Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or SO3, both which are awesome as hell in their own ways.
InfinityAtmo: Claire hm? I'm unsure whether I'll do that or not, as I'm currently unsure if I'll make this a Naruto/ More then one person thing at the moment anyways. I'll think about it though.
Vandenbz: I wish I read this review before working on the fic, your idea sounded like it could have worked... sadly I was already satisfied with my work that I didn't feel like changing it, lol. Your ideas have quite a bit of merit and I am currently leaning on making it just a Naruto/Nel fic, but I still am not totally decided.
OROgoldenpair1: I agree on the Harem term, I just use it because that's how most fics refer to such pairings as... I'm open to a better term for it if you have one, lol. I'm playing through the game again for this fic and have not yet gotten to Maria's part in it, I only lightly recall her personality at the moment so I'm waiting till I have a total understanding of her character before decided on the pairings... AM leaning towards just Naruto/Nel though.
ChaosRune: Hmmm... Flashbacks will be added I think in order to show you those scenes then :) I have a nice little plan when it comes to Item Creation actually as well as quite a nice way to work with Kyuubi... as well as the other Bijuu when the time comes.
A.K.U.: I see your point and as I have informed others I just might do a single pairing.
5-digit: I see your point, I'm actually trying to put more focus into this fic while taking a break from my Naruto/Negima fic, so expect updates to pick up.
"This kid is starting to annoy me", Naruto informed Cliff as they made their way through the forest of Vanguard III, Cliff leading the way as he used his own communicator's tracking system to follow their targets beacon," First we lose him at Hyda, then we catch up to the ship he was on, ONLY to find it destroyed by the Vendeeni, THEN we track him to this planet, only to find his escape pod scraped and empty!".
"Calm down Naruto", Cliff said with a cool smirk to his partner," Think of it this way, because he's all over the place, it makes it just as hard for the Vendini to find him as it is for us... and we only found him because we were able to lock onto his communicator's frequency".
"Hopefully the Vendeeni weren't smart enough to do the same", Naruto replied with a frown, pausing just as Cliff did," Which way now?".
"Hmm... Left", Cliff noted, looking in that direction," From what I can tell, there are some ruins in that direction".
"Wonder what the kid is doing there", Naruto spoke, walking past Cliff in order to take the lead," I'm hoping to run into some trouble on the way".
"Who knows, knowing our luck we just will", Cliff laughed, following after Naruto as they entered the ruins of Vanguard III.
The area was littered with what had to be the animals of the planet, the most vicious of which seemed to be strange Mushroom like creature's. However, seeing as they only attacked if you got close enough to their young, the pair decided to leave them be. They eventually came upon a large building that seemed mostly standing, though the door to it seemed locked.
"That's just great", Naruto sighed, taking a few steps back," watch out, I'll force it open", Naruto said, the tattoo's on his arms starting to glow.
"Hold it Naruto, If it's locked that tightly it means the kid we're looking for couldn't have gotten through either", Cliff noted, before frowning," Unless he locked it behind himself", Cliff mused, before blinking as he noticed his communicator lost the signal to their targets communicator," Damn, his signal's gone!".
"Yet another problem", Naruto mused, his tattoo's losing their glow as he looked to Cliff," Just how are we supposed to find him now?".
BOOM!
Both men blinked, before rushing towards the sound that came from the back of the building, finding another door leading inside.
"... I feel stupid", Cliff noted with a frown, wondering why he hadn't thought to check the back for a door in the first place," Let's hurry, I'm guessing the kid's in trouble".
"As you wish... stupid", Naruto chuckled, rushing in while dodging a swing from an annoyed Cliff.
The two charged in, following the echo of another loud sound of a blaster being shot, rushing past the annoying Skeleton like creature's they ran into along the way. Eventually they came to the entrance of a room, inside a few voice's could be heard".
"Found him", Cliff sighed, quite glad they had gotten to Fayt first.
Naruto nodded, looking in to find their 19 year old target facing off a man he had seen on Wanted Posters a few years back, went by the name of Norton. A small time criminal, Norton had been captured by the Federation... only to have the ship carrying him have gone missing. So this is where he ended up was it?
"-hat's why you've been raiding Whipple! ", The blue haired teen Fayt demanded of Norton with a glare to the smirking man.
"Yeah, something like that... You're a smart kid, That's why I've been raiding the village, and that's why you gotta die!", Norton laughed out in response, raising the large Blaster Rifle he had held in his right hand," Sorry! You'll be happy to know I'm gonna make the most of those parts I stripped from yer escape pod though!".
"Should we jump in?", Naruto asked Cliff, only to have his partner shake his head in the negative," But the kid's not gonn-".
"Wait just a moment more... I wanna see something", Cliff said with a serious expression, eyes locked on the scene before them.
"Hm?", Naruto asked, following Cliff's gaze to find Fayt looked quite angry from Norton's words, the teenager's forehead starting to glow with a bluish light,"... I see".
"It's guys like you...", Fayt muttered, eyes locked onto a now confused Norton.
"Huh?", Norton asked, taking a step back as the blue glow began to grow," W-what the!".
"Ah, there you are!", Cliff suddenly spoke up with a smile, moving out from the spot he and Naruto were hiding, The Klausian making his way over to Fayt while ignoring Norton," We thought we lost you when your distress signal went out, might never have found you if it weren't for those explosions".
"Yeah, it's been quite annoying tracking you down in all", Naruto said as he followed Cliff out, smirking at Fayt, whose blue light show had dimmed down once the two Quark members walked into view.
"What do you two want!", Norton demanded, quite worried at being outnumbered down," You two aren't some of those Federation guys, are ya?".
"Us!", Cliff asked Norton in surprise, before laughing," YOU think WE'RE Federation soldiers? That's a laugh!".
"I feel so... insulted", Naruto said with a phony frown," Do we REALLY look that prim and proper?".
"W-well then who the hell are you guys!", Norton demanded with a growl, aiming his blaster at them.
"I'm Cliff Fitter", Cliff began to introduce himself," A Klausian and member of Quark".
"A-A Klausian!", Norton repeated in shock and fear.
"Naruto Uzumaki Namikaze", Naruto followed with, pouting playfully at Norton's reaction to Cliff's introduction," All around universal bad ass and Quark's Shinobi Supreme".
"The hell is a "Shinobi Supreme" supposed to be?", A clueless Norton demanded, earning an annoyed look from Naruto.
"Sorry, no time to explain", Cliff said, holding back a smirk from Naruto's annoyance," We're kinda in a hurry you see, so just let us have Fayt, that Earthling boy over there and we'll be on our way, We have no intent on butting into whatever ya got going on over here".
"Speak for yourself", Naruto muttered, wondering why just because Cliff was a Klausian everyone they ran into was more afraid of HIM.
"Wait a second, how do you know my name?", Fayt asked Cliff and Naruto, quite confused as to what these guys wanted with him.
"Let's not sweat the details", Cliff replied with a smirk to Fayt, before pointing at him," Suffice it to say, you're our man".
"Wow... way to make us sound like a pair of creeps", Naruto noted with a roll of his eyes.
"I didn't mean it in THAT way!", Cliff said with an annoyed look to Naruto, earning a confused look from Fayt, who was wondering if these two were trustworthy.
"Hold it right there!", Norton suddenly yelled out, causing the three others to turn towards the criminal," Move and I'll blast ya!".
"... Are you talking to us?", Cliff asked curiously.
"I hope so", Naruto followed with, smirking lightly.
"You think you can fool me? There's no way a Klausian would come here!", Norton yelled angrily, waving his blaster around like a maniac, before gaining a vicious smirk," You're both probably some sorta spies! It's so obvious! Har har har!".
"... Wow, this guy is a MORON", Naruto noted with a deadpan expression, wondering why Fayt had to have ended up dealing with a guy like this and drag them along into it.
"Look, since I'm such a nice guy, I'm gonna fill you in on a little secret", Cliff began with a sigh, before gaining a serious expression that made Norton look a bit uneasy," That gun you have there has no effect on us Klausians... You didn't know that?"
"Sh-SHUT YOUR PIE-HOLE!", Norton roared out, shooting a single shot at Cliff. Cliff in a matter of seconds charged forward, dodged the incoming bolt, before throwing a fist at Norton's chin, pausing it before it hit... just as the blaster bolt hit the wall behind where he had been standing a moment ago. Norton gained a shocked look, frozen in fear of what might soon happen.
"All right, I'm done lecturing!", Cliff spoke out coldly, looking quite unhappy,"Time to teach you lesson! "
"About time", Naruto said with a smirk, drawing his sword with just his right hand, before looking to Fayt," You in kid?".
"... Yeah", Fayt said after a moment, gaining a determined look to his face as he drew forth his own blade of simple design.
"Y-you...", Norton began to speak, only to growl as he jumped back and began firing a barrage of energy bolts at the group," YOU ALL DIE!".
Fayt quickly rolled forward under the incoming bolts, Naruto leaping over them with his left hand joining his right on the hilt of his blade. Cliff merely dodged the bolts, keeping Norton focused on himself. Fayt made it to Norton first, swinging upwards to knock the blaster from Norton's hands, much to the surprise of the criminal. As the blaster soared into the air, Naruto swung at it, cutting through it and destroying it. Just as Norton gained the idea he should run, he forund Cliff before him once again, glaring hatefully right before slugging the criminal in the face... HARD.
"N-no... It's... MINE!", Norton managed to gasp out after being sent crashing into the ground, right before he fell into unconsciousness.
