Hopefully I'll surprise at least a few of you with the end of this chapter, although by the time it gets there you may already have guessed the surprise.
There wasn't much that could make Reno break his normal appearance. The Turks were renown for their ability to keep straight faces and look absolutely unchanged despite whatever evil or horror came up against them. Reno had prided himself on it especially, believing it not only to be a point in his favor but proof that nothing could touch him emotionally. He didn't think anything could ever make him strain to maintain his cocky, casual attitude.
Which was why he was so upset now. The situation alone was bad enough…but ever since he had walked into the medical area he felt a constant bad vibe. Being around Krystea…left him unsettled inside. It was the first time he could remember actually being fake in terms of his smile and devil-may-care attitude. All of it was just a desperate attempt to try and stave off the turning in his stomach…
The only consolation was that he was not alone.
Reno excelled at being able to read other people…and he was doing so now to his own comrades. Even Rude's stoic expression did little to impede this ability. And now, seated nearby, shades pulled low and poker face set…he could tell that the big man was unsettled. He was cracking his knuckles. His feet were scraping against the ground as his toes flexed. This was not normal behavior for him. Elena, of course, was unable to conceal anything. She made it all too obvious. She kept turning in her chair and wincing a bit as she looked over to Krystea. She bit her lip again and again as if she was about to say something, but never did. And yet…Reno couldn't bring himself to tell her to chill out like he normally did. Something threatened to break his exterior if he did…
This is crazy. Reno told himself. We should all be jumping for joy. We should be getting wasted together. She's looked like an alien piece of crap for weeks…and now she's fine. Yeah, I'd like to know how the hell it happened…but I should still be happy she's back. We all should. I expected Rude to get tearful. I expected Elena to wring her neck with a hug. Why the hell ain't I happy? Why don't I do something nuts too?
…Why do I feel like I'm sitting next to a wild, hungry tiger?
Well…that's a dumb question. I know exactly why.
She looks like…them.
As Reno came further to his senses out of the shock of what he had seen in that room and bathroom…he began to become aware of what was painfully obvious. Krystea wasn't the same. And she now bore quite a resemblance to certain individuals he was familiar with… That was enough to leave him feeling rather unsettled…and wonder how the hell this had happened…
Or what exactly that experiment had been.
There she sat, with Reno on one side and Rude on the other. Her vomiting was over now. She was perfectly straight and calm, She had washed herself and covered her body with a white robe. Now…she was truly flawless. Her skin was smooth and soft and without blemish. Her muscles were fine and her shape lovely and perfect. Her new silver hair was healthy and as smooth and unspoiled as silk. And her pale green eyes resting over her perfect cheekbones and small, enigmatic smile were precious jewels. However…they burned within them a stoicism and power that put Rude's best day to shame. She was perfectly calm and not worried or fearful in the least, her legs crossed and her arms resting gently on her lap.
There they sat in the main office…waiting for Maritza to rear her head and make some sense out of what had happened. Of course, as soon as Reno gave the alert of what had happened to Krystea, the entire wing had come alive. Every researcher and scientist had run down and begun analyzing things. Some samples were taken from Krystea, but many were also taken from the blood and…material…left on the bed. It had been hours at this point, and they were eagerly awaiting a response. In front of them, Maritza's desk stood empty and awaited its owner. Three of the Turks frequently looked to the back wall and the door that was there. But as for Krystea, she was perfectly calm and patient.
It was quiet in there…and the silence was unsettling. It was quieter than it should have been, or so it felt to Reno, and it made him nearly start tapping his foot or quiver the end of his cigarette.
Elena turned again and looked at Krystea for the hundredth time. She winced a moment.
"…Are you sure you're alright?" She asked yet again.
The silver-haired woman turned back to her, and smiled a bit wider. "Seriously, I'm fine." She reassured, for she had answered this question before.
"I mean…after what happened to you…" Elena continued with a nervous wince. She paused a moment there, and grew more uneasy. "I mean…what did happen to you anyway? What went on in there?"
Krystea hesitated a moment, and looked down at herself. Then, she merely let out a small chuckle and shrugged. "I really don't know…but it didn't feel nearly as horrible as it looked." She slowly answered, seeming to think back. "I felt sick for the longest time…felt like I was on death's door…like everything was hurting and aching. Then…I suddenly started to feel better. I felt better quickly…and all my symptoms vanished at once. I woke up, and I felt strong enough to rise. But I felt…" She hesitated here. "Like…I was encased in something…covered with some sort of shroud or shell… So I tore away at it. I didn't notice anything wrong. I felt my face…arms…hands…everything was intact, just as you see it now. All of my…old body parts, I guess…they just felt like dead material. At first I almost thought I was ripping my own face off…but then I felt underneath and felt that my face was fine. So I kept ripping until it was all off.
