B Team
"It's… it's a masterpiece. Remarkable."
"Oh, Doc. Stop it already."
"I'm serious!" the head of Medical spun in his seat to face her, his eyes locked to the piece of paper that he had just printed. "The make on your body is astounding. If I didn't know what to expect, I would have been fooled."
The blush on Ayako's face was a rarity to all, especially in the wake of the rare compliment she'd get from people not within her family. The last person to have complimented was the head of Creation. And Lord Valualeta was mostly clinical in her observations. The old woman was a breath of fresh air compared to the stuff suits, which was one of the reasons why she entered the department to begin with. But her compliments didn't have the same effect as the Doctor's.
"This is nothing compared to Mom's." she said back to him, readjusting her uniform after the physical she had received.
"And that is the crazy thing to me. I would've loved to see her work." He said as he filed her results along with the rest.
She smiled, the thought of her mother just reminding her of fonder times, and also of how far she herself has come. She really hoped that she was doing her mother proud.
"So when is the next wave of candidates dropping by?" she asked, shifting the topic.
"Next wave? That would be Theta, let me see." He opened his pad, and began scrolling through his itinerary.
Candidates Theta, the eighth wave scheduled to arrive. She was in the fifth, and it had been seven weeks since she had arrived. She thought they'd be once every two weeks, but it seems the schedule was flexible, and not by purpose. The sporadic arrivals were a bit disorienting to the senior staff from what she had heard. And during those seven weeks, B Team had welcomed two more members to its fold.
A tall African shaman by the name of Kagiso, though his shamanism had some contemporary influences to them from what she has seen and what he has displayed himself. And a South American magus with strong European blood in his genes and demeanor. She tuned him out faster than she did the Spaniard.
"If things proceed as scheduled, they should arrive in two days." The Doctor finally replied.
"Would they be the last wave?" she asked him.
He shrugged, unsure of himself. "Olga wishes to have at least fifty candidates, and we are a bit short on that number. If we reach it, then yes, this will be the last wave. Otherwise, if we have yet to reach her goal, Candidates Kappa will be the last."
"So she still set a limit for herself." Ayako said with an understanding nod. "Well, I'll take my leave Doc." She hopped off the bed, giving a brief wave to the man before she left the infirmary.
Color her surprised when the moment she stepped out, she met the eyes of the Director, standing on the other side of the corridor, though not leaning on it, with her arms crossed over her chest. Tucked underneath her arms was a tablet that was occasionally seen on her. She looked, displeased? It wasn't a frown, or a scowl on her face, but it was a look that made her a bit worried. Especially on the possibility that it might be aimed at her. What was up in the air was what she had done, because she had stuck close to the rhythm she has set herself a week in her tenure.
The white haired woman then sighed, deflating in her presence before she pushed herself off the wall, leaving down the corridor. Without a signal, Ayako matched her pace with the Director's, walking right beside her.
"Is there something wrong, Director?" she asked, glancing to the somewhat short European, who was still taller than her by a few centimeters.
"Nothing important." She replied, the frown on her face marring her appearance. More so than usual.
A thought formed in the young Japanese woman's head. She may have done nothing that would run afoul of Chaldea, but there was one thing that made her detour slightly from her rhythm. Her weekly meetings with the 3rd Servant. It drew curious glances and whispers from the rest of the staff and crew, but most of them shrugged it off, justifying it as a whim of the Renaissance genius. Those that didn't, those that understood the make of Ayako's character, wondered what exactly made her catch the Servant's interest. Just like the Director here.
She wasn't going to question the Director directly. Instead, with the two of them alone in the corridor on this early Antarctic morning, she decided to ask something else.
"So what did Chaldea do, Director?" she expected a flinch, but not for the white haired woman to stop on her feet, freezing in place. "What pissed off Da Vinci so much?" she continued, moving in front of the Director.
Olga Marie's knuckles were white as they tightened on the tablet in her hands, looking away from Ayako's gaze, eyes closed as an actual scowl formed on her face. Not aimed at her, at least as far as her people reading skills could attest to. Then, as calm as she could, the Director turned to meet her own golden eyes. Ayako herself held her ground, appearing far calmer than the Director. Then, without breaking her gaze, the Director tapped something on the tablet, the digital beeping audible to her ears. This was her answer, as she sidestepped the young Japanese woman and continued down the corridor.