"Hmph... So much for that guy", Cliff said while dusting his hands off with a smirk," However, I DID warn him".
"Oh YES", Naruto said with a roll of his eyes, replacing his sword onto his back," Mister "Your gun doesn't work on us KLAUSIAN'S!"... But they DO work on me and the kid, what would have happened if he shot at US instead?".
"... I had a hunch he wouldn't", Cliff replied simply, looking away from Naruto with a sheepish look.
"Yeah yeah", Naruto sighed, moving over to the unconscious Norton," Let's see... seems this is all that's left", Naruto mused, pulling Norton's own Communicator out before tossing it over to Fayt," There, to replace the one you destroyed".
"Ah", Fayt replied, catching the communicator before pocketing it," Well... I'd like to thank you guys, you kinda saved my life".
"Woah!", Cliff interrupted with a chuckle," Don't go thanking us yet... we're kinda here to abduct you".
"What!", Fayt replied with a surprised look.
"Get him all worked up why don't you", Naruto sighed with a roll of his eyes, this whole situation reminding him of when he had been abducted years prior," We're not gonna hurt you kid, It's just our boss wants to meet you... hence why we came all the way to this rock to find you".
"Boss?", Fayt questioned, before gaining a look of realization," You mean Quark's boss".
"That's right, Our leader wants to see you... But you've sure made it a tough job", Cliff mused with a frown to Fayt," First, we went to Hyda and ran into that mess, thanks to you, Then we get here and find you poking your nose into matters better left alone".
Naruto nodded in agreement, right eye lightly twitching as he recalled how annoying it had been to track Fayt down. Cliff had been lucky as hell to be able to track Naruto down so easily back then.
"Geez, you both make it seem like Hyda got attacked because of me", Fayt sighed drolly, not noticing both Naruto and Cliff exchange quick glance's at his words.
"… Just kidding, don't sweat it", Cliff followed with, gaining a smirk as he tried to ease the tension," At any rate, we got you now and we did rescue you, so no complaining".
"Besides", Naruto spoke up, folding his arms behind his head," You wanna find your old man right? Well the oh so friendly Vendeeni have him captive at the moment".
"Dad?", Fayt questioned with a shocked look," But why!".
"No idea", Cliff replied, lightly looking away as he said it," All we know is he was kidnapped at the Evacuation Center of Hyda".
"What about my mother!", Fayt demanded, suddenly grabbing a surprised Cliff by his collar," And Sophia!".
"Well, we know your mom's safe, She should've already arrived at Remote Station #6", Naruto said with an amused smirk, finding the look of surprise on Cliff's face pretty amusing," We don't know about the girl, we had my hands full just trying to track down your escape pod".
"...How do you both know all this?", Fayt asked Naruto, letting Cliff go," And what else do you know!".
"Not much else", Naruto said with a shrug.
"We DO know what your old man was researching though", Cliff said while fixing his collar.
"You mean symbological genetics?", Fayt asked Cliff," My dad's an authority in that field, so it's no surprise you've heard of him".
"Right, symbological genetics and 19 years ago…", Cliff began, only to pause before shrugging,"Ah, never mind. That doesn't matter right now".
"Uh...", Fayt followed with, a bit curious as to what Cliff had been about to say.
"C'mon! Ya don't have any other way off this planet, do ya?", Cliff asked him with a smile," Look, I'm sure things will clear up if you just come with me, besides, you'll be able to see yer old man again."
"But according to you two, he's already being held by the Vendeeni!", Fayt retorted with a light glare,"How exactly will I be able to see him?".
"Simple", Naruto said with a cocky smirk," Quark will rescue him for you... we always DO like messing with the Vendeeni... and the Federation", Naruto spoke, muttering the last part.
"And WHY would an Anti-Federation organization want to help my father?", Fayt asked Naruto with a suspicious look coming to his face.
"Well…tell ya what, it's kinda complicated", Cliff spoke before Naruto could retort," Let's not get into that right now... So, are you coming or not?".
Fayt seemed to think it over, before nodding lightly," Alright, I'll go with you two", He informed the pair," But, could we stop off at Whipple first? I want to make sure the boy gets back safely", Fayt finished, looking to the unconscious child lying nearby.
"Sure, Whatever", Cliff sighed," I still think you shouldn't have gotten involved".
"Says YOU", Naruto said with a smirk to Cliff.
"I thought we agreed THAT never happened", Cliff said with a light glare to Naruto.
"Only because Mirage would kill you if she found out", Naruto chuckled.
Fayt looked at the two in confusion, unsure of just who he had decided to join up with... it might have been better to just have let Norton shoot him.
"Just finish up quickly and get back here", Naruto called to Fayt as the blue haired teen carried the unconscious kid on his back into the village," No dawdling!".
"Got it!", Fayt called out before vanishing from Naruto and Cliff's view.
"So, what do you think of him?", Cliff asked his fellow blond curiously, a serious look on both their face's.
"He's one of those follow the rules type's", Naruto mused with a frown," It might be a while before he starts thinking beyond what's been drilled into his head by his parents and the Federation".
"Yet he went against the UP3", Cliff said with a chuckle," Maybe he's more like you then you think".
"Possibly", Naruto mused with a smirk of his own," We'll just have to see how far he's willing to go... Though I still think we could have given him a bit more information".
"Leave that to the boss lady", Cliff replied with a frown," Like with you, it's best to let her explain it".
"I suppose", Naruto mused, looking over towards the village as he found Fayt heading back," Hm, that was quick".
Fayt soon ran up to the pair, a light smile on his face as he seemed to be happy he had been able to do something nice for the children he had been staying with on the planet.
"You ready?", Cliff asked Fayt, arms crossed over his chest.
"Yeah", Fayt replied, taking one last look back at the village," I'm ready".
"Alright, Now, you remember that cliff near your escape pod?", Cliff asked Fayt with a smirk," Our way out lies beyond there, Let's go!".
"Got it", Fayt replied, before following Cliff and Naruto.
Naruto sighed, hoping things would be smooth sailing from this point on, after all the trouble they'd already gone through. However, he had a feeling him might not be so lucky this time around.
The group had made their way quickly through the forest, making their way through the strange jelly like creature's that inhabited it. Naruto gave Fayt a quick look over, mentally comparing the boy to Maria, once more wondering what his own connection was to all of this. He had been told his mother's family name had been listed in files Maria had... was there something special about himself and his mother's side of the family that he didn't know about?
If so... just what was it and how could he make use of it?
Naruto was snapped from his thoughts as they reached the wreckage that had been Fayt's escape pod, Naruto looking over for any parts that could be made use of... but there didn't seem like anything that they didn't already have. Any of the ships real useful parts had been taken by Norton's gang and used by the bandit leader himself.
"Hey, it's me", Cliff's voice spoke, the Klausian speaking into his transmitter," We're at the location",Transport us up as soon as you can... Hmm? Oh, no problem", Cliff continued with a smile, Naruto rolling his eyes at his partner's words, mentally recalling how annoying it had been to find Fayt," We got him... I said it's okay... I haven't done anything!".
"What's that about?", Fayt asked Naruto curiously, wondering why Cliff suddenly was wearing a sheepish look on his face.
"Ever heard the term "Whipped"?", Naruto asked with a light smirk to the teen, who blinked in confusion for a moment before gaining a look of understanding.
"Oi! You shut up over there!", Cliff called out with a glare to Naruto, before returning to his transmitter with a sour face, which quickly shifted to a sheepish expression as a loud voice spoke through the transmitter,"Sorry, Naruto was just being his usual moronic self... Yeah, I know, Now hurry up and get us outta here", Cliff said with a sigh, before cutting the transmission, his gaze shifting to Fayt," Our ship'll be here soon, Once we're ready it's good riddance to this hunk 'o rock"
"The ship's not that big though", Naruto followed with, walking over to Cliff," but it's packing a gravitic warp engine, so it's quite the speedy little clunker".
"Don't talk about my baby that way", Cliff said with a challenging tone to Naruto, who merely stuck his tongue out at the Klausian.
"Hey", Fayt spoke up, interrupting the two... both turning to look at them at the same time," I've been meaning to ask you guys something".
"What would that be?", Cliff asked curiously, arms crossed over his chest as he shifted into a more relaxed stance, Naruto nodding in curiosity as well, eyes becoming slit like.
"Why does Quark's leader want to meet with me?", Fayt asked, looking unsure," I'm just a college student from Earth!".
"Oh…um…'no comment?' ", Cliff offered up with a sheepish grin, Naruto looking away as well," Heh... That's not doing it for you, is it?".
"No, it's not", Fayt said with a light glare.
"Let's see, well… I guess the biggest reason would be… Our leader wants
to chat with you?", Cliff offered with a bright smile, making Naruto slap himself on the forehead.
"Nice try, but that's avoiding the question", Fayt accused with a harder glare," Why's your leader want to meet with me?"
"Look kid, we don't know any more then you do, we're just the grunts here", Naruto spoke up with a sigh, hands folded behind his head," Our leader wants to speak with you and that's all we know".
"...And that 'something' is…?", Fayt asked with a frown, not liking at all the response he was getting.
"Well, You'll just have to come with me and find out for yourself is all", Cliff informed Fayt with an apologetic smile," Sorry, kid, but we don't know much more than that".
Before Fayt could speak up again, the sight of Cliff's ship the Eagle appeared far above them in the skies, Fayt gaining a relieved look to see such a thing again, having at one point feared he'd be stuck on the planet for the rest of his life.
