Chapter Eleven

The day was hot and humid like any other normal day on the island. Shizuma didn't know if she could take much more of the insufferable heat, since she wasn't enjoying it at all. No, the etoile was tracking down the contractor through different means and places and she was already tired and it wasn't yet afternoon. Already Shizuma had searched some of the closest harbours, looking for anything she could use or find with no such luck. Her partner had elected to stay in the hotel to work. A hunch told her that more than likely the redhead was on the balcony sipping juice having a relaxing time. You could tell she was getting irritated. Shizuma's last stop with all likelihood of succeeding was 'The Ambrosia' the nightclub of Dracos.

Arriving at her location Shizuma gave the building a quick inspection, the strange conjoined idea of a local style tavern with a nightclub attached. The tavern part was nicely arranged with flowers trailing the wooden beams and simple statues elegantly placed. Stone marked the floor with a mosaic effect and at night there were torches placed around to give it an authentic feel. Walking to the entrance she saw a few people already enjoying the food and drink as holiday makers are prone to do, sitting herself on a table closest to the small fence that skirted the rim. Keeping her eyes peeled on everyone Shizuma decided there wasn't any harm indulging a bit considering how her day was turning out, so she ordered ouzo with lemonade and a small Greek salad. 'I have to admit this place is rather nice. I wonder why he works as a contractor if he has this place. I hope Nagisa can find out Reede's plan schedule. My hunch that picture map she has is the key. Well doesn't she look lovely.' Shizuma looked from the corner of her eye as a woman approached her with her food and drink. The etoile gave her, her best smile as she finished setting things down. A blush told her she had made some impact.

"Thank you very much." Shizuma thanked her yet kept her eyes firmly on the woman's

"You're welcome. Is there anything else I can get for you?" she asked a little jittery

'Hmm…women should be careful when they say that to me. There's no harm in having a little fun. Then again I did promise Nagisa this morning no funny business. That girl's got to liven up. '

"Hmm… There is something you can do for me actually. I was wondering if the owner is available." Shizuma politely asked

The waitress looked thoughtfully for a second; the question seemed to come out of nowhere before giving the etoile a nod of her head and a statement of seeing if the said person was available. Diving into her salad and sipping her drink Shizuma waited patiently for her request to come. After she had finished and her plate taken away she watched as people walked on past. What she didn't count on was a dark brunette with deep hazel eyes and trendy outfit sit languidly in the opposite seat wearing a small smirk and an appreciative look in her eyes.

"You wanted to see me?" the woman asked silkily

Shizuma kept her startled look from her face as she heard her; apparently their information was slightly off. Giving the owner her best charming smile she nodded her head, yet the newcomer wasn't fooled.

"Apparently you were expecting someone else."

There was nothing she could say to that so she decided to get the conversation going "I'm Shizuma Hoshi, nice to meet you"

"You can call me Nicia. What can I do for you?"

Shizuma carefully thought about her next words. She didn't know the woman or what role she had in all this, so stepping real lightly she continued "I had meant to discuss some business with Mr Dracos, concerning his work detail."

"I believe Matthias is all booked up for a while. Anything I can help you with or discuss?" looking a little irritated at something

"It's a…sensitive issue I have and I can only discuss it with Dracos. I don't suppose he's around. Is there a way I could contact him?"

Shizuma knew as soon as she said the words that it wouldn't go down well. Nicia apparently was very protective and sharper than she first realised. The brunette was leaning right back in her chair, drumming her fingers on the table and her eyes never left the agents face. Shizuma looked closer at the woman and saw that hidden beneath all her bravado, she was quite scared. 'Whatever's going on it sure has her spooked. It must be Reede's doing. This just got a little more complicated.'

"Well then there's nothing more to say. I hope you have a pleasant day Ms Hoshi." Nicia stood up ready to leave

Shizuma darted from her chair and made to grab her arm to make her stay until Nicia flinched away from her in surprise or instinct. The agent merely raised her hands after that, not wanting to make such a wrong impression than she already had.

"Please wait a moment" she asked hurriedly noting a few curious looks in her direction.

Her phone knew when to ring. It usually did at the worst possible time especially; Shizuma recalled that it did quite often on this mission. Jamming her hand into her pocket of her trousers to find the annoying device with the surety of telling the caller what she thought of them. Well that was the plan.

"Hello. What do you want?" she said tartly

"Well hello to you to." A familiar sweet voice floated down the phone "what's got your knickers in a twist?"

Shizuma sighed as she started to calm down "Sorry about that. I haven't had a good day so far."

"Hmm. I'm guessing you haven't found anything all morning and now you're in a spot of bother with a lovely brunette." Nagisa summed up

Shizuma glanced around the tavern to spot the red head but no such luck, even going so far as to look outside. Her partner wasn't there. It was kind of creepy yet she still felt reassured, someone was watching her back.

