Chapter Seven

"We got a new mission," Charlie said.

Scott lifted up his head from the table and raised one eyebrow, angry about being disturbed.

"Yeah, so?" Scott fixed his tangled shirt and rubbed his head, "What's it about?"

Charlie quickly grew a puzzled face, "I'm actually, not to sure."

Scott patted his dirty pants, "What do you mean, you don't understand? What kind of stupid mission is this?"

Charlie fixed his glasses and brushed his golden hair out of his eyes, "Well, you see. It says here all we have to do is capture this guy, dead or alive."

"Right?"

"He'll be hosting this ball just two weeks from now, where we can get him."

"Yeah."

"He's a genius, but a little mentally retarded."

"This seems pretty simple to me Charlie, what aren't you getting?"

Charlie took a deep breath in, "Well, you see. The reward for this guy, brought back dead is four million kitons."

"Four million!" that was equivalent to five hundred twenty million dollars.

"Yeah, and brought back alive is eight million."

"Hot damn, how many people have heard about this?" Scott was already putting his trench coat on.

"Pretty sure nobody, this came straight from Thompson. He liked our work and got us some more work if we want it."

"All right then, let's get on the road and do this shit," Scott was already imaging himself swimming in the dirty money.

Charlie didn't seem to thrilled, "I don't know, something seems just to weird. That much money for this little of a job."

"Listen my pal," Scott put his left arm around Charlie and let his right arm slowly move in a horizontal straight line in front of them, "All we have to do is kill this crazy old fart and we can be swimming in some serious fur burger action. What's not to like?"

Charlie moved away so Scott's arm fell to his side, "Don't you ever think without your dick?"

Scott smiled, "Once or twice, but what's the fun in that?"

"Well, I guess we can do this, but it's a few days away on a train, so we better get ready and leave by the end of the week."

There was a small sneeze followed by a quick curse behind the locked door. Then there was a little rustle sound, as if someone was getting up from a long rest on his or her knees.

"Lu is that you?" Scott questioned.

Suddenly the sound stopped, as if whatever was beyond the door knew that it was caught.

"Yes," the voice was muffled but they could still tell it was Lu.

Charlie went and opened the door and she stepped slowly in.

As she was just in enough to where the door could shut behind her, Scott began to question her, "What all did you hear?"

"I heard it all," she slowly replied, in a very quite voice.

Scott was upset at the fact she was once again trying to spy on them.

"Can I go?" Lu looked up at Charlie first, trying hard not to look at Scott.

"No the fuck you can't go. What on earth gave you that dumb ass idea?" Scott said quickly.

Charlie looked over at Scott, "Actually, I was just going to bring this up before we had this little interruption. The man that we are to capture is going to be at a very 'exclusive' ball. I can find a way to get you some fake invitations, but they aren't just going to let a guy like you in, even with an invitation. You're going to need a woman to accompany you."

Scott's jaw dropped, "You think I'm shady? Is that what you're saying?"

Charlie lifted both eyebrows, giving him a look, which implied of course.

"Fucking shit. Whatever, it's at least four million if we get this done. I'll fight for that shit. But you!" Lu was caught of guard and quickly looked at Scott, "You do as exactly as I say. This isn't a field trip."

Scott got up and opened the door, almost running over Lu, then slammed it behind him.

Lu didn't feel the same way she did when Charlie said she could come.

"Don't worry," Charlie said, "Scott's just worried about your safety. I know for sure he is glad you're coming."

Charlie's warm smile took any doubt out of her mind, and she smiled back.

A few days passed and they had everything set: the money, the invitations, the train tickets, the ostentatious clothes, and much more that was needed to pull this new task off.

Scott had noticed that Lu had seemed to become more nervous as the days went on. She had never been to a mercenary mission before and probably most likely worried about one of them being killed. Scott laughed at that idea though. 'Me die? Impossible, I'm just to damn good.' However, in the back of his mind, he was still worried about her.

He had never had to protect someone before. He never cared about Charlie, because he always knew how to fight and get himself out of his own messes. Scott's belief was that in a time of war, or fight, having someone you know, or something that you care about, even if it is there, or if it is one thousand miles away, could ruin you. Being able to fight without worry of dying is the key tool to any warrior's true success. However, if he had to protect Lu if things got bad, would it really be that different?

Scott put all those featherbrained ideas in the back of his head. There was no time to worry about that now. It was time for them to move out.

Suddenly, however, he felt a weird sensation in his head. It was like something was trying to tell him something, but he couldn't understand; like he had done this before, or something. He closed his eyes and could picture another woman, but he couldn't see her face. She bore no remembrance into Scott's mind, yet she would not leave his thoughts. After a few minutes she returned back into Scott's brain, and was lost from his eyes. He couldn't even remember what he had just seen, even though it only happened a few seconds ago.