"That's our cue", Cliff spoke up, motioning for Fayt to join him and Naruto," Get a bit closer so we can be beamed up".
"I love this part", Naruto admitted with a kid like tone that surprised Fayt, having figured the blonde wasn't the type.
"... I got ya", Fayt said with a light smile as he joined the two, a flash of light suddenly taking hold of them before they were taken off the planet up into the ship above.
"Welcome back", Mirage greeted the three men as they entered into the cockpit of the Eagle, a kind smile on her lovely face that made Fayt blush in response, Naruto mentally smirking as he recalled his similar reaction to the woman he saw more as an older sister these days".
"Sorry to keep ya waiting'", Cliff informed Mirage with a smile, before looking back to Fayt," This is our navigator, We leave the day-to-day operation of the ship to her", Cliff explained to Fayt, before looking back to Mirage," Mirage, this is our target"
"Yes. I knew right away", Mirage informed Cliff with a light smirk, before looking to Fayt with her previous smile," Nice to meet you, Fayt. I'm Mirage Koas".
"N-nice to meet you, too", Fayt lightly stuttered out, his blush still coloring his cheeks.
"Oh boy", Naruto muttered lowly, wondering if he had been that bad, before he noticed Mirage's attention moving onto him," Before you ask, I made sure Cliff didn't drink a single drop".
"ONE time... just one time I get a little drunk", Cliff muttered angrily, recalling the events that led to Mirage making sure Naruto never let him drink on the job any more.
"Good", Mirage giggled, before lightly ruffling Naruto's hair," I'm glad I can count on someone around here".
"Of course", Naruto chuckled lightly, a mild blush of his own coming to his cheeks as Cliff watched on with a some what jealous look.
"Anyways!", Cliff interrupted, lightly pushing Naruto back a bit, earning a death glare to the back of his head," We should get moving, don't wanna keep the boss waiting do we?".
"Of course", Mirage said with a nod, turning around as she moved back to her Pilot's seat," Everyone get buckled in so we can depart".
"Come on", Naruto said to Fayt, motioning the enamored boy to a nearby seat before taking one across from him to the left.
"So...", Fayt began to asked once he was buckled in and the ship began prepping for take off," Are Mirage and Cliff...?".
"It's obvious their into each other", Naruto replied in a low tone so his fellow blonde's couldn't hear him, a smirk on his lips," Cliff just isn't ready to either admit it or be tied down... and Mirage is patient enough to wait on the moron".
"I... think I understand", Fayt replied with a light frown, biting back a yelp as the ship suddenly took off into space, Fayt's gaze returning to Mirage once more.
Naruto rolled his eyes, knowing it wouldn't be that long till Fayt got used to being around Mirage.
"Well, let's get a move on, The boss lady'll be expecting us", Cliff spoke up to Mirage from his co-pilot seat besides Mirage's," The rendezvous point is Beta-747-372-406... You got that, Mirage?"
"Roger", Mirage replied, lightly typing in the coordinates," Engaging conventional engines… Gravitic warp core, normal"
"Hey Fayt, you okay?", Cliff suddenly asked as he looked back to check on their new passenger, before noting Fayt's locked on gaze towards Mirage," Oh, and listen, don't fall for her, She may look pretty but she's a Klausian", Cliff began to warn Fayt," Any funny ideas, and yer liable to meet a swift, yet painful, death"
"Hey, w-wait a sec!", Fayt said, blush returning full force to his face," Who said I was falling for anyone?".
"Relax! I was just warning ya", Cliff informed Fayt with a teasing smirk.
"Ignore him kid", Naruto spoke up with a smirk of his own," He just doesn't want anyone going after Mirage and taking her away from him".
"Oi!", Cliff said with a glare to Naruto, a light blush coming to his cheeks as he pointed his right index finger at Naruto," Don't make me come back there!".
"Bring it!", Naruto said with a fierce smirk, unbuckling himself as he jumped onto his seat, waving Cliff towards him.
"Boys", Mirage suddenly spoke in a sweet sounding tone that made both of her fellow blonde's freeze in place, Fayt watching this all with a confused expression,"... What do we NOT do while in Gravitic space?".
"... Sorry Mirage", Both said with fearful looks as they quickly sat back down in their seats and buckled up, both seeming to be waiting for her response.
"Good", Mirage followed with, using her normal tone, resulting in both Naruto and Cliff letting out sighs of relief.
"Um...", Fay began, still looking a bit confused at what had just happened," I…was wondering, Just how long will it take till we get to your leader?".
"Oh, we'll be there soon", Cliff spoke up, recovering from the fear that had engulfed him moments before," It's about three hours to the rendezvous point", He informed the teenager, before looking to Mirage," Mirage, I'm gonna go take a shower, I'm leaving you in charge".
"Why don't I ever get to be in charge?", Naruto asked with a playful pout.
"Because your a moron", Cliff shot back with a mocking smirk, which Naruto returned with a flip of his middle finger.
"Oh Cliff", Mirage suddenly spoke up, frowning as she picked something up with the ships sensors," It looks like you can forget that shower".
"Huh? What is it?", Clif asked as he sat back down in his seat, looking over his own monitor.
"I've just detected a gravitic space anomaly up ahead", Mirage informed him while trying to figure out just what was causing it," I'm bringing us out of gravitic space to avoid it.".
"You serious?", Cliff asked with a surprised expression," You think it's hostile?".
"Just great", Naruto groaned from his seat as they pulled out of gravitic space, a frown on the ninja's face," THIS is the part I hate about space travel".
"We're back in conventional space", Mirage began to report, a frown coming to her lips a moment later," Two Vendeeni battleships detected 400,000 km ahead".
"An ambush, eh?", Cliff noted with a smirk, arms crossed over his chest," Man, it's bad enough having to worry 'bout Federation ships... What do you think Naruto?", Cliff asked as he spun around in his seat to look to Naruto.
"Might as well see if we can talk ourselves out of this", Naruto replied with a frown still on his face," Last thing we need is a space battle with our current cargo".
"Also means you won't get sick", Mirage noted from her seat, a light smile on her face.
"Exactly", Naruto quickly replied, frowning harder.
"Alright then", Cliff said, looking to Mirage with a nod of his heads," Call them on the comm link".
"Roger", Mirage replied before activating the comm link in order to connect to the other ships," Connection confirmed… Okay, the link's open.", She said after a moment, looking to Cliff.
"Uhhh… This is the Eagle, a Klausian ship", Cliff began to speak to the Vendeeni, seeming a bit unsure of what to say," We don't want any trouble with ya".
"You're wasting your time", Mirage informed Cliff with a sigh," The enemy ships are already prepared to attack".
"Seems they know who we've got on board", Naruto spoke up with a frown," Escape's our only hope... and I prefer it anyways".
"It'll be tough without using gravitic warp, but we've got no choice", Cliff followed with, looking to Mirage," Reverse course! Conventional engines, full power!".
"Roger", Mirage simply replied, before typing in Cliff's command, the ship shifting to follow them.
"Full power to rear shields!", Cliff called out, slipping into a more commanding tone," And lemme see a chart for this region!".
Naruto watched the scene ahead with a frown, the ship shaking as the Vendeeni began firing upon the small ship," And it begins", Naruto muttered to himself, his face getting a bit of a green tint to it.
It had been discovered a year after he had joined Quark, during his first time dealing with space combat... that Naruto had a bad case of motion sickness, yet only when it came to being inside a space craft during battle. It had been suggested a big part of this was his want to join the fight... yet while within a ship he had no ways of doing so. So the idea of teaching him how to use a ships weapon systems had been brought up.
Which of course had led to the Vendeeni's increased hunt for anything to do with the organization, having had half of a fleet taking out by the crazed being that was a trigger happy Naruto. After the adrenaline had worn off however, Naruto had vomited and fallen unconscious for a whole day. Since then it had been a rule of Quark's to NEVER allow Naruto to even touch the ships weapons.
"Alright, course 116, mark 267!", Cliff called out as the ship continued to evade the incoming attacks," Activate auto-evasion program! Fasten crew safety harnesses!".
"Release the barf bags!", Naruto groaned out from his seat, trying to hold in his sickness as the ship swerved to avoid incoming fire.
"Roger. …Course entry complete", Mirage called out to Cliff, typing in a few more commands," Speed, maximum... Program activated".
"Eh!", Fayt yelped as his harness took hold, Naruto yelping as his own tightened around him, making it harder to hold himself back.
"Hey, feeling lucky, kid?", Cliff asked back to Fayt with a smirk.
Suddenly, the Eagle tilted left to right.
"Whoa!", Fayt called out in surprise.
"BLEH!", Naruto suddenly heaved into a barf bag, which had been added to every ship of Quark's just for his sake.
"We've evaded round one from the enemy's disruptor cannon", Mirage reported, holding back a grimace from hearing Naruto throw up.
There was a brief pause.
"I'm feeling better", Naruto reported groggily from his seat.
"Just try to keep it all in the bag", Cliff said to Naruto with a light look of worry, hoping this wouldn't be too bad on him.
"Nearing objective point", Mirage reported.
"All right, as soon as we're there, go into gravitic warp", Cliff replied as he looked over to Mirage.
"Cliff, gravitic warp is currently nonfunctional...", Mirage warned him with a frown.
"I got a hunch it'll function the moment we reach the objective point", Cliff noted with a confident air.
"H-hunch?", Naruto stuttered out, frowning as he put his filled barf bag away, quickly getting another," Shit".
