Hello again everyone. Remember, Eureka 7 is owned by their respective Owners. Dante and Saya Belong to me. Also, I noticed some of my mistakes in my last chapter. Thanks Ltscw, I appreciate the help.
Chapter 2: Bell Forest
After landing in front of the Thurston warehouse, Dante looked over a couple logs on his LFO as Renton, Eureka and Saya climbed out of the LFO's. Dante followed soon after, rapping his knuckles.
" Well, you first." Dante said. He and Saya waited for Renton and Eureka to get Axel's attention, provided he was there. Moments later, the door opened, showing Axel Thurston standing in the doorway holding a metal spoon.
" Renton. Eureka. It's good to see you both. I can't believe how long it's been." Axel said, taking both of them into a bear hug.
" It's good to see you too grandpa." Renton said.
" Yes. It's good to see you Mr. Thurston." Eureka said.
" Eureka please, call me Axel. You're making feel old." Axel said with a slight chuckle.
" Grandpa, we have a couple people we want you to meet." Renton said, ushering for Dante and Saya to walk over.
" Hi there Mr. Thurston. My name is Dante Outlander and this is my girlfriend, Saya Naizumi. We met up with your son and his girlfriend in Shift. Apparently they'd woken up in the forest near there. It's a good thing we found them when we did. A group of thugs had met up with them, and they didn't look like they were fans of Coralians." Dante said.
" Really. Are you two ok?" Axel asked.
" The boss got in a few hits on them, but they'll live." Dante said.
" Well, come on in. I know a couple people who'll want to see you." Axel said as they walked inside.
" Maeter, Linck, Maurice, get down here." Axel said.
" The kids are here?" Eureka said.
" Yeah, after you two disappeared Holland and Talho stopped by, gave me a folder showing documents saying that you and Renton are the children's parents, and then asked me to keep an eye on them until you two returned." Axel said as the children emerged from the living room, running to their parents.
" Mama, papa, we're so happy to see you both again." Maeter said.
" Yeah. You both look good." Maurice said.
" Hey Mama, Papa, who're they?" Linck asked, referring to Dante and Saya.
" Oh, these are some new friends of ours. Meet Dante and Saya.
" Mama, the man looks a little scary." Maeter said.
" Maeter, that's rude to say." Eureka scolded.
" It's alright. I get that a lot. Don't worry Maeter, I not as scary as I look." Dante said. Maeter nodded as Axel cleared his throat.
" Well, if you're all hungry, I was about to cook up some dinner before you arrived. I'll gladly set a few more plates if you want." Axel said.
" Why not. I haven't had a home cooked meal in so long. It'll be a welcomed change." Dante said. Everyone else nodded as Eureka and Renton walked with Axel into the kitchen to help him cook. After a meal of roast beef, potatoes and diced peppers, Dante walked outside to his LFO as Eureka, Saya and Renton walked into the living room, turning the TV to a classic movie.
" So Saya, what do you and Dante do most of the time?" Renton asked.
" Well, mostly we're moving from place to place. We've been working a string of odd jobs lately. We had been helping the Federation with some rather dangerous assignments, but we haven't had any work from them in a few months. Hence, we made some extra money the unorthodox way. Helping fix some buildings, manual labor, cleaning, anything if it meant we got some extra bank. Our last job was about two weeks ago. We've been rationing our money as much as possible, mainly living on MREs and the occasional meal at the local diner." Saya said.
" Wow. Seems like you've been leading an exciting life." Eureka said.
" More or less." Dante said.
" We've been doing alright in the money department lately. It helps that we've become accustomed to the taste of MREs. They may not suit an average person's palate, though it keeps us going. I'm also somewhat distrustful of restaurants after a small incident six months ago." Dante said.
" What do you mean?" Renton asked.
" Dante and I had went to a Chinese restaurant after completing another assignment and later that night came down with a bad case of food poisoning." Saya said.
" Oh god, don't remind me. I've lost all faith in fried rice, egg rolls and sushi." Dante said, holding his forehead.
