the elite defensive and offensive task forces could train there; all of the other, lower ranked officers used the common gym on the other side of the grounds. As a defining point towards the end of their training, the Pyramid was used to test the men applying for position on the Special Forces teams. Duo had taken it upon himself years ago to oversee all training himself. As the primary head of the Defense Department, he was involved closely with all of the task forces, and he wouldn't have it any other way. Anyone who suggested that he hire a supervisor to take over the small duties like training had mysteriously vanished.
As she walked into the large 'Ballroom' in the center of the building, forty pairs of eyes turned to her. Rather than worry about it, she ignored them. Please, please don't make a scene, she willed to the man in front of her.
Duo Maxwell stood in the middle of a training mat, twirling a long wooden quarterstaff between his fingers. He was tall, though not as tall as Lander, and bulkier. His long braid hung over his shoulder, untouched by age. Many years of laughter and even more years of hardship had lined his face, but it didn't make him look old. Just…enduring. Raven had no doubt that Duo would outlive them all.
Upon seeing his charges' attention no longer on him, he turned; when he saw her, his face brightened. "Ah, Ariel, just the person I was wishing for." He winked at her.
Awed whispers broke out amongst the group of trainees, most of whom were men an at least her age, if not older. She barely stifled a groan and wished fervently for a pair of sunglasses. You did that on purpose, you evil, incorrigible man! She thought furiously He couldn't have kept things anonymous for once, could he? This was not doing much to help her mood. Being on Sperare had elevated all of their names – or, their call signs, rather, as no one knew their given names – to a sort of celebrity status. Workings of elite task forces was often published in the newspaper (very vague, condensed versions, naturally), and Sperare was a legend. All four of them expended all efforts to stay out of any sort of public eye and knowledge, even at the IC. Often, they would wear uniforms of lower ranked officers, or do any number of things to keep their faces nameless. Unfortunately, the fact that "no one had ever seen" the members of Sperare only added to their mystique. And it had been a long running debate among everyone whether 'Ariel' was a woman or a man. Most people thought it was a man, masquerading with a feminine call sign. Well, now these guys knew the truth. Of course, they probably wouldn't tell anyone. They had to be elite to be trying out for the Special Forces, which meant they were smart; they were also probably scared out of their mind to do something that would piss off the Leaders.
At the moment, though, she actually looked like herself. The chemists and artists in the Camouflage lab had taught all of them tiny things that could be done that would alter a person's appearance entirely. But she was supposed to be on vacation, and hadn't bothered with it. It had been refreshing to actually see her own face in the mirror for once. Of course, her dark, waist length hair was pulled up, and her long bangs needed a cut so badly that they covered her exotic, cerulean blue eyes. If that was even their color, today; they tended to change, and often. She couldn't begin to guess what her anger had done to their color. She shrugged subtly. It didn't matter if every one of the men in the training hall remembered every detail of her face; the likelihood that she would ever see them again looking the same was practically nil.
Duo was grinning at her rather devilishly, and she knew what he would ask before he spoke the words. "I've been needing someone to show these guys the right way to block with the 'staff. Spar with me?" He smiled cheekily and rocked back on his heels. "It'll only take a minute."
Raven barely muffled a curse and looked down at herself. The navy blazer and matching pencil skirt, white oxford shirt, panty hose, and three-inch matching pumps were not exactly training garb. It was an understood rule that everyone who worked in the KIC was to dress respectably, though that rule really didn't apply to Sperare. She had come to work in cutoffs and t-shirts before. But she hadn't exactly packed a lot in her duffle today, and her choices were either this or her fencing garb. She chose this.
She smiled at him through clenched teeth. She could not disrespect him by refusing in front of his charges. As soon as she had a weapon she would knock that damn, mocking twinkle right out of his eyes. "It would be my pleasure, Leader Maxwell." She shrugged out of her blazer and rolled up the sleeves of her shirt. He raised an eyebrow at her sheathed wrists. Raven unbuckled them and tossed them on her jacket. She left the thigh sheath alone; she wasn't about to lift her skirt in front of the whole class, and besides, the dagger probably wouldn't get in her way. And, if she was lucky, she might even get to use it. Spring it on Duo or something, just for kicks. That would set them all to talking. He tossed her a quarterstaff. She snatched it angrily out of the air. She was spoiling for a good fightA jolt of adrenaline shot through her blood as she and Duo circled on the mat. It had been four years since she last held a quarterstaff, let alone used one. She briefly contemplated telling the trainees that the only use they would ever get out of the weapon was playing 'Little Bunny Foo Foo' and bopping each other on the head. She decided not to. Most of them probably wouldn't understand, anyway. She spun the quarterstaff both directions, testing it. The weight of it was completely balanced, and completely foreign in her hand.
