Chapter 7
Luke ran as fast as his feet could carry him -and he prayed to god it would fast enough. His breathe barely touched his lungs before he gasped for another. The morning city's frigid air burned cheeks and bared flesh but not a tear soothed skin.
Luke was determined. Asch lay not at his side when he awoke in bed. His armour, his sword, his clothes, all gone from their dusty corner, with no other evidence of Asch's being to be found Luke could only assume... only try to...
But he had a more important responsibility to fore fill. An unwritten, unmentioned promise he made Asch and owed him. One that only brothers make. One binded deeper than blood or honer (though Luke was too sure what that was), a respected duty to give aid and a loyalty to uphold it.
The muscels in his legs pounded and contracted. The sudden numbness made him fall, cracking his shoulder against the cobbles.
"Luke? Is that you?" It was a familiar woman's raised his head to get a view of the source of inquiry. Short blond hair pulled back by goggles... Creamy brown jacket cut off mid way up the forearms with gloves to suit... pale skin... definitely familiar...
"Noelle?" He said, rubbing his injured limb. It didn't hurt too much, he had much worse in the past. "What are you doing here?"
She smiled sweetly and offered him a hand which he took gratefully. "Playing taxi as usual. What about you? At that speed you could've outrun one of those fancy-pansy new landships. Not that you're the only one who could..."
Luke chuckled, he always found it amusing when Noelle went into one of her rants about the Albiore. Her quotes were most used repeated with the exception of sight variation."Those stupid landships," She'd begin a scowl. "...honestly, it's ridiculous! Those old piles of scrap metal keep getting all the credit for good design. All they're good for is is trouble...more work and experience, bah!..." And so she would mumble off.
Suddenly an idea came to Luke. "Actually, Noelle? Could I ask a favour?"
Noelle smiled. "Sure, what did you have in mind?"
Gingi knew from experience that listening to Noir was risky, doing what she asked was suicidal and leaving to her own devices was also a bad idea. The way he convinced himself to go along with such plans was putting it as failed cause not to, and worse one if he did. Depending on the situation, he might be tempted to follow her (and sometimes her little gang) out of dread that he'd be stuck on his own doing nothing for hours on end.
Sometimes he pinned hopes on Asch not finding out they'd followed him and trying vainly in (what Gingi preferred to think of as lack of sanity) to make it back in enough time to catch their breathe so that the ex-god general didn't get suspicious.
Right now they were trying to spy in on Asch as he traveled the streets of Belkend. The city was quiet today which -by Noir's expert opinion- made it much harder to sneak around without drawing attention from the occasional bi-stander.
They had to stop at a street corner as Asch began to climb the stairs to the hospital. Noir looked inquisitively at him after pulled back one of the steel doors and disappeared inside. Noticing the uneasy stare Gingi held so intently on the metal, Noir tapped him on head and made the face Gingi morally hated.
"You know something, don't you?" She said, not calming her obvious annoyance with him. "What is it?"
Gingi didn't like being put onto he spot, he was never good under pressure of any kind and was thus unable to keep a secret of any kind with anyone. Unfortunately Noir knew this, Asch did too which was why he never gave any detailed account of where he was going or what he would do when he got there. He also had a bad habit of detouring from his destination for anything up to or over an hour, which just added to Noir's compressed fury.
Assuming that Asch hadn't told him anything too incriminating Gingi answered her shakily. "D-Doctor's appointment. That's all honest!"
"We see then.." Noir snatched him up by the hand and lead him after Asch.
"Well Asch, for the first time I have some good news for you." Asch looked up surprised, from the medical bed where he sat. His mouth opened as if to say something, but sooner closed rethinking his approach the question on his lips.
The doctor smiled, understanding. "It would seem as though your condition has slowed down for the moment." Asch raised an eyebrow and the doctor's smile grew. There was something he wished to add, but he left it to lie for the moment, eager to move on to his next point.
"Of course, this does not mean it's stopped completely." His smile vanished as he continued."My associates and I have a theory though, if you're interested I mean." Asch looked puzzled and man standing opposite him knew he required more information. "I don't think you'll like it, Asch."