" How bad was it?" Renton asked.
" You know that feeling when your air sick.?" Dante asked.
" Yeah." Renton responded.
" Well, imagine that only a hundred times worse. I was glad when I finally broke down and had Saya get some medicine. I felt like someone force fed me sulfuric acid every minute I waited. Though that medicine wasn't much better. I was out of it for days." Dante said.
" Unfortunately the medicine he needed makes you disoriented. He was delirious for days." Saya said.
" I was partially glad though. The disorientation distracted me from the pain. Though Saya was very irritable for awhile after I recovered." Dante said.
" You were babbling nonsense for two days. I had to chance leaving to buy some aspirin in case you accidentally hurt yourself. You even hit me in the face with wrench." Saya said. Renton and Eureka were on the verge of laughter.
" But, I apologized. That, and you dislocated my jaw when I said I was feeling better." Dante said, stopping as Renton and Eureka were laughing at the display.
" Anyways, It was one of the most painful things that's happened to me." Dante added.
" One of?" Eureka asked.
" Lets see. Took a bit of shrapnel from a federation missile during one of those attacks against the anti body Coralians, was shot by a rebel soldier in my left shoulder shortly after the war began, broke my leg when I was seven. Oh, I almost forgot the time a waitress at a café spilled a tray of scolding hot coffee on my lap." Dante said, causing Saya, Renton and Eureka to burst out laughing after several gasps.
" Laugh it up Renton. Maybe tomorrow I'll take you to that Chinese restaurant I mentioned earlier. I'm sure you'd enjoy it." Dante said.
" Um, i'm ok. Really." Renton said, waving his hands in front of him.
" That's what I thought. Hey Renton, I just noticed, but there happens to be something on your forehead." Dante said. Renton moved the hair partially covering his forehead, revealing a red, jewel like object on his forehead.
" What is this thing?" Renton asked.
" Eureka, you too." Saya said. Sure enough, Eureka also found a jewel on her forehead, this one a bright azure.
" Do you know where they came from?" Dante asked.
" We didn't even know they were there until you said something." Renton said.
" That's odd. Well, I think I speak for all of us when I say that we should get some sleep. How about you?" Dante said.
" Your right. You two don't mind sleeping out here, do you?" Renton said.
" No problem. I'll be right here on the couch if you need me. And please, don't need me." Dante said as Renton threw him a fleece blanket.
" Thanks." Dante replied as he caught a second one and threw it to Saya. Dante flopped down onto the larger of the two couches as Saya made herself comfortable on the smaller one.
" Night." Dante said to Saya.
" You too." She responded as they both fell asleep. Early the next morning, Renton woke up and walked downstairs through the living room, seeing that Dante and Saya weren't there. He grabbed a glass of water and looked outside, hearing the faint sound of clanging metal. He walked closer to the sound, moments later seeing a slight flash. He got a better look, seeing Dante and Saya sparring with each other, their swords creating a flash from the sparks as they connected. Renton watched for a short time longer, before they stopped, bowing to each other before sheathing their weapons.
" Did you enjoy the show?" Dante called in Renton's direction, making him drop his glass onto the ground.
" You knew I was here?" Renton said, slightly nervous.
" Not hard. We heard footsteps but ignored it when we caught a glimpse of you. We knew you weren't going to interrupt." Dante said.
" Why're you up so early?" Renton asked.
" I could ask you the same thing. Anyways, We always wake up rather early. We usually take this time for an early morning spar to help us wake up. Works up your appetite." Dante said.
" Well, since it's seven thirty, how about I wake the kids and we make some breakfast." Renton said.
" Sounds like a plan." Dante said. Saya nodded as they walked back to the house. Renton went to wake up Eureka and Axel while Saya knocked on the kids bedroom, telling them that they were about to make breakfast. Moments later, Renton, Eureka and Saya walked into the kitchen, seeing Dante making eggs, pancakes and sausage, the table already set with butter, toast and a jug of orange juice and milk along with several plates, silverware and glasses. Dante flipped two pancakes into the air, turning long enough to see the three walk into the kitchen, catching the flapjacks in the frying pan with his head turned. After several minutes, he grabbed the plates from the table, placed some eggs on each, and placed them all back at the table.