Duo struck fast, but not at his best; he was going easy on her, she realized, as she reacquainted herself with the weapon. She closed her eyes and concentrated on feeling his attack, matching him but not initiating any moves. As she fell into the easy tempo of strike-and-block, he increased his attack, but she followed him without a problem. As the fight became more close-contact, Duo started talking, for her ears alone.
"Great day, isn't it?"
She growled and increased her attack to match his. "Where is Leader Yuy? I am looking for him."
He looked at her carefully as he skillfully dodged and parried. "He was going to get in touch with some of his contacts to see what he could find out about the crashes. That was a few hours ago."
At the mention of that, her anger that had been dissipating with Duo's steady fire returned full force. She threw it into the fight, whirling her staff in a blurred circle to block his attack. It was several seconds before he studied her carefully and spoke again. How he could look like he was talking about the weather and effortlessly match her, she didn't know.
"You're mad because he's got you grounded, and you shouldn't be. First thing, he's the boss here. Second, your coordinator and teammates agree with him. Third, you know he's right."
She barred her teeth. "He – is – not – right!" She punctuated each word with a strike from her staff. Vaguely, she was aware of her hair coming loose from its coif and falling down her back, but she didn't care. "How could taking me away from my team be right! We just don't work without each other, Duo, you know that."
Duo staggered under her assault, but managed to reply. "I know you're upset, but you have to stop thinking that this is all about you, angel. Look at the big picture instead. Did you ever stop and think that he was doing the team a favor by keeping you here?"
She gasped and flinched as though she'd been struck. The beginnings of tears were like pinpricks in her eyes, but she angrily swallowed them down. Before he had time to block her, she snarled and struck with all the force she could muster and his quarterstaff went flying out of his hand. Before he had so much as turned towards it, she had her quarterstaff over the kill point at his throat. She didn't have to have a mirror to know that a wild, wounded fury blazed in her eyes. The both stood there, eyes locked, heaving with exertion. But her staff did not shake. Not that she would ever hurt him; but right now, she had him, even if she couldn't do anything with it.
"He's not trying to hold you back, Ariel. He's only trying to help them by keeping you here. It's been getting worse, you know that. God only knows what would happen if you saw that crash site. We need to be able to get some quality information from the debris, and they wouldn't be able to do that if something were to happen to you." His eyes were sincere, and he reached out and squeezed her shoulder comfortingly. He didn't know what was going on with her any more than she did. Her shoulder slumped defeatedly and she let her staff drop to her side. "If I were you, I wouldn't waste my time talking to Heero. I would be down in Doc Mac's lab, trying to figure out what's going on with me. The sooner you do that, the sooner everything can go back to normal."
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Helos were a relatively new technology, derived from helicopters, and Stars rather liked to travel by them. They were not only bigger and faster than their archaic forefathers, but they also were moderately inexpensive to operate and very difficult to strike down. The prototype they were in now, called the Scythe, also had the unique ability to run completely silent. That was always a plus when you didn't particularly want to be seen; and as a member of Sperare, you always needed to be invisible. It was also sort of creepy, but as long as he wasn't the one on the wrong end of a Helo, it was all good.
Stars tried to concentrate on the blur that was scenery as the aircraft made its way toward the crash site. He wasn't piloting, though all of them could; Kale had decided to take the controls this time, and he had to admit he was grateful. He wanted to spend the forty minute ride brainstorming, though in the ten minutes since they left the IC headquarters he hadn't had much success.
The three of them were an excellent team. They were brothers in all but name, and got on brilliantly. As a task force, they were completely seamless, like one, single entity. But at the moment, each of them was so completely unsettled that it was…well, unsettling. Kale had automatically sat in the pilot seat when they had boarded the aircraft without so much as a word. That hardly ever happened. Usually, they had a mini rock-paper-scissors tournament to see who got to drive. Lander hadn't laughed once since the debriefing. When they boarded the Helo, he had immediately gone back and raided the stock of rations in the cargo bay; three Twinkies and a Pop Tart later, he had gone back to fetch more. He had spent the past five minutes trying to unsuccessfully open a bag of salt and vinegar potato chips. Lander's stomach was a bottomless pit, but never in a million years would he have eaten salt and vinegar chips. His hands were busy, but his eyes betrayed him. And as for Stars himself, he had always been able to do quick, thorough, and objective analysis to uncover aspects and angles of problems that no one had ever thought of before; it was one of the reasons he was the leader of Sperare. But today, despite the severity of the mission, the possible horrors of what the crashes could mean, he couldn't brainstorm at all, couldn't keep his mind focused for a single minute. None of them could concentrate, and he knew why. Raven.