Asch scoffed. "How would you know what my preferences are? As long as it's not 'kill him' idea I'm on board."
The doctor re-checked his clip board, then eyed Asch nervously. "Hmm... Alright."
Noir and Gingi entered the central lab. Noir calmly stepped through the scanner. Gingi however, stopped at rim. Noir stared at him but knowing he honestly didn't want to follow her through the seemingly useless machine, she walked back grabbed his arm and dragged him through as the piece of fon tech gave satisfactory flash. Unfortunately for Gingi, he forgot close his eyes during it.
Idiot,Noir thought walking through the automatic doors. Her journey down the corridor was cut short by a flash of shining white metal in front of her neck accompanied by a growl of words.
"Walk back to the Albiore three, if I catch you following me again, you'll wish I hadn't." Asch retracted his sword and smirked at Noir's blank stare. Across the hall the 'other' Asch leaned idly against the wall, smiling brightly.
The two of them may have thought they were following him in, and as far as he was concerned, they could continue to. However the truth behind the matter was somewhat comical. Learning from his past mistakes, Asch had hired someone to imitate him and wander around town for an hour or so. Surely it was a curse of luck that they happened to meet in the square swap cloaks and arrange such a plan before Noir and Gingi began picking up bread crumbs.
The lost parts of this piticular mix up could be relayed from all points of view.
earlier that afternoon
"Luke? What the hell are you doing here? Go home now!"
Luke did not remove his arms from Asch, and the older of the two could not bring himself to violently pry him off like he usually would. Luke had asked a favour from Noelle, to ensure Asch's safety, ofcourse. Luke worried dearly about brother.
"Whatever the reason, you can't be here. I need to speak to some one alone." Luke's ears perked up at this, though his following rant wasn't filled with the same glee as usual.
"Asch, have got a girl friend or something?" Asch sneered at him and he dismissed the idea. wide eyed at Asch's sudden flash of anger.
"I'm not dating. I going to see a doctor about-" Asch had to think on feet. "-sleep-erm-deprivation. " Luke didn't catch the opened his mouth but Asch cut him off. "I know the hospital's in the other direction but I need to lose whoever is following me for an hour or so till my appointment, understand?" Luke's eyes lit up as he discovered an opportunity to be of assistance.
"Asch, switch capes with me! I'm almost as tall as you, we've got about the same muscular structure... I can lead them around for a while, until after your check-up! Please Asch. What harm could it do?"
Three hours later, Asch sent Luke a little signal telopathically to come back to the hospital labs.
Which brings us up to our present mess.
Asch smiled thankfully over at Luke.
Gingi and Noir exchanged looks, then Noir stated "I can't be right all the time..." before they departed in silence, Gingi was leading.
Luke took off the dark velvet cloak, and held it out to Asch expecting to get his original cloak back. Asch lifted the garment genitally, then swung it around Luke's shoulders, tying it neatly at the front. Carefully he reached for symmetrically pale hand, taking it in his own.
They had walked almost to the door when a door to one of the labs behind them opened and panicked looking doctor in a slightly ruffled lab coat tumbled out onto his feet.
He looked up and upon seeing Asch, sighed relieved. "Oh thank the Score you're not gone yet! Asch you forgot your medicine. I was just on my way to get it back to you. I know you're not fond of the idea but at least put some thought into it. More than thirty seconds this time if please." Then he returned to his office, mumbling softly to himself.
Asch stared down distastefully at the small box in his hands. It could not have been described as big, it was only the size of a shoebox after all, but it did have some weight in it. Luke was curious now. But his curiosity turned more to worry when he considered the conversation he'd just seen. He needed to buy some time to figure out what going on behind his back, and he needed to do so as discreetly as possible.
But first he had to tackle the time aspect he supposed Noir might help him if he could get her involved.
"Are we leaving now?" He asked casually as they entered back into the foyer.
