Upgrade
"Hurry get the tanker!" a voice yelled, "They're severely injured!" despite all the confusion around me, I could only sit numb staring at the depressions in the wall were Enma had thrown Tsuna, Hibari, Gokudera, Chrome and Ryohei.
"NINTH!" Ganauche burst into the room, "Coyote was following the Shimon but they found and attacked him!"
"VOOIII!" Superbi's familiar roar of frustration pulled me out of the eye of the hurricane, "Give the Varia the word and we'll track them. We're better then you're weak guardians,"
"NO!" my yell had brought all eyes on me, but I only saw my brother; the result of his loss at the scramble for the Vongola rings, the future version of him buried under rubble severely injured. Fear quickly replaced the daze. If Shimon found my brother they'd kill him to get to me. ….I want you to taste the pain of what the First Shimon Boss went through when he was betrayed….If we killed them instantly they won't have tasted what Shimon went through…..
"What the hell Karen?" Superbi looked at me like I was insane, which is what I was dangerously teetering towards,
"No Squalo," the Ninth inserted, "I don't want any more victims,"
"VICTIMS?" my brother demanded,
"Listen to me!" the Ninth roared, "You'll be going up against a power we know nothing about and without powerful rings and boxes you'll lose!" and I would have the Ninth's head if he had given my brother permission to go and got killed. I was so relieved the Ninth didn't give permission I sagged onto the ground.
"Karen," I felt my brother's hands grip me under my arms and pull me up and out of the main room. "What the hell? You're a mess" he frowned, "Breathe" his exasperated sigh got me to clue into my hyperventilating,
"I….rgh!" I locked my arms around my brother's waist, crying. Crying because I felt useless and I didn't know what to do, because I was tired of the constant fighting, because I felt helpless. I haven't felt helpless in years, not since I nearly burned my hands off.
"Okay. Let it all out. Whatever it is get it out," Superbi hugged me back.
"It's not one thing, it's a lot of things," I managed to choke.
"A lot of things," Karen repeated weakly. I could only wonder what else happened aside from something happening to Katana Brat and just seeing her comrades get trashed. Whatever else has accumulated must be serious but I can't think of anything really, aside from some residual panic from the future. Well, stress with the Shimon and whatever lingers from the future together will make a mess of a person.
"Hello Karen, Squalo," Talbot entered the room, "I hope you don't mind me borrowing your rings Karen," he smiled,
Superbi and I jumped apart as if we had just been caught kissing. "What?" I wasn't happy. I looked like the shit I felt similar to. Superbi closed the meter of distance to stand in front of me,
"What was that about Karen's rings?" he snarled,
"I'm upgrading the Vongola ring at the request of Vongola Decimo. I need her Beast Rings as well. Well, actually just the jaguar,"
I stepped around my brother, "What do you mean upgrade?"
"Precisely what it means. I can see that your Vongola ring is in good condition. Lucky for you Shimon apparently thinks that ring was lost to time,"
"What do you mean? Vongola ring?" Superbi's visage clearly told me he wasn't pleased about this,
"Sorry, with things going on I kept forgetting," I grinned sheepishly and rubbed the back of my head. God, am I ever starting to pick up on Takeshi's habits.
"Don't forget you and Tsunayoshi are cousins," Talbot added, "she's the Misty Rain Guardian," as if that explained everything.
"DON'T JUST DROP THAT!" I yelled.
"What's going on in here?" the Ninth opened the door with Tsuna, Ryohei and Gokudera in tow. He raised his eyebrows at Superbi. Glancing over my shoulder revealed a stunned, about-to-faint Superbi Squalo,
"You and Sawada are COUSINS?" he asked dazed,
"What?" Tsuna was baffled, "huh" Gokudera made sure his ears were lacking ear wax.
"We'll talk later!" man this is driving me crazy. I got to answer Tsuna and my brother and I have to do it in different ways because they are borderline polar opposites.
"Here are my rings, now shoo!" I pushed Talbot out of the room.
Thankfully, by the time I got back, the Ninth had explained the Misty Rain Guardian and the family relations to Tsuna. Naturally, everyone was just as electrified d as I was. It's hard to take in when a friend you've known for two years is actually you're cousin. Gokudera was all flustered, Ryohei just said he didn't really get it and everyone else was silent, looking at me then Tsuna and back again. Sometimes I want to shoot myself and be done with it.
I wonder what Talbot is cranking out in that room of his. Leave it to him to bring his work with him wherever he goes. Though I'm one to talk as I never go anywhere without a couple bamboo needles. I didn't listen to Ryohei or Gokudera as they talked about being unable to comprehend the Shimon's betrayal. I could. History, particularly when a person is on the short end of the stick, can be manipulated to suit their own ends and the truth is lost to time. I don't know if Primo betrayed the Shimon, I wasn't there and therefore can't confirm what did or didn't happen. For history, the only time I give it credits is when there is still a live witness. Once the witnesses are gone I'm reluctant to accept what is written as truth. Also, I'm an idiot.
"What are you thinking?" Reborn's voice pulled my attention outward,
"Nothing really," I shrugged
"Kicking yourself in the butt for not mentioning your suspicions?" Reborn hit the heart of the matter and more than likely signed my death warrant. I should set up a file for all the signed warrants on my death since I have a gathered minimum of twenty excluding the ones signed by select members of the Varia.
"What?" Gokudera glanced at me,
"I…noticed there was something up with the Shimon, but I thought I was being paranoid. Even when I ran into Adelheid the day she killed the Giegue family".
"You…ran….. into….her…that…day?" Gokudera's voice turned as hard as his face,
"I didn't see anything!" I protested, "She seemed jumpy but….well, I really don't have an excuse. I didn't…want to believe that we would have to fight again so soon," I sighed. From Varia to the Future and now this, things just aren't slowing down any. They start slide down the hill, build up speed and slow down only to find another cliff to go over.
"What's done is done," Reborn glanced at me, "More importantly; you know why Yamamoto got injured?"
"His guard was down," I answered. Thing is, I could quite easily be in Takeshi's place and nearly was.
Reborn continued, "You're going to be fighting against the Shimon in a moment, you need to be ready". Hell, I was ready to do more than fight; I was planning serious injury at the least and murder at the most. "Tsuna, what do you think?"
"I don't really know. I agree something happened to the Shimon but I can't believe what Enma said about Primo. I want to clear things up and…well, Yamamoto was injured by them and Chrome kidnapped. So we can learn about what happened; we have to win. We can't lose!" Tsuna's fierce statement got everyone ready to roll,
"We'll show them!" Gokudera held up his fist with a smile
"Yeah. We'll beat them to the extreme!" Ryohei added while I just nodded in agreement. Unlike Xanxus who used his charisma almost all the time, Tsuna's only ever made an appearance when he felt strongly about something, like now where he believed there had to be a misunderstanding between what happened ten generations ago between Shimon and Vongola. I don't care about history any more than I gave a rat's ass about Leviathan but I do care what happens in the present and in the present, Takeshi was hospitalized and Chrome kidnapped by the Shimon.
"Seems you're ready," Reborn smiled,
"We'll see if you're ready," Talbot entered pushing a cart piled high with eight, strange looking stones, "They will respond if you're resolve is true,"
"Talbot," the Ninth jumped, "Are those the Vongola rings?"
"Did it fail?" Ryohei asked. The question brought a depressed atmosphere. IDIOT!
"Uh, Ryohei, didn't he just say the rings would respond?" I resisted smacking him.
"You're sharp, Karen," Talbot smiled, "You guys will finish the upgrade yourselves".