They were all a family, a team, not to mention best friends, and Lander and Kale rightfully treated her as they would an incredibly close sister. But she was more than Stars' sister – she was his twin. They were a part of each other; he knew her better than she knew herself, as she likewise knew him. And 'that freaky twin thing' was a connection that crossed distance and time, like a lifeline between them. Right now, that connection was like an itch he couldn't scratch. Wherever she was, she too was tense and uneasy and hurting. Beyond that, lately she had been hiding things from all of them. To Stars, it was as if the past was coming back to haunt him.
All of them had gone through the worst hell imaginable during the Fall; no one should ever have to watch the world crumble around them at such a young age. But to have your mother murdered and your home burn to the ground on the same day – your birthday, no less – was nothing short of life shattering. He had remained physically unscathed, but Raven had barely escaped death; and with the massacre that followed the Fall, it had been nearly a year before she'd fully recovered. And it was right after the Fall that it started happening.
As a child, she had always been the intuitive one, when it came to people. She knew when they were sad or angry, even if they tried to hide it. Then, as a teenager, she was able to discern emotion by touch or sight; a simple brush of the arm, and if the feeling was strong enough, she could sense it. He and Raven had had great fun with it. With her being able to read other people so well, and his ability to read her, they had quite the monopoly on manipulating people. But during the Fall, it all came crashing down.
Every person on the planet and beyond was consumed in unimaginable pain. None of the great terrorist attacks in history could hold a candle to the damage done in that one day across the globe. No person was left untouched from the clutches of grief, panic, and sorrow. In the thunderous war that followed, the world's heartache only intensified. It nearly killed Raven.
Her already fragile psyche was overpowered with the onslaught of emotion. Later, she had said that it was as if she felt all the world's pain and death at once. She thrashed and screamed and cried for weeks on end, caught in her own nightmare. They had been able to do nothing but watch her waste away. Like her body, her mind had barely survived. But she was the strongest person he knew, and somehow, she had fought her way through.
Raven's 'hyper-empathy' had increased tenfold from its paltry nature before the Fall, but as the years passed and she got used to it, it became more and more of a nonissue, just another part of her. She had become much more adept at sensing emotion, but otherwise claimed it to be completely dormant; now, she simply possessed a killer instinct and unrivaled intuition. In fact, her 'touch and know' abilities had been beyond helpful on more missions than he could count. But lately…
In the past few months, she was being affected by something. At first, she would gasp in pain and go rigid, saying that she felt a pulsing pain, like an energy of some sort; sometimes it was so strong that even they could feel it. She had also been seeing things, usually right after she touched someone's skin. And last week marked the fourth time in half as many weeks that she had blacked out.
He knew it was something to do with her…whatever it was. Talent, he thought. Whatever in the hell you call it. There was just a faint change in her right after it happened. And though her blue eyes had the hazel quality of changing regularly, they had become so dark a cobalt after her black outs that he couldn't dismiss it as a mood change. Not to mention that she wasn't sleeping well – he could tell by subtle change in the way she held her posture, and the occasional look in her eye. Naturally, as her other half, only he could have noticed. He hadn't said anything to the others, though he was sure that Lander and Kale would figure it out soon.
And he knew that Raven knew she wasn't fooling him.
Because she knows what it is, he seethed. She knows, and she won't tell me. Voicing the thought, even in his head, as much as confirmed it. Even if she didn't know for certain, he was almost positive that she had at least a general idea of what it was, which was more than he could say for the rest of them. It was behind her eyes when she looked at him – a pleading for forgiveness for not telling him what she knew. He glanced around the Helo at his other two companions. This was not only hurting her, it was hurting them. They just couldn't function right without her. She was their soul.
Damn it all to hell. He groaned and rested his head in his hands for a moment before taking a deep breath and sitting up. He couldn't let this throw their assignment.
"Merlin, pull up a topographical map of the target area. We don't want to call attention to ourselves by landing the Scythe in someone's backyard." Stars checked his watch; only five minutes to go. He got up and went to the cargo hold to ready anything they might need to take with them; it would probably be a thirty minute run from the Helo to the site, and they wouldn't have the luxury of going back and forth from the Dancer's remains.
