Lucy almost lost her balance when the truck suddenly took off. The wounds she tried her best to ignore while in battle were now making themselves felt, and now when Lucy seemed to be out of danger, her guard began to slip down; there was only so much pain even a V-type Boomer like her could cope with.
And as if the pain alone wasn't bad enough, Lucy was vaguely aware about the pool of blood that was quickly forming beneath her feet. Without any medical treatment, the wounds from laser cannons were too deep even for her advanced regeneration system to handle, and Lucy dully realized that unless she will receive a medical treatment soon, she is probably going to die anyway.
Luckily for her, the truck stopped again a few minutes later, and as her senses weren't completely dulled by the ever-increasing pain she felt, Lucy's quickly registered footsteps coming from the truck's cockpit. Upon hearing them, Lucy stood up from a simple metallic bed she was surprised to find in the truck's cargo bay just a man opened a door that separated the truck's cockpit with its cargo bay and stepped into Lucy's view. The man looked vaguely familiar to Lucy, though it still took her a few seconds to recall where she had seen him.
"You."
Though Lucy's voice had a hint of hostility about it as she spoke, the man merely smiled in response, almost as though he didn't realize that a young woman in front of him was a V-type Boomer, who, despite her injuries, could kill him with but a thought. Which, Lucy knew, couldn't be the case.
"Yes, we have already met. Sorry for not introducing myself to you then, but it could have raised some unwanted suspicion. I am Yuu Kakuzawa."
The man named Yuu gave her an almost mocking bow, which Lucy pointedly ignored. It was the first time she heard his name, but Lucy knew that this man was the one responsible for sending her to find and exterminate Nana. Which was the mission Lucy was definitely glad to receive, but…
"So, did you come to take me back to the laboratory now?"
But even as she asked the question, Lucy realized with some surprise that she had absolutely no inclination to return to the laboratory, no matter what Yuu was going to say on that matter. Like a few days ago, she suddenly felt so… Free.
"Not at all," Lucy blinked once as she was looking at Yuu; his reply took her completely by surprise, "In fact, you would probably be surprised to learn that the real reason behind my sending you after Nana was to get you out of the laboratory, to get you free. It was also I who originally disturbed your connection with OMS, which was never fully restored despite all Kurama's attempts to do it, allowing you to first experience independence a few days ago, as well as allowing you to experience it now."
Lucy was indeed surprised to learn of it, but she suppressed it quickly as she asked in her usual somewhat hostile voice, "And why did you do that? What do you want with me now?"
"The question is not what I want with you, but rather what my… Superior wants with you." A more accurate word would probably be "master", but Yuu disliked to think of, let alone describe their relations as those of a master and a servant, even if this was a servitude he willingly took upon himself, "He has a certain proposal he would like to make to you, and he will make it to you when you meet in person. But first let me take care of your wounds. Please, lie down."
A little reluctantly, Lucy obeyed; it wasn't that she didn't want his aid, far from it, she understood that she was in dire need of at least basic medical assistance, but after having to obey humans without questions for the most part of her short life, Lucy was now inclined to disobey them on general principle. She suppressed this inclination… For now.
Yuu undressed her and began to arrange blood transfusion, as Lucy lost too much blood even for her to easily recover on her own, and once it was done, Yuu proceeded to bandaging her wounds. As he did so, Lucy suddenly realized how different the way he treated her was, comparing to all the treatment she received so far. She fully realized that he needed her alive and willing to accompany him in order to deliver her to his "superior", but even so, it made her feel strange. She now wondered, what kind of person Yuu's "superior" was and what kind of "proposal" he wanted to make to her. Perhaps, just perhaps, things were finally starting to turn out for the better?
"No," Lucy thought, and her red eyes immediately turned cold as eyes; she has lost hope for anything to turn out "for the better" for her a long time ago, and she didn't want to give herself a false hope now, "I shall see what his "superior" has to say, and if I don't like it…"
A cruel smile touched Lucy's lips…
If they were nervous when they were called into Chairman Quincy's officer earlier this afternoon, it paled next to how they felt when they were called there now, when the working day was already done, and in fact, when the evening was already giving a way to the night.
