Prerogative
Don't Forget to Look Up
As Vash made his way back to the group, he started to pick up on bits of their conversation, and already his heart was beating hard at what he was hearing.
Meryl turned to look at him, but said nothing as she averted her eyes to Knives, who to her displeasure was looking straight at her. She felt a shiver run through her body when he smiled at her before turning away and walking back into the darkness that he seemed to favor so much.
'What in the hell was that?' She thought to herself, 'that was the creepiest smile I've ever seen.'
"Leave now?" Vash's voice snapped her back into the conversation the group was having.
'Unfortunately I don't feel quite like letting anyone go at the moment Vash. The first to go is the first to die.' Knives' voice floated into Vash's mind.
"Yeah why not? We're fully rested, and fed. We need to get going to that next town; everyone will be waiting to hear from us." One of the men pointed out.
Vash studied the five people in front of him. Millie and Meryl were the only ones to notice his eyebrows furrow in concern, the two other men and additional woman hadn't caught his look.
"What's wrong Mr. Vash you don't look so well?" Millie voiced before everyone turned to look at Vash in question.
As they all stared at him a few gasps were let out as Vash's eyes rolled to the back of his head and as he suddenly fell to the ground. They all bent down around him alarmed.
"Vash, what the hell, are you alright?!" Meryl asked loudly bending down close to him.
Vash mumbled something and the group looked at each other in confusion. No one had heard what he said.
"What was that?" Meryl asked leaning further toward him, presenting her ear closer to his mouth.
"I said, Knives won't let anyone go," Vash muttered and then faked a groan and dizzy spell as he dropped his head back to the ground.
"Goodness, what did he say?" The woman asked after seeing Meryl's alarmed look.
"Oh um," Meryl thought quickly. "He said he's in horrible pain."
"Pain? Well I've been trained in some basic aid." One of the men said.
"You have?" Both Meryl and Vash said together. Everyone glanced at Vash whose eyes had re-opened.
The man in question raised his eyes at Vash who immediately went back to groaning in pain.
Knives looked at his brother in pure disgust. 'Ugh, what an idiot you're such a disgrace to me,' he thought to himself as he watched his brother's performance. "Just what do you think you're doing Vash?" He added out loud opening a door that was to the side. He closed it firmly behind him and sat down on the only free chair in the room. He stared at the small table in front of him, crossing his legs, as he planned his next move.
He gingerly picked up a piece and lifted it from the board, not hesitating as he placed it back down. He stared at where he had placed his piece a moment before he muttered, "check," quietly.
He looked at his opponent who sat in his chair unmoving, but sitting up straight staring ahead mindlessly.
'Hmm, interesting,' Knives thought as he stared back at Hank resting his titled head on his hand.
Back in the main part of the geo, Vash was poked and probed as the others watched to the side.
"I wonder what is the matter with him is." Millie asked to Meryl who was beside her.
The petite woman thought back to what Vash had just told her "Knives won't let anyone go." She released a long sigh of worry.
'I think deep down I knew it wouldn't be this easy,' Meryl thought to herself. 'Not with him in charge. How am I going to convince everyone to stay here? Can't very well tell them that if they leave something will happen to them.' She bit her lip in frustration and only came out of her reverie when she realized Millie was shaking a hand in front of her.
"Oh, sorry Millie, what did you say?"
Millie's eyes were creased with worry, "I said I wonder what's the matter with Mr. Vash, but now I'm wondering what's the matter with you? What's going on Meryl is there something I should know about?"
Meryl had never informed Millie of everything Vash had told her the day he had left for that final battle with his brother. Millie hadn't pressed the subject as she had been informed of the basics. That Vash had an old score to settle with his brother. She didn't want to alarm her by telling her Knives' nature or what he was known for. She imagined she could carry the worry and fear for the both of them. But now she felt, that maybe she ought to fill Millie on a little more of the situation, especially with Knives claiming they couldn't leave.
Grabbing her elbow, she discreetly pulled her to the side and told her everything Vash had ever told her and their current condition. Even when Meryl had watched Millie's face pale, even though Millie had looked off for a moment, even when she had whimpered at some of the facts, Meryl told her everything.
"We can't stay here Meryl!" Millie finally was able to voice in fear.
"We don't have a choice Millie," Meryl told her calmly.
"How can you be so calm about this? Why didn't you tell me earlier? He's a murderer, all the missing people and, and Mr. Wolfwood! He caused all that! How can you have just sat here, just last night having a normal conversation with that evil man!"