" Wow. I didn't know you could cook." Renton said.
" While I may not cook stuff like this very often, doesn't mean that I'm incapable." Dante said.
" It's very good." Eureka said.
" He's a good cook. You don't think I keep him around for his personality, do you?" Saya joked.
" Hey, I resent that." Dante said, taking a swig of orange juice.
" Hey grandpa, you need some help with any LFO repairs?" Renton asked.
" No. I've got some special jobs that I alone am allowed to work on. I do have something you and Eureka could do. I need to go shopping but I have to finish up some work for a client who needs their LFO by the end of the week and I've had to slack a bit since the kids are here. If you two could do that I would really appreciate it." Axel said.
" Sure grandpa." Renton said as Axel handed him a list and some money.
" Hey, if you guys need a ride we can take you. We were planning on heading to town today anyway." Dante said.
"Sure." Renton responded.
" Renton. Take my 505. Saya and I will take hers. We may be in town for most of the day." Dante said.
" Ok. Come back around five and Eureka and I should have dinner ready." Renton said.
" I can't wait." Dante said, vaulting over the side of Saya's 505, landing in the cockpit. Saya jumped in moments later, as the LFO sped down the valley towards the city.
" Well, we should probably get going." Eureka said as Renton piloted the 505 towards the city, following Dante. About an hour later, Dante found a place to stop the LFO and climbed out. After activating the security system, Dante cracked his knuckles and looked at Saya.
" Well, where to first?" Dante said. Saya dragged him over to a clothing store, where she immediately began looking through a rack of tank tops.
" Well, since i'm here, might as well get myself some clothes myself." Dante said, walking over to the mens section. He first grabbed a shirt with a dagger with wings on the back and the insignia for the rank of captain. He also grabbed a black sleeveless shirt with a large yin yang symbol on the back. Dante checked the size tags and walked over to another rack, grabbing a pair of dark blue cargo jeans. He grabbed two pairs of shorts, one a pair of camouflage cargo short and the second a pair of regular black shorts. He walked back over to where Saya was, holding a small pile of various articles of clothing. After paying for their wares, they placed everything into the LFO and walked into a music store. Dante and Saya found an inexpensive CD player, buying a CD from the band Breaking Benjamin, and another by a Japanese band Tetra Fang. They also decided to buy a store exclusive greatest hits album and left. They stopped at their LFO then at a café to grab some coffee and walked past a small convenience store, seeing someone wearing a ski mask run out holding a bag in their hands. An older woman opened the door seconds later, holding a broom and looking in the direction the person ran off in.
" Come back here you hooligan." the woman responded.
" Saya. Shall we?" Dante said.
" Why not." Saya said, grinning. They both ran in the direction of the thief, jumping over a person carrying several packages. They saw the person run into an alleyway, slowing down to catch their breath.
" Well well well. What do we have here? Someone who's late for something. No, that doesn't look right." Dante said, appearing as a silhouette from the person's perspective.
" Your right. Looks like we have ourselves a petty criminal." Saya said.
" Well sir, it looks like you have two choices here. Either you can walk back to the storefront, give back whatever you stole, apologize, then quietly enjoy the ride to Jail. Or, we can play the hard way in the slim chance you'll escape. What'll it be?" Dante said. The person looked that them for a moment, then drew a handgun, aiming it at the two.
" Sir, I'll warn you now. You're going to lose. Just put the gun down, and you'll thank yourself for avoiding a pointless beating." Dante said, the man pulling the trigger, the bullet whizzing past his face, cutting a lock of his hair off, making it hit the ground.
" Don't say I didn't warn you." Dante said, jumping down. The man fired several more shots, dropping the bag he'd been carrying, several wads of currency spilling from the opening. Dante merely dodged the shots, laughing to infuriate the man.