"Then…I started feeling sick. I felt like there were rocks in my stomach. So I went to the bathroom and started to throw up. I saw how bloody I was and how horrible I looked…and for a moment I was afraid I had ripped the skin off of my body. Even when I found out I still had it I thought I was having some sort of nightmare. It wasn't until Reno came in that I started to realize I wasn't dreaming. And once I was done throwing up…I felt great. I've been feeling better every moment since I awoke." She hesitated here, and turned away from Elena, looking back to the desk.
"In fact…I don't think I've ever felt better than I feel right now."
Elena held a bit longer…but then pulled back into her chair. No one said anything else.
At last, the back door cracked open. When it did, the four turned and looked, expecting to see Colonel Maritza waltzing, or perhaps skipping given her recent mental fortitude, in. As a result…Reno felt more than a little disappointment…and perhaps irritation…when he saw some scientist peon walk in instead, and proceed to take his place at the desk. He also didn't like how he seemed very friendly and amiable…like the rest of the doctors in this place. That was why Reno had stopped going to them long ago. Once he had situated himself and scooted up, he leaned partially over the desk, propped himself up, and smiled at them.
"Well…I guess I'll-"
"Where's Maritza?" Reno interrupted immediately.
The man hesitated a moment here, losing a bit of his smile. "…The Colonel is unavailable at the moment. She's tending to other business. I've been authorized to-"
"I want to speak to the Colonel, not her lap dog." Reno cut off in response. "I think this has gone on more than long enough. We're not as dumb as you want us to believe, but I think I'm stupid for holding out as long as I have. Something's going on here and I want to know what it is. No more of this secret stuff or all-encompassing 'teleporter accident' crap. You know something more. So get her out here so I can have her spit it out."
The scientist hesitated a bit here, looking a little nervous in response. He looked around the four of them. Krystea was perfectly calm…but the others were not friendly looking. And everyone in the New Shinra knew that the four Turks were the most dangerous people in the army. It wasn't wise to upset them. As it was, the man moistened his lips, and tried to look more apologetic.
"I'm sorry…but that's impossible."
"You better make it possible." Reno flatly answered.
"The Colonel isn't in the Dome right now, and she has not disclosed her location." The man spoke back apologetically. "There's nothing I personally could do or anyone else in my group. She authorized me to say some things in the event that this happened, and so…"
"In the event?" Elena interjected, looking incredulous. Soon after, her face turned angry. "So you guys did know what was going to happen, didn't you? When were you planning on telling us?"
Krystea turned her head calmly to Elena at this. "Really, it's no big deal…"
The man swallowed again, visibly starting to get nervous in the wake of these units. "I'll say that some information was…" He paused here, realizing what he was admitting to and not wanting to say it. "…Strategically withheld…at the discretion of the Colonel…"
Rude's stoic look turned into a frown as he rolled his eyes. Reno threw up his arms and sighed.
"…Figures." The big man snorted.
Reno turned his gaze back down on the scientist. "I guess she wasn't so stupid getting you to say this…because I'd give her the back of my stick if you were her right now. She's probably hoping we don't shoot the messenger." He glared at him a moment…and then began to reach for his coat. "Too bad for you my trigger finger's been itchy at the sight of you ever since you walked through-"
The scientist, seeing how this was turning ugly, quickly spoke up again louder and more quickly.
"We did know something about the nature of the accident. And we knew something about the nature of what was happening. It wasn't simply a rebuilding of the body into a quicker form. It was the emergence of a new type of cell in Mrs. Valentine's body."
Reno and the others stopped here…but not so much out of calming down as out of surprise at hearing that. Even Krystea, who had remained calm ever since she had awoken, looked stunned at this news. The pause gave the man a moment to calm down, and then he swallowed and continued.
"…We discovered that there were some sort of 'helper cells' that were aiding the existing cells within Mrs. Valentine. They helped everything inside her to work faster and stronger. They were also multiplying rapidly. Given the nature of how she was benefiting, we didn't think it was necessary to be concerned. Colonel Maritza decided that telling you would just create unnecessary distress.
"But then they reached a point where they formed a tenth of Mrs. Valentine's body. When that happened…they…revolted, for lack of a better word. They were trying to form tissues and organs…and kill the rest of the cells in the body. They looked like they were essentially trying to take over as the main cell in Mrs. Valentine's body."
