H x H Fraternal Twins- Chapter 28: Planning Ahead

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A/N: Fair warning, this chapter is a bit long. Hope you enjoy this! I tried my best to make the 'planning' look good and understandable : D !

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In the morning sky; Birds flew across the blue view and chirped, morning due sparkled in the grass and the sunrise kissed the horizon. Black shifter was seen sprinting from roof to roof, on extremely tall buildings. His trench coat gracefully swayed behind him, his arms pushed back like some rogue and a sharp gleam from his neon green, eye sockets, grew a stream of green as he ran. His speed appeared incredible, making it seem like some real fast vehicle went by with strong head lights. His black mask glossed from the rays of the sun, that beamed on him from the side. Sounds of metal against metal, echoed through the air like a chime. There on one side of his waist, was two separate and long industrial chains. On the other side of his waist hidden from view, were two pitch black short swords. The hilts were black just like the blade, and shined like leather. Anyone could tell that they had to be held in the outer sides of your grip, due to the blade sticking out and curving inward a little like a scythe.

Seeing a much taller structure ahead, he jumped high into the air and pulled out one of his chains. Beautifully yet swiftly, he chucked it out like a whip and had it connect to the top of the building. The chain wrapped itself around a shiny metal pipe, that stuck skyward a bit. He swung his frame professionally, holding onto the chain with both hands.

Landing perfectly on the edge, he dashed onward whilst stashing his chain away. Unexpectedly, Neon came up beside him and ran like a rogue as well. She wore her ninja attire; Her clothes consisted of a sleeveless black chipao dress, thin green lines forming many small flowers on it, black netting underneath and rogue shoes that had shin guards in the front. The shin guards had two thin, green lines, one near the top and one just above her ankle. Wearing short black leather shorts that went above her thighs, forearm guards that was similar to her shin guards and the half mask she had worn before. "Neon, what are you doing here...?" Shifter asked, with a mature and strong voice.

"Sir Netero allowed me to company you, I figured you may need backup in case someone from the rebellion decided to ambush you." She replied with her soft voice, her green hair being up in a ponytail , gracefully swayed behind her.

"Alright, thank you Neon..." He nodded in her direction and continued onward.

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"One-san!" Rui shouted, the Zoldyck mansion was in view and shook from her outburst. The scene changed to show Ruby walking down a hall, with her hawk orbs peering in one corner and a sweat drop evident. Behind her, around the corner came Rui running to her twin. "Oneeeeee-saaaaan!" She shouted once more, finally making her twin turn and face her.

"What, Rui?!" Ruby spat, unexpectedly getting tackled full force and sent quite a ways down the hall. Both the girls went rolling quite a ways down the floor, running into a wall at the end. Ruby groaned as she held her head; Feeling weight on her, she noticed Rui was on her. "Rui are you nuts?! You could have got yourself hur-!" Before she could finished, her twin sat up hastily and looked as if she was about to cry.

The bug woman's solid pink gaze, bore into hawk ones mournfully. "O-Oi... What wrong...?" Ruby questioned with a worried expression, she rose a hand in reaction to her tearful twin.

"This is it..isn't it...? The war...it's going to happen soon, isn't it...?" That question left both of them silent, Ruby didn't know how to answer it except for being blunt. Moments passed by, with an uncomfortable quietness... "Yeah..." Rui heard her twin reply depressingly, making her want to cry more. She knew though, that this war wasn't over stupid politics or small things between countries...it was to save the human race. She got off Ruby, stood there and lowered her head, with shadow masking her upper face.

"Listen... We'll make it through, don't worry! I won't let us die, I won't let man kind fall to that bastard of a scientist! You, Illumi, Hisoka and I all trained for this day...and I won't let it go to waste... I also...will not...let Sikiyona's suffering be in vain!" Ruby responded with a strong heart, full of confidence and seriousness. Her hawk lids were dangerously narrowed and her teeth gritted into view.

"Ne-san..." Rui's pink solid gaze wavered in understanding, moved by her words. Though a sound caught their attention, and made them shift their heads towards it. Shifter appeared pacing down in their direction, with Neon in tow. Ruby stood up, walked over to them and gave them a questioning stare.

"What is it...?" She asked with a stern face, peering into the glowing neon green, eye sockets.

"Sir Netero...asked me to deliver a message. He said, 'it's time'... We need you, your sister, Hisoka, Illumi and Sikiyona over at once." He professionally said, his strong and mature voice held nothing but business in it.

"So... We're needed now...huh...? Alright..." With that, Ruby turned to face her twin, who gave her a concerned expression. Deep thoughts could be seen in the hawk twin's orbs, she looked stressed. "Rui... It's time... Netero needs us..." She said to her twin, making her slightly tremble.