Ayako could only wonder what actually happened, that the Director's only response was a silent one. Seeing Olga Marie's retreating form, she then took off in the opposite direction, towards where her room was. If the Director had done what she thought, then it looks like she'd be doing some reading tonight.
"What the fuck?" Ayako whispered in the confines of her room, rubbing her eyes with both her thumbs, effectively covering her face with her hands.
Designer babies. Morally questionable, and ethically disgusting. And the former Director spearheaded the project since Chaldea's founding. Her mother had told her that the man was a good magus. She scoffed bitterly. A good magus is still a magus. She thought to herself. And the result of that was only one survivor, and the summoning of Chaldea's 2nd Servant, who has yet to appear ever since. Most likely extremely pissed off, just like Da Vinci. Something must've convinced the genius to stick around, now that she thought about it.
Her hands fell from her face, landing on the desk with the computer's small monitor between them. But her golden eyes were caught by her reflection in the mirror. The whites in her eyes were red, and there was a hint of a tear in them, exemplified by the frown on her face. Despite how tough she likes to present herself, mostly out of the childish need to copy her mother, she was still someone who was easily affected by such horrors. She just puts it all aside behind a calm veneer before finding a private place to release it all. Her mother tried so hard to raise her as a "human," and it was with these moments that one could say that she had succeeded.
Briefly wiping her eyes, she stood up and walked towards the bathroom. In contrast, reading the reports had raised her opinion of Olga Marie. The white haired woman could be acerbic at times, but it puts her mind at ease to know that the current Director had made efforts to improve Mash's wellbeing. The project would've been shut down by her hands if it weren't already finished.
She sighed again as she splashed her face with water, almost missing the person that had walked in her room.
"Hey, Ayako." The American Witch greeted, a look of surprise dawning her face, before she approached her. "Should we go together again?"
What she meant by that was the B Team meeting that had formed, occurring once every two nights. Ayako silently nodded, urging Koleen to go on ahead as she dried her face. She glanced back to the desk, seeing her familiar also reading the report that was still on the screen. "Don't forget to turn the PC off." She called out, getting back an unintelligible reply from the puppet.
As the both of them walked down the corridor, the project was still fresh on her mind. But, the Director gave her the report in confidence. And as much as she'd like to share them with her team, she wasn't going to betray that confidence so quickly.
"So how's the budding friendship going?" Ayako asked, sipping the now emptying juice box as she leaned on her elbows on the table.
"I don't know what you're talking about." The one eyed woman replied, the single eye closed as she ate her midnight snack. The hint of a blush on her cheeks told Ayako enough.
"You do know what friends are, right Ophs?" Ayako asked teasingly, plopping the empty box next to her.
"Ahem." Her one eye opened, the striking pearly blue connecting with her gold. "A person with whom one has a bond of mutual affection, typically one exclusive of sexual or family relations."
Ayako's hand softly rubbed her forehead, and the reddening blush of Ophelia's face showed that the A Team member knew what went "wrong."
The Japanese woman scoffed, before devolving into uncontrollable laughter. Ophelia looked around the cafeteria, making sure that there was in fact no one else with them during the late night escapade. There were two other people, both on opposite ends, which she begrudgingly accepted before facing Ayako again, who had calmed down. "It's difficult."
"Yeah, I can tell. Man, mom wasn't kidding when she told me how hopeless magi are when it comes to being human." Ayako wiped the tears from her eyes, sighing exaggeratedly.
"Such inherent knowledge isn't important to a magus, Ayako. You know that." She rebutted.
"I do, that's why I'm not like the lot of you." Ayako replied back. "There's a reason why most of the Clock Tower shunned me. One of many, in fact."
"Then you understand how difficult it is for me to make friends with anyone, let alone her. An actual friend. Not a beneficial acquaintance that might stab me in the back if I'm not careful."
"Yes I understand that, but we're not at the Clock Tower. We're at Chaldea, where our objective is the protection of the Human Order." The mirth on her face had left, as the seriousness of the subject came to fruition. "I think it's more beneficial for all of us if we act more human than magus."
"That's easy for you to say. You are human, you've said so yourself that Touko Aozaki made a conscious effort to raise you as one. That's not a luxury I have."
"You can start now, though. Hell, you're doing it on your own. You've been trying to make friends with Mash since even before I got here I assume. The first steps are always the hardest, but it'll get easier over time."
"Really? It's hard? Wow, I never would've imagined." Sarcasm seeped out of Ophelia like butter, despite how foreign it was to hear it come from the magus. She sighed tiredly, both from the topic, and the late hour. "I've never had friends before. To start making one from zero? It's terrifying." She leaned on her hand, propped up with her elbow on the table.