"You knew about this the whole time, and you never told us." Reno responded, his eyes staying narrowed on the scientist. The others were much the same. "You knew exactly what was making her sick…why she was having pieces of herself die off…and that she would become this."
"No, we didn't know that last part." The scientist answered, getting a bit worried again. "But yes…we did know what else was happening. We had a theory that the cells would start multiplying again…eventually live up to their goal and manage to assume being the new biological component in Mrs. Valentine. We also had a theory that she would die before this could happen."
"Oh, so you just wanted to wait and see which one came up?" Elena snapped back. "Is that it?"
Krystea was still surprisingly calm, despite the fact they were talking about what had happened to her. "Really guys…it's not-"
Here, however, the scientist grew more defensive and bolder. "What exactly did you want us to do? Go inside her body with a microscope and individually take out every single cell? Nuke her whole body with radiation in hopes that the new cells would die first, which they showed absolutely no sign of doing? Yes, we knew about these things, but from the day Mrs. Valentine arrived we were powerless to do anything about them other than observe. No localized methods would work. Methods that covered the whole body would likely kill her old cells and give the new cells a greater edge. That said, Colonel Maritza and the rest of us did everything we could to try and arrest the progress of the new cells, and when that proved useless we did everything we could to keep Mrs. Valentine alive until…" He hesitated here a bit, and swallowed.
"Until what?" Reno responded sardonically. "Until she 'hatched'? I've been around Shinra a lot longer than you, doc…tech…intern…or whatever your title is. I know they have a tendency for wanting to cause major accidents and see what comes from it. And I especially know that you'd probably be a lot more interested in Krystea after she became this new creature than before."
"Guys, calm down."
At last, the other Turks stopped and turned to Krystea as she said this. While they were all increasing in anger, she was perfectly calm and controlled. When they turned around to her, they found her plaining sitting as before, barely looking affected by all of this.
"Calm down?" Elena retorted. "Look what they did to you, Krystea!"
"Hoeng is the one who did this to me." Krystea calmly responded. "What he says makes sense. How were they supposed to help me? It wasn't like they had another teleporter, and even if they did they probably had no idea how to use it in a way that would remove the cells. They really could only hope for the best. Telling you wouldn't have made things any easier."
Reno was a bit puzzled. Krystea seemed to be taking this rather well. She wasn't even the person she had been a year ago, and yet she seemed to be treating it like spilled milk. Perhaps even calmer than that. He would expect her to be outraged and furious. She had to know that Shinra had no plans that were good when it came to science. However…she was also right about how they defended themselves. They really couldn't have done anything about it. They could have told them…but would that have really helped anything in the grand scheme of things? It wouldn't have made her any better or worse. Still…it would have made a difference if they had other plans for her… Reno did have burning in the back of his mind where Krystea would be right now had he not walked in and been the first to see her "emerged".
"Still…" Elena began to protest.
"To tell the truth…I'm not unhappy with what I am." Krystea continued with a simple shrug. This caused a bit more puzzlement to go over the faces of her comrades. "My hair is silver and my eyes are pale green…but I feel great. I can already feel how much stronger and smarter I am. I actually like the changes that have come over me. I would have preferred not to have been bedridden and sick for a few months…but now that I'm better it's fantastic."
Elena was considerably unnerved and unbelieving of these statements. Rude looked a little surprised himself. Reno managed to stay somewhat stoic…but was also skeptical. Krystea was mature, but she was still too flighty to so easily accept what had happened to her. Yet that was what she was doing right now. She had that eerie calm about her… It was more than just mere acceptance. It seemed as if she felt…that what had gone on was natural. That there was nothing unusual about it. It was almost like…like she knew somewhere inside her that this was going to happen…and had accepted it long ago.
Whatever it was…it wasn't good. Krystea wasn't this calm. This was something entirely different. What more…there was the fact that she undeniably bore resemblance to a certain someone. All of the Turks were thinking it even if no one had spat it out yet. And anytime someone started looking like that was cause for alarm in Reno. He knew full well the truth about Krystea Anne Valentine…and he suspected for a while now that the New Shinra might know it too. And as of right now…he was beginning to think that what had happened to her had nothing to do with the teleporters. They had been running tests on them all for months…and who knew if while drawing blood they hadn't put something back in as well? Who was to say that they didn't know exactly what they were doing, cryptic as they had been? What if the Colonel had indeed known what was going on?
And as calm as Krystea was now…what was to say that some of the tests they ran on her brain were a little more than tests? What if it was conditioning? Controlling?
This licked it.
