"What am I?" the boy had just asked her. Eureka stared at him, not understanding what the boy before her meant. She continued to look at him, trying to figure out what he was talking about. The boy saw that she wasn't understanding his question and pointed to Eureka's eyes, "You're one too. What are you?"
Eureka took in a sharp breath as she then realized what the boy was truly asking. She reached up and pulled away the long indigo hair that covered most of the boy's face. With the layers of hair and glasses removed from his face she could now easily see the boy's eyes, his violet and crimson ringed eyes. She now realized he was a being just like her, a creature that was in the shape of a human but not actually one of them. "You're just like me, a coralian."
The boy turned his head to the side again, "Cor...all.e.. an..." he slowly sounded out the word to himself. He then gave her a smile, or at least he tried to, as he instead made a face that made it look as if he was trying to work something from the back of his front teeth. Eureka then introduced herself and began asking the boy, whom called himself Emrick, all about himself.
After she had listened to his story Eureka repeated it to herself. "So the first thing you remember is being in this KLF in the middle of the scub wastes with only the clothes on your back? And you started following a voice that told you to head north?"
Emrick nodded as he continued eating the already half eaten hamburger he had stolen from an unlucky patron of a restaurant in town, a few hours before. "It was more like a feeling of… emptiness then an actual voice. I wanted to find out what it was so I've been following it, visiting towns as I go… I take what is needed and move on." He swallowed the last mouthful of burger in a very unmannerly way before continuing. "One time I got caught taking food; the people noticed my eyes and attacked me, but I fought and got away. In the next town I took these." He then pointed to the glasses that where now back over his eyes.
"If you only take what you need then why did you take me?" Eureka asked. She was curious and a little concerned about the 'voice' or feeling Emrick was speaking of, but she was more curious about why he had taken so much interest in her.
"I was saving you." He explained, "Those people where probably leading you to some place where they could hurt you, like they try to do with me whenever I'm noticed. They knew you were different. They don't like it when they see eyes like ours." Emrick said this without looking at Eureka but instead tossing away the wrapper from his ill-gotten food and producing another purloined hamburger from a pack.
Eureka watched as Emrick continued to eat; he didn't seem to be in a rush for her to answer him. In her mind she was thinking to herself, "He doesn't know the real reason they chase him is because he steals from them. But still… people do usually find it hard to except me if they know what I am, so I can understand why he believes it's because of his eyes…" Eureka's mind drifted to Renton, a few memories of their first meeting flashed through her mind. "That's right! I just need to show him to Renton. He'll accept him just like he did me, and then we can help Emrick learn to act right." She then smiled to herself as she started to formulate a plan to convince Emrick to meet with Renton.
While Eureka was still in her thoughts Emrick suddenly stiffened, then dropped his food. He felt something was coming for them. His eyes shifted around as he tried to get a feel for what it was, but couldn't sense much more than a great deal of fear behind it, an emotion he knew all too well from his pursuers. "Eureka stay here." said Emrick, before jumping up to the shoulder of his LFO.
Eureka looked up as Emrick jumped into the cockpit of the ship. "Emrick what's going on?" She was worried she had done something to frighten him. If he left she wouldn't be able to help him, a coralian, find his way in the world like Renton had done for her. "Where are you going, Emrick?"
But Emrick was already inside the LFO. "Someone with an angry voice is coming! I'll protect us from it." Emrick said over his LFO's comm.
Eureka was about to ask what he was talking about when she heard a set of garage shutters open from the opposite side of the LFO that surrounded her. She called out, "Renton is that you!?" hoping Emrick had just made a mistake. She didn't hear a reply but suddenly the all the lights in the room flashed on.
As her eyes recovered she heard Emrick's Monsoono start to move around her. When she was able to finally open her eyes she saw that the LFO was standing over her in humanoid form. She looked down to see that it really was Renton who had turned on the lights, and was now standing at the entrance of the warehouse looking up to where the LFOs head was. Eureka yelled out, "Renton!!"
Renton looked down to where she was standing and a great look of joy covered his soot covered face, but before she could call to him again Emrick had maneuvered his LFO's leg to create a barrier between her and Renton.
From under its frame Eureka saw the LFO pull back its right fist into the air, and heard Renton yell, "Eureka, I'm coming!!"