"Get us on a straight line between the ships and that planet, then pop us up star-side", Cliff said with a smirk, ignoring Naruto for the moment," we'll open up the distance that way".
"Very well…but we won't be able to designate our warp destination", Mirage warned him with a frown on her face.
"Well, we're toast if we stay here, Mirage!", Cliff replied with a confident smirk on his face," Anyhow, space is big, right? Our odds ain't that bad!"
"Your basing that all on a HUNCH!", Fayt demanded in shock from his seat.
"Welcome to my world", Naruto mused with a frown, before quickly diving his face into his bag as the ship shook.
"Roger", Mirage sighed, before looking on the monitor just as it showed the Vendeeni firing upon them,"The enemy's fired again, Four rounds now approaching!".
"Four, huh?", Cliff mused, still seeming to be quite sure that his hunch would save them," This is gonna be close... Either we enter gravitic warp first or we get pummeled", He mused, before smirking back at Naruto and Fayt," Now's the time to pray, gentlemen!".
"Says the atheist", Naruto muttered with a glare up towards Cliff.
"Unfortunately, it looks like we might lose the race", Mirage reported with a frown," Here comes the first round now, and we're seven seconds from objective point".
"Aaah, who cares if we take a few rounds?", Cliff asked with a shrug, just as the first round hit their ship," Warp our butts outta here!".
"Warp engine damaged", Mirage spoke, before smiling a bit," but…still functioning".
"You bet it is!", Cliff laughed out loudly, before pointing forward towards the large amount of space before the,"Activate gravitic warp!".
"THANK YOU KAMI!", Naruto cried out, right before the ship arched back and shot off into Gravitic warp, heaving into the bag yet again.
The Eagle exited out of gravitic warp, those on board all safe and sound for the moment. Of course one passenger in particular was QUITE happy to be out of the space battle they had just been in.
"We've thrown off the Vendeeni ships", Mirage reported with a relieved smile.
"Phew… That was close", Cliff sighed in relief, before shooting a smirk to Naruto," HA! Told you my hunch's are always right!".
"Whatever", The still some what green Naruto shot back with a frown," One time thing, that's all it is".
"We'll see", Cliff laughed, before turning to Mirage," So we're all good then?".
"Yes", Mirage informed him, before frowning as she looked over the ships condition and placing," but now we're pretty far from the rendezvous point".
"Well, it can't be helped", Cliff mused, moving into a relaxed slouch in his seat," Besides, it won't hurt to make her wait a little longer, We can take our time".
"Wow, your hunch really paid off", Fayt spoke up, recovering from all that had just happened.
"Finally, some respect!", Cliff said with a wide smirk.
"Yeah, that's JUST what you need", Naruto mused with a mocking tone, finally over his sickness thanks to his tenants work.
"Yeah, a healthy respect for your recklessness", Fayt replied to Cliff's words with an accusing tone.
"What is that supposed to mean?", Cliff said with a frown, spinning his seat towards both Fayt and Naruto," A little more honesty would be nice... like 'Heeey, that Cliff sure is something,' or 'You're a genius, Cliff!'!".
"Was that supposed to mean anything to us?", Naruto asked with mock curiosity.
"Aw, shut it", Cliff said with an annoyed look coming to his face.
The ship suddenly made a strange sound, making all those on board stiffen up.
"... I don't like that", Naruto felt the need to inform everyone.
"Sorry to interrupt while you're having so much fun", Mirage began with a worried tone as she quickly typed in a few keys.
"What is it, Mirage?", Cliff asked with a frown, spinning his seat towards her.
"Please make it good sounding", Naruto said with a sheepish look, wondering if he should get another bag ready.
The gravitic warp core is overheating, We should reduce speed immediately", Mirage began to report with a deeper frown," The engine will scram if we don't.
"Whaaat!", Cliff gasped in surprise, before groaning," Didn't I specifically request that ya tell me these things sooner? Get back to conventional space, pronto!".
"Roger", Mirage replied instantly before doing as ordered, her fingers a blur as she typed in the command.
"I swear if we crash...", Naruto muttered to himself, before looking to Fayt," In case we die, I want you to know... this is all Cliff's fault".
"I figured that one out on my own", Fayt said with a frown of his own.
"Shut it back there!", Cliff shot back instantly.
The ship suddenly began shaking heavily, freaking out those on board... before the ship exited gravitic warp, returning to conventional space.
"Thank you Kami", Naruto sighed in relief, glad they were now safe and sound.
"Bad news", Mirage suddenly said, earning a groan from Naruto.
"Now what?", Cliff asked with a groan of his own.
"Both the conventional and gravitic warp engines have scrammed", Mirage reported with a calm expression," The backup engine isn't functioning, either... I'd say we have a problem".
"Damn it!", Cliff cursed, looking quite unhappy at the moment.
"... So what now?", Naruto asked Cliff curiously from his seat.
"...Where are we now?", Cliff asked Mirage curiously.
"We're currently within Elicoor II's gravitational field", Mirage replied back after looking up their position once more.
"If all our energy sources are shot, then we can't communicate either", Cliff mused, before regaining a smile,"Well, I'm sure she'll figure out something happened to us after we don't show up when we're supposed to".
"Of course", Naruto followed with, smirking lightly," She'll find us no problem".
"Well, Mirage", Cliff said with a serious look to said woman, who looked back curiously... right before he looked away with his eyes shut,"... Try to think of something".
"I'll see what I can do", Mirage replied with a light smile of amusement as she began getting to work for a solution.
"Ladies and Gentlemen", Naruto sighed from his seat, gesturing towards Cliff," Our glorious and intelligent Captain!".
"Aw shut it", Cliff shot back with a frown to Naruto, Arms crossed over his chest," I don't see YOU coming up with anything either".
"... True", Naruto mused with a simple shrug, anything space ship related not being a specialty to him... unless you counted using the weapons.
"What CAN we do?", Fayt suddenly spoke up, looking uneasy and a bit annoyed at how calmly both Naruto and Cliff were being desptie the fact they were in a crashing ship," Aren't all the engines scrammed!".
"For starters, we gotta land before we crash", Cliff informed Fayt, nodding at his own plan," Then, we wait to be rescued".
"Great plan", Fayt said with a deadpan expression.
"I thought so", Naruto agreed with a smirk, sitting up in his seat," Look kid, our mission is to bring you to our leader. Until then, We'll watch out for you".
"Naruto's right", Cliff chimed in with a smile to Fayt,"You're safe as…as a turtle in its shell!
"A turtle dropping out of orbit…", Fayt muttered lightly, once more second guessing his decision to come with these strange people.
"Huh? Did you say something?", Naruto asked with a curious expression on his face, Cliff baring a similar look.
"Nothing", Fayt replied with a sigh.
The ship suddenly began shaking, Naruto gaining an annoyed look as the group looked towards Mirage for some answers.
"We'll be entering into Elicoor II's atmosphere in another 30 seconds", Mirage reported to them all without turning from her work," Get ready for a bumpy ride, you guys... And keep wagging those tongues and you'll bite them off... Wouldn't want you all to die of blood loss".
"Roger", All three chimed in with sheepish looks, each mentally picturing the very act she had mentioned.
The ship suddenly began heavily shaking as Mirage tried to bring it down for a landing, Naruto griping his seat as Fayt did the same, Cliff trying to get back into his seat as it continued to rock.
In the capital city of Airyglyph, looking like something out of the Medieval Europe, the simple people were going about their every day lives. Their country was at war with it's opposite Aquarius and had been for a good long while. Of course more on that kind of thing later, what with an unknown metal THING falling from the sky down upon the City below.
CRASH!
The people all watched in horror as the metal thing crashed into a thankfully clear part of the city, both people and guards rushing towards it, trying to see just exactly what it was.
"What is that thing?", A currently panicked peasant man asked, looking at the smoking vessel worriedly.
"A star, fallen from the sky?", A young woman offered up, staring in wonder at the ship.
"Nonsense! It looks nothing like a fallen star!", The panicking man shot back with a glare to the girl, more people joining them to gaze upon the sight before the incoming guards would force them away.
"Well, what is it, then?", The girl asked back with a light glare at the man's words and tone.
"How am I supposed to know!", He replied with an annoyed tone just as the city guards showed up, starting to make the civilians back-off the crash site.
"Just our luck", Fayt cursed as he looked on a computer monitor, seeing all the inhabitants outside of their ship swarming around them,"we landed right in the middle of a city!"
"Juuuust what we needed", Naruto sighed, getting out of his seat before moving to a nearby locker, opening up to reveal the blade that had once belonged to Zabuza Momochi.
"Not to mention we're outta power and the helm is outta whack", Cliff mused, before shooting a smirk to Fayt and Naruto," You two should be happy to be alive".
"I guess this is no time to be worrying about the UP3", Fayt sighed, before looking over to Cliff," What do we do now?"
"I say we go out there and kick some ass", Naruto said with a vicious smirk, Fayt sending him a surprised look before Naruto began laughing," Just kidding... maybe".
"Well, we can't rule it out", Cliff offered with a playful smirk
Nearby Mirage continued to monitor the events outside, a frown coming to her lips as she noted the armored men starting to surround them in place of the civilian like one's," We seem to be surrounded by a group of local soldiers now", She informed Cliff, sending him a curious gaze," What will you do?".
"...Not much we can do with the Eagle scrapped like this", Cliff noted after a moment, a frown coming to his face," Fighting our way out isn't really an option", Here he shot a glance to a frowning Naruto,"... at least we're all in one piece though!".