Reno had relied on the Shinra for sizable income for most of his career as a Turk, but ever since the business with Krystea arose last year they had quickly begun to wear out their welcome. Things were getting worse all the time…and now there was this. He didn't know what it was and he hadn't the power to know…but he did know that it wasn't going to get any better around the Shinra types. Although he never really considered himself speaking on behalf of Rude and Elena…he felt they would agree with what he did next.
Abruptly, Reno rose from his chair and stood to full height. This got the attention of everyone else in the room, including the scientist.
"Since our associate is feeling fine now…I guess she doesn't have to hang around here anymore. She'll be heading back to her old room."
Krystea looked a bit puzzled at this, but Rude and Elena immediately understood. They began to rise as well, with Rude reaching out and putting a hand on Krystea's shoulder to bid her to rise. She snapped around at him at that…a bit too instinctively and quickly…but then calmed down and began to do as she was told. The scientist looked confused at this, and began to speak.
"Well…we still want to run some tests and see if Mrs. Valentine is truly-"
"You've run your last test, doc, until I get to talk to Colonel Maritza face-to-face, and preferably a hundred miles away from this Dome." Reno cut off. "And just so that you know in advance…I'm disconnecting every security device in Mrs. Valentine's room tonight, and she won't be getting any visitors unless they check in with one of us first."
Krystea looked really surprised at this, even as Rude began to gesture her out. Elena herself was a bit surprised when she turned back to Reno, seeing the sudden strong stance he took. The scientist began to rise from his chair.
"Um…Mr. Reno…"
"That's Reno to you. I hate Mister." The man answered. "And you can add this little memo when you talk to the Colonel about what's going on. Tomorrow, first thing, we're terminating our contract with the New Shinra."
Ragnar exhaled a puff of white air, and then looked down to the time again.
2357 hours.
"Any time now…" He remarked aloud.
Of course, Red XIII's sensitive hearing picked up even on the quiet under-the-breath voice that Ragnar used, and turned slightly back to him. Seeing nothing, he turned ahead again to join him and the division of soldiers in looking out to sea.
Ragnar had taken full time with Aerith, and had made further gains though none of them were ones he thought were adequate. When he finally arrived late into his office, he had an interesting message delivered to him courtesy of Red XIII. Needless to say…he was surprised. He didn't think there was much of a spirit of defection in the New Shinra, despite the multiple reasons they would have for doing so at this point. Most of his senses, as well as the knowledge within Bahamut's portion of his mind, told him that this was a trap or a trick of some sort. Most of the advisors agreed. At this point, any valuable information would be much appreciated…but it was too good to be true to appear at such an opportune time. Then again…if they were switching sides, Ragnar didn't want to persecute or instinctively shoot down potential allies.
In the end, Ragnar put the entire seaboard on high alert. If any New Shinra were watching and the one group was indeed defecting, then they'd be in trouble. They'd realize something was up and probably shoot down their traitors. That was a chance Ragnar was willing to take, however. All of the radar units were now sweeping the sea, and the batteries were fully armed and ready to fire. Other infantry and ground units were on standby, with the one division of soldiers standing with General Ragnar here at Midgar Bay, awaiting arrival. Two RPG squadrons were also here as well as six mobile artillery units, supplementing the forces that were already there and ready to shoot. Ragnar would have put even more on alert, but he didn't need Bahamut's help to know that doing so was overkill. If any real invasion was incoming, then they would have known it from the sheer amount of activity that would be required beforehand on the Northern Continent. As it was, four WGN destroyers were flanking Midgar Bay…more than enough to decimate a single NSN destroyer.
Ragnar crushed his foot against the ground and exhaled again. It was dark and cold again tonight. This particular area was so heavily traveled that there wasn't much fresh snow, just slush. He stood only about fifty feet from the nearest gun emplacement, and from this close he could get a bit of the spray whenever a wave crashed against the shore. It was dark tonight, and the moon was covered up by clouds. Only the small amount of local illumination was on. He had considered leaving it dark, but in the end decided against it. Not only was there little reason to believe that the General himself would come out, but they had night vision for targeting if they really wanted to shoot.
The general turned down to the canine nearby. "Are you sure there was nothing else in the message?"
"Nothing." Red XIII answered. "But it was authentic. I have at least that much faith in Cait Sith's electronics, if nothing more than that."
"This is peculiar." Ragnar answered as he turned back. "Why would they want to switch sides now if they're telling the truth? And how could they? That continent is locked up pretty tight to make sure people like this never get this far…and on a pirated destroyer, no less."