After he had yelled to assure Eureka, Renton charged at the LFO. Running in a strait path to try and get to Eureka before the enemy could react.
But the LFO pilot was faster than he had expected, punching down into the ground missing him by just few feet, the resulting shock wave sent him flying a few feet into the air. He landed on his backside and scrambled back to his feet and jumped as another fist slammed down to where he had landed.
He was now on the LFO's left side; it couldn't move its position because Eureka was still under its legs. Renton noticed this and the fact that now from this angle he would only have one arm to deal with.
He rushed at it again, going straight at it at full speed once again. But the LFO barred his way by slapping its left forearm in front of him. It then dragged the arm, just off the ground, trying to catch him in its wider range of attack. It was just about to hit the retreating Renton, but luckily the arm had to rise up because Renton had strafed around further to the LFO's left, and was now behind it, where its arms couldn't reach.
Renton realized that even if he used the LFO's immobility to get to Eureka from behind he knew that as soon as he tried to get away with her it would be able to chase them down easily; he needed to take out the pilot or it was all pointless. Renton looked around and saw a ladder that went up to the roof of the building along a steel beam. He jumped up the first few steps of the ladder and climbed. As he did so the enemy LFO tried to turn its head to find where he had gone, but luckily for him couldn't turn far enough.
Once he had gotten high enough Renton kicked off from the ladder and sent himself through the air onto the back of the LFO with a hard thud on his side. The LFO stopped shifting around, which made it easy for him to get up and scramble to the cockpit window.
He readied himself, as soon as he turned the manual opening lock he was going to fall in on top of the pilot, and fight the man into submission. But as he opened the window he found that the pilot was ready for him and for a fight.
Like a shadow the pilot jumped from the cockpit, and used the momentum of the jump to land a punch on Renton's cheek, sending him backwards and over to the other side of the LFO's back.
Renton pushed himself up with one hand and put up the other over his swelling face. The figure had crouched down in an undisciplined fighting stance; he was shorter than Renton with the longest hair on a person he had ever seen. It was a dark blue, practically indigo. And he was wearing a very oversized military uniform that was all torn up and dirty.
Renton stood up and put up his fists, and gave the assailant a hard look. The assailant just stared back at him, any expression hidden behind his long hair and orange sunglasses.
Renton charged at the boy again, yelling as he ran. But once he was in arms reach he soon found himself on his back again. He had tried to swing a blow to the boy's midsection, but when he tried the assailant grabbed his hand and turned it around, causing Renton to go off balance. With his hand still holding Renton's arm the assailant pulled him around and placed his other hand on Renton's chest. He then jerked down hard, sending the back of Renton's head into the top of the LFO.
Renton was dazed, but recovered his senses and looked up from where he was laying. The boy was standing over him looking down; he was waiting to see what Renton's next move would be, to give up or keep fighting.
Renton's answer to this silent question was a kick to the boy's shin. The pilot jumped back on one leg, while holding his injured leg. Renton jumped up and tackled the guy while he was still hopping on his one leg. The pilot fell and slid across the surface of the LFO's back.
Renton was about to jump on his opponent when he heard Eureka's voice call behind him, "Renton! Stop fighting him!"
He turned around to see Eureka, who had taken advantage of the fight on top of the LFO to get out from underneath it. "Eureka, what do you mean?" Renton replied back.
But before she could answer, the boy had jumped up and had charged into Renton, sending him off his feet and into the air, much like how Renton had sent him flying.
But unlike the boy, Renton didn't have anywhere to land except the ground far below. "Renton!!" Eureka yelled as she saw Renton go flying into the air.
Renton looked down and saw that now he had nowhere safe to land and yelled, "CCCRRRAAAPPP!!"
Just then Mathieu flew in through the garage doors into the warehouse. "Got ya Renton!" He flew into Renton, catching him. But Mathieu wasn't able to keep aloft with Renton's added weight and lost his balance and fell from his board. Mathieu landed on his back, with Renton half on top of him.
Eureka ran over to where they had landed, "Renton! Renton! Are you OK!?"
Emrick watched from his perch on top of the LFO as this happened. He was confused at Eureka's reaction, "Why is she running to them? Is she one of them?" This distraction was perfect for Moondoggy and Sumner, as they flew in and landed on the LFO next to confused boy.
