THE OUTLAW

Chapter 8: "You Only Hurt The One You Love"

By Bill K.

"You have an in-coming communication," the room's environmental computer announced for the fourth time. By that time, Hideki Nakamura was conscious enough to hear and understand it.

The man pulled back the covers and rolled himself into a sitting position on the side of the bed because rolling was the only way he could get his creaky joints over to the side. It didn't used to be like that. A lot of things didn't used to be like that. Sometimes he cursed being in his late forties. And the sobering thing was, this was just a prelude to what was to come.

"You have an in-coming communication," the room's environmental computer announced for the fifth time.

"From who?" Nakamura grunted. He had a good idea who was on the other line at twelve minutes to three in the morning. But he checked, just in case it was his brother calling from North America - - the one who could never get the time difference between Japan and California straight..

"The offices of the Crystal Tokyo Central Defense and Protection Center, Battalion Lieutenant Goyo Ikeda."

Ikeda was shift commander on third shift. It probably wasn't good news.

"Put it through," Nakamura whispered in disappointment.

"Nakamura-San," Ikeda said crisply. "I apologize for disturbing you at this late hour . . ."

"What happened?"

"An observation drone reported an air car landing in restricted space around Mt. Fuji, in direct violation with statute," Ikeda reported. "A patrol apprehended two youths and took them into custody."

"And one of them was my son," Nakamura sighed with frustration. "Where are they now?"

"In detention at the main facility, Sir," Ikeda replied.

"Good," scowled Nakamura. "I'll collect him when my shift begins at nine." The man rubbed his eyes. This wasn't the first time Quadrel had run afoul with the peacekeeping forces of Crystal Tokyo. Unfortunately it didn't seem to faze the rebellious youth anymore than anything he said seemed to faze him. "Maybe a few hours in detention will make an impression where I don't seem to be able to."

"Um, Sir," Ikeda interjected urgently. "There's more."

"What else did he do?" Nakamura exhaled sadly.

"Um, it's the girl he was with, Sir."

"Fugitive? Runaway? Is she pregnant?"

"S-She's," Ikeda reported, "one of Princess Usagi's senshi."

The communication line went silent.

"I'll be right down," Nakamura muttered.
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Ves-Ves felt a hand touch her shoulder. Reflexes honed on the mean streets of Sao Paulo went into action. The girl was instantly awake. In one lightning-like motion, she whipped the covers up to blind the person to her movements, then rolled out of bed and into a defensive position. But she only found Palla-Palla standing in the room in her pajamas, startled and cowering back. Ves-Ves, dressed only in the panties she slept in, relaxed.

"Oh, it's only you," Ves-Ves sighed. "Sorry if I scared you, Stupid." As her eyes became adjusted to the dark, she could see Palla-Palla was upset and by more than just her sudden actions. "What's the matter? Did you have a bad dream?"

"Ves-Ves," Palla-Palla whimpered. "Jun-Jun didn't come home. Jun-Jun hasn't been home all night!"

"You're sure?" Ves-Ves asked, concerned.

Palla-Palla nodded. "Palla-Palla was sleeping and-and then something woke her up."

"Did you hear something? Have a bad dream?"

"No," the girl squeaked. "She just had a feeling - - like something bad was happening. Then she remembered that Jun-Jun hadn't come home when it was Palla-Palla's bedtime, so she went to check. And Jun-Jun's room was still empty!"

By now Ves-Ves was wriggling into a shirt. "Come on! We better tell Cere."

It took some pounding on the door, but Cere-Cere finally opened it.

"What is your problem?" Cere-Cere bellowed. She wore an aloe and guava moisturizing cream on her face, her magenta hair was pulled up in a cap and her body was decked out in a very cute and lacy baby-doll nightie. "Do you know what time it is?"

"Jun isn't home yet," Ves-Ves told her, a stone mask covering the worry she felt.

"Still?" gasped Cere-Cere. "You think she's still with Quadrel?"

"And after I warned him," scowled Ves-Ves.

"You don't suppose she and Quadrel," Cere-Cere began to ask, then glanced over at Palla-Palla, "um, you know?"

"No! Jun-Jun is in trouble! Palla-Palla can feel it!" cried the girl in the blue pajamas.

"You know that for certain?" Cere-Cere asked.

Palla-Palla's face scrunched up. "Not for certain - - but Palla-Palla can feel something is wrong and she's afraid its Jun-Jun!"

"Have you tried talking to her with your head?" Cere-Cere asked, trying to keep her sister calm.

"No," the girl squeaked.

"Why don't you try it."

Obediently Palla-Palla closed her eyes. Her mind called out to her sister. At first there was no response, but with the encouragement of Cere-Cere and Ves-Ves, she kept trying. Finally she felt contact with a familiar mind.

"Jun-Jun?" Palla-Palla mentally called out.

"Palla-Palla? Is that you?"

"Jun-Jun, are you all right?"

