It had been a few days since that incident between Gil and Brynn happened. The two, along with the other members of Blood (with the exception of the captain) were currently lounging around Friar's lobby. The Vice Captain had just came from the upper lobby, after casually chatting with Fran.
"I'm telling you, there's more to her than just being an idol. I mean, c'mon." Romeo rapidly waved his arms in the air as if trying to intensify his reasoning out. He stopped midway upon noticing the arrival of the Vice Captain, "Yo, Brynn!" He was the only one that called her by her first name, instead of Vice Captain.
Not that she cared, she actually prefered that. She gave him a warm smile before stopping in her tracks the moment that the speakers had began echoing words.
"Attention, all aboard Friar. We are currently moving through a red rainstorm. Access to the exterior has been temporarily restricted." The line was repeated a few more times before it died down.
Nana was the first to react, "Message received, ma'am! Good boys and girls don't go out in the rain." She joked with a small smile on her face following. Brynn couldn't help but find the flaw in the words.
Brynn definitely wasn't a good girl, in fact, she was a troublemaker. She was tempted to do things that she knew she wasn't supposed to do. Like barge into random member's rooms and steal food or use their stuff.
She, however, definitely wasn't going to do that with a certain brown haired man. She gulped at the thought while giving a side glance towards the man.
"It certainly won't let up." He remarked, currently leaning against the electronic merchant where they would buy their materials. Ciel turned towards him, causing her to brush against the Vice Captain who had sat beside her.
"It's been this way ever since we entered the Far East. At least we should arrive at the branch soon."
Wait, they were going to the Far East? Why wasn't she informed of this? Everyone began to notice the confused look on Brynn's face.
"Vice Captain, don't tell me that you don't know?" Came Nana's surprised voice. Great, even Nana knew. She shook her head no.
Ciel was next to respond, "It was on the note that was left on our desks." Brynn began to think deeply of a note. Her eyes lit up.
"Ah! The one that I threw away!" She voiced out, earning a sigh from Gil and laughter from Romeo and Nana. Even Ciel couldn't help but crack a smile. "What? I thought that it was trash." She added, clearly not caring about what the others were thinking of.
"The Red Rain…" Romeo began, drawing all the attention to him, "That stuff was the stuff that came down before, right? While we were rescuing Ciel. I mean, is the Red Rain really as bad as all that?" Brynn cringed at the memory. She remained silent and waited for the youngest to answer. She knew quite little about the Red Rain before she actually encountered it. After reading about it on NORN, she began to understand how dangerous it actually was.
Before Ciel could answer, Nana affirmed with a hum, "Mmhm! It gives people a disease called…" She paused, bringing a hand near her face as she stared up at the ceiling, trying to remember the word, "It's called… What's it called again?" She gave up after being unable to remember the name.
"The Black Plague." Both Ciel and Brynn came to the poorly dressed girl's aid. Brynn looked at Ciel for her to continue the explanation, "It shares its name with an ancient epidemic. Earned by the black scars that form. Any contact with the rain could cause it." Everyone listened to her explanation.
"There's no known treatment, even symptoms can't be suppressed, anyone who contacts it, is destined to die." Brynn continued, remembering what she had read on the Norn database. After those words, she saw the male swallow the lump that had formed in his throat.
"So, I just have to stay dry, right?" He confirmed with a look of fear on his face. Brynn gave a low chuckle.
"Getting sick is the worst! You lose all your appetite." Nana piped in, obviously dreaming about food. Something that probably occupied her mind 24/7.
The five continued to idly chat, when the speaker began to sprout out words again, "Friar has cleared the Red Rain and is continuing south through Far East territory. Repeat, Friar has cleared the Red Rain and is continuing south through Far East territory."
"Oh! We've almost arrived." Brynn remarked before standing up. She stretched, "I have to finish some things. See you all later." She walked towards the elevator that led to the housing units.
She was somewhat relieved, about multiple things. First, she wasn't having any strange dreams lately or any appearances from the strange brunette. The other was that there wasn't much tension from her team and her. Even the incident that happened a few days ago was nearly forgotten.
She refused to remember it.
Even the Captain was going back to what he was before, still professional as ever, but better than awkward or tense. He would return to call her to go on missions and paperwork.
"Vice Captain?" Her Captain called her, urging her to look away from the orange hues that the sun descending gave the ocean waters. She tilted her head to the side waiting for him to continue.
"What is it, Captain?" She asked, watching as the male approach her. He just finished extracting the Chi-You's core. Their companions were most likely done with the Konguo on the other side of the carrier. The growls and roars had died down a few minutes ago.