"If they are genuine…my only answer is that whoever is leading them must be an officer of rather high rank." Red XIII answered. "Or simply that this is some sort of trick."
"Hopefully it's one we can overcome this time around." Ragnar slowly murmured to himself.
The two were silent for a few moments after saying this. After a bit longer, however, Red XIII turned back to Ragnar.
"…I'm a bit surprised that it's just us two tonight."
Ragnar shrugged. "There's no need to drag Cloud out here. He's the only one who really has the rank to be here. You're here because you've also been responsible for most of our diplomatic work. But it's late and we don't have to get the rest of our friends here too. Hopefully, this is a situation that doesn't require expertise in hand-to-hand combat."
"Quite." Red XIII answered with a nod as he turned back to the shore.
They didn't get much silence after that. Soon after they both stopped, Ragnar heard a ringing from his radio. Both officers immediately turned to the source. After a pause, Ragnar unfastened it from his side, brought it up to his mouth, and answered.
"This is General Ragnar. What is it?"
"Sir…our long range radar has picked up a single destroyer-sized craft sailing into our waters."
"Message from the craft. They're surrendering."
Ragnar turned and gave a look to Red XIII. He looked back with acknowledgement and growing wariness. It was time. In the end, the general turned back to the radio and nodded.
"Acknowledged. Tell all defenses to target the ship as soon as it is within range, but wait until my signal to open fire."
Ragnar switched off the radio at that and brought it down to his side. After that, he and the colonel looked out to the ocean, and waited. As he did, the gun barrels rotated on shore to aim for a more distant unseen object, and the soldiers behind them began to tense up. Searchlights were activated, and began to scan the ocean.
It was indeed very black out tonight. Even with the lights projecting out for a few miles, one could barely see a thing in the darkness. And for a few minutes, that was all anyone saw as the defenses tightened up and prepared to shoot. The WGN destroyers themselves were heard moving and adjusting their massive turrets to aim into the shadows. Ragnar hoped they didn't jump the gun, knowing that the navy was a bit more itchy when it came to killing New Shinra. On his part, all he did was look out to sea and wait for them to show up.
Yet long before anyone else could see on shore, Ragnar spotted them. It wasn't just his strength, speed, and mentality that had been enhanced by Bahamut. There was a bit of dragon blood in his veins too now, and as a result he could see much farther and in much greater darkness than any normal human. He began to see the outline of the destroyer slowly rising above the waters long before it arrived. He continued to see it as it very slowly came forward, seeming to be moving at a rather slow speed. It couldn't have been more than a few knots. As it was, it was a long time before anyone else on shore could see it. But gradually, the searchlights turned and focused solely on the incoming target, and one by one fixated on it. Once they had all done so, it at last began to become visible to everyone on shore.
"Can you see them preparing any weapons?" Ragnar asked the nearby beast.
Red XIII frowned as he looked out to sea. "Hearing and smell I have en masse…but sight would be a limitation for me even if I had both eyes. I had no idea why people called me 'Red XIII' until a full year after Meteorfall and someone informed me of my color."
Despite the seriousness of the moment, Ragnar was hard pressed to suppress a chuckle.
The destroyer came into clearer focus as time went on, and as it drew closer the barrels began to rotate to stay aimed at it. The RPG units watched as it grew closer and closer…and then finally began to get into position as well. Soon they'd be aiming at it too. Still no one fired, waiting for General Ragnar's signal. The youth himself kept his gaze hard and focused on the destroyer, watching for the slightest mishap or "funny business". As he kept watching, he began to see the WGN moving its destroyers in closer, coming to flank the destroyer on all sides. Individual details began to come out. Ragnar was able to count the gun barrels and see the seams on larger plates of metal. He began to see the waves lapping at the sides of the ship.
Then, something unexpected happened. Ragnar was conscious that the ship was coming slower and slower this whole time…but now it was nearly halting. Eventually, it did just that, coming to a stop some half mile from shore. There it bobbed and floated, but did no more. At first, people just thought it was slowing down further. But as Ragnar looked on at it, he realized it had halted. Seeing this he began to grow confused. What was this about? Why did they stop?
He got his answer a moment later, as his radio suddenly came on.
"Big Ben, this here's Rubber Duck. Please call back."
Ragnar, Red XIII, and the nearby soldiers all turned in surprise to the radio at that. Stunned, Ragnar raised the radio to his head. Whoever had just spoken wasn't anyone in the Ops Center. It was someone else…in a rather loose and carefree tone. It sounded as if they were joking around or playing a prank.