"Yeah, I'm OK, I guess. What's wrong?"

"Palla-Palla thought you were in trouble!"

There was no response.

"Are you in trouble?"

"Um, I can handle it. Don't worry about me. Go back to bed."

"But Jun–Jun!" Palla-Palla appealed.

"Don't worry about it. I'm sorry I upset you. I - - I'm sorry."

"Jun-Jun?" Palla-Palla inquired. But there was no more response.

"Did you talk to her?" Ves-Ves asked urgently. Palla-Palla nodded. "Is she in trouble?"

"She said she'd handle it," Palla-Palla murmured sadly. "She said not to worry about her."

"Where is she?" Cere-Cere asked.

"She wouldn't say," Palla-Palla whimpered. "Palla-Palla thinks she's ashamed."

With that, Ves-Ves turned and stalked into her room. She came out moments later working a pair of pants onto her hips.

"Where are you going?" demanded Cere-Cere.

"Looks like I didn't make myself clear to 'Lover-boy'," Ves-Ves scowled.

"So what are you going to do - - beat him up?"

Ves-Ves's glance told her sister everything.

"Ves! You can't do that! You're a senshi now!" Cere-Cere howled.

"What am I supposed to do? Just let him hurt her?" Ves-Ves growled.

"And what do you think will happen to you when Sensei Hino-Sama finds out? She'll dig a hole to the center of the Earth and drop you into it!"

"Jun is FAMILY!" Ves-Ves snarled, her eyes blazing murderously. "I am going to PROTECT my FAMILY! And that's more important than being a senshi!" And she stormed out.

Cere-Cere stared helplessly after her sister. Then she heard sniffles behind her. She turned and found Palla-Palla trying resolutely to keep from crying - - and failing miserably. She extended her arm and her sister accepted the invitation. She pressed against Cere-Cere's lacy nightie, clinging to the girl as she cried. Cere-Cere wanted to tell her that everything would be all right. But all she could do was stroke her sister's hair as the girl cried.
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Minako blew at her bangs.

"Monitor duty is boring," she groused.

"Nobody said you had to stay up," Artemis commented as he checked the displays projected three-dimensionally all around his chair.

"It's too early to go to bed. Besides, my sleep patterns were permanently wrecked by my career. When I used to sing in those ratty clubs, three a.m. was just when I would get off. Man, I'd always be so wired from performing. It took me another hour just to gear down from it." She chuckled at a memory. "And then I had to be up at ten for an audition for a commercial or a modeling shoot. Sometimes I wonder how I did it."

"The Aino lifestyle," Artemis replied. "Burn the candle at both ends - - and the middle."

"Lucky for me I had a long candle," Minako grinned.

"In-coming communication for King Endymion," the control computer stated.

"Better find out what it is," Minako recommended. "Don't want to wake the royal couple for nothing."

"Really? Now why didn't I think of that?" Artemis groused sarcastically. Minako tugged at her eyelid. "Run message. Override authority Artemis one."

"This is Lieutenant Ikeda of the Central Defense and Protection Center," the message audio stated. "Forgive me for disturbing you, your majesty."

"The King is asleep," Artemis replied. "Please relate your message and we will pass it along at the appropriate time." All the while Artemis left the video link off. His words usually carried more weight when a person didn't know he was talking to a cat.

"Um, all right. We're holding a girl in detention at the main facility. She's been identified as one of Princess Usagi's senshi, going by the name Jun-Jun."

Minako and Artemis exchanged surprised looks.

"Why is she in detention?" Artemis asked.

"Violation of airspace and ground restrictions around Mt. Fuji," Ikeda told them. He hesitated a moment. "If, um, since it's a misdemeanor offense, if someone wanted to come over and collect her . . ."

Artemis felt fingers nudge him. The cat looked over and found Minako silently pointing to herself.

"We'll send a representative over immediately, Lieutenant," Artemis said. "Thank you for informing us of this. We hope she didn't cause too much trouble for you."

"Delighted to be of assistance to the palace," Ikeda replied crisply. "End transmission."

"If anyone was going to end up in the jug, I would have bet on Ves-Ves," Artemis remarked. "What do you suppose happened?"

"If it's what I think happened," Minako sighed, "our girl's in for a world of hurt. This is going to be the least of it."

Artemis stared after Minako as the woman left. Minako had that look again. Artemis knew it well. She only got that look anymore when she had a memory of Ace.
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The energy barrier over the door powered down. Quadrel looked up from his seat in the comfortable, well-apportioned detention cell - - furnished this way at the Queen's insistence - - and saw his father framed in the doorway. Without responding, he looked away.

"Is there no end to your selfishness?" Chief Nakamura posed, his tone clearly that of rebuke.

"I don't have to explain myself to anybody," Quadrel replied.

"But you have to live in a society with other people and sometimes your desires have to be subjugated for the good of everyone," the Chief lectured.

"Is that what you told Mom?"

"Don't - - bring - - her- - up," scowled Nakamura.