Moondoggy jumped at him, Emrick just barely noticed the new attackers in time to turn around and grab Moondoggy's hands. They pushed each other's arms, trying to press one or the other to the ground. Moondoggy was taller and bigger than Emrick by a considerable deal, but with a yell the younger boy was able to shove Moondoggie back.
Meanwhile Sumner had strafed around the two and was now behind Emrick. Sumner grabbed his left arm and right shoulder. Emrick thrashed in surprise, but Sumner held on to him.
Sumner thought the boy was trying to escape his grasp as he continued to thrash, but then he started to notice that the boy was showing signs of some kind of pain and was trying to reach for his own head. Sumner was confused, but then a glow from his jacket's pocket took his attention from the boy.
The momentary distraction gave Emrick a chance to break free. He reached up to his head; Sumner could see that he was gritting his teeth as if in pain.
Sumner then reached into his pocket and pulled out the compact drive that he had been carrying with him since he and Ruri had been attacked. It was glowing brilliantly with the name Eureka flowing through it. The letters quickly became brighter and bigger till they were filling the entire drive. But then just as the light was becoming unbearable for Sumner to look at the letters started moving apart and then broke, separating into many shards of light.
As the shards of light started leaving the drive and scattering around them, Emrick's pain seemed to increase in response. He fell to his knees and screamed, and kept screaming till all the air from his lungs was gone.
The remaining shards of light finally burst from the now fading drive and dissipated. The glow from the drive continued to decrease, until it was as it was before. When the final starburst of energy was gone Emrick let his hands fall from his head, swayed on his knees for a moment and then fell forward onto his face, out cold.
"The heck was that?" Moondoggie asked Sumner, as he pulled himself up from the side of the LFO's face. He then looked down at the kid, "Is he dead?"
Sumner tore his eyes off the compact drive and looked the boy over, "No he's breathing… kind of slow though."
Mathieu yelled up from the ground below them, "Hey! Eureka is out cold, just conked out of nowhere."
Sumner was about to ask what had happened when Ruri came in running with her board under her arm asking what he had been about to, "Guys, what happened?"
Moondoggie sat down and let his legs hang over the side of the LFO, "We caught the punk that kidnapped Eureka… what took you so long?"
Ruri was leaning down, trying to catch her breath, "The trapar just cut out on me. I had to run the last few hundred yards, thanks for asking." She looked up and gave Moondoggie a glare as she finished her explanation, a foreboding glare that made Moondoggie flinch.
Meanwhile Renton was holding Eureka the best he could. He hurt all over and despite Mathieu's efforts he had hit his head again as he had landed. When Mathieu had first caught him he had blacked out for a moment, but when he came to Eureka was over him, calling his name. But now he was the one trying to get her to wake up.
He could feel exhaustion creeping up on him; he wouldn't be able to do much in his current state. He turned his head to Mathieu who was standing over him and Eureka, "Mr. Mathieu… we've got to get Eureka out of here… we need to get back to the garage." Before he could see Mathieu turn to respond Renton had passed back into sleep.
Mathieu turned around in time to see Renton fall back, out cold, still holding Eureka. Mathieu grinded his teeth and turned back to the others, "Well it looks like Renton is out too… anyone think they can carry these guys for a couple of miles?"
Moondoggie bumped his hanging feet into the LFO he was sitting on, "Why would we do that when we got this?" He turned his head to Sumner who was still standing over the sleeping pilot, "You can pilot this mainstream piece of junk, right Sumner?"
Sumner was looking at his compact again, trying to figure out what had happened. He pulled his eyes away again and stuffed it into his pocket, "Yea this thing shouldn't be a problem. So where are we headed?"
"I guess… Garage Thurston" Mathieu replied, with a hint of dread in his voice.
A couple of hours latter Renton was lying on his bed with a few bandages that where covering parts of his legs and head. Hilda was leaning over him, putting a cold patch on his swollen right cheek. His eyes where open but he didn't move, it hurt his bruises too much to move unnecessarily.
Sumner, Ruri, Moondoggie and Gidget were also there in the room with them. Renton was lying on one side of the bed while Eureka was laying on the other, still unconscious, but carefully watched over by her children who had been worrying for her since they had arrived. But despite his shared worry with them over Eureka, Renton was full of questions, "What are you guys doing here?"