"For now, maybe", Mirage noted with a sigh.
"I have an idea", Naruto offered up with a smirk, looking proud of whatever he thought up," How about we just walk out and see what happens?".
"... I LOVE that plan!", Cliff agreed with a smirk of his own.
"H-Hold on just a second!", Fayt interrupted with a glare to them both, earning confused looks from both blonde's," Even minimal contact with the inhabitants of an underdeveloped planet will get us in trouble! Besides, we've no idea what they'll do to us once we're out there!".
"You got any better ideas?", Naruto asked Fayt with a frown on his face," I hate to point this out, but I think we've already made contact".
"Rather obviously and forcefully I might add", Cliff followed with, arms crossed over his chest after slipping to his feet.
"Well...", Fayt said, looking unsure still.
"Don't worry", Cliff offered with a smile,"I've gotta hunch they won't kill us right away".
"Another hunch?", Fayt asked skeptically.
"Get used to them", Naruto sighed, eyes once more slipping into a slit like state," He has them ALL the time".
"C'mon! Trust me!", Cliff laughed out, ignoring Naruto's words," Didn't we make it here safely? I tell you, my hunches are always right!"
"How about that time when we almost crashed into that asteroid because of a…hunch?", Mirage offered up with a smirk on her lips, looking over at a now sheepish Cliff.
"Yeah!", Naruto followed with, glaring at Cliff as he recalled the incident," It was on my first mission too!".
"Aw, but that was ONE time!", Cliff offered up, looking away from Naruto's glare.
"If it happened once it could happen again", Fayt noted with a frown.
Cliff sighed, wondering why everyone was making him out to be the bad guy in all this," At any rate, I don't think we have any other choice", He informed the group.
"I know... I just hate your "hunches" is all", Naruto admitted truthfully.
"...What do you think they'll do?", Fayt asked a moment of thinking over Cliff's words.
"Well, we'll probably be taken prisoner", Naruto offered up with a plain expression.
"You say it like you don't even care", Fayt felt the need to note with a sheepish look.
"We've been through worst", Cliff offered up with a light laugh," Though it'll only be us guys heading out there".
"Huh? What about Mirage?", Fayt asked, curious as to why the female Klausian was being left out of the plan... if it could be called that.
"We'll have Mirage wait until later to make an escape", Cliff informed Fayt, before sending a look to Mirage," Mirage, stay until nightfall, then leave under the cover of darkness".
"Right, That shouldn't be a problem", Mirage replied with a nod to him, sending a quick look to Naruto which he nodded to, knowing exactly what he was to do.
"But Mirage... All alone?", Fayt asked with a worried look, not liking the idea of abandoning her on an unknown world.
"You're forgetting she's a Klausian, She'll be fine", Cliff reassured Fayt,"I pity the soldier
that tries to take her in".
"Damn right", Naruto noted, smirking as he recalled the first time he had seen Mirage in action... it had been right after the Asteroid incident that Cliff had caused.
"Want me to come rescue you?", Mirage offered Cliff with a teasing smile.
"Nah, no need", Cliff replied with a smiled at her offer," There'll probably be too many of 'em, anyway, We'll think of something... You scout around and find a way to contact the Diplo", He instructed her, slipping into a serious expression," Don't put yourself in danger trying to hook up with up... They should be able to home in on our position as long as we make contact, They can come get us then"
"Roger", Mirage replied after a moment,
"All right, time to go", Cliff offered up, heading towards the back of the ship as Fayt stood up from his seat.
"Fayt, Be careful", Mirage said with a soft smile to the teen.
"Thanks", Fayt replied, a small blush returning to his cheeks," You too, Mirage".
"Naruto", Mirage offered next, sending a smile towards her fellow blonde," Be safe... and watch Cliff".
"Gladly", Naruto chuckled, sending a smirk to Cliff, who rolled his eyes.
"Cliff", Mirage said next, frowning for a moment as she looked to her fellow Klausian, Naruto watching the scene with a frown, wishing the two would admit their feelings already.
"I said it'll be okay", Cliff offered with a smile to Mirage," As long as I have Naruto with me, you have nothing to worry about, alright?".
"Okay... Be careful", She said to him, before turning in her seat, hitting the button that would open the back of the ship for the three men.
"Hey, there's something moving", One of the Airyglyph soldiers noticed, the Eagle's back door sliding open before all to see.
"What!", Another soldier asked in surprise, eyes locked onto the opened door, movement being seen.
"A…person?", The first soldier asked as the sight of Naruto, Cliff, and Fayt leaving the Eagle was revealed, Naruto frowning, Cliff looking calm, and Fayt looking nervous... all three holding their hands up.
"Uhh, umm...", Fayt began to stammer out, unsure of what to do,"We-"
"Come to probe you", Naruto finished with a smirk, Cliff biting his bottom lip to hold back a laugh at Naruto's words, Fayt shooting Naruto "Are you crazy?" look.
"Get 'em!", Both soldiers commanded, the two of them moving in along with the rest of the platoon surrounding the Eagle.
"W-wait, please!", Fayt called out, once more baring a worried expression.
"Give it up, kid", Cliff sighed,"Nothing we can do about it".
"Give up!", Fayt asked, turning around to face both Naruto and Cliff
"Look behind you", Naruto offered with a playful smirk, which was mirrored by Cliff.
"Huh?", Fayt asked, turning around to find the whole platoon standing right behind him,"Arrrrggghhh!".
"... Kids fun to mess with", Naruto noted with a sage like expression.
"Indeed", Cliff agreed, baring the same look upon his face.
Not long after the crew's capture, deep within the Castle of Airyglyph, home to King Airyglyph XIII, we find a special meeting going on within. Sitting at a table in the meeting room we find the King himself, a man in royal clothing with a golden crown on his head atop his brown hair, a full beard on his face, and an expression of seriousness upon his face.
"Well, what was it?", The king asked of a nearby Guard, whose report had called this meeting with himself and the three other men in the room.
"We believe it to be a new Aquarian weapon, Your Majesty", The guard reported," We have the three crew members locked up in the dungeon".
"Very well, Continue with your investigation, and step up to the pace of the invasion of Arias", The King ordered with a some what worried frown at the prospect of his opponent having such an advanced craft," If the enemy has indeed brought a new weapon into active service, then time is of the essence".
"Yes Majesty!", The guard said with a salute to his king, before turning and rushing out of the room to perform his duty.
"What think you, Woltar?", The King asked, turning to one of the men he had called to the meeting.
"If this object that has fallen on our city is truly a new Aquarian weapon", Woltar spoke, the man being the oldest in the room with white hair atop his hair and a full beard of his own, his attire being that of a rich lord, though he had a deep frown on his face," then we are in trouble, Aquaria has shown an admirable ability to wage war of late".
"Lord Woltar appears to lack confidence", Another member of the meeting spoke, sitting across from Woltar," Airyglyph has your Storm Brigade Cavalry, Albel's Black Brigade heavy cavalry, and my winged Dragon Brigade for good measures!", The man stated proudly, the man in question baring heavy armor with a mantle like cape tied around his neck, short dirty blonde hair atop his head, and a short beard and mustache on his face," They stand no chance against our legions, Sire! Their weapons have proven themselves little threat to us and anything they throw at us, we return in spades".
"They say pride comes before the fall, Lord Vox", Woltar said with a glance to the man sitting across from him," Surely a measure of prudence would do us no harm. Right, Albel?", He finished, sending a light smile to the last member of the meeting and the one who most stood out in the room.
The 24 year old man wore a metal collar with the remains of a broken chain around his neck, his eyes a sinister red. His hair was a dark black with blonde tips that faded into the black of the rest of his spiked hair with a pair of long hair ties that reached down to waist, he wore a dark purple sleeveless tank-top that hugged to his muscled chest. He wore a skirt like attachment of a some what oriental design the reached to just under his knee's, a slit on the side of it for freedom of movement. On his legs he had purple thigh high leggings, his feet adorned in steel open toed greaves. On his right arm he wore a fingerless purple glove that went to just under his shoulder, a metal bracelet around the wrist of his right arm. His left arm was another story, encased in a arm length metal cover, his hand encased in a metal like claw, the tips of which seemed razor sharp. Finally around his waist, a Katana was strapped, the sheath of which was a blood like red.
"Heh, If they're the enemy, we kill them", The younger man said in a cold tone, seeming a bit bored with the meeting," If they aren't, we dispose of them. Simple!".
"If only things were as simple as you say", Woltar sighed, sending a quick sad glance to Albel after the young man's words.
"Regardless, we have yet to see any evidence the object is a new Aquarian weapon", Vox spoke up with a frown on his face," My men have already begun to interrogate the crew members, They'll talk before long".
"The Inquisitor? He always seems to enjoy his work a bit too much", Woltar remarked with his frown deepening further.
"He is the best", Vox stated with a dark smirk to Woltar.
"As long as they do not die before they talk", Woltar spoke, sending a light glare back at Vox," We are not barbarians, even prisoners have certain rights, you know".
"You speak absurdities!", Vox spoke loudly, losing his smirk for a frown at the older man across from him," Prisoners have no 'rights.' We'll hurt them until they squeal. If they die as a result, then so be it!", Vox stated, slamming a fist onto the table as he finished, before shaking his head," You've grown much too soft in your old age, Woltar".
"Compared to you, that may be true", The old man said with a sad smile," I'm willing to do what's necessary, but I think your men have a tendency to take things too far".