"Millie calm down!" Meryl said grabbing her friend by the shoulders. Shushing her before anyone heard her slight hysterics. "I'm calm because I have to be. You don't think I'm not shivering inside with pure terror do you? Of course I'm scared, I'm terrified! But there isn't anything we can do, Knives won that last fight so he's in control. If he says to stay here…" she sighed. "Then for now at least, we have to stay here."
"Meryl, I can't! We can't! What if…how are we going to get everyone to stay?"
Meryl bit her lip and looked over to the group still watching Vash curiously. "I'm not sure. Vash's distraction will only last so long. After that man has proved that he's okay, they'll want to leave again."
Meryl would have continued her attempts to reassure her friend if it hadn't been for seeing Knives' figure emerge from the darkness. Millie saw that her eyes were fixed on something behind her and she turned her head, tensing and almost yelping when she saw him.
"Millie!" Meryl said forcefully making the more timid women focus her eyes back on her. "You're not alone okay; we're going to get through this in one piece." She said firmly and watched in satisfaction as Millie nodded her head. 'I'm not sure how,' she found herself thinking. 'But somehow we will, I know we will.'
"Well I can't find anything wrong with him, it's probably just a simple stomach ache Vash," the man announced and Meryl and Millie turned their attentions back to him, attempting to ignore the fact that Knives was walking toward their little group.
"Do you think you'll be okay to walk?" the other woman in the group asked with concern.
"He looks fine to me," the other man said. A significantly younger and taller man whose eyes were falling onto Knives. "And hey, is it just me or is it getting darker?"
"That's because I'm closing the roof of the plant."
Vash, Meryl and Millie, as well as the other three turned to look at Knives, hearing his drawl.
"You can do that?" The younger man asked, but Knives didn't really respond as he looked at his brother.
"Yes, I can."
"Why are you doing that?" Vash asked, sitting up, his "stomach ache" already long forgotten.
"There is a sand storm brewing outside. I don't want it to contaminate the plant."
"A sandstorm?" The older man who had been examining Vash asked, standing up with a frown.
"Yes."
"Then we're stuck here for awhile longer," the women said. "We can't travel outside in that."
"Maybe it won't last long," the older man put in helpfully.
"Perhaps, but it may last days, maybe even weeks." Knives said quietly fixing his gaze at Vash.
"Perfect, now everyone's going to think we've died," the young man said flatly, dropping himself to the ground in a pout.
"Since we're going to be here for maybe awhile we should get to know each other," Millie said, trying her best to regain her cheerful composure. "I'm Millie Thompson, Claims Investigator!" She turned with a smile to Meryl who gave her a small one back.
"Right, I'm Meryl Stryfe also a Claims Investigator."
"What exactly does a claims investigator do?" The younger man asked seemingly uninterested.
"We investigate claims," Meryl told him annoyed, decided she didn't care much for his young attitude. "Claims made by the people."
"Our last mission was actually on Mr. Vash!" Millie said with a grin, looking at the blonde who laughed.
"You're really not what I imagined you to be Mr. Vash," the other woman said with a soft smile.
"He never is," Meryl added.
Vash beamed, "I'll go next then. I'm Vash, and really you don't have to add the Mr., and I don't really do much… I'm in between jobs at the moment."
"You don't have a last name?" The young man asked, raising a dark eyebrow.
"Not that I recall… nope."
"Uh huh, well I'm Adrian Vettadini. My parents own most of the hotels spread out over the planet, I'll take over when my old man kicks the bucket."
"That sounds nice," Millie said with a smile.
"Yes, it's so nice having life all nicely wrapped and chosen for you."
"No need to be sarcastic Adrian, I'm Olivia Miy, a school teacher."
"And uh, I'm George Miller. I help work the sand steamers and occasionally I help the doctors on the steamers."
Everyone turned to Knives who was sitting the farthest from the group, "Knives, that's all any of you need to know."
"You really created this geo plant and all by yourself?" Olivia asked curiously as she eyed Knives.
The plant in question spared her a quick glance before nodding slightly, "I did."
"It's beautiful," she responded with a smile as she looked around the lush plant.
"…nearly. There are still a few…kinks, I need to work out."
"Like what, seems damn fine to me," Adrian spoke up, never to allow a conversation to stray too far without his involvement.
Knives stared hard at Adrian, narrowing his eyes at the younger man, "it currently has a spider infestation problem."