She couldn't help but notice the hesitant look on her leader's face. He was standing beside her now, looking at the same sight that she had been greatly admiring earlier.
"What happened between you and Gil the other night?" She nearly choked on air upon hearing what the male said. Her eyes widened as she looked at him with an incredulous look. How could he still remember that?
She cleared her throat before turning back to the setting sun, she couldn't help but sigh ast how peaceful things were looking. Despite them living in this antiutopia world, there was still a tinge of peace, tranquility and beauty if one would look hard enough.
"Nothing." She answered, her voice firm and an amused smile tugging on her lips. "I was teasing him then he teased back." She couldn't help but think, how at that moment, what occured the other day seemed funny. Perhaps, it was only due to the fact that her Captain was asking. He wasn't one to pry after all.
"I see." Satisfied with the answer, he didn't press anything anymore. They remained in the silence for a few meager seconds, when Brynn broke the silence.
"Why so curious, Captain?" She held back her snicker, pretending to remain serious however anticipating whatever reaction the captain may have.
Julius gave a short answer, "I was just making sure that everything is in order. That there isn't any animosity between the members." She was disappointed with his answer, so she merely hummed in response before turning her attention to the view.
Her Captain was astonishing. Quite erratic, actually. Whenever she would tease him, he would either be extremely flustered or would be nonchalant about it. She made a hunch that he was just getting used to her playful antics.
She would need to work harder on them. Even Gil was catching up.
"Captain, we're here!" They both spun around slowly and was met with Ciel and Nana. Nana had a wide grin on her face, her trademark Odenpan in one hand and Boost Hammer in the other. Ciel had her usual poker face on as they approached.
Julius nodded in acknowledgement, activating his comm. "Requesting for pick up, both targets have been eradicated and all Blood Members have regrouped."
"Pick up is on the way. ETA, 15 minutes."
She arrived in her room which seemed to have less items than it had before. Their items have been packed and will be brought to their respective rooms when they arrive in the Far East. Curiosity arose to her, was the Far East branch similar to Friar? Or was Emil not exaggerating when he said that Friar was truly a work of art.
She walked over to her terminal, deciding that she would use the time to browse through Norn. A random thought crossed her mind.
"Eos?" That was the name that the brunette had called her. She admit, that she was feeling curious, there was another name that she mentioned and two other names in the email that she sent. She decided to see if the database had anything regarding the name.
She typed in the name, and to her luck, an archive appeared that was titled Greek Mythology. One of its subtopics was the name Eos. Waiting for it to load, she couldn't help but feel even more curious than she was before.
EOS
- Rosy-fingered Goddess of the Dawn.
- Numbered amongst the second-generation Titan Gods.
- Parents were Hyperion and Theia.
'Weren't those the name in the email? Could this mean that? Not, that would be ridiculous.'
- Had an insatiable desire for handsome young men.
'What the fuck?' She couldn't help but reread the line a couple more times before proceeding. 'Thirsty hoe.'
- Brings up the light of day from the east.
- A symbol of a new beginning.
Unable to find any connection between her and the Goddess, she decided to move on to the next name. If she could recall correctly, it was Aion. A suggestion on the database had proved her to be correct.
AION
- The Primordial God of Time.
- Associated with eternity and everlasting tiem.
- Was associated with the zodiac and constellations.
She didn't know anyone who was like this at all. But the strange girl did say that she almost slipped. Was she close to revealing someone that she had known in the past? Or maybe someone that she knew now.
She chuckled lowly the moment that she realized how the mysterious girl was spinning her head around. Realizing that she may have just decided to mess with her or something along those lines. The research that she did, she didn't consider it as wasted time, she knew a bit of Greek Mythology, she came across it a few times in the Norn database. Adding a bit more to what she knew wouldn't hurt. After all, it was interesting how Aragami actually took the form of the Gods that humans once worshipped before. Like how the Kongou's name was derived from something that related to Hindu mythology. The Sariel deusphage, Zeus, was also related to Greek Mythology.
A knock on her door had released her from her reverie. She turned to it in curiosity after logging out of the terminal. "Come in." She gently, yet loudly enough, announced. The opened with a soft creaking sound.
"Sorry to disturb you, Vice Captain." It was Julius, he made his way inside the room, closing the door. Brynn stepped away from her terminal and walked over to the male, with a small smile on her face.
"You aren't disturbing me, Julius." She dared to call him by his first name. "Why don't you sit? I'll make you some coffee." She offered and didn't miss the small crinkle in his eyes. The older one gave in and took a seat on one of the couches that she had in her room.