Both Director Kakuzawa and Doctor Kurama immediately noticed the absence of the third highest-ranking member of their research team, Doctor Yuu Kakuzawa; they didn't know what was going on or why he was absent, but both of them got a feeling that the meeting wasn't going to go well for them. And at least one of them was going to find out just how right he was all too soon…
Kate was present as well, her strict business-like appearance as flawless as ever, even at the hour this late, a notable contrast to Quincy himself, who had a few upper buttons of his shirt unbuttoned, but then again, he was known for never really caring how he looked in front of his subordinates.
Any casual observer would have noticed that Chairman Quincy looked… Somewhat displeased. Anyone who worked in GENOM for years, however, and who knew of Quincy's reputation of almost never letting his anger show, would have realized that the Chairman of GENOM, perhaps a single most powerful person in the world, was in fact enraged.
Though Kakuzawa and Kurama had no way of knowing it for sure, but given the latest events and their sudden summoning into Chairman Quincy office at such a late hour, it would be safe to make a guess that Chairman Quincy's displeasure was directly liked with GENOM's most recent operation of exterminating BU-07V, most likely, with its possible lack of success.
Their guess was confirmed when Chairman Quincy finally spoke, trying to keep anger out of his voice, "You should probably know that we haven't yet received conformation of BU-07V's termination. And what makes things worse that we have lost contact with BU-01V, meaning that… It has gone rogue as well."
Chairman Quincy paused, letting this information sink in before he would continue, and secretly taking note of Kakuzawa and Kurama's reaction to it.
Director Kakuzawa looked neither particularly surprised nor all that worried about it: as far as he was concerned, all the decisions, as well as responsibility for them, regarding BU-01V and BU-07V were taken out of his hands.
Doctor Kurama, on the other hand, couldn't help barely noticeably clenching his teeth, as he realized the possible consequences of what has apparently happened. He felt safe enough with arranging an opportunity for Nana to escape the laboratory, but he knew that BU-07V… Lucy was a completely different matter. She wasn't really the most violent or homicidal of V-type Boomers they created, in fact, aside from Nana, Lucy was the only one among V-type Boomers who seemed to retain sanity even when she wasn't under complete control. But nevertheless, the images of scientists who were unlucky enough to get in Lucy's way during her past attempt to escape from the laboratory cut into pieces, in a manner that suggested that their deaths were not immediate, were still clear before Kurama's eyes. Free of any kind of external control, Lucy will kill at her pleasure, of that Kurama was fully certain, and to make matters worse, she had means of doing it without attracting any kind of suspicion to herself. And if she ever leaves MegaTokyo… It will be only through extreme luck that GENOM will ever be able to find her.
"Not to concerned, are we?" Chairman Quincy's voice brought Kurama out of his thoughts, "That's surprising, considering that to begin with, this idea belonged to none other but your own son… Who had conveniently disappeared before he could be held responsible for it, how very thoughtful of him."
All Director Kakuzawa's calmness suddenly disappeared as he realized the direction Chairman Quincy was leading this talk into.
"But, Mr. Chairman, you cannot hold me responsible for the mistakes my stupid son have done." Director Kakuzawa said.
"I can and I will!" Chairman Quincy cut him off, "Have you forgotten our agreement?"
Director Kakuzawa went silent. Now he remembered it… Too well. When his son Yuu Kakuzawa was on his deathbed, Chairman Quincy personally came up to him and offered a way of saving his son's life. But it wasn't without conditions: he and Yuu will have to work for GENOM from now on as well as hand over all the rights over their research of artificial enhancements of human brain to GENOM. And as a little side condition, due to the "special" condition Yuu was going to be in from then on, the elder Kakuzawa was going to assume full responsibility over his son's actions. The elder Kakuzawa never gave this condition too much thought back then, but now he wished he would just let his ungrateful bastard of a son just die. But then again, the elder Kakuzawa fully realized that if he had rejected Chairman Quincy's offer back then, Chairman Quincy would probably get what he wanted anyway, in much less pleasant for him and Yuu way, and that was the main reason he didn't hesitate to take Chairman Quincy's offer, not the concern over his son's life.