"Us? Ha, we were just in the neighborhood to go have some fun lifting, but then you had to ruin it with being alive and in trouble." Moondoggie replied.
"Being alive? What do you mean brother doggy?" Renton questioned further.
Ruri gave an audible snort when Renton said 'brother doggy.' Moondoggie heard her and replied to Renton in anger, "For the freakin' last time kid, I'M NOT YOU BROTHER!"
"Hey keep it down. Eureka is still not awake." Hilda said, to the embarrassed Moondoggie, who quickly calmed down and turned to the door.
He opened the door and waved his hand for Mathieu to follow, "I'll tell yea about that when Eureka is up." At the same time he was thinking to himself, "Then I won't have to say it twice." He continued talking as he went out the door, "Anyway I'm starving; sorry Renton but we're going to raid your fridge."
He popped his head back into the room as Mathieu passed through the doorframe, "Hey Gidget I'll make you a sandwich, what do you want?" After a long decision making process on Gidget's part Moondoggie and Mathieu left the bedroom, heading for the kitchen.
Sumner spoke up to Renton, "So you think that kid who kidnapped Eureka is with the military?"
Renton leaned up in his bed; he was starting to feel better, and answered, "He's got the clothes and that KLF; so I guess so… why?"
Sumner dismissed Renton's question, "Oh, it's nothing… I'm going to go out for a bit." He pushed his back from the wall he was leaning on and went out the door. As he did so he rolled his shoulders backwards, giving Ruri a secret signal for her to follow.
Ruri went for the door as soon as Sumner had closed it. Gidget looked at her and asked, "Hey Ruri where are you going?"
Ruri turned and gave Gidget and the others present a deceivingly honest smile, "Oh, I'm just heading to the bathroom. Don't worry about me."
Ruri closed the door behind her and turned to look around the dark garage. She saw Sumner's silhouette leaning up against the back wall, near the children's room. She walked up to the brooding Sumner and asked, "What's up? Why are you so tense?"
Sumner looked up from the floor and replied, "Renton thinks this kid is with the military." Sumner thrust his thumb towards the children's room, where they had thrown the boy after they had moved Renton and Eureka to their room. "If he is, we need to question him."
"Sumner why would we want to question a kid, even if he is with the military?" Ruri asked.
"We were attacked, and they wanted my drive! And this kid gets near it and the whole warehouse lights up like a supernova! If that attack in the wastes wasn't just some random thing, this kid has got to know what the hell that was all about!" Sumner replied, his voice rising as his reason continued. The image of Ruri's blank face on the scub wastes still flashed vividly in his mind, if she was in danger because of something this boy was involved in, he was going to find out.
Ruri was almost aghast at what Sumner was suggesting, "You can't hurt that kid just because you think he's involved with something we aren't even sure was even remotely related to anything we've done in the past!"
Sumner yelled back, "Ruri you got hurt! I don't want to see you that way again…" The memory returned to his mind, clear as day. His voice was suddenly down to a whisper, "I…I just… I just don't want to see you hurt that bad ever again…"
Ruri's shoulders relaxed, she hadn't realized Sumner was only thinking of her. "Sumner…" said Ruri as she walked up to Sumner and put her arms around him, comforting him. They leaned closer together and kissed. They continued to embrace until the door to Eureka and Renton's room burst open. Still in each other's arms they turned to see what was going on.
Eureka turned the corner around the door frame and started running towards Sumner and Ruri. As she did Renton could be heard yelling, "Eureka, where are you going!?"
Eureka paid no mind to Renton's question and continued to race to Sumner and Ruri's location. When she was up to them she asked between sharp and heavy breaths, "Where is he? Where did you put Emrick?"
Sumner took half a second to make the connection that Emrick was probably the boy who had kidnapped her, but what he couldn't make out was why she looked so worried. He answered, "We put him in that room." He indicated the children's room with his finger. "Are you OK? Should you be up right now?"
Renton ran out of his room to join them, his still tired and bruised legs made him give a slight limp in his steps. He was just with them as Sumner finished answering Eureka's question. "Eureka, hey, what's the matter?" But Eureka didn't listen to any of them and made a move for the door to the children's room.