" Is that the best you got?" Dante said, squeezing the front of the gun as the slide racked backwards, preventing the weapon from chambering another cartridge. Dante ripped the gun from his hands, pulling the slide back so far the gun snapped in half. The man pulled out a pocket knife, holding it loosely in his hands. Dante shook his head, pointing upwards. The man looked up, seeing Saya fall towards him as she kicked him straight in the face, utilizing the gravity to maximize the effect of the attack. Dante streaked towards the man, striking him with an open palm, sending the man into a fire hydrant, knocking him out cold. Dante grabbed the bag of money and after placing the bills that had fallen out when the man had dropped it, walked back to the store the man had robbed.
" Hello?" Dante said, seeing the woman who initially confronted the thief. She walked over, then hit Dante in the head several times with her broom.
" How dare you come back here after stealing my money!" The woman screamed. Dante caught the broom and stared at the woman.
" I'm not the one who stole the money! He's outside unconscious next to a fire hydrant. Here's your money back." Dante said, handing her the bag of money, rubbing his head from where the woman had hit him.
" Oh my lord. I'm terribly sorry. Please, let me get you some aspirin and something to drink, on the house. It's the least I can do for attacking you." The woman said, taking the bag of money and placing it back into the register, then grabbing a bottle of extra strength aspirin and two cans of soda.
" I'm sorry. I accidentally jumped to conclusions when I saw the bag. Thank you for apprehending that hooligan. Oh, where are my manners. My name is Dorothy.
" I'm Saya, and my friend whom you attacked with your broom is Dante." Saya said as Dante opened the bottle of medicine, taking two pills and washing them down with a swig of soda.
" Your welcome, but please learn not to jump to conclusions in the future. They often lead to painful experiences." Dante said, rubbing his head.
" Thank you for the drinks." Saya said as they left the store. They walked into the park, finding a bench to sit at near a large fountain.
" Dante, today's been so fun. Other than the part where you were attacked by an old lady." Saya said, chuckling
" Yeah. In five or ten years we'll probably laugh about." Dante said.
" I can't believe that something so simple as as some shopping and walking around town could really be enjoying." Saya said.
" Yeah. Then again, considering what we do, I guess even something simple can become enjoyable." Dante said. Saya then leaned again Dante arm, watching the water spray from the geyser in the middle of the fountain.
" I'm glad we did this, it was so fun." Saya said.
" Me too." Dante said, bring Saya closer to him, right before kissing her on the lips. She kissed back, then after a few seconds pulled away.
" Well, I guess we should get back before they send a search party for us." Dante said. Saya nodded, and the pair proceeded back to the LFO, leaving town right after. On the return trip, they noticed several KLFs in the air, flying in their direction. Dante checked the KLFs Ids, then shifted slightly in his seat.
" Saya, strap in. Things may get a little bumpy." Dante said, buckling himself in his seat. Saya did the same, right before one of the LFOs began firing its machine gun while lifting above. Dante sped up the LFO, watching a second LFO fire four missiles at them. Dante maneuvered around the impact zones, then transformed the 505 into fighting mode. Dante deployed the 505's Ref board while Saya aimed the laser cannon. Dante aimed the 505's machine gun and fired, shooting the board out from beneath the closest KLF, sending it crashing into a nearby hill. Saya fired the laser cannon, disabling one of the other KLFs sensors, sending it out of the fight. The third KLF streaked towards them, only to be met by one of the 505's now unfolded arm blades. Dante brought up the blade, slicing off the KLF's right arm and leg. Dante fired one of the 505's missiles, waiting as it spread into several small missiles, destroying two more KLFs. The final KLF retreated, prompting Dante and Saya to immediately return to the ground.
" Those were definitely rebel KLFs. The federation's KLFs have recently been modified and they're also experimenting with new body types. Those KLFs were older models. We'd better inform Axel and the others." Dante said, as the Thurston residence came into view.