"Why not? Am I too much like her?"

"I'm beginning to wonder if you're worse."

"Do something about it, then," Quadrel challenged him openly, all the while sitting placidly on the chair at the far end of the room. "In the old days, a samurai would have beheaded a wife who ran off with another man. Would have beheaded the guy she cheated with, too - - and he would have been within his rights, both as a man and as a soldier. But Queen Serenity wouldn't approve - - and you like your fancy position in the government too much to actually grow a set."

"It amazes me how utterly immature you are for an eighteen year old," Nakamura said with contempt. "Clearly your mother was too busy running around to teach you anything about respect and discipline. Unless she spent all of her time sabotaging what I taught you." He shook his head. "And now you've managed to corrupt one of the Princess's senshi?"

"Maybe she just got tired of being another sheep in the herd," Quadrel said. "She's seen danger - - not like you. She's actually fought for something. She's actually felt what it's like to lay your life on the line for something, how that makes you feel like you actually have blood in your veins. Maybe she's not willing to trade that for a nice, safe little existence strutting around in a uniform that doesn't mean anything."

"You stay away from her," Nakamura warned. "I won't see the royal family threatened by you. If I have to keep you in detention here for the rest . . .!"

"Don't make me laugh," Quadrel interrupted. His placid demeanor was betrayed by the fiery glint in his eyes. "You can't keep me here on two misdemeanors. And if you try, your masters in the palace will nail you for it 'because they're good and just and they don't abuse the rights of the people'."

Quadrel got up and ambled toward the door. Nakamura stood his ground until his son was upon him.

"Move. I'm leaving," Quadrel said and leaned his shoulder into the man for emphasis.

Nakamura replied by shoving the prisoner down onto the floor. He towered over the prone youth, glaring down at him. Quadrel only smiled.

"Gotta release me sooner or later," he snickered. "Otherwise the royals won't like it."

"You don't have to be charged until nine," Nakamura told him angrily. "You'll sit here until then."

"Then serve breakfast in this hotel," Quadrel chuckled derisively. "I'm starved."

"Disgrace," Nakamura muttered. The energy screen powered up again and the Chief walked away. If only he could do what he wanted to do to that contemptuous, ungrateful boy. But the permissiveness of Queen Serenity permeated this society so far that he couldn't. And, to his on-going frustration, it was that permissiveness that he'd sworn to uphold.

He looked out the window. Dawn would be coming up over the Pacific Ocean soon. But it wouldn't be a good morning. There seemed to be fewer and fewer of those anymore.
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Dawn saw Dr. Ami Mizuno start her rounds, as she always did. Ever the early riser, Dr. Mizuno always checked in on patients in the palace infirmary if there were any, then reviewed the nightly reports from all the hospitals and clinics in the Crystal Tokyo area. This allowed her sensible, healthy breakfast to properly digest before she tackled the real medical problems and concerns facing Crystal Tokyo and Japan in the thirtieth century.

From reviewing her messages at her quarters while she dressed, Ami knew about the incident with Kaoru at the gate. Dr. Ling Tse-Tsao, her assistant at the infirmary, was treating Kaoru. Dr. Ling, thirty-six, was of Chinese ancestry and had been assisting Dr. Mizuno for four years. Ami thought her very competent and trustworthy, allowing her to shift some of her workday to other concerns. Dr. Ling nodded her head in greeting when she saw Dr. Mizuno approach.

"You heard about the incident last night?" Dr. Ling asked.

"I read your message," Ami nodded. "What's your evaluation of her mental state?"

"She wasn't very communicative," the woman revealed. "According to her record, Kaoru Hotokiri was an average student from a stable home with no record of discipline problems. Then she met some boy. I could only get the name 'Quad' from her. From that point on, she began missing school, staying out late. Her grades slid, her personality became moody with hints of paranoia - - finally she left school completely and began staying away from home for days at a time. Apparently she's fully embraced the 'dropout' lifestyle."

"So what motivated the attack on Jun-Jun?" Ami asked.

"From what I've been able to gather, Kaoru feared competition for this 'Quad'. She strikes me as a very desperate girl."

"I can imagine," Ami nodded. "She transforms her entire life in an effort to please this boy, only to have his affections possibly drift to another person. No doubt she's desperate for some way to restore the status quo and saw violence as her only means. What course of treatment would you recommend?"

"I think she has to be transferred to the Tokyo Mental Health Institute for some immediate psychological intervention," Dr. Ling said. "A demonstration of violence indicates to me she's reached a stage of mental instability and she could fall into another violent reaction quite easily. We have to intervene and prevent that. And unless The Queen is willing to use her power to . . ."

"Alert!" blared the infirmary's environmental computer. "Vital sign failure in examination room one! Alert!"

Instantly Ami and Dr. Ling were sprinting down the hall to examination room one. The door hissed open upon recognizing them. Each woman saw the gruesome sight at the same time.

Continued in Chapter 9