"Yeah, I left a note for Guy with Peré, but no one knows that you left with me. They're probably worried sick." The words were flat. It seemed to Luke as if Asch had been left with a bad taste in his mouth from prior conversation. Luke saw it as wise to leave the investigating for now and maybe get Noir to do it later, after all, hell hath no fury like a woman's scorn, and no woman in the entirety of Aldrant could rival Noir's feud with Asch.
They exited the building and had almost reached the edge of the of town when they both heard a familiar voice growling orders at sodliers baring Daathic armour. Asch quickly pulled Luke down behind a pile of forgotten steel crates.
"...ashamed to call yourself an Orical Knight! Legretta, guard the gate until I get back. Do what you must but remember your primary target is to capture both of them alive, understood?" Asch could not risk being seen but he did not need his vision to identify who spoke. It had to be Van.
"And what about me?" Asch shivered as he realised not who the voice belonged to, but how close the voice was to his and Luke's hiding place. While the sweat rolled down his cheeks dipping into his neck, the threats continued their conversation. "Did you need me for anything? Or can I go home?"
"Don't be ridiculous Sync, go find Dist. I want the most recent files from that doctor up at the labs make sure you get them."
Asch pulled Luke into an alleyway nearby before they sunk back into the darkness and began running.
After checking into an inn that was reasonably quiet. Luke and Asch settled on the single bed in their room in silence.
Asch got up and wandered to their join bathroom, leaving his tabard, cloak and jacket on floor. Luke watched him as he walked, there was something different about him today, he seemed so sad. Troubled almost, but Luke knew better. If Asch was troubled, it didn't show, never showed. It wasn't like Asch to mope like this, it made Luke feel sad.
"Asch?" He asked as the older trudged past his position on the edge of the bed. Asch didn't seem to notice. "Asch?" He said, louder this time. His efforts were to no avail. Out of worry and in spite of his earlier attempts he grabbed Asch's shoulder. "Asch!" He shouted.
Asch turned and growled back, "What?"
Luke wasn't taken aback this time. "Don't 'what' me! What's gotten into you? Why did you lie about what's going on?"
Asch looked startled at this outburst, but then his features softened and he turned away almost as if he were ashamed. Luke slid his arms around Asch's naked stomach and nuzzled gently into his neck coming to rest his chin on pale shoulder. "Asch," he said keeping his voice as low and relaxed as possible, bringing his lips closer to Asch's ear. "Even I can see that's too much medicine for something as simple as a sleeping problem. You really do come up with the worst excuses."
Asch swallowed, hard in his throat. He supposed this day would come sooner or later, he only wished he knew what to say. How to lie to himself, but tell the truth to Luke. The lump in his throat reappeared making his voice sound hoarse.
"Luke I," he paused. "It is," his eyes searched for refuge around the room but found none. "I might...if..." he sighed. "I'm very ill, Luke."
Luke's hold around his belly tightened slightly, but then the younger slouched and began rubbing the smooth skin with his thumbs, lovingly caressing him with small circular moments. "Is that all? I thought it was serious."
"I might die." Asch choked out. Luke shook his head in response.
"Only might." He soothed. The lump in Asch's throat all but vanished. He pulled away from Luke and looked at him, surprised. Luke explained, "That doctor, earlier at the hospital, he said something like "I know you're not fond of the idea but please put some thought into it" right? That means there hope. Tell what it is Asch. I want to help."
For the first time since they had met, Asch saw something in Luke that made him feel feeble and weak. He had changed since then, he had grown, almost to the point that Asch no longer felt their age was correct. Luke seemed older. And Asch didn't want that. He had grown quite attached to his role as 'older brother' in this relationship.
He straightened his posture and yawned. "Maybe later, I'm tired right now." he smiled.
"I'm not letting you off free. Tell me Asch, now please."
Chapter Preview;
8- A game of chance
"The possibilities are endless but medicine won't solve everything. Especially if it is a bet on a sixty/forty deal when the odds aren't always in your favour."
There shall be something nice and overdue in the next chapter I'm sure you've all been waiting for. Please read and review, it hard to tell if anyone likes what I'm writing if I'm not getting some sort of response.