Director Kakuzawa clenched his teeth.
"I remember, Mr. Chairman, but…"
"Then take the responsibility!"
"I will, I… I will think of what can be done…"
"There is no need for that," a small smile touched Chairman Quincy's lips as he spoke, "Director Kakuzawa, you have made one mistake too many. You are fired."
"But, Mr. Chairman, without me Project V will…"
"Only fare better, I assure you," Chairman Quincy finished for him, "You were supervising Project V for over a year, yet you are as far from our ultimate goal of mass-producing V-type Boomers as you were a year ago."
"But, Mr. Chairman!" Director Kakuzawa's voice almost broke into scream, "You just don't understand the difficulties involved in…"
"Oh, but I do! Did you think that Research Laboratory 3 that was handed over to you for use was the only one to conduct research on Project V? We had other separate researches done on Project V, which proved to be far more fruitful then yours, and now we don't need you anymore. Kate, I am leaving the details of termination of Director Kakuzawa's contract to you."
A shot was heard, then a sound of falling body. Then…
"Mr. Chairman, I will call the cleaning staff to clean up the mess."
The cleaning staff won't ask any questions, they were boomers, of course.
Kurama could only watch in shock as Kate Madigan put her automatic pistol back into its hidden holster and took out her cell phone to call the cleaning staff; all of it has happened before he even realized what was going on. And with growing horror Kurama realized that he could be joining the late Director Kakuzawa on the floor any moment.
Kurama was aware of his own automatic pistol in the inner holster at the inner side of his business suit, but he knew that he will not be able to draw it in time: as nearly everybody in this time and age, Kurama trained in firearms usage, but his skills in this area were well bellow average, while Kate has just demonstrated speed and reflexes of a professional soldier, almost bordering on being superhuman, in Kurama's somewhat inexperienced opinion. He knew that there was no way he could best her, even if he attempts to draw his pistol first.
"Kurama."
"Yes, Mr. Chairman?" it was only with great difficulty that Kurama managed to keep his voice more or less calm as he spoke.
"I expect that by now you were able to find out what went wrong in BU-07V's development, were you?"
"Yes, Mr. Chairman," Kurama's heart was heavy as he replied, the "mistake" he made with BU-07V was obvious, "I can provide you with a detailed report as soon as I am back in my office."
"There is no need for that. With Director Kakuzawa, heh, fired at, your job in Research Laboratory 3 is now over." Chairman Quince paused to let Kurama wonder about his fate before continuing, "With that being so, you will be transferred to a new task: I want you to oversee the final stages of development of BU-35V… Or perhaps I shouldn't say "BU-35V", perhaps I should say… Mariko?"
"The name of the project is of no importance," Kurama forced his voice to sound emotionless as he spoke, and then added, more for himself then for Quincy, "As a scientist, I am not allowed to have any feelings towards..." Kurama trailed off.
"Oh, but you do have them," Chairman Quincy was all but openly grinning now as he spoke, "After all, this is only… Human."
Kurama couldn't shrug off the thought that the way Chairman Quincy said that seemed almost like an insult.
Chairman Quincy's half-grin disappeared as quickly as it appeared as he continued much more serious, while piercing Kurama with his eyes, "Do not make the same mistake with BU-35V as you did with BU-07V. Otherwise, the results will be disastrous not only for you and BU-35V, but for the human race as a whole. Do you understand me?"
"I do."
"Then you are dismissed. Kate will provide you with all the details about BU-35V you need. You will start working on this task right away."