"How?" she simply asked

"You didn't think I was just going to let you go off without checking up on you did you?" Nagisa sounded smug "Is that Nicia who's giving you the funny look?"

"It is. What can you tell me?" Shizuma gave in

"I should trust her with some information Shizuma. Not who you were expecting when you asked for the owner eh?"

"You kitten have some explaining to do when I get back" Shizuma warned her lightly

"I can't wait darling. See you later"

Putting her phone back into her pocket Shizuma waved Nicia back into her seat. Trusting her partner she decided to begin giving as much information as she could, without giving herself away. When she finished Nicia didn't look all that shocked at the information. Shizuma gave her time to process it as she warily kept an eye on her surroundings.

"I can believe what you say about Mr Reede. Especially with what I've been told." Nicia softly spoke

"Will you help me talk to Dracos?" Shizuma asked

"Yes. I will." Nodding her head once "Come back again tonight and I will make sure he is available. First you will need a sort of code word"

Nicia stood up walked to Shizuma's side and leant to whisper in her ear and with that she left without a look back. Sitting still and letting her mind go back on the conversation Shizuma thought of how much more trouble they can find. Until she realised what she said and completely did a 180. 'I'm always getting into trouble.'

It was early afternoon now and Shizuma had just walked into her hotel room looking a little flustered. Doing a quick sweep of the room she found no redhead, yet looking a little further out towards the balcony she saw her partner. Letting loose a little growl of annoyance, the scene was just as she imagined earlier, the hacker sitting in her chair sipping juice and looking like she was sunbathing. Her mood soured just a bit. Heading to the balcony she saw a laptop lying on the table near her partner, yet it didn't help relieve her mood. Coming once more in the hot sun she stood with arms crossed and a small glare lining her face. Nagisa flicked her eyes in her direction then went back towards the scenery. Shizuma waited patiently. Nagisa must have felt the alarms going off, since she turned her head fully to face the agent raising her brow in question.

"What's up with you?" Nagisa asked

"Comfortable are we?" gesturing slightly to the juice and her relaxed poise

Nagisa lips twitched into a small smile as she reached for another glass pouring Shizuma a drink as Shizuma continued to look grumpy "Sit down etoile and drink up."

Holding her position a few seconds longer she heaved a sigh and collapsed elegantly into the chair next to her friend. Taking a few sips to cool and calm her down she noticed Nagisa was keeping an eye on her mood status. Clever girl. Shizuma watched as Nagisa placed her glass onto the small table and reached for her laptop, lifting up the cover and turning it around so she could see. A little bit of shame washed over her as she read the screen. It was the bio of a certain owner of 'The Ambrosia'.

"I'm sorry kitten" she apologised softly

"You should be Shi." Nagisa said with a jokey tone "How did it go with Nicia?"

Shizuma told her everything that happened at the tavern and the meeting with Dracos that night. Nagisa just sat quiet throughout nodding her head at some points. Shizuma though sensed that Nagisa was holding something back. When she finished the two agents knew that they had gotten a little further.

"Nagisa what have you found?" Shizuma asked

The redhead tapped another key on her laptop and Shizuma saw another screen appear "That weird picture we found on the hard drive, I've managed to find out what it's about."

Shizuma waited but nothing more was said "What is it? It still looks like a map that's gone wrong."

"You're right Shizuma. I finally found it deep within our own government records. It took me a while to hack my way inside. This project is certainly being kept under wraps. This is an underwater map, for want of a better description showing secret conduits that are hidden there."

"What do these conduits do exactly? How does Reede know about these for that matter?" Shizuma demanded

"What they contain even I haven't found out, but then again even with that you can tell that's it sensitive information. As for Reede he helped build and construct the basic plan until he was ousted for reasons still unknown. If he uses the 'Trojan Horse' on those conduits, it will be a total disaster not for our own but for all those that are connected. The worst thing is they come online in a matter of days."

It certainly dampened the mood on the balcony. They finally found out what was a reasonable theory of The Archives plan for the Virus and none of it sounded good. There best bet was that night.

As planned the two agents dressed up for a night out, though not in the usual frills but more along the lines of casual. It was a safe bet that they would find trouble and it was easier to fight in flat shoes rather than heels. Arriving at 'The Ambrosia' to a packed place, they gradually got in and found a table reasonably close to the bar. Shizuma stayed by Nagisa's side as they manoeuvred their way in and out of the throng. A few guys tried to hit on her which she totally blew off, unfortunately whichever way you looked at it, when girls started to flirt with her Nagisa would yank her arm firmly away. It was as if the redhead didn't trust her with women. Finally settled with a small drink at a small table near the bar, the etoile scanned the crowd looking for Nicia or Dracos with no luck. Conversation between the two was light and full of banter which Shizuma enjoyed immensely. There was something about the woman that Shizuma felt drawn to. Until something interrupted her joyous evening.