Red XIII's brow furrowed. "Was that a child fooling around with a walkie-talkie? Perhaps we should change channels…"
"That was no child." Ragnar answered as he looked at the radio. "That was my private channel. Somebody just called me in on it."
Red XIII kept looking confused. "In that case…who could it be?"
Ragnar paused again, and scratched the side of his head. "I…I think it was the enemy destroyer…"
This only made the colonel more confused. "If that is your private channel, then only high level intelligence and officers should have it. How would they know it?"
"I don't know, but they knew how to raise Cait Sith, so I'm putting my money on it." Ragnar answered. He paused a moment…still thinking of the confusing and strangely childish message he had received, but then depressed the button. Somewhat uncertainly, he spoke into the receiver.
"…NSN Destroyer Commander?"
"Bingo, kiddo. You get a gold star for the day."
Again, Ragnar was puzzled at the rather childish sounding voice on the other end. After hesitating, however, he spoke again.
"How did you get this channel?"
"Why is the sky blue? Why do you drive on a parkway and park on a driveway? How many roads must a man walk down before you can call him a man? Trifles, Mr. Vice. Ooh…that sounds good. Mr. Vice. Maybe you should have everyone call you Mr. Vice. Can I call you Mr. Vice? It's like some comic book villain… 'Look out! It's the dastardly Mr. Vice!'"
Ragnar now looked rather confused, and began to wonder again if someone was playing a prank. He looked curiously over to Red XIII, who looked just as confused as he was. In the end, he turned back to the radio.
"Ok…I'm hanging up now."
"Oh, you're such a wet blanket. Just like General Leers." A tired sigh. "Yes, I'm the commander of the NSN destroyer and I've got the defectors here with me. I must say I wish you hadn't made such a large welcoming party for us. Now you leave me with little choice."
Here, both officers raised eyebrows and looked rather suspicious.
"…What do you mean, 'little choice'?"
"Patience, dearie. Give me five minutes."
This immediately set Ragnar off.
"No. Tell me what's going on right now. Why are you acting like this?"
"It's your own fault you'll have to wait five minutes. If you must know, I'm abandoning ship."
Ragnar crooked a brow. "Abandoning…?"
"Use your head, silly boy! Thanks to all of this activity you made, everyone up north knows we're here! Now instead of presenting to you this fabulous new destroyer…I'm going to have to have you blow it to kingdom come so that they'll think you shot us first before we had a chance to defect!"
Ragnar paused on hearing that. Despite how wild and…crazy…the person on the other end sounded, what they were saying made sense. No doubt, the New Shinra had to suspect something was up. And if these people were defecting and did have valuable information, like they said, they'd change the security measures as soon as they realized they had switched sides. On the other hand, if they thought they were dead… That also explained why they had contacted him on his channel. The New Shinra couldn't eavesdrop.
On the other hand…something was distinctly unsettling with this person's voice. It sounded almost like some sort of harlequin to him…what with how crazy and silly sounding the officer was. Again he wondered if this was a joke or some attempt at a trick. Finally, he raised the radio up and spoke again. As he did, he held up his own watch and looked at the time.
"You have three minutes. Over and out."
Ragnar began to hear some curse on the other end before turning his radio off. After that, he noted the time once more and began to watch. Red XIII, on his part, turned his head slightly over to him. Ragnar looked at his watch a moment longer, and then called out to the colonel while keeping his eyes on it.
"What do you think?"
"Whoever their commanding officer is, it was not what I expected in this exchange. The person sounds a bit…carefree, you might say. But I could detect no lie in the voice."
Ragnar frowned and kept looking at his watch. "A good thing that they did get me on the private channel, however they got it. If the WGN had heard this, they might have opened fire without waiting."
Red XIII could hardly disagree, and turned back out to the ocean.
Sure enough, as they watched, it took only a few moments before they started to see rafts popped open and dropped off the side of the ship. People jumped in and began to take off as fast as they could. They brought no supplies or equipment…just began to go to shore. Luckily they had small motors on these rafts. Ragnar's newer keen eyes were able to keep an eye on them and actually count as he watched the time. Sure enough, the number of people continued until they reached a number of exactly three hundred. The last ones were loading on as the timer ticked down to three minutes.
Ragnar, a twinge of mercy in his heart, waited ten more seconds for the last raft to get some distance from the boat. Once that had happened, he held up his radio and gave the order.
"All units…open fire on the destroyer and only the destroyer."