" Dante, what happened, we saw a battle in the air." Renton said.
" We were attacked by a small squadron of rebel KLFs. They probably avoided or took out any nearby patrols to instigate an attack. Only one retreated, the rest we either destroyed or disabled." Dante said.
" Renton, we should probably contact the Gekko. It isn't safe to stay here right now." Eureka said.
" Eureka, both of our LFO's have a long range comm unit. Right here." Dante said, showing her the transmitter on his 505. Eureka nodded, and began to access the Gekko's encoded comm frequency.
Gekkostate:
" Holland, we're receiving a long range transmission." Gidget said.
" Is it the Federation or Tresor?" Holland responded.
" No. It's not a standard channel, it must be a coded frequency." Gidget said.
" Where's the signal originating from?" Hap said, looking over the ship's data logs. Gidget isolated the frequency's origin, moments later her eyes widened.
" I don't believe this. It's coming from Bell Forest." Gidget said.
" Your kidding!" Holland and Talho said, the latter holding Charles.
" Patching through the transmission now." Gidget said.
" Gekkostate, this is Eureka. Repeat, Gekkostate, this is Eureka."
" Eureka, we read you. Is Renton there?" Holland said.
" Yes. Here he is." Eureka said, moving over to allow Renton to appear in the transmission.
" Hi everyone." Renton said.
" It's good to see you two. What frequency are you using? It isn't a local or military frequency, nor is it Axel's private comm.
" I think I can clear that up." Dante said, activating the transmitter in Saya's 505.
" Who's this?" Holland responded.
" Dante Outlander, freelance LFO pilot. Your friends are using the comm in my Terminus R505. I'm using my partner's transmitter.
" Holland, it's okay. They helped us return to Bell Forest." Eureka said.
" Where have you two been, we've been searching for you both for over an entire year." Holland said.
" We woke up in a forest a few days ago near Shift. We were ambushed by a group of thugs who weren't very fond of Coralians. Our friend and his partner helped us out of that situation." Eureka said.
" Thank goodness. We're near the Marceles Archipelago right now. Hap, how are the conditions?" Talho said.
" If the trappar currents remain at their current levels, we should be able to arrive in Bell Forest in no later than five days, three if the conditions continue in the trend they're in right now." Talho said.
" Talho, is that your baby?" Eureka asked.
" Yep. Charles Dewey Novak." Talho said.
" Holland. I wanted to inform you that my associate and I encountered a squadron of rebel KLFs about thirty minutes ago. They must've either followed us or discovered our location. We'll keep Eureka and Renton safe until you arrive. I suggest that Axel and the kids join you. This location is compromised and would be dangerous for Axel and the kids to remain here alone." Dante said.
" I agree. Your a good kid. We'll been there ASAP." Holland said.
" Roger. Over and Out." Dante said, ending the transmission.
" Doggie, set course for Bell Forest. Gidget, maintain radio silence unless its the Thurstons. Hap, inform us of any significant changes in Trappar levels. Jobs, Woz, I need you to keep an eye on the ship. Let us know if anything happens to the engine or the computer systems. Ken-Goh, keep the weapon systems ready. Keep the ship in patrol mode, I want no rebel units trying to ambush us." Holland ordered. The Gekko then gained altitude proceeding towards the high altitude leylines.
" Renton, let your grandfather know about the rebels, then get together everything you, Axel and the kids will need." Dante said.
"What about you?" Renton asked.
" I'm gonna take a quick trip to Bell Forest's military base and inform them of the situation, they'll need to keep vigilant. Saya, stay here and keep an eye out for any more rebel units." Dante said. He jumped into his 505, transformed it into fighting mode then jumped onto its ref board. After inspecting a current map of the area, Dante proceeded towards the Bell Forest military outpost. Minutes later, several federation KLF units converged on his position, keeping a close eye on him.
" Terminus Type R505, you've entered restricted federation space, state intentions or we will use deadly force." the lead pilot commanded, keeping his KLF's machine gun trained on him.
