Sorry for not updating in so long, I have been working like a sled dog all summer long. Anyway, I hope to hurry up and finish the fourth chapter soon, but I cannot make any promises. Ugh, why must parents assign homework over summer break?
Anyway, please enjoy!
Chapter Four: Why Steal Grasscutter?
Sven was sick of space, after fourteen days in this tin can he was bored out of his mind, though if it meant Eve's safety he was willing to risk his sanity. Walking along the corridor, he was strolling past the Engine room when he heard voices coming from inside. Pausing, he could not resist but eavesdrop on the conversation.
"Train, you don't do it like that, honestly, must I always do everything myself?"
"Well in this situation Sephi, I don't think you can, can you?" His partner defiantly snapped back, apparently he was irritable as well, though what they were doing in there, Sven had no idea. The stupid door was closed.
"Here, give it to me," the commanding voice of Sephiria Arks drifted into his ears, austere even from the sound waves traveling through the steel door, "I'll show you how it's done." There was a rustle of movement inside the room as Train, judging by his footfalls went over to Sephiria, then her voice carried out of the room again. "See, you have to make sure this goes in all the way, as tight as you possibly can and as far as you can possibly go, then you're finished once you're sure the job's completed, which is point blank obvious."
Sven blushed profusely as he heard this, unspeakable (and censored) images flooding to his head as he heard this, he quickly put his fingers into his ears as he attempted to drown out the sounds coming from the engine room. A noticeable grunt, and Train inquired, "That good?"
"Tighter." It was an order, a demand, not a suggestion. They must be serious.
Another grunt. "That better Ms. Perfect?"
"Perfect Train, perfect." She was almost sarcastic, "Who knew it would take this long to get to this point?"
Unable to take any of this lovey-dovey conversation any longer, Sven knocked on the door, which caused, not a frantic barrage of movements behind the closed metal door, but a casual pace greeting his interruption. To his astonishment, Sephiria greeted him (thankfully fully clothed), her face puzzled as she opened the steel door. "Why the face Sven?"
"What were you two doing in there?" he immediately replied, his face reddening even more as he spoke.
Again, the confusion. "Fixing this bolt and screw that must have gotten loosened in our ascent to the final frontier, what else do you think we would be doing? Train insisted on aiding me, but honestly, he was more of a hindrance than a help."
"I can hear you, you know," Train called from behind her, "the steel door isn't sound proof. This isn't pay no attention to the man behind the curtain."
"What did you think we were doing?" Sephiria ignored him as she surveyed Sven with a curious expression on her face as she leaned on the doorframe waiting for an answer.
He blushed an even darker shade of red, "I'm not at liberty to say at the moment, with my gentlemen's code and the fact that there's a child on board this ship."
Sephiria's eyes lit up in understanding, as her azure eyes morphed from knowledgeable to puzzlement. "Where-"
"Where would you get an impression like that?" Train cut in, his face tinged with a faint trace of lilac.
Fortunately, Sven was spared from answering as Eve was striding down the hallway and the three of them scattered to the winds. An unspoken agreement already created not to talk about this until another time, where they weren't supervised by children.
Eve enjoyed this place, or bucket of bolts as Sephiria had dubbed it affectionately. The food, well, there wasn't much to say about the food, only that it tasted dry and bland after sometime. But the place was interesting to explore, with technology advanced far beyond what was on the market, and with the training rooms there were things to do to pass the time. The quarters were modest until they had arrived in orbit, where it transformed from a dinky spacecraft into this amazing space station, complete with a gravity device that permitted them to walk on the ground as they did on earth. She thought it was called the anti-anti-gravity machine, or something along those lines. Eve, if memory served her well, could recall that Sephiria had prized that beyond all other technical equipment.
"My little sister made it when she was very young," she smiled as she remembered the moment, "it was one of her earlier innovations. When she left, I took it because it was the few remaining inventions my father had bothered to keep."
"Where's your sister now?" Eve had queried, her eyes widening as she thought about the solitary Captain, the former Number I having familial ties with anyone.
Sephiria's eyes turned solemn as she gazed out the window, back at earth with its beautiful oceans and swirling clouds, the landmasses (even the polluted areas) looking majestic from the dark, cold space. "She probably is still searching for me, most likely, somewhere back on earth. She would never give up on me, even if it meant sacrificing her entire life to help me regain mine."
"Would you do the same for her?"