"N-Ne-san... I- I'm scared... What if we don't make it...? What if something goes wrong?! WHAT IF-" Ruby pulled her twin in a comforting hug, having her arms around Rui's frame.

"Do you doubt me...? Do you not have faith in me, Rui...?" She mumbled within the hug, causing her said twin to tear up more. "We'll be fine, I believe we can pull through and save everyone... Just have faith..." She let go, looked at her bug twin and gave a sweet, gentle and reassuring smile. Her hawk orbs wavered with building tears, she too was on the verge of crying...but refused to show weakness.

"H-Hai... gomen...-n-nasai..." Rui replied, while lowering her head. Her wings brushed down her back, so they would be out of her way.

"Go inform Illumi, that we all need to leave. I'll go tell Hisoka...and Sikiyona." Rui nodded slowly, still having her head held low. She turned and went down the hall, past Shifter and Neon. Ruby also made her way down the hall, heading towards Sikiyona's direction. "I'll have to search for Hisoka, he wasn't here this morning..." She muttered mentally. Passing up the team of green, a hand grasped her shoulder and made her look to the said owner. Seeing that it was Shifter's hand, she rolled her peers up to the guy. "Yes...?" Asking mournfully, her gaze still looked stressed and depressed.

"I'm sorry, Sir Netero didn't want to put kids in the war... We all know both you girls are eighteen but, that's still too young... I like the heart you hold, Ruby; To save everyone and protect others, not many have that you know... Most would abandon others out of sheer selfishness, only thinking about themselves... You girls have every right, we may not like the idea of having kids in the war...but we don't have a right to say anything.." With that, he dropped his hand and he too decided to leave. Neon stood there a few seconds longer, smiling gently to Ruby.

"We will be alright, Ruby..." She reassured, then followed after Shifter. Her petite, small frame paled in comparison to the tall man.

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A view of a door, inside a room suddenly got shot open. Rui had roughly did the deed in letting herself in. Seeing Illumi, she rushed over to him and tackled him to the ground. "Illumi-kuuuuuun!" She cried out, whilst nuzzling into his chest. Illumi's lids appeared unaffected as usual, still every time he'd get tackled...he'd faintly blush.

"Yes...Rui...?" He asked as he remained on the floor, flat on his black. Seeing the said woman rise up; She placed both her arms on either side of his head, with tears falling and hitting his features.

"We have to go... The Chairman sent Black Shifter and Neon over, to tell us that... Illumi...I don't want to fi-" Before she could finish, Illumi pulled her head down harshly and made her kiss him. His gaze was shut and Rui's eyes were wide; She wasn't expecting that. When he broke the contact, he kept his hand on the back of her head and looked at her as unfazed as ever. "We should go... I can tell you are afraid. You are saving everyone from bad people, I know how you are when it comes to that. Fear is a burden to have, toss it aside...or you will get killed." Rui blinked at his words, then nodded. Shutting her lids, she inhaled then exhaled.

"Illumi-Kun...you're right. I have an idea... If I want to help, I cannot cower! So... I will wipe all emotion away and attack. I will let loose the killing machine upon the enemies, to give them a taste of what they created..." A long pause issued between the two, with her orbs now closed. "Float like a butterfly, sting like a hornet..." She opened her gaze to the man under her, smiling softly to him.

"Don't you mean, 'sting like a bee'...?" Illumi asked, only to have her shake her head in response.

"Bees sting only once, hornets sting more.~" She chuckled to him at the end, a cute flush on her cheeks and narrowed bug eyes. Illumi noticed this and blushed at her expression, she really did look deadly with shadow over her features..he liked it.

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"Alright, Sikiyona's taken care of... Now, where's Hisoka...? Damn, if only I had phone on me!" Ruby mentally cursed, she was outside of the mansion walking around. Trees surrounded the area, birds sung in the branches and grass rustled from he movement of small animals. Her hawk orbs kept darting from left to right, thinking of where on earth the joker went. She had wondered the large piece of land owned by the Zoldycks, in search of the said man. It had been a good fifteen minutes, when she decided to stand in place. She stood under a tree branch that was high above her head, watching the view as time went by.

Out of the blue, a crown of flowers fell perfectly on her head. This made her eyes widen in surprise, especially after she just felt what it was that landed on her. Her features went back to normal, knowing who it was. She peered up and seen her lover sitting on that exact branch. "Oh what a coincidence, I just so happened to stand right under him... More like he poofed there..." She mentally rolled her gaze, at her last sentence.

"Dear Ruby-gem, who might you be looking for?~" He asked with his signature smirk, his golden irises glued to her hawk ones. "If it's another man, then I'm afraid I'll have to kill him~" In midst of shutting his lids, he joked.