Moments later, the rather calm and peaceful night turned into a maelstrom as each artillery unit fired as one. Red lights shot through the sky as massive shells sailed out and impacted on the boat. The WGN had already targeted vital areas on the ship with all of their guns, and they were the closest. When they landed, the ship almost immediately erupted into a fireball after taking only a few smaller explosions. They were aimed right and set off the spare ammunition and fuel areas, blowing away the rest of the ship within a few seconds. The other artillery hits were mostly superfluous as the ship was turned into a giant pillar of flame, and served only to kick up more water and threaten the escapees.
Now the entire bay was brightly illuminated. Ragnar looked down to shore, and saw that some of the boats had been thrown over from the crashing of the waves and debris. Even those that weren't were drenched by water. Luckily for the units, they managed to swim until other rafts aided them, and either brought them aboard or flipped their rafts back over. It was a bit of chaos, but they worked together enough to get their companions back on and send them to shore as well. However…Ragnar now began to regret not giving them more time. Some of the people were pale when they finally dragged them back in, and were shuddering violently. It was still bitterly cold out, especially near the sea…
Still, he kept a straight face as he gestured to the division behind him and motioned to the shore. Knowing their duties, the troops immediately moved out. They passed right by the general and colonel, making sure not to disturb them but doing as they were told quickly none the less. Ragnar waited until they were all by before he too back to move to the shore, along with Red XIII.
As Ragnar approached, the first few rafts made landfall. Even before they could get out, the PPA was on them and putting guns in their faces, telling them all to put their hands up. They weren't taking any chances. The first few rafts complied as they came out. But as more arrived, ones bearing freezing cold passengers, they began to complain about this arrangement, asking why the PPA had been "stupid enough" to shoot before they were clear. In response, many officers told them to shut up in more explicit terms. Being civilians and not properly disciplined soldiers, some nearly came to the point of lashing out and striking the more verbal escapees. Red XIII called out and stopped them though, leaving Ragnar to continue to get closer. As he did, he looked at their uniforms, and distinctly saw that each one of them was a member of the New Shinra Army.
The last boat finally arrived. This one was one that had been flipped, and only had a few shuddering troops sopping wet within it. Most of them were huddled over themselves and were unable to rise when the soldiers came and told them to get out. Only one was still active, and she was riding the motor. Her hair was plastered to the sides of her head from being wet, yet despite how cold she looked, just like the others, she stayed active. As the soldiers continued to try and get them out, Ragnar began to approach.
"Out of the boat now!" One of them finally yelled.
"You brainless grunt!" The one at the motor retorted. "Can't you see they're passing out from hypothermia! Get them out yourself!"
The man was about to argue again, but at that point Ragnar arrived. Before he could say a word, Ragnar spoke for him, looking to the nearest officer.
"Lieutenant," He began. This immediately made the officer turn, as well as the rest of the soldiers around him, back to the general. He pointed out to the raft. "Assist these people in getting out and get them to Barracks #46 along with the others. Give them all a change of clothing and call in a medical team if any of them are injured or otherwise infirm from what just happened."
The officer paused, but then gave a ready nod. "Aye, sir." He turned and motioned to the nearby soldiers to do as they were told. One of them was the last one that had made a demand. Seeming to realize that he had been a bit out of line and caught up in the military moment, he blushed a bit and flustered before coming forward to do as he was told. The lieutenant then began to move out to the rest of the troops and say the same message.
"Thank you!" The one at the motor answered, giving the other soldiers a look as if to say, "See, you should have done as I told you!" One of the privates soon came near and offered her a hand in getting out. She readily pushed him away. "No thanks to you! I can see myself out!" With that, the woman promptly and, somewhat proudly, began to emerge from the boat and step onto the shore. Once out, she readily began to march up to Ragnar…seeming to ignore the fact, or try to ignore the fact, that she was shuddering all over like a leaf and was hardly any better off than the rest of the people in her boat.
As the woman neared him, Ragnar gave her a look over. He didn't see anything familiar. The woman was brown-haired, tall, and with a wild and free expression, even now with her skin turning white and perhaps even blue. She wasn't much older than him, assuming she wasn't the same age as him. After hearing her voice and seeing her come up to him, it became obvious to him that this was the one in charge. That was weird. He didn't know they made officers this young in the NSA…
"Now, General. I'm wondering if I could trouble you for a blanket and some soup…because I'm feeling rather frigid myself, and I think some of my hair is beginning to freeze…" She announced as she came to a halt in front of him, struggling not to chatter her teeth.
Ragnar, however, hesitated at this. He looked her over again, and finally went back to her face.
"…Who are you?" He found himself flatly asking in a rather unofficial and unsystematic way. But he couldn't help it. The wild look of the woman seemed almost unnatural, and he was genuinely baffled as to how such a strong personality could have avoided him for two years…
This seemed to make the woman grin, however.