"What's the big deal? Just find out whether they're enemies or not", Albel sighed in annoyance, lying his chin on his good hand, before gaining a light smirk," If that's too much trouble, I'll be happy to take care of them".
Woltar frowned deeply as he once more looked to Albel, once more wondering how further Albel would allow himself to fall into the thing he had become.
"We know what we have to do, m'Lord", Vox said, this time looking towards the King as he spoke," Don't worry, if we do kill them, we'll make sure they cough before they croak, eh?"
"I certainly hope so", Woltar sighed once more.
"That will be quite enough", The King spoke up for the first time in a while, frowning at the feuding that seemed to be running through his top three men," Now is not the time for us to haggle over such matters".
"Indeed it is not", Vox agreed instantly, nodding his head in agreement with his King's words.
"Vox, continue your interrogation", The King ordered with a glance to the man, before turning his gaze to the other two in the room," Woltar and Albel, return to your posts... We are counting on your knights, you are the pride of our great kingdom after all".
"Yes, Sire", Woltar replied with a bow of his head towards his king.
"Yes, Sire", Vox followed with, doing the same as Woltar.
Albel merely leaned back into his chair, arms folded behind his back as his gaze locked onto the ceiling above, seeming to pay no mind to the King what so ever.
In the dungeons of Airyglyph, the forms of our heroes were lying within one of it's cells, each having their wrists tied behind their backs and awaiting their turns for interrogation. So far both Naruto and Cliff had been dealt with the obese S&M enthusiast that was the Inquisitor and were currently awaiting the return of Fayt from his own interrogation session.
"Think the kid will be alright?", Naruto asked with a frown, knowing the inquisitor had been quite unhappy after Naruto had messed with him during his session.
"I'm sure he'll be fine... He's tougher then he looks", Cliff replied with a light smile,"... At least I hope so".
"If he's even the slightest bit like Maria he should be", Naruto noted with a sigh, rubbing his wrists in annoyance... having just freed himself," Not a bad knot job".
"Speaking of our leader, I wonder if Mirage got notice to her yet", Cliff mused with a frown, scooting himself a bit to allow Naruto to undo his own bonds," I'd like to get out of here and get the kid to her as soon as possible".
"Well, this world hasn't been that fun so far", Naruto mused as he undid Cliff's bonds, before smirking lightly," Though this place kinda reminds me of my planet... in a good way".
"... The place COVERED in snow and filled with Armor wielding primitives reminds you of home?", Cliff asked with a raised eyebrow, rubbing his own wrists once Naruto freed him.
"Weird right?", Naruto mused with a smirk, pocketing the ropes in case they came in handy at some point,"... Still, It feels homey-" Cue groan from a nearby cell",... well, it did outside anyways".
"Whatever you say", Cliff mused with a shrug," Your way too much like your mother you know".
"Happily noted", Naruto said with a fox like grin, always enjoying the moments Cliff would make such a comment.
Both men suddenly moved their hands behind their backs, as if still bound as moments later two guards arrived with a weakened Fayt, opening the cell doors before tossing him in, quickly locking the cell door once more before heading off, both men pausing their "acting" as they moved over to Fayt, Naruto undoing his own ropes as Cliff lightly shook him.
"Uh... Uhh?", Fayt groaned, looking over to Cliff with a pain filled tone.
"Yo, you all right?", Cliff asked Fayt with a smirk, both himself and Naruto helping Fayt into a sitting position.
"Yeah, I'm fine...", Fayt groaned, wincing once he was set against the cell's walls to lean again,"Ahh... ouch...".
"You don't look fine", Cliff noted with a frown, checking over the wounds Fayt was baring from his session.
"Look who's talking", Fayt shot back with a pained smirk
"Well, yeah", Cliff replied with a light smile, looking at the marks he himself bore from the Inquisitor," but I'm more used to torture than you are"
"And Naruto?", Fayt asked curiously, looking over to Naruto... who lacked a single mark," Where are your wounds?".
"I heal quickly", Naruto replied with a simple shrug," Plus you learn to deal with such things in our line of work".
"Because you're a member of an anti-Federation organization", Fayt noted with a frown.
"Oh, Get OVER it", Naruto groaned, taking a seat against the wall on Fayt's right.
"Hey!", Fayt said with wide eyes, realizing they were all unbound," If we're untied why are we not trying to escape?".
"Due to the simple fact is even if we escaped, the guards took our stuff... meaning we'd be fighting with our bare hands", Naruto noted with a sigh," Which usually wouldn't be a problem... but we also have no idea how many men they have, plus we'd have to protect you... so for now we sit and plan".
"... I see", Fayt said with a frown, realizing both men could have gotten away if they didn't have to worry about him.
"Hey, don't worry about it", Cliff said with a smile to Fayt, sitting on his left," It's not your fault or anything, we'd be having trouble even without you here... besides, it's not like you couldn't fight too... you seem pretty alright even after your torture session, I mean you didn't tell anything".
"What could I do?", Fayt asked with a frown," It's not like they'd believe me if I told them I came from outer space".
"He has a point there", Naruto noted, eyes lightly wandering over the cell.
"...So?", Fayt spoke up after a paused," You two find anything out?"
"As a matter of fact, I did", Cliff said, shutting his eyes as he said so, a serious look on his face.
"I did as well", Naruto followed with, eyes turning into slits.
"What?", Fayt asked, all ears to any information that could help.
"The whips on this planet hurt, too", Cliff offered up with a nod of his head.
"And Fat men in leather holding said whips do not like having their sexuality questioned here either", Naruto followed with, a fox like smile on his face.
"Very funny", Fayt said with a roll of his eyes, mentally wondering if Naruto did in fact say such a thing... it would explain why the inquisitor had been angry when Fayt had been pulled in," Say, do you know what Aquaria is?".
"Aquaria?", Both Naruto and Cliff asked at the same time.
"The interrogator kept mentioning it", Fayt explained to them with a frown, recalling the conversation," He kept referring to the Eagle as a new Aquarian weapon.'".
"Hmph", Cliff mused, frowning lightly," must be the name of their enemy"
"And would be friends", Naruto mused, frowning as his search of the walls revealed no hidden notches they could use.
"So, what?", Fayt asked curiously," they think we're spies?".
"I'm thinking you got that right", Cliff replied with a sigh, getting to his feet as he moved to the bars, lightly gripping one to see if he could bend or break it when the time came to break free.
"Do you think Mirage got away okay?", Fayt asked Cliff, watching the Klausian frown as his attempt at bending a bar failed
"Aww, she'll be fine", Cliff said, shooting a smirk back to Fayt," Like I told you, she's a Klausian, I bet she snuck off into town a long time ago".
"I hope you're right", Fayt mused, getting to his feet with a wince, moving next to Cliff by the bars, gripping them with a frown," Grr… How am I supposed to rescue my dad trapped like this? I don't know why the Vendeeni captured him, but I doubt they're showing him much hospitality"
"Sounds like them alright", Naruto spoke up, moving over to join the two by the bars, looking through them to the lock with a focused look.
"Hey, cheer up", Cliff said to both of his comrades with an at ease tone," Somebody'll show up to spring us outta this place soon enough, Then we'll be on our way, you'll see"
"And who would that 'somebody' be?", Fayt asked with a light glare to Cliff," You told Mirage she shouldn't bother coming in after us and it's not like we know anybody else... = And I doubt your leader's found out about what happened to us yet...".
"It actually had more to do with Naruto over there", Cliff informed Fayt with a serious expression," Kid's got luck like no one I've ever seen".
"... Your basing the idea of us getting out of here on Naruto's LUCK?", Fayt asked with an some what angry look.
"... They're already here", Naruto spoke up, looking out of the bars with narrowed eyes.
"What?", Fayt asked in surprise at the blonde's words," Who?"
A groan suddenly rang out, the three finding a knocked out Airyglyph soldier landing before their cell. Stepping into their view was a young woman with short red hair and green eyes, wearing a leather outfit with thigh high black leather boots and fingerless black gloves that went up to her shoulders, and finally a striped scarf wrapped around her neck. The few spots of her arm and legs revealed showed she bore tattoo's similar to the one's on Naruto's body.
"Huh!", Fayt asked in surprise at the sudden appearance of the woman.
"... I AM lucky", Naruto noted with a surprised look, eyes slowly wandering over the woman's form, as if trying to memorize the sight before him.
"Friend or foe, I dunno", Cliff followed with, smirking lightly at the girl," but there's somebody here".
"You have two options: accept my conditions and live, or refuse, and die here", The woman spoke up, eyes shut as she offered her terms," It's your choice".
"... Um, depends on the offer", Naruto replied, eyes turning to a slit like appearance.
"What kind of options are those!", Cliff asked with a frown, not liking the idea of agreeing to something he knew nothing about.
"The correct choice should be obvious", She shot back with a smirk, eyes half open.
"So, what're your conditions?", Cliff asked curiously.
"I want your help", The girl replied," That's all".
"Our help?", Naruto repeated with a curious look.
"That's right", She replied with a nod of her head," You three were riding that lump of metal that fell on the town, correct? We want your technology".
"Our technology?", Fayt asked, before lightly glaring," We can't let you have that!".
"Why not?", The girl asked with a frown, not liking Fayt's answer.
"Why not! Well-", Fayt began to say, only for Naruto to elbow him in the side," Ow!".
"And what would you do with our technology, if we gave it to you?", Cliff asked as Fayt shot a glare to a smirking Naruto.
"We'd use it to end the war that rages between this country and mine", She offered up," With our side victorious, of course".