Sephiria fixed Eve with the most weighty stare she had ever seen before replying somberly, "If I had to choose between saving the world or my sister, I would sacrifice everything to protect her, including all of mankind."
"Even if it meant Train, Sven, and me would die?"
Her expression softened into a smile, "Well that would be a much tougher decision, however, I'm always an idiot whenever my sister's involved. I might just naively believe I would be able to save all four of you, no matter who, what, where, when, or how," a film covered her eyes as she seemed to be gazing beyond the room, back to earth viewing something, or someone… "Anyone is running the operation."
Nonetheless, it had only been fourteen days since they had outwitted Chronos at the hospital, and Eve had to admit that Space was losing it's perks. Not only had there been the constant danger of the surrounding space junk, there was also a need for avoiding any satellites to avoid detection or else someone would be able to lock onto their electrical signal and track them down. That and the adults were acting oddly lately, especially this morning when all three had been blushing profusely. Had something gone on without her whereabouts? It had a high probability of being factual; the adults had been of late secretive in their conversations, always a silent hush following her arrival into the room.
Knowing Train, it could have something to do with a pea brain scheme to go back to earth to have milk once again. It would have been plausible, this hypothesis, if not for the participation of Sephiria in such conversations. The severe and compassionate Captain of the Numbers, well, former Captain, would not even believe it worth her time to partake in such discussion. They were planning something, plotting something, and somehow, Eve knew she was in the eye of the storm, by chance in the middle of the crisis, in the heart of it all.
-X-
Mason glared at the assembled Numbers, minus two, before him, annoyance crackling off him like a lightning storm, causing Emilio to back away from him in apprehension. That was good. Some fear was perfect for keeping subordinates on their toes, especially if he wanted to deliver a convincing piece of information to determine where their loyalties stood.
"As of now," his voice was clear over his silent comrades, "Sephiria Arks is no longer your Captain; she is now just like Number XIII. A Former Number. Just another fragment of the past that is to be hunted and killed. Any opportunity to result in her death must be taken at all costs, we cannot allow this renegade to weaken our iron grip on the world."
Jenos piped up innocently, a hand in the air, "One question Mason, why is Sephiria considered a traitor?"
"She aided in the escape of a vital weapon that will provide Chronos with the necessary military support it needs to dominate the entire world. Apparently, this little weapon strikes a bit too close to home." He felt no emotion now, something must have snapped after that conversation with her, just the way she had known, had expected him to come… She had him play right into her little foxy paws… Humiliating really, and excruciatingly painful to report to the Elders; the looks on their faces were priceless. Honest to God if it weren't for his preparations for Eden, he would be hunting her down himself and handing her severed head to the Elders on a silver platter. Oh, that would be rich, and to get back for that nasty fist through the neck punch she had given him so many months earlier. Maybe if he was permitting himself to be cruel to the utmost extent he would murder that pacifist twin sister of hers before she discovered the eternal sleep. Though, that would not take too long, the provisions for Eden would be complete by tonight, then he would exploit her crucial weakness with help from the greatest thief money could buy...
"But did you ever wonder why she disagreed? Did you do something to someone close to her or experiment on her to leave an imprint that weapons used for military support are terrible?"
It was Kanzaki, or Doctor as he preferred to be known as responded for him, "The viewpoint she took is understandable if you knew her background information, however, that is classified so you will never be able to discover why, I am unsure to her reasoning myself. Nevertheless, it is perfectly clear that she valued her opinion over Chronos' and sought action by herself. Therefore, she must be eliminated for the good of the organization." He had been recruited for Chronos' cause early on once he discovered his Taoist powers from the elixir, and had been vital in creating Eden by being their spy within Tearju Lunatique's laboratory. He had also been the genius who had made the mind program to cause Eve to become a living doll and entirely under Chronos' control, all that needed to be done now was put it on Eve.
"I'm sorry," Jenos replied, his mouth curling into a cruel grin, "but I just cannot agree to that explanation or reasoning behind her own reasons. She was not the type to go run off without a word to anyone unless it was absolutely necessary. Even then, didn't she outwit our best pilots and escape into space Mason? You are attempting to destroy something so elusive that I'm sure Nessie could take tips from her. You're just a lost cause Mason."