There was no immediate response, the only sound she could hear aside from her own breathing was the ticking of the clock and the background noise the other two people were making. When the silence persisted, she looked up, seeing Ayako just stare at her with an unreadable expression. "What?"
A light scoff escaped the Japanese woman. "Really?"
"Really what?" she repeated, straightening herself again.
Ayako herself sighed, rolling her eyes are Ophelia's cluelessness. "Ophs." She leaned a bit closer herself. "We're friends." She said, gesturing to the both of them.
There didn't seem to be a response from her, before Ophelia's one eye widened. Sparkling, a hint of wetness dabbing them. "Really?" she all but whispered.
"Yes! God, you people really are hopeless!" Ayako joked, chuckling at the sight.
Ophelia herself was still unmoving, face still shocked by the revelation she had discovered. Her eye blinked rapidly as she finally came to her senses, her hand wiping the ghost of a tear from it. "Then, can you help me? Please?"
"Sure, sure." Ayako leaned forward, urging the other woman closer. "You know what Mash is?" she whispered.
"I'm a member of A Team. Of course I do. Wait, how do you know?"
"That's the crux of the issue." Ayako ignored the question she got. "You, as a magus, don't know how to be human. She, being who she is, also doesn't know how to be human. So, you have basically two people who don't really know how to interact with one another."
Her words, unsurprisingly, seemed to bring Ophelia's mood down after the high she had reached. "So, what, it's impossible is what you're saying?"
"I never said that. I'm just saying, you should go to someone who has the most experience with her." Ayako looked to the side in thought. "Who could be a parental figure for her? Probably the Doctor. I don't see Professor Lev taking that role, and the Director isn't that much older than Mash. And I doubt Da Vinci's interacted with her much."
"So, talk to Dr. Roman?" Ophelia asked.
She nodded. "It's a great first step. And, like I told you last time, what do you have to lose?" she shrugged her shoulder. "Worst comes to worst, you'll end up making a rapport with the Doctor himself, and he's a pleasant guy."
Ophelia was listening intently to what Ayako had to say, and the Japanese woman was sure that if the blindfolded woman had a notepad, she would be taking notes. This was probably the most alive she's felt since she joined the organization, Ayako's sure. As a light smile formed on Ayako's face, she looked forward to seeing the change in this awkward woman. The fact that it's so Ophelia could slowly become human was icing on the cake.
The day had come and passed, for Candidates Theta had arrived, and the fervor of another testing phase had elapsed. A shocking number of people being sent home, clocking in at 7 people that had nothing to offer Chaldea. The highest number of people sent back from what she's heard. And from the three that stayed, one joined the ranks of the crew. Which meant…
"Only two people were candidates?" the Middle Eastern woman asked as Ayako relayed the news she's heard of the past day.
"Yes, and fortunately both of them are B Team, from what I've heard." The day was past noon, though it was difficult to tell with the ever increasing Antarctic storm. "Kagiso had volunteered to bring them along."
"And with that, that brings us to eight." Dunya commented, leaning into her chair in the now designated B Team conference room. Provided to them when their meetings became more set in stone. "Looks like we're all set now."
Ayako nodded. "Did you call the rest of the team?"
"Yeah, even Mstislavsky." Dunya replied, tidying the head scarf that was loosely worn around her head. "I don't know if he'll come, but the invitation's out there."
"Maybe I'll get to finally see his face after all this time." Ayako commented, just as the door slid open.
A familiar figure was the first to step in, followed by the one she had forgot. Koleen walked around the table, sitting herself beside Ayako, while the South American sat roughly opposite of her.
"Do we know anything about them?" he asked, his voice heavily accented, though she was never sure from exactly where.
Ayako shook her head in reply. "Not much, other than the fact that they're British and Chinese." She turned to her left, eyeing her friend. "Heard anything from the grapevine, Kalls?"
"That the Chinese magus is a mercenary." The American answered.
"Oh, that's nice to know." Dunya commented, her foot tapping impatiently. Then she spoke up again. "So, thoughts on a team wide exercise?"
"What for?" the South American asked.
"To get a feel of ourselves. We're a team after all, so we need to be able to act as one just as fluidly as we do alone." She elaborated.
"I'm up for it." Ayako said, stretching her arms forward. "Haven't been in a simulation since Basic Training."