He sat and thought about it for a few seconds, quickly losing track of time.

"Hey Scott, what are you doing? There's no time for day dreaming. The train leaves in twenty minutes. We have to go now if we want to catch it." Charlie gently pushed Scott.

Scott looked around as though he was broken from a deep trance, and slowly got up.

"Man I fucking hate these monkey suits," complained Scott as they walked over to where Lu was.

Charlie ignored him and they continued to walk in silence throughout the carts. When they finally had reached the room which Lu had been changing in, Charlie knocked on the door.

"Coming, hold on please," there was a ruckus of sounds.

The door opened, and Lu stepped outside. Scott, who had been looking out the window, saw Lu's reflection in the glass. He turned around quickly and fell silent. He never imagined that Lu could look so amazing. Her hair shinned, her eyes shimmered, her lips looked soft and warm, and her whole body radiated with beauty. The dress she wore was pink with a purple sash around her shoulders. Her high-heels were white and her hair was let down to her shoulders. Was this really Lu? Scott had never actually seen Lu outside of her work clothes, which were always sweaty and stained.

"You look nice," she said.

Coming back to Earth and noticing he was turning red, he quickly turned around gazing out the window.

"You too," his voice was weak and innocent.

Charlie coughed to break up the mood, "Well, well, you two are now officially married. Your names are Jonas and Leoni Hayner, and you are here from Germany. You met on the subway, when Leoni was being mugged and have fallen for each other even before the War. Jonas, you fought for your country and was rewarded with medals, you may make up some medals if you please but its fine to just leave it at that. You were married four years ago on May twenty-ninth of the year. Jonas, you are twenty-five and Leoni, you are twenty-two. If there is anything I forgot, you are going to have to make it up on the spot, good luck."

Lu was surprised that Charlie had the situation so planned out. She would have never thought about making up false lives. No wonder Scott always went on these missions without worry, having a partner like him.

"Do you two understand what your mission is?" Charlie asked.

"Yeah," Scott replied.

Lu didn't know, she felt sad being kept in the dark and was about to ask what it was, "Don't worry Lu just follow what I say and things will work," Scott smiled down at her and grabbed her arm gently.

"Attention: We will be arriving in Tethor momentarily. Please grab all your belongings and we wish you a peaceful night. Again: We will be arriving in Tethor momentarily."

Scott thought about what the man said. Tethor, what city had actually been here before this one was made? Exactly were in ancient America was he really going? If only there were still atlases before the war.

Before he could finish his thoughts there was a loud whistle as the train came to a halt and the doors opened.

"Thank you for traveling with us, we hope your trip was enjoyable. Please do not forget your belongings and have a safe trip."

Charlie quickly walked away to get their car which should have been left in the parking lot of the station. Scott and Lu stood silent under a florescent light.

"Leoni, are you nervous," Scott was already into character, and had even added a German accent to his tongue.

Lu nodded, knowing she couldn't replicate an accent so quickly, she decided to just try not to talk too much.

"That's okay; there is nothing to be scared of. We'll be fine," Scott smiled at her.

She wondered why he had been so nice and gentle to her. Charlie pulled around the corner and stopped right in front of them. He stepped out and was already dressed himself.

"As of now I am nothing but your chauffeur," he smiled as he opened the door for both Scott and Lu; helping them in.

A few moments later they were in front of Darthon Manner, where their target Maxwell Darthon resided. Charlie let both of them out and the couple walked up to the door together. Rain began to pour on them heavily and it bothered Lu. They had forgotten an umbrella for such things.

"Hold onto me tighter, we are supposed to be married," Scott demanded.

Lu followed commands and wrapped her arm around his and brought her head near his chest. She could hear his loud heart. It pulsated quick and rash. She wondered if he was nervous.

When they reached the door a butler stood right outside from the party. He looked at both of them for a moment.

"Welcome Sir and Madame to the Darthon Manner, may I please see your invitations?" he spoke clearly and smooth.

Scott handed out the phony invitation to the butler and gently bit down on his tongue. The butler stared at it with a questionable face. It almost seemed that he did not believe that it was real. Just as Scott was about to get nervous, the butler smiled.

"Welcome to Darthon Manner Mr. and Mrs. Hayner. I'm sorry I must check for your invitations, but you know how uncertain these times are."

"Not a problem," Scott smiled at him and Lu waved at him as they entered the manner.

The inside of the manner was more elegant than Scott could have imagined. From the entrance, Scott and Lu were lead down a long hallway. It sprouted into a large room that was completely light by a giant fire place, with many sofas, chairs, and other things. Scott had to bite his tongue from letting out awe at all of the expensive objects. From the room, there were many other corridors and a stair case that lead to even more corridors. Scott and Lu were clueless as to where they should be heading. Luckily a group of people had arrived before them, so they just followed.