Sumner spoke up, "Hey you can't go in there! The kid might try to pull something." But Eureka had already opened and gone through the door. Renton was right behind her calling her name as he followed Eureka into the dark room.
Sumner and Ruri let go of each other and made their way into the room, following the other couple. When they were inside it took a moment but eventually Sumner was able to count four heads in the room, including his own. Eureka spoke up in the darkness, "I thought you said he was in here!?"
Sumner was surprised to find the room empty as well; he had thrown the kid in here himself. "He was! Damn the little punk must have woke up and figured his way out the window."
But just as he finished those words the door closed behind them, deepening the darkness. Almost instantly afterwards everyone heard Sumner yell as something jumped on top of him. "AAAHHH, UGG, get it… get it off… of me… AAAHHH!" Nobody could see anything, and because of the tight confines of the room that was filled far beyond its capacity everyone started getting pushed and shoved around as they tried to help Sumner.
Finally, by some miracle, one of Sumner's hands, flailing in the air, trying to reach for his back, grasped a cord hanging from the ceiling that turned the lights of the room on. They were all blinded for a moment, but afterward they could clearly see who had attacked Sumner.
Emrick had been blinded as well, and had loosened his grip on Sumner's neck just enough for Sumner to thrust his elbow into Emrick's face, forcing him to fall off Sumner's back. Emrick was now leaning up against the door, his hand up to his bleeding nose. Ruri put her hands on Sumner's shoulder, worried if he was hurt. Sumner was holding his neck, as he caught his breath he asked, "What… the hell… was that?"
He was about to make a move to grab Emrick but Eureka jumped in between him and the boy. Eureka leaned down and offered her hand to Emrick. Renton asked, "Eureka, what are you doing?"
Emrick pulled his hand away from his nose and slapped Eureka's away, leaving stripes of blood on it. "You're one of them aren't you!?" Emrick yelled at Eureka as he covered his nose again. "You let them capture me and now you're here to watch them hurt me aren't you!?"
Eureka realized what this must all look like to Emrick; her siding with the other's while he had tried to protect her, how she and the others charged into this room he was locked in against his will; he believes she betrayed him.
Renton was now scratching his head, "Eureka what's this guy talking about? Do you know each other?"
Eureka turned to Renton; she knew that if anyone could help her it was always him, "Renton, Emrick is a coralian like me. He's just confused."
Renton gave a flabbergasted look, "Wha? A coralian?" His worried face turned to awe as he looked at the ragged figure before him in a new light. Sumner and Ruri looked surprised too but didn't say anything.
Eureka gave Renton pleading eyes for help. So Renton, understanding her plea, walked up to her and held her hand. She smiled at him for a brief second then returned her attention to Emrick who was still holding his nose. "Emrick we don't want to hurt you. I'm your friend. The others just thought you were trying to hurt me so they protected me just like you did." Eureka leaned down and Renton followed suit. She raised her hand up to the cornered boy again, and smiled sweetly at him. "But now they know you're a friend too, so please don't be afraid."
Emrick eyed the hand in front of him suspiciously; the blood seemed to be slowing from his nose. He reached up with his free hand and pulled off his sunglasses. To Emrick's surprise all those present didn't look at his eyes with hatred or fear as he had expected, but instead with a kind of emotion he didn't know how to describe. It was warm and kind, something he had never seen or felt directed at himself before.
Emrick became less tense and relaxed, feeling he wasn't going to come to harm for the time being. As he pulled his hand away from his nose Eureka noticed that part of his face had curled into a small grin. Not a large exaggerated smile, like he had attempted to show her before, but a true and honest expression of emotion. He put his bloodied hand up into hers and grasped it. The heavy atmosphere of the room seemed to melt away as Renton and the others came closer to help Emrick up.
Meanwhile Axel was driving up to the garage and silently noticed the LFO that was parked out in front of its doors, but didn't think much of it, "Probably just some customer with too much time on his hands." he thought.
Axel walked into the garage, and made his way to the kitchen, which unlike most of the rest of the house was dark. There was light coming from the two bedrooms in the back which he guessed was just Renton and Eureka getting ready for bed or otherwise helping the children to bed as well.
But then he stepped into the kitchen and noticed that the refrigerator had been left opened. And while that was troublesome enough on itself a figure was leaning over the counter next to it, eating something. And another shadowy figure was sitting on the table next to him.