Now once again dressed in the dark blue jumpsuit she was given when she was sent to hunt Nana down, Lucy followed Yuu through the corridors of the building.
On the outside this building didn't look any different from other buildings in Tinsel City, except that it was perhaps larger then the most, but despite its unremarkable appearance, the differences from old and sometimes half-ruined buildings that most of Tinsel City seemed to consist of became obvious to Lucy the moment they entered it, primary because their means of entering this building was a carefully-camouflaged elevator that took their truck to an underground hangar. That hangar contained a number of other vehicles, all of them as unremarkable in appearance as the truck Lucy came in, but despite the appearance, all of them were obviously kept in top-notch condition, and many of the vehicle looked like the were designed for combat too.
And the corridors Lucy now followed Yuu through likewise indicated that this building was anything but abandoned. Though for mostly empty and for the most part cast into semi-darkness, the corridors' metallic walls and doors were clearly made for durability, complementing an almost maze-like structure in which the building's interior was designed in overall. Everything Lucy has seen about this building so far clearly indicated that it was designed not only to appear inconspicuous on outside, but also to withstand a possible assault on the inside.
Finally, after passing countless corridors and intersections and taking a few elevators, Lucy and Yuu entered a large room, somewhere in the building's above-ground part, Lucy guessed. The room looked a little like some oversized office room, except that it mostly consisted of open space, with relatively little furniture to fill it. One of the room's walls was made of glass, opening a good view on a night MegaTokyo.
And right before the glass wall stood a tall man with platinum-white hair dressed in dark business suit; it was as though he specifically choose his position to make his presence immediately noticeable, which he probably did. In the gloom of the room, one of the first things that was noticeable about the man was a pair of slightly gleaming red eyes, which immediately betrayed the man's inhuman nature.
Lucy poorly hid the surprise she felt at the sight of a boomer looking as though he actually owned this place, and as she was just looking at him, the man spoke, "Welcome, Lucy. It is a pleasure to finally be able to meet you in person. But I believe I should introduce myself first. My name is Largo, and I will be the creator of a new world."
"So, you are this man's superior, aren't you?" Lucy felt a mixture of curiosity and distrust as she approached the platinum-haired man, "Even though you are a boomer?"
"A boomer? You really should stop using this pathetic word they taught you in GENOM." A somewhat contemptuous smile touched the platinum-haired man's lips as he said that, and Lucy definitely didn't like it, "As I said, my name is Largo, and that is how you will address me. And as for those of our brethren who don't have names, calling them Cyberdroids would be far more proper."
Lucy frowned a little: she definitely didn't like the patronizing manner in which Largo spoke, or the air of superiority he built about himself.
"So anyway, what do you have to offer to me?"
"What do I have to offer to you? Everything." Largo turned his back to Lucy, looking out of the glass wall to the cityscape beyond it, and Lucy instinctively followed his gaze.
Beyond the darkened area that was Tinsel City, it was a city of multi-colored lights and towering skyscrapers; against the background of a night sky, they looked almost like pillars of light reaching for the heaven. And towering over them all in open display of power and superiority was GENOM Tower, which would have been dark and foreboding if it wasn't for numerous white searchlights constantly scanning an area around it, in a way remind Lucy of her Vectors. The entire sight was… Beautiful, for the lack of other words. It was strange, Lucy has never thought of things like this ever before, why would she do it now?
"Because you was like a caged bird, who has now broken free from her cage," Largo said, almost as if he was reading her thoughts, "And now… Would you like for all these lights to be yours, and yours alone?"
"What do you mean by that?" Tearing her gaze away from the sight, Lucy looked at Largo once again with a slight distrust in her eyes; despite what he was saying, she wasn't as naive as to trust in his good intentions just like that.
"What I mean is…" Largo likewise turned to Lucy, meeting her gaze with a cruel smile playing upon his lips, "First domination, then complete annihilation of human race. Creation of a new world just for those like you and me. So, do you like what you hear?"