"Hold on a minute…'your country'?", Fayt asked, pausing in his glaring of Naruto to look back to her curiously," So you're not one of the people that threw us in here?".
"I figured that out as soon as she showed up", Naruto said with a roll of his eyes, the girl's clothing and appearance unlike the armored men they had ran into so far... her stealth skills alone reminded him of a shinobi.
"No, I'm not from Airyglyph", The girl replied some what proudly," I'm from Aquaria".
"Aquaria", Fayt repeated, recalling the name," The interrogator kept mentioning that name".
"Makes sense, now", Cliff mused with a frown.
"If you've been interrogated, I wouldn't think you'd have any particular loyalty to Airyglyph", The red head noted," Why not help me?"
"The ldy has a point", Naruto mused with a bright smile to the girl," Alright, we'll help ya!".
"What are you saying!", Fayt asked Naruto, surprised at the blonde's words.
"Give us a moment, all right?", Cliff said with an apologetic tone and look to the girl, before pulling Fayt and Naruto into the back of the cell.
The girl frowned but let them do so, looking away as they began to whisper to one another.
"Shut yer trap kid", Cliff whispered to Fayt.
"But she wants our technology!", Fayt said in a loud whisper, before glaring at a calm looking Naruto," What were you planning on teaching them!".
"C'mon, you saw this civilization's level of technology", Naruto shot back with a frown to Fayt," Look, all they need is a little college physics... and luckily I picked up enough of that from hanging around Quark".
"You're right about that", Fayt mused, before frowning once more," but what about the UP3!".
"Man, what a square!", Cliff mused with a light laugh, Naruto slapping his own forehead at Fayt's words," Then again, maybe that's your redeeming feature, huh? Straight as an arrow just like... well...", Cliff paused here, Naruto frowning as he realized whom Cliff meant.
"Just like who?", Fayt asked with narrowed eyes.
"Huh? Did I say something?", Cliff asked innocently, making Fayt groan before Cliff chuckled," Never mind, kid".
"I'm minding", Fayt replied with a light glare.
"Geez, forget about it!", Cliff whispered, still smiling," Listen, based on what she said, we must be in Airyglyph right now, and this place is at war with her country, Aquaria... You with me so far?".
"Yeah", Fayt replied, losing his glare for the moment.
"Good", Cliff said, gaining an explanatory tone," Okay, both sides think we have some kind of unknown technology... Well, that makes sense, a big flying metal thing did land in the middle of a medieval town, what else could they think?".
"Demons", Naruto muttered with a deep frown, Fayt looking to him curiously for a moment.
Cliff frowned at Naruto's words, before looking back to Fayt," Even if we don't cooperate with her, Airyglyph will want our help, too... and I doubt their terms will be any better".
"True", Fayt said with a sigh, though he obviously still had his doubts.
"So what I'm saying is, if we're gonna cooperate with someone, it might
as well be that hot chick over there", Cliff said with a smirk, Naruto nodding quickly in agreement," know what I mean?".
"I can't believe this", Fayt chuckled lightly for once," Your both insane".
"Like a fox", Naruto offered playfully.
"Well, okay, let's say that was a joke", Cliff chuckled," Either way, we can do whatever we want once we're outta this place, We'll just wait for our chance and make a run for it... We're not doing much better here in prison and if we die here, who's gonna rescue your dad, huh? I figured you'd want to meet him in this life, not the next".
"Yeah, besides", Naruto followed with, arms folded behind his head," It wouldn't do good for the boss lady to show up and find us all trapped here... I can just imagine the jokes!".
Fayt frowns at their words, but seems to think it over for a moment, before nodding," All right, you win, for now".
"I always win", Naruto informed Fayt simply, before heading over towards the bars," Alrighty, we discussed your offer and have decided to accept it and allow you to save us from the peril that is this dungeon".
"Then we have a deal", She said with a smirk, obviously glad they accepted," Step back from the bars".
The men did as she asked, all curious to see what she would do, before the girl simply held up a hand, a symbol appearing before it before a ball of fire hit the lock to the door, forcing it open. Fayt stared in shock as Cliff let out a Whistle, Naruto merely smirking as he had figured she'd do such a thing.
"You're free", The red haired girl informed them with a some what playful smirk.
"Thank you very much", Fayt said as he made his way out of the cell, followed by Cliff and Naruto.
"Yeah, thanks", Cliff followed with.
"Owe ya one", Naruto said with a smirk to her.
"No thanks needed, I'm just doing my job", She informed them, arms crossed over her chest," But I'm going to hold you to your part of the bargain".
"Eh?", All three men asked curiously.
"You said you'd cooperate with us, Don't think you can just wait for your chance to run, either, because I won't let you", She informed them, her eyes once more becoming half lidded," If you try… I'll kill you".
"Gah!", Both Cliff and Naruto yelped at the same time, though Naruto had a slight blush on his cheeks.
"I should thank you for calling me 'hot,' though chick' I can
live without", She informed them with a teasing smirk.
"Sca-ree", Cliff said with a light shiver.
"I'm Nel Zelpher, agent for the Sacred Kingdom of Aquaria", She informed them with a light nod of her head.
"My name's Fayt Leingod", Fayt introduced himself, before motioning to his companions," And these are...".
"Cliff Fittir", Cliff said simply, pointing at himself with his right thumb.
"Naruto Uzumaki", Naruto said with a nod in return towards her, having long since gotten used to using his first name before his family name.
"Fayt, Cliff, and Naruto", Nel tested out, before smiling," My pleasure, So where are you from, and what is the metal thing you came here in?".
"What do we tell her?", Fayt asked in a low voice to his comrades.
"Just follow my lead", Cliff offered with a relazed smirk," I'll handle this".
"This oughta be good", Naruto said with a roll of his eyes.
"You shut it", Cliff said with an annoyed frown, before looking back to Nel with a smile," We're from a country on a continent far to the east of here. It's a pretty small country, so nobody's really heard of it, but we've got some pretty solid technology".
"From the east? One of the countries in Greeton?", Nel questioned curiously," Not the country that invaded Aquaria...".
?That what you call it here?", Cliff asked in a surprised tone that sounded QUITE real much to Fayt's surprise," Yeah, that's where we're from, We're engineers".
"What are engineers from Greeton doing in Airyglyph?", Nel asked with a hint of suspiciousness in her voice.
Well, the long story'd take all day, so I'll give you then short version", Cliff replied with a sigh," Fayt's dad got, uhh, captured by an enemy country and we were on our way to rescue him in this newly developed, uhh, vehicle, but it broke down on the way and we ended up here".
Naruto frowned at Cliff's stammering, hoping the Klausian didn't mess this up for them with his poor skills in coming up with a story. It had been a well known fact in Quark that Cliff was the worst bull shitter, which was why he usually lost all the card games on board the Diplo.
"I see...", Nel mused with a frown, thinking over Cliff's words which she felt held at least some truth, before speaking up," So you are from Greeton... I thought as much".
"How so?", Fayt asked curiously.
"There is no country on this continent with that level of technology", She replied simply," It was an easy conclusion".
"So are you satisfied then Nel?", Naruto asked, testing the girls name out for the first time.
"More or less", She replied with a shrug, before staring at them with a serious expression." What I am sure of is: there's no way we can let Airyglyph have you... You must cooperate with us".
"What do you mean by cooperate?", Fayt has the need to ask," What technology did you want, exactly?".
"Yes, well-", She began to say, only to be interupted by sounds further down the hall.
"What's going on down here?", A voice asked," Hey, you-Whaa!".
"hey're changing the guard already!", Nel asked in surprise, before looking to the three men with a frown," Do you three have any fighting experience?".
"Does it take too long to cook good Ramen?", Naruto asked with a smirk, looking forward to busting a few heads.
"Huh? Why?", Fayt asked curiously.
"Because you're about to get some", Nel informed him.
"Don't you worry about us", Cliff said with a smirk," You could say we're above average".
"Maybe YOU", Naruto said with a teasing smirk to Cliff.
"You two might be able to fight with your bare hands, but I need some kinda
weapon", Fayt informed them, having seen Naruto use the large sword before, yet Fayt had a feeling Naruto could fight without it.
"I thought this might happen", Nel mused, before motioning to a large chest nearby," In there".
"What's this?", Fayt asked as he moved over to the chest, opening it up to see what it held within.
"Your stuff", Nel replied, Naruto instantly rushing over to it to retrieve his sword," I got it back for you".
"Great", Cliff said with a smirk to Nel, Naruto having just tossed the Klausian his Gauntlents," Thanks".
"Now I owe you two", Naruto said with a smirk, looking over his large sword with loving eyes, having grown quite used to having the sword around... not having it on his person always made him feel off.
"Your welcome", Nel said to them both with a nod of her head, before looking over to Fayt," One more thing, Fayt right?", Nel asked, the blue haired teen nodding to her as she motioned to a set of clothes inside the chest," You can't go around dressed like that, I don't know if the size will match or not... anyway, put those on".
"Th-thank you", Fayt replied in surprise, grabbing the items inside before slipping back into the cell to change into them.
Outside Cliff slipped his weapons onto his hand, flexing his fingers a bit before smirking. Nearby Naruto gave his blade a few practice swings, before noticing Nel looking at him curiously.
"Something wrong?", He asked curiously, the girl snapping out of her staring at his words.
"Nothing...", She said with a frown, before speaking once more," Where exactly did you ge-".