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Doctor Laura Mackenzie's title was the Head of Psychology and Psychological Research, and considering all the emotional crap in the world, especially among task force members, it was one bitch of a job. When the branch of scientific research – the Cathedral – was started, she had overseen the psychological tests of every single elite task force member. Two years ago she had given up and had other doctors brought in to play shrink, while she 'concentrated exclusively on supervision.' She had moved her office out of the psychology building and into what used to be a small church on the outskirts of the Cathedral. Actually, it was the very building that the whole Cathedral had been named after all those years ago. She thought it was great fun that her office was the only one in the entire branch to come complete with its very own stained-glass windows.
In real life, she had dropped everything to become The Doctor for Sperare. Zechs had given her a raise. She said it was ten times harder and a hell of a lot scarier than her old job, even though her patient list had dropped from ten thousand to four. As their doctor, she not only took care of all their 'issues,' but also all their medical work. And she was the chief (read: only) researcher for what she called 'Sperare-esque' things; aka all the things that would scare all the interns in the Intelligence Department shitless. After all, she hadn't graduated as valedictorian from MIT while-pursuing-three-majors for nothing. And yes, she was only thirty-two, thank you very much.
Now, Mac's lab was the single-most 'important' building in the Cathedral, and maybe even the entire KIC. Meaning it was the last building we ever wanted anyone from Fovuc to see the inside of. It was the only place on the planet that had actual records of Sperare. Therefore, the lab was a summit of national security. It was the only place that Sperare 'existed.' It was the place where all of the top secret, confidential stuff was started. So, thus, should there be a giant invasion of the KIC, it would be protected at all costs. Of course, the little church had been 'modified' to protect itself upon occupation: gates reinforced with adamantine and its very own security muse, among many, many other things.
But the chance that any wayward invader would ever suspect the building of being the cornerstone to Kanori defense was slim to none. It just didn't look very special. The two floors of the lab – the sanctuary and the balcony that overlooked it -- were alarmingly ordinary. The uppermost floor was like a loft, enclosed in glass; it had been converted into Mac's 'office.' On the bottom floor, the walls were smooth, gray stone. It was divided into different sections by various countertops and islands. All sorts of various 'projects' littered the surfaces of the counters, but all things considered, the room looked like you would expect a psychologist's lab to look like. Very neat and clean and tasteful and all that.
But today, Raven noted blandly, it was in an absolute uproar. Or, about as uproarious as it got around there. Her perch on the edge of Doc Mac's desk offered a perfect view of the room below. What looked like a metal, abstract version of a tree was shooting a dark brown fluid into a bowl on the table across from it. Above the din of a shrieking lava lamp, a blur could be heard rushing from table to table; that would be Simon, the doctor's wiry assistant. Another man, in his sixties with a halo of unruly white hair that made him look quite the eccentric scientist, was following Simon as fast as his legs could carry him, waving his hands in the air about something. That was the only other assistant, Henry. And Raven was fairly certain she had just heard a dog barking.
One of the few stipends Mac had issued when she had begun to work exclusively with Sperare was that she be allowed two 'secretaries.' Enter Henry Rowntree, top British scientist and inventor of more things than he could remember. Henry was seventy years young, and in a serious relationship with his work. If 'serious' was a word you could apply to him; it was a universal agreement that perhaps Henry had spent ten years too many in a lab without proper sunlight. And then, of course, was Simon Edison – yes, like Thomas Edison, only better. Simon was sixteen; when he was twelve, he had hacked into the mainframe of the KIC and replaced everyone's boring old screensaver with either a naked, dancing leprechaun, or a rabbit that flipped you off, depending on what department you were in. Instead of being punished, he was recruited. Now, he and Henry invented practically all the 'spy-stuff' that Sperare used on missions.
I'd better go down there before someone gives themselves an aneurism, she thought wryly. She made her way down the staircase and walked to the table where the two scientists stood, Henry still gesturing wildly. He was wearing some sort of magnifying glasses that took up his whole face. Both shoes were untied. In his hand, he had a beaker full of something that simmered. Einstein prodigy? Definitely. Raven managed to get right beside them before they took notice of her. Henry jumped like he'd been shot.
"Ariel! Lass, you scared the fire out of me!" Henry frowned and motioned towards the loft. "Blimey, how in the light did you get up there without me awares, eh? And Simon as well! They've taught you too well, they have." He nudged Simon, who was blinking at her through his inch-thick glasses as if he had never seen her before.