"Ugh, spiders?!" Adrian grimaced as he shot back up into a standing position looking around him.
"My thoughts exactly," Knives replied with a smirk. "But don't worry, I'm currently dealing with the problem as we speak. In fact I'm quite sure I've already caught the smartest one of them all. It will be easy to be rid of the rest."
While Adrian, George, and Olivia, nodded in relief, Vash, Meryl, and Millie exchanged looks of fright.
A slight rattle caught everyone's attention and for some reason they all glanced up, except for Knives who eyed them carefully.
"What was that?" George muttered.
The roof of the geo was now closed and though they could not find the source of light, given that there were no windows in the geo, it still seemed as if they were outside.
"Probably the sandstorm getting underway, I have a feeling it's going to be brutal," Knives answered the man.
"I hope everyone out there has safely made it to nearby towns," Millie said worriedly as she thought of all the townspeople they had to send off in different directions.
"I'm sure they have, they didn't have nearly as far a walk as we did," Meryl reassured her friend.
"Hey, just how far away are we from –" Adrian cut off his question when he realized the man he was aiming the question at was no longer in sight. "Where did he go?" He asked referring to Knives.
The rest of the group tore their eyes from the ceiling and looked around, Knives was nowhere to be seen.
"That's…odd," Olivia muttered and Meryl and Millie glanced at Vash who only shook his head.
"What should we do to pass the time?" Meryl asked suddenly deciding it was best if she took everyone's mind off the plant who had more or less vanished before their eyes. 'Focus on unimportant things,' she told herself. It would be better that way.
While they all gathered and decided on a nice game of cards while telling tales about each other's lives, Vash sneaked off, after giving Meryl a slight nod.
'Keep an eye on your brother,' Meryl sent the message through her eyes and Vash understood it well, agreeing with her full heartedly. He walked toward the shadows allowing them to envelope him as he searched for his brother.
Unbeknownst to the group the geo plant was far larger than they supposed it to be. While there was the greenery, where they were currently residing, there were plenty of backrooms, most locked which Vash had no access to, but just as many were unlocked. The unlocked rooms, save one, held nothing inside. It did nothing to ease Vash's nerves, because Knives never did or made anything that had no purpose. These empty rooms would serve a purpose he just didn't know what, and he didn't like that.
"Knives!" He called out for his brother, walking in a few of the empty rooms and closing the doors when he didn't find his other half. When he turned from a particular door he wasn't surprised when Knives was directly in front of him.
It seemed he preferred the disappearing and reappearing act. Vash was quite capable of doing the same thing, but he preferred to walk and be heard while he did so. It made him seem more human. Knives on the other hand embraced everything that made him what he really was.
"What now?" Knives questioned, the annoyance in his voice not lost on Vash.
"Hank," Vash started and was cut off.
"Is alive, I promised he would be."
"Let me see him then."
"No," Knives replied simply.
"Why not?" Vash asked through clenched teeth.
"Because you wouldn't like what you would see, and I really don't feel like being lectured by you."
Vash narrowed his eyes at his brother's vague answer, "what did you do to him?" He hissed.
Knives smiled, "I made him useful, that's all."
"And your idea of useful is?"
"None of your concern, at least not yet. Don't worry brother I'll clue you in, or maybe you'll even find out on your own, just don't do anything rash like try to enter locked rooms. You're my brother and I'd rather not hurt you. Your humans are calling for you Vash," Knives said with slight disgust as he turned and made his way into a room closing it behind him.
"Uh, Knives!" Vash made to open the door to go after his brother, but found that it was locked. He knew no amount of banging on the door would make his brother answer it so he sighed in defeat and retreated back to the greenery. He would get his brother to answer more of his questions the next time they talked he decided. He didn't like being in the dark, especially when his brother was up to no good.
That in itself made him nervous. Knives was, yes, a little more secretive then most, but eventually he made his plans known to him. Unfortunately as past experience had taught Vash, such information was always made known when it was nearly too late to do anything about it. And there was no doubt in his mind that whatever Knives was up to, would take a toll on the small group of humans he was with.
He hated having to even think it, but he had a very very bad feeling.
AN: Hmm…I liked this chapter so much I actually got more ideas for Prerogative, and I realize not much of anyone reads this fanfic anymore, but I think it's a second favorite of mine. Writing Knives as diabolical is great fun and I seem to have forgotten that. Anyway, there is more to come believe it or not! Maybe I won't discontinue it after all.
Faery Goddyss