"Yeah, I'd like to see if I've made improvements for myself." Koleen agreed, shifting closed to them.
All three women then turned their attention to the South American. He didn't seem amused, turning away from them. "If the Russian agrees, then I will."
Dunya sighed defeatedly, her shoulders sagging at the uphill battle she would face.
The door slid open again, all four sets of eyes focusing on the person that walked in. The tall African man, leading the charge with a warm smile on his face. Behind him, a wily bespectacled man. Ayako would use the word nerdy for him. Yet he walked with confidence, smiling at all of them as he greeted each of them with a nod. And closing the line, was a rugged Asian man. Exceptionally tall, though not taller than the African. Scars adorned his face, but his expression was calm. The room now filled seven. Kagiso maneuvered himself, sitting in between Ayako and Dunya. The British man sat himself beside Koleen, while the Chinese man took the spot next to the South American.
The British man, clapped his hands, looking excited. "So this is B Team? Marvelous. Patrick Courtenay, pleasure to meet you all."
"Zhao Wei-qi. Just call me Wei." The Chinese man spoke up, nodding to them.
"My name's Dunya, the de facto leader of B Team." She started, straightening herself.
"Ayako Aozaki. Nice to meet you both." She returned their nods with her own.
"Koleen Bertrand. Hello." She waved at them meekly, and Ayako's reminded of what she herself thought of them woman initially.
"I'm Kagiso, still the same as before." The African man greeted, his voice a heavy baritone.
"Abel." That's his name. Ayako thought, silently chuckling to herself as she would no doubt forget his name again.
Patrick looked around the table, confusion forming on his face. "Are there only seven of us? I thought there would be eight, just like A Team."
Dunya sighed, for what felt like the umpteenth time already. "There are eight of us, yes. But-"
The door slid open, and the tanned woman's eyes widened in surprise, as the last member of B Team entered. Ayako let out a whistle, impressed that the Russian had bothered in the first place. A silent wow was audible from Koleen's side. Kagiso and Abel were also surprised, though they have not been around as long they heard of the troubles Dunya had gone through thanks to the Russian's isolation. A visible look of annoyance was also obvious on Abel's face. Patrick and Wei, who weren't privy to the B Team dynamics, merely gazed upon him with a straight face.
"Добрый день" he greeted, his voice bearing an even thicker accent than any of them. He glanced around the room, before taking the last spot between Patrick and Wei.
"Mstislavsky." Dunya called out.
"да?" he asked.
"I didn't think you'd be here." She said, still flabbergasted by his appearance.
He chuckled, aware of his situation. "Sorry."
"Mstislavsky, I've heard of that." Patrick commented.
He waved away the observation. "Old family, old roots. Not much magecraft, not anymore."
"Really?" Ayako leaned closer, intrigued with a smile on her face.
"да. I count as civilian candidate." He gestured to himself.
Dunya sighed again, though this time it was of relief. "Do you have anything else you wish to speak about?"
"нет" he shook his head, before he gestured towards her. "преуспевать."
"Good. Good. Well, the eight of us are B Team. Welcome. Our main role, is to observe A Team, and serve as a backup to them."
"Just that?" Wei asked.
"Pretty much." Dunya replied. "If things go well, we won't even need to be deployed."
"Then what's the point of it all?" Abel asked, looking more irritated than usual.
"Imagine how it feels to be the rest of the 32 Masters." Ayako said with a chuckle.
"We essentially support them. That's good to know." Kagiso commented.
"Exactly. Which is why, now that all eight of us are here, I'd like it for us to have team exercises in the simulation. It will allow us to get to know each other better, as well as allow us to gel more as a team." She further explained.
"Sounds like a great idea." Kagiso agreed, patting the table happily.
"Yes, for us as B Team, and Chaldea." Patrick said with a smile.
"It's a good plan." Wei said, cracking his knuckles.
"Agreed. Team bonding." The Russian noble sounded earnest, somehow contrasting his absence the past couple of months.
Dunya turned to Abel, who was looking away irritably. Eventually he nodded.
"Excellent." The relief was visible on Dunya's body language, Ayako observed. "I'll book us a session, hopefully within the week. Starting tonight, B Team is operational."
2007
Aozaki Touko was tapping her foot anxiously, her arm holding the side of her abdomen while a hand covered her mouth. She glanced to the relatively small puppet that lay on the bed. It was immaculate. An amazing work of art, comparable to her own. Even more reason to be proud of her daughter, who had accomplished such a task at the tender age of 8. She could've done so at a younger age, but Touko insisted that Ayako take her time with her lessons, reviewing everything as meticulously as possible.