Raven laughed delightfully. Along with the rest of Sperare, the three occupants of the lab were the only people she considered friends. Sneaking into the room had become a tradition for her, as a conversation between her and the two assistants rarely ever began without Henry's exclamation over her sudden appearance – most of which were never very sudden. She made a cursory glance around the ransacked-looking workstations. "Something interesting come through, Henry?"
If the man had been twenty years younger, she thought he would've squealed with glee. "Cor, yes. It has me and Simon absolutely knackered, not to mention the good doctor, but its revolutionary, Ariel. Positively brill." Simon bobbed his head eagerly at Henry's side and pushed his glasses back up the bridge of his nose. "The Leaders gave us some new information – you'll have to come to the main strait away – it's smashing, really – amazing, and we never knew! – who'd have thought…I suspected it as codswallop at first, myself, but naturally it is not – it's the first real breakthrough we've had, and oh, the doctor believes it might have something to do with you! Imagine it all! It's blooming --"
It stopped just as quickly as it started. Laura Mackenzie stood in the doorway with her hands on her hips and one immaculate eyebrow raised. "I see Henry's not wasting any time telling this top secret information where anyone could overhear." She smiled as she shook her head, and turned to Raven. "Good morning, Ariel. You don't look any worse for wear. Excellent. I would've thought you'd be lit up like a Christmas tree after this morning."
That was Mac. Always straight to the point. Raven smiled weakly, "You caught me too late. It's already been drained out of me."
"Ah. Well, you're here for a reason," she said briskly. "Let's get down to the basement, then, and I'll try my hand at pissing you off." She walked over to the back of the room, were a series of bookcases lined the wall. "Aubrey. Open the door." Aubrey was the security muse in the lab. Ask, and ye shall receive. The center bookcase slid soundlessly outward; a narrow staircase vanished into the darkness below it. "Power up the lights." The lights bloomed into a fine glow, beckoning them below.
Contrary to appearances and general knowledge, a third floor, a basement, lay below the church, accessible only by that one bookcase. Only three voices could get Aubrey to open the door – Mac's, Simon's, or Henry's. It was in the basement, or the 'main,' that the actual lab existed. The upper floors were a front, used mainly to display Henry and Simon's spare inventions or gadgets. Practically everything down below was classified top secret.
The room itself had always been one of Raven's favorite places. Instead of the smooth walls of the upper floors, the basement had rough stone pavers all the way around, as if it were built in another time. The air was always a little too cool, from the dampness of the earth around them, and the lighting was dim; Mac had never liked halogens, she said, and the low lighting was adequate enough. Most of the tables catty-cornered around were made of roughly cut, dark wood. All the chairs were comfortable, but not overly so. A huge, salt water aquarium made up one wall. There were piles of books, manuscripts, and file folders everywhere. And strangely enough, having the best of technology scattered in with all the archaic elements was somehow appropriate. The entire room was just so…alive. Raven went to the table closest to her and lifted a sheaf of papers off a pile of books, reading their titles. A Quest into Alternate Universes. Investigating the Preternatural. Psychic or Psycho? A Book of Spiritual Power. The Fiber of the Universal Plane.
Raven frowned. What? She looked around the rest of the room, taking in all the discrepancies. The three glass screens that were usually retracted to the ceiling were not only down, but buzzing with activity. Each of them held map-like images, with different blinking lights and sectional scans running on two of the three. One held what looked like star charts. Across the room from the screens, a three dimensional globe was spinning in midair, complete with miniature space colonies and bases around it. Something was happening. Something big. She turned her attention to the other side of the room, where the three occupants of the lab had gone.
A second series of glass screens on the wall opposite the fish tank was scrolling a series of information – heartbeat, brainwaves, notes on the patient. She started to walk forward and froze. Those were her psych evaluations, all of them; every single test she'd done in the past two months. Her brain worked furiously. That was not unusual. She was one-fourth of the focus of the entire lab. Yeah, that was fine. Normal. Right.
"What am I thinking, Ariel?" Mac was looking at her in a strangely intense, eager, hungry way. It was almost creepy. No, it was creepy.
Raven frowned. "What did you say?"
Mac walked over to her so they were mere inches apart. "Tell me what I'm thinking. Tell me why you're here. Look at me, and feel it, and tell me."
"Mac, what the hell is going on?"
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Author's Note:
Thanks so much to my wonderful reviewers: lulu, cool youkai, phe, golden ballet! You guys rock my face off.
And to answer lulu's question: Where are Winner, Barton, and Chang?
A: grin That's the fun part – everyone assumes that all the pilots' children would be on the same side in the war…I assure you, they do exist, and we'll be meeting them soon enough.
read? REVIEW!