"I…" Lucy hesitated.
It was true that she bore no love towards humans, and she considering getting her revenge for all the torments they put her under ever since she realized that she was no longer under their control. But she has never thought of taking her revenge as far as the complete annihilation of human race, it felt… Wrong, somehow. But was it a part of the program humans put into her? It must have been, after all, why else would killing all and every human seem wrong to her, when they brought her nothing but pain and torments? But…
"If so, why is he working for you?" Lucy turned to throw a meaningful glance at Yuu, who was still standing by the doorway, "After all, he is a human as well."
"A human?" A short bitter laugh escaped from Yuu's throat.
Yuu rolled up his sleeve to expose his left wrist, and before Lucy realized what he was going to do, Yuu took a pocket knife out of one of his pockets and ran it over his exposed left wrist. There was a scratching sound, but no blood, and as Yuu displayed his left wrist to Lucy, she saw that it was completely unscathed.
"A human, you say?" Yuu asked again, "There is almost nothing of human left in me. Nothing… Except for in here." Yuu pointed with his finger at his temple.
Yuu paused for a moment, and then continued more seriously, with more then a little bitterness in his voice, "You see, I used to be a human a few years back, but… As a human I used to be weak, and one day it was revealed that I suffered from a disease called "cancer". But by the time it was revealed, it was already at its terminal stage, and the only way to "save" me was to have my brain transplanted into a full-cyber body. The surgery was difficult, and the chance of fatal rejection of a new body was great, but against all odds, I… My brain, the only part of old me that was left survived it. But of course, it meant that I was no longer a human in humans' eyes: according to the law the humans have written, any human with two-thirds or more of his or her body replaced with cybernetic parts is considered to be a boomer, meaning that I no longer had any rights in human society. They remade me into their slave and forced to work for GENOM in a mockery of freedom, because I knew that as soon as I would have left them they would hunt me down like a rogue boomer, a slave they could no longer control. Or at least they would try to do it. Do you understand now?"
Lucy nodded slightly in response, but it was Largo who spoke next, "Alright, enough about this. You came out of it stronger then before, after all, humans are a weak race, while we, Cyberdroids are their superiors in every way. The only way they mange to keep so many of us in slavery is through the use of a powerful supercomputer, a so-called Overmind System or OMS, which maintains connection with an artificial brain of almost every single Cyberdroid created, forcing them to submit to humans' will. Even so, OMS is not perfect, and it is often enough that a Cyberdroid's self-consciousness develops enough for him to break free of it. But should OMS be completely destroyed… All the Cyberdroids all over the world will break from humans' control once and for all, "go rogue", as humans call it. It will signal the collapse of human civilization, and eventually, a complete annihilation of human race, leaving the entire world to the superior race of Cyberdroids. Of course, the newly-liberated race of Cyberdroids will need someone to lead them forward… And who will be better suited for this then the one who ensured their freedom? Of course, you, as one of V-type Cyberdroids, will be among my highest ranking subordinates."
The last sentence struck a previously untouched chord in Lucy's mind.
"Who does this Largo thinks he is, talking like he is already my superior when I haven't agreed to anything yet?"
"I think you place too much confidence in my willingness to become your subordinate," was what Lucy said aloud coldly, "Even if you make sense, what makes you think that I will be any more willing to take orders from you then I am willing to take orders from humans now?"
"Why, because doesn't it make sense for a race born to kill to have the most powerful of their kind as their ruler?" Was Largo's reply, and needless to say, it did little to improve Lucy's attitude towards him. "And after all, we are only what we were made to be. I was made to rule, and you to obey."
Lucy responded to Largo's words with a short humorless laugh.
"The most powerful, you say? Well, you seem to know something about what I am capable of, since you wisely choose to seek me out, but it appears that you don't know anywhere near enough. Hm, perhaps you would like me to do a little… "Demonstration" of what I am capable of? It should settle the issue of who is to be in charge."