Speaking of her wonderful daughter, her beautiful pride and joy, Ayako was sitting on the floor. Specifically, an open crate that was big enough to fit her. She was lining the crate with thick plastic, being careful with her placement. She examined the crate with her hands on her hips, before nodding to herself happily.
"I'm ready!" she announced.
"You don't need to do this now, dear. You can give it more time." Touko said, trying to dissuade her daughter.
But her worries fell on deaf ears. "I've been ready since last year, mom. I can do this. We can do this. I'm sure of it. You taught me everything, after all. Well, you and Aunt Aoko."
"I know, dear. I know." But still, she was anxious. How could she not be? With what Ayako had wanted to do.
No. To be more honest, she was terrified. For Ayako. The hand on her torso tightened. The more this went on, the worse it got.
"Well, no time like the present, right?" Ayako said, sitting herself comfortably in the crate.
"Be careful, Ayako." Touko said, her eyes never leaving Ayako.
She smiled, that beautiful radiant smile she's come to love. The joy that was her daughter. "I will mom. Don't worry. I'll be back."
Then she placed the barrel of the gun on her forehead, and pulled the trigger.
The gunshot was deafening. And the sound of Ayako's body dropping lifelessly in the crate, even louder. Touko counted the seconds. Her breath hitching as the hand over her mouth closed to a tight fist. Her heart was beating even faster, as every second that passed was another second of a horrible silence. Her eyes were now shut, tears slowly dripping down her face.
Then a large intake of breath, and the puppet that was on the bed rose. Her golden eyes, open wide as if she herself was surprised. Her hands moved around her body, then her face, her hair. Then she smiled.
"I did it. Mom! It worked!" Ayako exclaimed excitedly.
And was immediately engulfed in the tightest hug she's ever experienced. Ayako was a bit lost, before her own arms slowly wrapped themselves around Touko. "Mom?"
The only response she got was a silent sob, her new body feeling the tears that were on her mother's face. This was the most distraught she's ever seen her mother be.
"I'm sorry mom." Ayako's own arms tightened, as guilt took over the elation she felt, her own tears now spilling out.
"Don't, dear." Touko finally spoke up. "You did great. An amazing daughter, who will show the world just what she's made of." Those words of encouragement supplied through the sobs.
Mother and daughter, locked in a tight hug. One, worried of the thought of ever losing the best thing that's ever happened to her. Another, regretting the decision she's took despite it being an accomplishment that would mark their family in the history books.
2017
"Should we bother with anyone else?" Ayako asked the genius, as they worked together with the project between them.
"Nah." Da Vinci said with a shake of her head. "They'll all be fine."
"Somehow, if things ever go that far, I doubt that." Ayako replied with a sigh.
"Making something for everyone is just inefficient." Da Vinci explained.
"I know, I know." Ayako said back, still unpleased. "But it doesn't sit right, just letting everyone else go like that."
"I understand, Ayako. But, that is the nature of this whole situation." Da Vinci said, stopping briefly to observe the Japanese woman. "If we had time, it wouldn't be as absurd. But we must make due."
"I understand." Ayako relented with a saddened sigh. She then looked down on the table where they were working. "I hope this all works out well. I haven't really made anything for anyone else yet."
"I assume full body, yes?" Da Vinci asked.
"Yeah. Mostly it was an arm or a leg. Not this."
"But it's exciting, isn't it?" Da Vinci questioned with a teasing smile.
The infectious smile spread on Ayako's face. "I guess it is. Let's hope she'll be greatful."
AUTHOR'S NOTE
the current chapter that i'm currently writing, unlike the chapter that will be uploaded after this, didn't suffer from an insane case of writer's block, so this one's coming up faster than usual.
i'm really proud of the flashback sequence for this one. fun fact, the first iteration of it was going to be in chapter 4, at the beginning. but it just wouldn't flow well together, so i scrapped it and went for a different flashback.
and obviously we see more of B Team. it would be absurd if they remained as faceless characters, so we get more of them.
reviews!
Emiya: thanks dude!
LazyNekogami: that is something i realized after the fact. but, i can work it in, don't worry. i see the mistake, and i'll rectify it in story.
FFReadead123: haha, that's the question, isn't it?
hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, drop a review if you like.
and i'll see you all next time!