"Hisoka...I was looking for you..." Hearing her voice, he was surprised that his tease didn't effect her. His smile ceased, his eyes narrowed and he looked into her orbs. The Joker studied the emotion in her gaze, all he found was unease. He jumped down and stood directly in front of her, still gluing his peers to hers.

"What's troubling my Arch-Angel..?" He asked, features still unmoving.

"It's time... Netero sent the black and green team over, to tell us that. We need to go, he needs us..." Her words made him smirk, making a false expression upon his face. Just as Ruby went to turn and go back to the mansion, he grabbed her by the arm and jerked her back. She bumped into his chest, her wings slightly sprawled out in surprise and his arms went around her frame.

His smiled faded, shut hit lids and held her close. With silence wafting in the atmosphere, a soft breeze brushed by them and the sound of leaves rustling could be heard. It felt nice to Ruby, comforting and feeling reassuring arms around her, made her feel a bit better. She actually wanted this moment to last a while, to last as long as possible.

"Don't forget Ruby-gem~... I 'am' here...you know. If you need my assistance in ANYTHING, just ask...~" What he said, broke through what stone remained around her heart. Tears streamed down her cheeks, soundless crying with a closed mouth. She too was scared but, she had to stay strong... Though just this one time, she thought it would be nice to cry...and so that's exactly what she did. She turned and face planted into his chest, fists clenching onto his black sleeveless tunic and muffled sobs emitting from her form. Hisoka smiled at this, for once she cried on him and it made him feel good.

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It was time... Everyone gathered in Netero's office, including the whole Zoldyck family, of course excluding the children... All the Zodiacs surrounded a table, with a holographic map in the middle and both twins right behind the elder. Hisoka and Illumi stood against the wall next to each other, leaning and having their arms crossed.

"Alright, from how the layout looks, there are many routes to take. The island is surrounded by water but, it's large enough to hold a wide range of soldiers. Sikiyona, thank you for mapping everything out... Without your knowledge about their base, we would have made blind moves without knowing anything about the island." Black Shifter said, his hand held the bottom part of his mask, to show he was thinking. Sikiyona walked up to the table, got in between the Zodiacs and nodded.

"There are twenty four routes, that the Leader would booby-trap way more than the others. Those twenty four routes all lead to his main lab, the closest one is near the edge of the island." She said, before pointing an index finger on the holographic map. A red dot formed where she touched, then pulled her hand away. "That area is the most preferred destination, where we will need to go. Be warned, that area will have the most men and traps in the field, than all the others... Due to it being the shortest path to take, for anyone who enters the land..." She said, everyone looked at her astonishingly. The tiger Zodiac's mouth was dropped, he couldn't believe anyone would have the brains to map out an entire base...LET ALONE THE ISLAND ITSELF! The Island was far bigger than Vince's base, so he's sure that it'd take a good amount of effort to get through.

"Wait! What about the other paths?! If that path ends up being too much for us to handle, which other route would be next in line?" The tiger Zodiac asked, his features holding annoyance.

Siki pointed her index finger, that was on the exact opposite of the first route. Another red dot formed, after her finger left. "That path there, will take you underground and beneath his entire base... It leads directly to his lab as well, though it is the longest route to take. That path is our second priority, if the first one is intolerable. We will require some sort of fast vehicle, in order to maneuver through it quickly. The entrance is located on the shoreline of the island, the water nearly touches the hidden entry way..." She replied easily, her features as frozen as ever..but held more life in it than it used to.

"Sikiyona... Why on earth would Vince, make so many paths? How many are there anyway...?" Ruby stepped up, her arms folded and a stoic gaze in her eyes. "If there are more than twenty four routes, then wouldn't one of them be left unsecured? Usually when there are way more roads, there's bound to be the lack of maintenance or security... In other words, bound to be abandoned ones somewhere..." She asked, having everyone look her direction.

"Incorrect... Vince has over one thousand mutant nen users as guards, they all have their own assigned posts and equipment.. He never leaves on route unchecked, as he believes...if one path is unprotected- others may spot it. That path would be considered a weak point, thus he holds guards in all routes. He has a private room with many monitors and screens, showing each individual route... Vince would never leave a route unattended..." Cold Chill explained with her robotic, yet soft and icy voice. Her frozen orbs met hawk ones, for a few passing moments. Everyone had their thinking faces on, trying to come up with other possible downfalls. "And as for your question, there are fifty routes in total..."

"Damn, fifty routes...?" Ruby mumbled and squinted her lids, at the the given answer. Rui stepped forward, shifting her head back and forth between her twin and Siki. "Ne-san... Illumi and I are the fastest in here, aside from his family... Maybe we could split up and take on both routes?" She asked, now having her attention on Siki and Netero.