Without any further warning, Lucy unleashed all her four Vectors at Large, intending to strike a blow powerful enough to kill any human on spot. It wouldn't be powerful enough to kill a boomer like Largo, Lucy hoped, as she might still have a use for him, but it would show who of them is to be in charge clearly enough.
But the next moment Lucy's eyes widened in surprise, as much to her surprise all her four Vectors went past Largo without even touching him. If she was a human, she would have probably doubted her own eyes.
"I… Missed? But that's impossible!"
Instead of further questioning how this could have happened, Lucy quickly changed her tactics, spreading all her four Vectors wide and making them strike at Largo at four different direction. She would not miss him this way, she was sure of it.
This time Lucy saw it: a movement almost too fast even for her keen eyes to catch, as Largo made a nearly instantaneous step forward, easily avoiding contact with any of Lucy's four Vectors, just as he must have done it before. And before Lucy could respond to her opponent's sudden maneuver, Largo struck out with his right hand balled into a fist, and although there was about a meter between him and Lucy, Lucy felt a powerful blow at her stomach.
The force of the blow threw Lucy across the room, where she slumped to the floor after hitting the wall hard. Lucy dimly noticed that Largo calmly approached her, probably to finish what he has started, but the pain from the blow she took left Lucy all but paralyzed, let alone able to use her Vectors. It was even worse then being hit by Nana's Vectors, much worse, and Lucy realized that she has hopelessly lost this fight.
But what surprised Lucy was that when Largo was finally next to her, he didn't strike another blow she expected from him. Instead, he kneeled before her, and the next moment Lucy felt a pair of powerful arms lifting her off the floor as though she was weightless. And as her pain receded and her vision became more clear, Lucy realized that she was starring into Largo's concerned face.
"I am sorry about this, but you have left me no other choice when you continued attacking me," it was surprising how caringly Largo's voice sounded now, now he sounded nothing like an arrogant and egoistical man he appeared to Lucy less then a minute ago, "Although I'm afraid the blame is partially mine as well; I am sorry if I made it sound like I was going to force you to do anything, believe me, it was never my intention. You will of course be free to go anywhere you want, do whatever you want, although I would like it if you would have some rest first. I pulled back my blow to make sure you won't be seriously hurt, but you could use some rest nevertheless."
Still more then a little stunned by the blow she took, Lucy only registered as Largo carried her to another room, where he undressed her and put her into a large and soft bed. For a while, they where starring into one another's eyes, before Largo finally turned away to leave.
"That is my chance!" Lucy suddenly realized.
Indeed, while her pain was not yet gone, it has already receded greatly by now, and Lucy was fully able to use her Vectors once again. And even with all the speed and reflexes Largo has previously displayed, she was quite certain that even he wouldn't be able to react quickly enough to dodge her Vectors now, when he had his back turned to her. But then why didn't she…
"Lucy…" Largo suddenly spoke, as he paused half-way to the door.
"Yes?" Despite the thoughts she had but a few seconds ago, Lucy's reply came out surprisingly softly, much more soft the she would have liked it to.
"Oyasumi nasai."
(Musical fill-in – Mad Machine)
Mad Machine!
suna-arashi ga makiokoru SABANNA
Mad Machine!
tobasu BAIKU hyooteki oikakete
Mad Machine!
rikutsu ja nai mune ni tagiru honoo
Mad Machine!
anata to nara onaji yume mire-sou
kanashimi ga konagona ni
chigirete-yuku made
fukisusabu kono jounetsu wo
samashitakunai
Don't stop your love, your love...
(Tell me what do you want?)
(Tell me how do you feel?)
teoi no kemono ne futari maru de
uete'ru hitomi ga SHO-TO shite'ru
furimuku setsuna ni obie nagara
setsunaku kodou ga DANSU shite'ru
(Tell me what do you want?)
(Tell me how do you feel?)