" This is Dante Outlander, pilot of the 505 Shadow. I need to speak with the base commander immediately." Dante said.
" Follow us, but don't try anything smart." The pilot ordered, leading him to the base's hanger. When he stepped out, an LFO pilot in his mid thirties sporting a goatee and a scar over his right eye emerged from the lead KLF.
" Come with me. I'll take you to Colonel Bradley." The pilot said. After a few minutes of following the KLF pilot, Dante waited for the man to knock on the door.
" Colonel, there's someone here to see you." the pilot said.
" This better be important." the man said from the other side of the door. The door opened, revealing a man in his early forties in standard officer's garb wearing spectacles hanging on his nose.
" Come in." The Colonel said, slight annoyance in his voice.
" Now, what do you want to tell me." The Colonel announced.
" Colonel Bradley, exactly one hour ago I encountered several rebel KLFs that had entered federation airspace." Dante said in a professional manner.
" Are you sure?" The Colonel asked.
" Their identification codes as well as the appearance of the KLFs denoted them as enemy units and refused to order a warning before attacking." Dante replied.
" Where are they now?" The Colonel asked.
" All but one unit was destroyed or disabled in the battle. It retreated, though i'm expecting that it will return with reinforcements." Dante said.
" Do you know why they attacked?" The Colonel asked.
" They were after two people of explicit importance." Dante said.
" Do you mind revealing the identities of those they were pursuing?" the Colonel asked.
" Renton Thurston and Eureka." Dante said. The Colonel gasped, grabbed his handkerchief from his pocket, wiping the sweat from his brow.
" The Renton Thurston and Eureka?" The Colonel asked. Dante nodded.
" Well, why are you telling me all this?" the Colonel asked.
" I was hoping that your forces could patrol further out to keep any rebel forces from arriving until the GekkoState can get them out of there." Dante said.
" The GekkoState huh? I'll do it kid. It's the least I can do for the saviors of the world. What's your name?" The Colonel asked.
" Dante Outlander. Good day Colonel Bradley." Dante said, leaving the room shortly after.
" The legendary freelance pilot. Here? This job is stressful enough." The Colonel said, grabbing a small glass, filling it with whiskey.
" Well, that worked out better than I was hoping it would." Dante said, getting into his LFO and flying into the air. When he arrived at the Thurston residence, he saw Saya in her 505, scanning for any enemy KLFs.
" See anything while I was gone?" Dante asked.
" Nothing. We're safe, for now." Saya said, as Renton and Eureka emerged from the house.
" Well?" Renton asked.
" I've let the military know about the attack, and they'll keep an eye out, but we should still stay on our guard. Saya, you and I will keep guard for another few hours, then Renton and Eureka will relieve us from there until 1 am." Dante said.
" We'll bring you something to eat. You two must be hungry." Renton said as he and Eureka proceeded back inside. Minutes later, they brought out two trays with burgers, fries and a mug of coffee.
" Thanks." Dante said as he and Saya ate, keeping an eye out for any rebel KLFs. The next few days were uneventful, seeing only the occasional federation KLF roaming the area. In the skies near Bell Forest, the Gekko was beginning its flight to a lower altitude.
" Ken-Goh, ready the weapons systems and be ready to activate the shields. Talho, you're in charge while Matthieu, Hilda and I head to the Thurston residence. Stay airborne for now, and keep ready. We may need to make a quick getaway. Sumner, Ruri, keep ready to deploy in case the Gekko comes under attack." Holland said as he, Matthieu and Hilda boarded their respective LFOs.
" 909, 808 and 606, you are ready for launch." Talho said as the three Terminus LFOs deployed from the catapult, riding their ref boards towards the Thurston residence.
The Boy and Girl are close to reuniting with close friends. Can the boy and girl find help from an old friend.
Well, it seems like my revisions are turning out much better than I was hoping. Hopefully. Stay tuned for Chapter 3: One hell of a reunion.