"That actually doesn't sound too bad... the best nen speeders taking the longest route, the strongest on the toughest route and on the shore lines..." Hisoka spoke up, then trailed off in thought. He still remained against the wall, watching Ruby use her clever brain.

"In my opinion, the shore lines need the healers and ranged fighters.. Of course there is the possibility of soldiers closing in on them and killing them..." Illumi said next, having his father look over to him and nod. Zeno looked over at Netero, deep thought in his black orbs.

"I agree...there is a chance for the healers and ranged fighters to get killed, by oncoming close ranged soldiers... Perhaps we will need a lot of people who can take hits, to be able to defend them. Do you know of any, Netero..?" The elder Zoldyck asked, stepping closer with his kane.

"Yes in fact!~ We will need a lot of enhancers on the shore lines, so perhaps I could convince Chonz to join us.~" Netero mentioned, with a stroke of his beard.

"Wait Chonz?! 'THE' CHONZ IVAN?!" Saiyu asked, he was the monkey Zodiac. His eyes sparkled with awe, as if he heard the name of his favorite idol.

"Yes, that Chonz!~ He was the previous war hero long ago and the champion in wrestling! I know him, he and I go way back- hoho!~" The bearded man himself laughed, making the twins sweat drop and give a questioning stare.

"Cool! I honestly can't wait to me the guy, I'm a huge fan of his!" Saiyu beamed, with a fist in the air.

"Now, does anyone have any objections about our current plans? A large variety of our soldiers will take over the land, fighting the enemies. Who is going where and when, will they take up their part?" Shifter asked, though silence fell upon everyone's ears. They all seemed to like the idea, different groups taking on specific routs. "Alright, it's settled... Now, about my question..." He turned to Netero and the twins, Sikiyona just backed away behind the group and blankly stared at them.

"Hisoka and I, will lead the men through the toughest route! Rui, Illumi and Zeno, you lead through the longest! Sikiyona and Silva, you two are the ranged attacker leaders! Milluki and Yorkshire, you two will have to coordinate everyone through the map of the base as we run through! Yorkshire, I want you to lead Rui, Illumi and Zeno through their route. Milluki, you can lead Hisoka and I through ours. Neon, do you think you can handle healing on the shore lines?" Ruby announced, with a question at the end. Her head moved over to view her small frame, noticing her nod with a soft smile. "Alright... Shifter, what about you?" She asked, whilst looking his way.

"I'll join your side, I'm better in close quarters combat, than ranged or pure speed." He stated, as he stood near Neon.

"Sure, the more the merrier... We need more people on the shore lines though, more ranged attack leaders. Considering how big the Island is, you can only imagine the number of ranged fighters there will be..." Ruby replied with concern, her features still unchanging.

"Oh don't worry about that, I have that covered! I'll have one of the Zodiacs here be in charge of the free 'ranger' leader positions!~ I too will be joining the front lines, we need more enhancers so I believe I will suffice!" With Netero's words, Ruby nodded and turned to face everyone else.

"Alright.. Are there any questions or denials about anything?" Ruby asked loudly, though everyone stayed quiet. They didn't know how she was able to think the way she does, for someone her age...they thought she'd be incapable to put groups together.

"I don't really see any problems in this, Ruby. I actually like it...although what about the sky attackers?" Gell asked with a risen brow, she was the snake Zodiac.

"Oh, I didn't think of that..." Ruby pinched the spot in between her eyes, shutting her lids in the process. "I'll take care of them, before I head out to my assigned route..." she looked back up at Gell, confidence in her features.

"Alright, since it seems...you and Rui are the only ones able to fight in the air...thus far..." The said woman replied, with all the zodiacs nodding.

"It's settled then! When will we depart and where at, on the Island?" Shifter asked, he peered over at Sikiyona, who looked up at the map.

With a single finger, she pointed to the location. "Here... There is a blind spot near the coast, this will be most preferred..." Siki answered as monotonous as ever, having everyone look.

"Alright, does everyone agree with these terms and this plan?!~" Netero asked, seeing as the people in the room stood silent, he gazed at them.

"Yeah, it sounds good." One of the Zodiacs said, with Zeno nodding to Netero. Everybody agreed vocally, muttering 'sure, yeah, yup, etc'. "In that case, we will attack at dawn! The enemy side will be too groggy to attack straight, so I believe sunrise is best." Shifter mentioned.

"Sunrise..or...'Dawn' it is!~ Go to bed early everyone, we're getting up at the crack of dawn and heading out!" Netero announced, with a wave of his hand.