The room that they were in had no comparison to the ballroom they had just entered. The ceiling and walls were colored with light orange and red drapes hung at every window and in random places. Hanging in perfect alignment from one to another were giant chandeliers that were made out of diamond and shown off by many candles. The floor was completely covered in marble and showed a mirror image of everyone around. There were countless tables and a semi-large area for people to dance. Next to the dance floor there was a small band of stringed instruments that let out a slow yet sunny song.

Scott and Lu were breathless. The shear thought that someone could still afford to live in a place like this on this country was astounding. The best they had seen was a simple home with two beds, and that was called luxurious. This was just beyond words to the couple.

"Welcome, welcome," an unknown man approached Scott, "How are you doing today my fine Sir and Madame?"

"We very fine Sir," Scott smiled back.

After a few seconds the stranger moved his head, as though he was hit by a small rock, "I do say, where are my manners? I forgot to introduce myself," he laughed heavily for a second, "My name is Captain Degery Lathon.

He put a hand for Scott to shake, and Scott accepted.

"I am Jonas Hayner, and this is my loving wife Leoni Hayner."

Lu smiled, "How do you do?" she asked.

Lathon smiled, "I am quite fine myself, dear; such a beautiful day for this most exquisite party."

Captain Degery Lathon was an average male. He still appeared to be in tip-top physical condition. He had smooth graceful short black hair that was slicked back. His eyes let of a remarkable blue glow. Same of his remarkably straight glossed white teeth, that he constantly smiled off. His attire was of the Polish Military Uniform. He wore a dress shit with a green gala vest over. There were stripes all over his jacket, although Scott didn't know exactly what any of them meant these days. His pants were black with a red stripe down the leggings, which lead to polished black shoes. Scott could see his reflection in them.

"If you don't mind me asking," Lathon came close to the couple, "Exactly how do you know Mr. Darthon?" Lathon's face was straight and stern.

"Mr. Darthon is a distant relative of mine; before the war. We weren't very close but we are still some- what family. I guess he just likes inviting a lot of people."

Lathon stared into his eyes for a second then smiled, "That is true he did invite a lot of people didn't he?"

Scott sighed inside.

"Well, Sir, Madame, if there is anything I can help you with please just call me. I'll be getting back to the party now," Lathon quickly took his leave.

"That was close," said Lu.

"Tell me about it, let's sit down and wait for the time to come," they retreated to a lonely table where they hoped they would not be bothered.

Luck was not on their side however. Lathon returned and seemed shocked to see them sitting by themselves in a corner. Scott knew this was trouble when he began to approach.

"Look alive," he muttered.

"My, my, what are the lovely two of you doing here all alone by yourselves?" he sat down for a moment, "Why don't you go take the next song that plays and dance your hearts out?"

Scott couldn't refuse; if he did he would seem boring or suspicious. He quickly grabbed Lu's hand and went up to the dance floor. The next song to play was a Spanish song that Scott recognized from earlier in his life. Lu was still shocked at how forceful Scott truly could be. Yet, it didn't bother her at all. The music started slow and both of them held each other close. Then without warning the music sped up and Scott began to move faster and faster. He didn't say anything or change his expression of concentration. Lu had not danced much and was taken by his quickness, till she couldn't keep up and let him lead her throughout the entire dance.

All the rest of the people around stopped dancing and watched the passionate couple as they expressed themselves. However, just as the song started, it ended. Everyone clapped and Scott turned bright red. He didn't know what came over him and he quickly took Lu out of the room to a balcony right beside it.

The rain had stopped pouring for the moment and the air was cool. When they were both relaxed Lu spoke, "That was amazing Jonas."

"I don't know what came over me. Guess I had just heard that song to many times as a kid," he smiled at her.

She blushed. Is this really Scott? The one who always ridiculed her and laughed at her every effort? The one who teased her when she was young, always attempting to keep her down?

Before she could finish her thoughts Scott turned towards her, "I'm sorry," his words were soft.

"For wh-," before she could finish her question he grabbed her chin quickly yet soft and kissed her.

For a moment timed stopped and both held onto their breaths, never wanting to stop. Lu became flushed and closed her eyes. She put her hands around his waist and back. After a few moments Scott removed his lips from hers and stared at her for a moment.

"I'm sorry for anything I've said. I never meant it. I just want you to know, just incase something goes wrong," he stared at her eyes.

"Don't talk like that," she said, turning her flushed face while still holding onto him, "We will be fine, we can do this," she smiled with both eyes closed.

Their dramatic silence was cut short by the sound of a ringing phone. Scott pulled it out of his inside coat pocket.

"This means that Darthon is alone in his quarters. It's time," he pushed himself away from her.

"Yeah, let's do it," she replied.

Deep in Lu's mind she feared something. When this was over and they both returned, would Scott still have the same attitude as he does right now, or would he return to the cold harshness as before?