"How's it look?", Fayt asked as he stepped out of the cell, wearing a shirt similar to his last one, this time having armor like covering over his legs, a pair of boots, a sword sheath strapped to his waist, small shoulder pads on his shoulders, elbow pads, and fingerless blue gloves.
"Not bad kid", Cliff said with a smirk," Looks good on you".
"Let's get moving then", Nel said, not finishing what she was starting to ask Naruto as she began heading down the hall towards the enemy.
"Wait for me!", Naruto called after her as he gave chase, both Fayt and Cliff soon doing the same.
As the four reached the end, they found three Airyglyph guards wielding swords... along with a quite pissed off looking inquisitor," YOU!", The Inquisiotor growled in anger at Naruto, gripping his whip tightly," I'm going to enjoy this!".
"What exactly did you do?", Cliff asked Naruto with a curious look.
"Quite a bit", Naruto replied with a shrug, before smiling," Fatty is mine".
"Try not to get hurt", Nel said with a smirk to him, before rushing towards the nearest guard.
"You know, she might not be too bad", Naruto noted with a laugh before launching himself at the overweight Inquisitor.
"Time to bust some heads!", Cliff called out as he moved into one of the remaining two guards, looking as eager as Naruto.
"Alright... it's just like before with Norton", Fayt muttered to himself, calming himself of his nervousness as the remaning solider charged him, Fayt gaining a determined look as he moved in to attack.
Nel leapt at her target, who quickly took a swing at her with his blade, the red haired woman easily dodging to the side of his swing before sending a hard kick to his side, sending the heavily armored man crashing to the ground. Nel quickly began charging energy for the attack she had done to the cell's lock not long before, the guard doing his best to get back on his feet, his armor causing a bit of trouble in doing so.
"Fire Bolt!", Nel called out as she finished, sending a large Fireball towards the guard just as he returned to his feet, turning around just in time for it to crash into him and sending him flying into the wall behind him.
"G-glory to... Airyglyph...", The man managed to groan before slumping against the wall.
"And that's how you do it", Nel said with a satisfied smirk, turning to watch her new comrade's work.
Nearby Cliff was easily dodging the swings of his opponent, laughing mockingly with each miss sent his way," Hold still damn you!", The guard cursed, taking a sidewats swing at Cliff. Cliff merely leapt over it before landing on his feet, sending a quick series of punches into the guards gut, the guard groaning in pain from the mighty strength that each hit had behind it.
"Geese, not much of a fighter are you?", Cliff asked with a frown, taking a step back as he pulled his right arm back quite a bit, before sending a full powered punch into the man's helmet covered face. His fist ripped through the metal and plowed into the guard's face, sending him soaring down the hall before landing with a crash on his back, groaning loudly in pain," Hmph!", Cliff huffed with a glare towards the guard," I'd prefer a more worthy opponent".
Fayt side stepped his opponent, gritting his teeth as he took another swing of his sword, the guard he was facing parrying the hit before moving to slash downwards at Fayt, the blue haired teen quickly leaping back out of the way.
"Hold still you punk!", The guard growled angirly at Fayt.
"Alright... lets try something new", Fayt muttered to himself, shutting his eyes as he recalled the attack he had been able to pull off against Norton's guards. It had been a surprise to him, the guards words having struck a feeling of anger in Fayt... allowing him to do something he had never done before.
"For Airyglyph!", The guard yelled out as he charged at Fayt, Sword held above his head to swing upon the blue haired teen.
"Alright!", Fayt called out, a determined gleam in his now opened eyes, His blade suddenly glowing with a blue light as Fayt charged at his opponent. Once he was close enough Fayt yelled out, swinging his sword downward," Blade... OF FURY!", The teen called out as he swung, the first hit ripping through the man's armor, before Fayt followed it with an upward swing, cutting through the man's chest, before Fayt pierced his blade forward, sending it right into the man's chest and out the back through his armor.
Fayt breathed heavily after her finished, before staring wide eyed at just what he had done, frowning for a moment before taking a calming sigh as he pulled out his blade from the corpse, his hand shaking only a bit. It was something he had been having to deal with since his time in Whipple, having ran into quite a few bandits of Norton. The first time he had killed had been quite hard on him... but back then his had more important things to worry about, like finding Niklas.
Fayt looked over towards Cliff and Nel, Cliff walking over to his side with a worried look," You alright kid?", Cliff asked with a frown to Fayt.
"Y-yeah... Still not used to it is all", Fayt replied with a fake smile.
"... It'll get easier kid", Cliff said after a moment, putting his hand on the boys shoulder.
"I'd rather not have to do such a thing in the first place", Fayt said with a glare to his sword, it still covered in the blood of his kill,"... Where's Naruto?".
"Playing", Cliff said with a light smile to Fayt, pointing a bit aways. Fayt followed Cliff's directions... before frowning at the sight.
"I see", Fayt sighed, it seeming only Naruto could snap him out of his own depressing thoughts.
With said Blonde, he was all smiles as the Inquisitor tried to whip him, the ninja merely leaping out of the way with the agility only a ninja could have, landing behind the large man before using the flat of his blade to whack the man's ass as hard as he could.
"YEOW!", The Inqusitor yelped, looking back in anger at the smirking Naruto," N-NO ONE HAS EVER ANGERED ME LIKE YOU HAVE!".
"Glad to know I'm special", Naruto laughed, lying his blade against his shoulder with a mocking smirk," Tell you what, if you be me for forgiveness and swear on your life to both never torture another person again... and start jogging every morning, I'll just knock you out".
"Like I'd agree to that!", The Fat man growled, striking out with his whip suddenly, it wrapping around Naruto's right wrist tightly," Ha! Got you now!".
"... The sad thing is I could have beaten someone like you before I met Kakashi-sensei", Naruto sighed loudly, shaking his head.
"W-what the hell are you blabbering about!", The Inquisitor demanded, pulling with his whip... only to find he couldn't move Naruto from his stance," W-what!".
"I left my home in search of adventure... using the skill and knowledge I gained to the fullest", Naruto continued, as if not feeling the Inquisitor's pulling," Yet but for a few rare moments have I ran into something TRULY challenging... To be frank I'm starting to get bored".
"W-will you shut-up!", The fat man growled, right before landing on his ass with a crash, his whip having snapped from his pulling," W-what kind of freak are you!".
"... A bored one", Naruto said with a frown to the Inquisitor, lifting his sword up high before sending in crashing down onto the fat mans head... blood shooting out from the man's head onto the walls around them, a bit even hitting Naruto's right cheek,"... Another one bites the dust".
"Was that neccesary?", Cliff asked with a frown as he, Nel, and Fayt walked over to Naruto.
"He would have just continued torturing more people... not that he can't just be replaced", Naruto mused with a sigh, sliding his blade onto his back before pulling a tissue from his pants pocket, wiping the blood from his cheek.
"Hurry", Nel spoke up, seeming a bit unnerved by how calm Naruto had reacted to killing the man," They'll be here any minute".
"W-wait a sec...", Fayt spoke up nervously, those around him unsure if it was from his own kill or Naruto's.
"Yes?", Nel asked curiously.
"How are we gonna get out?", Fayt asked with a frown," There are lots of soldiers outside".
"Kid has a point there", Naruto mused with a frown, looking to Nel for her answer as he tossed his tissue to the ground.
"We'll go out through there", Nel informed them, pointing towards a nearby Ventilation shaft against the wall.
"The ventilation shaft?", Naruto asked in surprise, before frowning," Wasn't expecting one of those in a place like this".
"Looks like kind of a tight fit", Cliff mused after giving the shaft a look over.
"Don't complain", Nel said to him with a frown on her face," If we can get through there, it widens out a bit, We'll just have to squeeze through that first part".
"Yeah, yeah", Cliff sighed, hands moving onto the sides of the grate covering the shaft, pulling it off with a light grunt.
"Fayt, you go first", Nel instructed as she looked to the teen," I'll bring up the rear".
"Got it", The teen replied, moving over to the open shaft, sending one last look towards Naruto before sliding in, crawling his way into it.
"Well... lets see if I can fit these guns inside", Cliff joked as he crouched down after Fayt before crawling in.
"Riiiight", Naruto laughed lightly at Cliff's words, moving to enter the shaft next, only to find Nel blocking his way,"... You gonna give me shit for killing the fat man?".
"Of course not... I would have done the same thing to that slime", Nel informed him with a frown, Naruto lightly raising an eyebrow at her words,"... Those marks on your arms... where did you get them?".
"Greeton", Naruto replied with curious look, wondering why she was asking," Why do you ask?".
"...No reason", She said with a frown, seeming to be ready to ask something else before sighing," You better get moving then".
"Yes Ma'am", He said with a light smirk, slipping into the shaft next, following after Fayt and Cliff.
"Hmm... He couldn't be", Nel mused to herself with a light frown, seeming to be in deep thought over Naruto before she too slipped into the shaft, following after Naruto.
A pretty good update if I do say so myself... I hope I'm doing the Star Ocean characters justice. In case your all wondering, I've been replaying the game in order to do alot of this fic... which is actually quite fun and nostalgic, the game is still enjoyable!
For Pairings I am currently leaning to just having Nel paired with Naruto, though it might be because in game I am not yet to the point where Maria joins the group. I have to say... I friggen love Nel, more so because her Voice actress is one of my fav dub actresses! She did Yoruichi in Bleach!
Anyways, if any out there are curious as to what Naruto did to piss the Inquisitor off, ask and I shall add the scene as an Omake for the end of the next chapter. Till then, Peace!