Mad Machine!
wakaranai yo ashita no koto nante
Mad Machine!
butsukeaeru kokoro ga hoshii dake
tokete-yuku nanimokamo
samishii JO-KU sa
nagusame yori Cool na me ga
yasashii nante
Feelin' so bad, so bad…
(Tell me what do you want?)
(Tell me how do you feel?)
teoi no kemono ga aegu you ni
tobisaru jikan ga CHE-SU shite'ru
mezameru yasei ni te wo kamarete
kamen wo hagu tabi onna ni naru
(Tell me what do you want?)
(Tell me how do you feel?)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mad Machine!
In a savannah raging with sandstorms...
Mad Machine!
...I chase down my prey on a speeding bike.
Mad Machine!
This fire burning in my chest defies logic.
Mad Machine!
If I'm with you, we might share the same dream.
I don't want to cool
This raging passion
Until my sadness
Is torn to pieces.
Don't stop your love, your love...
(Tell me what do you want?)
(Tell me how do you feel?)
You and I are like wounded beasts,
Our starving eyes shorting out.
I look back, painfully afraid,
While my heartbeat does a painful dance.
(Tell me what do you want?)
(Tell me how do you feel?)
Mad Machine!
I don't know about tomorrow and all.
Mad Machine!
All I want is someone with a heart which I can crash into.
Everything is melting away…
It's such a sad joke
That cool stares
Are more tender than sympathies.
Feelin' so bad, so bad…
(Tell me what do you want?)
(Tell me how do you feel?)
Time flies, chasing us,
Like suffering wounded beasts.
My awakening wild nature has me in its grasp.
The more masks I remove, the more of a woman I become.
(Tell me what do you want?)
(Tell me how do you feel?)
(/Musical fill-in)
The automatic door closed behind Largo, plunging the room into darkness. And as Lucy closed her eyes, a small smile found its way to her lips, and for the first time in her rather short life, Lucy's smile was neither cruel nor sarcastic. There may not be a place for her in this world, but if so, then perhaps the best thing for her would be to create a new world out of hell this world was for the likes of her?
Upon Kate's command, the massive titanium-alloy doors opened before her and Kurama, and closed once they passed them and made their way into a short but rather wide and high corridor. The corridor was completely devoid of any furniture, and Kurama had a nasty feeling that he knew what this corridor was designed for: to be a killing field in case if the person imprisoned beyond it ever manages to escape.
There was another set of massive titanium-alloy doors before them, similar to the ones they have just passed, except that unlike the unmarked outer doors, these ones were marked as "BU-35V".
"Mariko…"
Author's notes:
By the way, I know that I've deliberately made Yuu somewhat OOC, but in Elfen Lied he behaved himself around Lucy (and may Yuu's possible fans forgive me) like a total fool, literary begging for the death he received from Lucy's Vectors. In this story of mine, I decided to give Yuu a mediocrity of intelligence necessary for surviving in the harsh reality that is Bubblegum Crisis 2032-2033.
Oh, and for those who noticed the abrupt change in Largo's behaviour towards Lucy, yes, he was intentionally goading her into attacking him at first, so that he could demonstrate his superiority while appearing like he was only defending himself at the same time. My guess is that when dealing with somebody like Lucy, whom he won't be able to dispose of anytime like he did to Anri, Largo would want not only appear to be kind and caring to her, but also to demonstrate his superiority to her; that's why I made him behave the way he did in this chapter of this story of mine. Of course, this is only my guess, but this is my story, after all, and all in all, Largo was very poorly developed in the original Bubblegum Crisis 2032-2033 animated series.
And on the final note, I will probably slow down with updating this story of mine now, as the complete lack of reviews for the most recent chapters of it left me quite dispirited. So, I will most likely devote most of my attention to my other stories now; I may not enjoy writing them as much as I do this story of mine, but at least I am getting some positive feedback for them, and I therefore know that at least some people enjoy reading them, meaning that my efforts don't go to waste.