Mason's mouth relaxed as he discovered the golden opportune to set his plans into motion, "Is that so Jenos? At last, I have found where your heart belongs, with the treacherous Captain. Good, I have many uses for you traitor…"
=X=
Rinslet Walker bit her lip as she prepared to undergo her task that she was required to do, knowing that she was certain to bring down the full force of a certain someone's animosity upon her. But what else could she do? Either steal the stupid sword from the shrine or Jenos would get it, Mason had already proved that he was replaceable at this point. She felt a slight shiver run down her spine as she thought about that decrepit old man, looking so frail and fragile, but would rip out your throat at the moment your guard was down.
"You understand that your boyfriend's life will be taken if you are unable to retrieve the sword at the Atsuta Shrine," he grinned maniacally, his hands folded assertively on the desk separating them. The desk was his moat, the drawbridge of his castle, with his words being the messengers ferrying the plans for a compromise or negotiations between the besieging army. However, this compromise was pure demand, no say for the other side this time. This was his territory, his area of expertise, and there was nothing Rinslet could be able to do in order to impede his progress.
There was something about those piercing grey eyes, they seemed to suck the warmth from the air around them, steal every shred of happiness. The owner of those pair of eyes was parasitic to emotions, fattening himself up on every moment of the room. It was similar to Sephiria, when she had met her before, not the time at the Japanese Restaurant, but way, way, back, to the time when Sephiria had Train's eyes. The eyes unafraid to rip and kill, slaughter every woman, man or child that dared to cross her path, yes those were the days…
She managed in a small voice, "But she's going to kill me, you know how she reacted last time when a client had me steal the sword."
"Trust me, once you get it into Chronos' possession, everything will be smooth sailing after that," Mason reassured her, smoothing back his fine grey hair, "Sephiria will be putty in our hands with that blade. You are dismissed, for now, and Belze, I know you're waiting politely behind that door, kindly come in, I have some business to discuss with you…"
Taking a deep breath, she managed to slip between two rafters in the Japanese Temple, pausing with her breath held tightly, she waited for the two priests walking down the hallway to pass before continuing onto the road to the sacred sword. At long last, she had reached the concealed area where the sword was kept in, surrounded by fantastical murals of the kami depicted doing numerous activities. Such naïve people, believing that no one dare steal it, but with the mural and almost divine belief with the sword, perhaps they thought no one would dare do such a deed.
Steeling herself for the task that lay ahead, Rinslet took the heavy blade in her hands and ran like the wind out of there, out to the designated rendezvous point. She found Belze with Jenos, waiting for her, his eyes unreadable as he surveyed her.
"You have the package?" he inquired rhetorically, "Give it to me, I must check to verify its reality." She silently handed it over, watching as he expertly spun the blade around in his fingers, checking the dimensions and giving it a few practice swings. "This is a fine blade, Kusanagi is indeed a formidable sword. Rinslet, take your boyfriend and leave, and pretend you were never involved in this ruse. Jenos, I apologize for Mason's behavior, your interrogation was not my department this time, unfortunately."
"Not my department?" The bruised Jenos snarled sarcastically, gesturing to his marred face, "That is the type of excuse any kindergartener would give. Sephiria would never have-" However, he cut off his ranting when he saw the genuine sorrow in Belze's eyes as he gazed at him one last time before turning away to the characteristic black car of Chronos, a little puppy (or big bulldog with puppy characteristics) running back home to his master. They both watched the car drive away before speaking again.
"We need to warn Sephiria," Jenos inputted immediately, "this is all to get her to come out of space; I don't know why they turned against her yet they want her here because of something or someone. Mason kept talking about a Bio-weapon or something during his torture session."
Rinslet looked at him in horror as she finally put two and two together, "Eve. That's the only Bio-Weapon I know of, and she left with Sephiria from what I heard from Kevin, and Silphy."
"Why they would want a little girl is beyond me, however, somehow we have to contact Sephiria or the whole world is pretty much screwed." Jenos was one hundred percent serious now, no trace of his Casanova or flirtatious tendencies apparent.
"Oh joy, fill me in about it because Mason lacked clarity when he was blackmailing me." She looked at Jenos, her customary personality returning since the danger had passed. Wondering what Jenos seemed so engrossed about, she followed his vision to a bunch of Japanese schoolgirls giggling and waving at him.
"So cute, imagine what they'll look like when their olde-"
She socked him in the face, dragging the slightly smoking body behind her, she muttered darkly to herself, "Men…" You never could tell, solemn one moment, flirting the next…
Must remember to keep working more on this (pulls on headband). Please Read and Review !