Her room was nothing like his. It was nearly half the size. In fact, she had the smallest room among them all. It didn't bother her much, she didn't have a lot of things to begin with, besides the clothes that she had been crafting recently, the books that she had been collecting from the abandoned city.
Her twin-sized bed was fitted with orange, red and white bedsheets, with two pillows that were placed on top of one another. Her, being quite a restless sleeper, had fallen off a couple times. Her teammates would question the fact why she had a few random bruises here and there. Of course, her excuse would be that she got them from battling Aragami. It was convincing enough for them.
Beside it was a small, oak nightstand that had a square lampshade settled on top of it. Along with an alarm clock, that had a few cracks on the glass. She also had a desk which was usually filled with papers that the Captain would pass on to her. Above it were shelves that contained the few books that she had.
Although she did not have a kitchen, she had a fridge and a coffee maker which was often in use. She made her way over to the said coffee maker and began to prepare the drink that was to be served to her guest. The smell of coffee began to fill the room within a couple of minutes.
The Captain stared at the petite figure that was facing in the opposite direction, obviously focused on the task that she was currently working on. She was clad in Blood's uniform. They all were ordered to change into it, just for when they arrive at the Far East Branch as they would be meeting with the director.
Her ash blonde hair had been tied in a messy bun, instead of the usual waves that it was in. With her back turned, he could only see the second layer that served as some sort of a jacket over the tight fitting aquamarine top. Instead of the pants that was provided for the males, a pair of thigh length stockings/boots that revealed a bit of skin.
"Three teaspoons of sugar, right?" The voiced had roused him from his thoughts, he nodded. Eyes slightly widening the moment that he realized that she had looked back at him. She didn't notice him staring right?
"Yes. You know me quite well, Vice Captain." He gave a small smile before averting his eyes. He stared at the collection of books that she had, standing up and making his way over to it.
"You know, I didn't peg you as someone who was fond of sweet things." He picked a book from the shelf, it was one about animals and plants.
He flipped through the pages before answering, "Why is that?"
He heard the metal spoon that she was stirring clink against the porcelain cup where she made the coffee. Realizing that she was done, he stuffed the book back from where he got it. Turning on his heel and making his way back to where he was previously seated. Brynn sat in front of him and placed the cup down. He graciously took it into his hands and sipped.
"Well, you didn't seem like someone who was into sweets." She honestly answered, recalling the time that she questioned if he would possibly like the dessert that she made. "I guess that I made the right choice of making you that Semifreddo back then." She beamed at the memory. Julius softly chuckled.
"Ah, yes. Do make some again when you find the time." He urged her, placing the cup back down on the small plate that it came with. She nodded in response, flashing a grin.
"Sure, when we aren't flooded with paperwork and missions." This caused the other to sigh in agreement. Ever since they began to make their way towards the Far East, their workload had doubled. This day was the only day that they didn't have a mission. Blood was somehow relieved.
"It has been quite taxing the past few days." He added, she hummed in response. "I find it ironic, that for someone who's quite good at making desserts, you aren't quite fond of sweets." This elicited a chuckle from the girl, her shoulders slightly relaxing against the backrest.
"So you noticed." She remarked. The small smile never fading from her lips.
Julius reciprocated the smile, "It isn't quite hard, especially since you would willingly forfeit your dessert rations to me."
"It's because you'd tease me about gaining weight." She feigned a hurt expression which managed to convince the male.
"I apologize, did it really cause you that much distress when I said that?" He remembered the time that he had to carry her. It was a few weeks back. One of the first few missions that he had with her.
Brynn threw back her head in laughter, further confusing her companion. "It was a joke, Captain. Don't worry about it." This somehow lifted the weight on his shoulders. He couldn't bear the thought of causing emotional distress to his colleagues.
He surely would have to make up for it.
"I think that I'm just picky." She confessed. Earning a quizzical look from the male. "I blame the Norn, I may have been reading through different 'food reviews' that they had before. I saw a couple of desserts that I think don't exist anymore." She said with longing on her face. "Like, they have this thing called 'Ice Cream', it's supposingly a frozen dessert but not like the cake that I made."
He couldn't help but notice how animated she was, "Then there are these things called dango? They look like round balls that come in green, white and pink." She continued to ramble on about the different food that she would see in the database.
"Perhaps, if we have the time, we could explore the ghetto and small city located in the Far East." Her face lit up like a child receiving a present on Christmas.
"That would be nice." She concurred. Before she could continue their discussion, her phone vibrated. She opened it and sighed in disappointment.