"Oh come now, General…surely you recognize the face of one of your greatest enemies."
Ragnar looked again to her face at this. Sure enough…there was something familiar about it, but he couldn't say what. But then, he looked down to her body again. In addition to the New Shinra attire, she had markings on her uniform that were of much higher rank. She was dressed in colors higher than a normal officer. As he looked on…he began to realize this wasn't some lieutenant, commander, or even captain. He recognized that the ranking was all the way up to colonel…a position that one person in the New Shinra Army now held after the death of Colonel Seth. He looked back up…and his face began to turn to surprise as he slowly began to recognize the face…although it was far younger, vibrant, and vital than the picture he had seen…
"…Colonel Maritza?"
Teeth flashed from the Colonel.
"…In the pale, clammy flesh."
To be continued...
I hope I surprised at least a few of you with that ending. By the way...again it seems as if a detail I meant to include somehow was never inserted into the story. True, Krystea "sloughed" off her old body, but that still left her old internal organs. She had to throw those up, and that's why she was vomitting.
Now again comes the time when I want to rant. This isn't a sad attempt at humor this time, but no longer allows me to post essays, and so I have a bit of a review of a movie I watched just recently.
A friend once told me that "The Count of Cogliostro" was the best Lupin the Third movie in the series. I finally received the opportunity to see the film myself with the recent rerelease titled "The Castle of Cagliostro". Right on the onset, I received good reason to suspect its good quality. Steven Spielberg himself said that this was "...One of the greatest adventure movies of all time." It was co-written and directed by none other than Hayao Miyazaki, who any Anime buff knows puts out most of the Anime masterpieces (for those not "in the know", "Princess Mononoke", "Spirited Away", "Howl's Moving Castle", "Nausicca of the Valley of the Wind" Read the manga now, bitches!:)). I'm not sure if Miyazaki has done any other Lupin the Third movies. I kind of hope he hasn't, so that this is a stand alone classic.
I received a similar feeling watching this movie that a Batman fan and Sin City fan gets from reading "The Dark Knight Returns", which is seeing a classic staple revisioned by a different yet talented craftsman (actually, I hate Frank Miller's work, but the analogy holds true none the less). In terms of the artwork, it's hard to tell what movie you're watching at some points. Lupin, Jigen, Goemon, Fujiko, and Zenigata all still bear their trademark appearances, but its clear that they bear a touch of Miyazaki's work on them (case in point, Lupin's head is just a bit bigger and more oval shaped, and his eyes are more defined). As for characters like Clarice and the Count, both of them are clearly Miyazaki style (Clarice looking like most young girls do in his movies with the notable, and intentional, exception of Chihiro, and the Count bearing Miyazaki's trademark "toadface"). The setup is much the same as traditional Lupin the Third fare. Lupin runs into a potential bigger score on a routine hit...gets himself and his cohorts into a rather dangerous mess...and in the end the bad guys are foiled, the fair dame is saved, and the crew runs off into the sunset with Interpol on their heels.
Yet the characters themselves are not quite the same either. The biggest example to me is Lupin. Gone is the lecherous, self-interested pervert familiar to the series. Lupin in this version is more calm and collected with a sense of chivalry and devotion. He seems somewhat older and more reserved and controlled compared to his wilder, more sex-driven persona. (There is an indication that this movie may take place late in Lupin's career, with a hint to him regretting his wilder and crazier days.) Where the traditional Lupin would have been more self serving, perhaps even attempting to make off with the plates in the end...Miyazaki's Lupin is more of a loose rogue with a heart of gold. He is quite literally as he describes himself in the movie: the thief coming to rescue the damsel in distress. The more traditional Lupin's interest in Clarice would have began with Lupin Jr., if you catch my drift. Now while it is true that Lupin normally does have a sense of helping out women in need even in the series, his hook is usually in his desire to be licentious. Here he seems more genuine and noble. Even his encounter with the disguised Fujiko doesn't normally engage in one of his half-baked passes as he even forgoes searching for the counterfeit plates over finding Clarice.
In general, all of the outlaws seem a bit more friendly and kind hearted. This seems to make them fit a bit more into Miyazaki's "diamond in the rough" types he employs frequently in his works...making good guys seem bad and bad guys seem good. But perhaps he merely wanted a bit more sympathy derived for the protagonists.
All in all, I thought it was a great film. I recommend it for anyone who just wants an enjoyable adventure Anime. As for Lupin the Third fans, I recommend it for a slightly different look at "The Wolf".