These figures where obviously too tall to be any of his family, which he noticed immediately. They were probably the owners of the LFO outside, he deduced, helping themselves to some food before he showed up. "What the hell are you doing in my house!?" he yelled. He then quickly picked up a chair and took a hard swing with it at the figure sitting on the table. So hard was the swing in fact that the chair slipped from his hands and flew across the room and hit the door to the refrigerator, causing it to slam into the other person's right shoulder.
He was about to grab another chair but the man that had dodged his first attack by ducking from the table to the floor raised an arm and yelled, "Hey wait old man, it's us!"
Axel reached out and pulled the string that hung under the ceiling fan, turning the lights on. On the floor were Mathieu and Moondoggy, holding their hands up to defend themselves. Axel picked up the other chair and made ready to throw it at the pair. "You and your leader better get the hell out of my house before your heads start to roll!" threatened Axel.
"Dude, Renton invited us here! We hadn't even planed to come here." Moondoggie replied, while holding onto his now bruised arm.
Axel thought for a moment; every time these people show up it always ended up bad for him. He wasn't going to have any more to do with them if they were lying to him, "Why were you sneaking around in the dark then, if you were invited here?" he asked.
"We looked all around but couldn't find a light switch." Mathieu explained.
Axel reached up again and held the string that controlled the room's lighting. "Oh come on man! That's old school, old man." Moondoggy exclaimed loudly, but shut his mouth as he saw a vein pop from Axel's forehead.
"Then where is Holland!? I'm going to have a talk to that idiot." said Axel, remembering how Holland had told him Renton and Eureka were never coming back just a few months ago.
Moondoggy replied, "He's probably somewhere all the way up on the North Shore. We're the only ones from Gekkostate here. Well us and the girls. And a couple of our friends, Sumner and Ruri."
Mathieu asked, "Well I guess Sumner and Ruri are technically Gekkostate members?"
Moondoggy replied, "Yea, I guess they are, I mean they…"
But Axel interrupted, "Enough! Just what the heck are you doing here anyway?"
Mathieu answered, "Well we couldn't just leave without helping Eureka and Renton get back home. And we need to figure out what to do with that military grunt who kidnapped her."
"Wait, what!?" Axel replied, "What are you talking about? Where are Renton and Eureka!?" He was starting to believe he was already too late to protect his family again.
Moondoggy replied, "They're in their room. Eureka and Renton are probably sleeping. Don't worry Hilda and Gidget along with the kids and our friends are still probably watching them."
Axel wasn't about to take these guy's words for it, he dropped the chair he was holding and went out the door with all speed before the two suspect men could say anything else. Mathieu and Moondoggie got up then looked at each other and shrugged.
Moondoggie went back to making a sandwich for Gidget while Mathieu looked over the now well lit room. "Hey look they got the new N- 1120 radio set! This baby gets great reception, even down earth-side I hear." But despite Mathieu's enthusiasm Moondoggie was too busy trying making the sandwich perfect for his girlfriend to reply. Mathieu didn't like being ignored so he turned the radio on and flipped the volume up. At first all they got was some static, but quickly a voice started to run over the waves of noise.
As the radio warmed up its message became more and more clear, "…we repeat a battle has been confirmed between a UF science garrison, stationed at the New Dakota base set on Earth, and vodarac terrorists believed to be the instigators of the attack, earlier today. While details are still being sorted out, it is believed that the terrorists set charges on the great pillar standing over the base and set them off, causing a landslide that crushed key structures of the facility as well as killing an undetermined number of noncombatant researchers. Afterward that UF forces deployed themselves and retaliated against the vodarac township that was established just a few miles west of the base. No pervious occurrences of violence have been recorded and no threat is believed to have been issued before or after the attack. Once again we repeat a battle…"
Moondoggie was now completely engrossed into what the radio was saying, he had left the sandwich on the table and was now standing next to Mathieu, as the broadcast continued to replay. As it finished the second time Moondoggie turned away and shook his head, "Damn it! Not even a year after the Second Summer of Love and we're back to fighting again!"
Mathieu turned off the radio and leaned back on the counter, "It's probably because of the Second Summer of Love this is happening. The old world was destroyed and now everyone is trying to grab what's left for themselves." He gave a long sigh, "Just like last time…"