"Looks like we'll have to continue this conversation some other time, Captain. Dr. Rachel is calling for me." She stood up, dusting off the invisible dust on her clothes. "Take your time to finish the coffee. I'll clean it up when I get back."
With that being said, she made her way out of the room. Leaving the Captain to his own thoughts.
Friar came to a stop, in front of a large wall that had been constructed by Fenrir itself. A wall that was nearly the size of the mobile fortress. Blood had made their way towards the gate, greeted by different guards that willingly let them in.
The moment that they were inside, a commotion had begun outside the walls.
"What do you mean you won't let us in?!" Came an angry shout from an adult man. Brynn had stopped in her tracks to watch what was going on. There stood a family, the parents, a child, and a baby. They all had looks of agony on their faces.
"I'm sorry, sir." The guard muttered an insincere apology. As if he had repeated the lines a few times. "You'll have to head towards the other satellite bases. It's a few miles from here." He pointed towards the area which was north east from the gate. Brynn couldn't help but cock her head in wonder. "The shuttle will be picking up people in a few minutes."
"Just because none of us can be God Eaters? Isn't that unfair? I'm sure that the condition of the place there isn't as good as here." The woman complained, now Brynn couldn't tell who was right or wrong.
She continued to watch things unfold, when a medium sized van arrived. Coming out from it, was the silver-haired woman that she had met before. She managed to quell the argument and had the family ride inside the van. They began to make their way towards the direction that the guard had pointed at earlier.
"Hey, it's you again." Brynn perked up the moment that the other girl had become aware of her. She sauntered towards her, silver locks gently blowing in the breeze that somehow made its way inside the armored walls. Brynn gave a nod.
"Hello, Ms. Alisa?" She scrunched her eyebrow a bit in an attempt to remember the name. The shorter woman gave a smile of appreciation, at the fact that the girl had remembered her.
"Alisa is fine, are you lost?" She couldn't help but ask, the girl was alone after all. Brynn turned, her eyes widened when her teammates were no longer in sight.
She sighed before turning back to the Russian, "Looks like my unit went ahead." She mumbled something inaudible. "I must look like a lost puppy or something." This earned her a giggle from the silvette.
"Well then, why don't we walk together? I am heading back to the den to make a report anyways." Brynn flashed an appreciative grin at the offer. The two began to walk at a quick pace towards the largest building, ironically, the blonde had only noticed now.
They walked passed multiple houses and stalls. Children ran around, laughing freely with delight on their faces. Women and men casually spoke with each other, as if none of them had a problem in a world. She sighed, her sigh had not gone unnoticed by her companion.
"I know what you're thinking." She began, observing the people around her as well, but with a cheerful look on her face. "That it must be nice to be normal." Brynn nodded in agreement, it was still dangerous to be in the ghetto, but having to face death everyday. It wasn't something that one could get used to.
"Our line of work is quite taxing." The silvette continued as they hiked their way towards the den. "But, I wouldn't give up my job for anything else." Brynn faced the other, with a look of surprise on her face. She didn't expect to hear that from the woman. But there was a glint of determination on the other's face.
"We may be putting ourselves in danger, but somehow, we're going to find a way to tip the battle towards our favor. It may seem impossible now, but we'll find a way somehow." She continued, as if she knew something. Brynn didn't press her on and merely listened. "If we weren't doing our job, then we wouldn't have discovered ways to up our defenses and resources, don't you think? Somehow, someday, all our efforts won't be in vain."
Hope. That's what she saw in the other girl. Not once had she considered these things. Being in Friar for so long, it limited the contact that she had with other people. With civilians. With people that needed to be protected. She had nearly forgotten that was the purpose of her occupation.
To protect, to protect the people from the gods that had turned their backs on them.
"You're quite hopeful." She commented, a smile was on her face, "I like that." She had nothing else to say, the girl had managed to find her way into her heart with the tender words that she told her. This resulted with a small sigh. A sigh that showed that someone was reminiscing.
Brynn didn't miss the forlorn look that the other was trying to mask. The facade that she was putting on wasn't enough to deceive her.
"It was just something that an old friend would always tell me."
A/N - See the connections that I made with Aion? A certain someone's name means Nectar of Immortality in Sanskrit. Thus relating to Aion who is the God of Time, mostly in terms of eternity. Uhm, not quite sure if you guys get the reference. Since technically, when you are an immortal, you live forever right? Which is like being an immortal. Also the Zodiac signs, which are stars, which are near the moon. Fjdk. Hope that you all enjoyed this chappie! Oh, I know that I sucked with describing the blood outfit. I mean, are those boots of stockings? Fjdkl.