"Are you my beautiful angel?" a guy smiled charmingly at the silver head coming around the table

Shizuma looked at him in confusion; his trying charms fell on deaf ears. Nagisa looked from one to the other in amusement; this guy obviously was wasting his efforts trying to flirt with Shizuma. Even though this was the guy they needed the information from, staying on his good side was a priority. Shizuma wasn't buying into his crap, folding her arms she stared in irritation at the sleazy guy in front of her. She wasn't charmed a bit, not at the meeting place and certainly not at him. 'If he keeps coming on to me like that, I will deck him one. Regardless of what information and help he can give. Now if it was a female, I'll have it in no time and enjoy myself doing it. What is Nagisa doing?'

Nagisa was giving him a full smile, which switched his attention from Shizuma to her. She nodded her head to his talk, giggled at his jokes and looking quite embarrassed at his flirts. The young whiz seemed entranced by the guy. He leaned over towards Nagisa, way too close for Shizuma's liking, as she tensed rigidly. Shizuma was comforted by a warm hand on her knee, now knowing for sure it was all an act, assured and somewhat liking the contact between them. It quickly disappeared. Nagisa reached over to tug the guy's collar closer to her, her smiling impishly and he was quite willing. Nagisa's mouth found his ear, Shizuma was furious, not knowing exactly why it affected her so much.

With a jolt the guy flew back into his chair, the chair rocked dangerously on the back legs. Looking wide eyed at Nagisa shifting his gaze to Shizuma, all the while gaping like a fish.

"Well Matt, finally in the mood to talk straight?" Nagisa asked in a cool tone all her earlier behaviour vanished, even the hand on the etoile's knee much to her disappointment.

"Of course, but not here" Matt finally managed to blurt out

Standing up briskly, Matt gestured for them to follow, leading the women through the crowd and towards the back rooms. The room itself was barely furnished, enough chairs to sit on, a rickety table and what looked to be a small fridge in the corner. Shizuma betted it held a lot of booze. Soon they seated themselves down at the table, with the women occupying one side whilst Matt wisely took the other.

"I'm sorry about earlier, I wasn't expecting two of you" he calmly told them, finally over his shock

"Plans change." Shizuma gave him a glare

"I'm Nagisa Hoshi and this is my partner Shizuma." Nagisa started the introductions "We've come to discuss some business dealings with you."

"Nicia has already briefed me on you. Well one of you at least. Something along the lines of being in my worker detail?" Matt wrapped it up nicely

Shizuma and Nagisa gave each other a quick glance which told one another exactly what they were thinking. The decision on whether to trust him with information on their plan, or not at all. 'I don't think we have much of a choice. He could be a great help in getting us there and with information to. The only trouble being the danger it puts on him.' Shizuma gave Nagisa a small nod of her head in turn Nagisa gave Matt a brief outline on what they planned to do.

"Now do we have your cooperation?" Shizuma briskly asked

"You want me to take you two on as workers, so you can observe the Archive's den? Hell I can be crucified if he figures out I helped you willingly" he harshly told them

"Who would tell him? We certainly can't since it implicates us. Or are you buying time for some reason?" Nagisa questioned him

"It will look suspicious if I show up with new people there" making another argument

"Is that what this is all about?" Shizuma had enough with this guy; she reached over to grab his collar slamming his head hard on the table "Look here, all we want is the cover you can provide, you shouldn't worry about anything else."

Nagisa had jumped at her when the woman had lost it, putting a comforting hand on her shoulder trying to calm her down. Shizuma looked at her out the corner of her eye, noting that she was a little weary of her. Taking in a deep breath to calm down, she released the hold on Matt and sat down focusing her eyes on the wall. Something other to look at, than the annoying twerp in front of her. 'Why did I react like that? I hardly ever lose my cool. I guess it really started when he flirted with Nagisa. I have to stop this. It is not helping me on this mission. I can't get emotionally attached to her.' Nagisa seated herself down and Matt looked at Shizuma wearily rubbing his head from the forceful slam. Everyone was weary of the other, not a good thing when you needed a way in and the guy you nearly pulverised was the ticket in. Heaving a strained sigh the etoile knew she had to make the first move, one she had two minds in doing so.

"I'm sorry about earlier. It's been a tough few days I shouldn't have taken it out on you." Shizuma apologised somewhat gritted

Matt gave her a look which swapped from one to the other. Nagisa gave him her stoic face knowing it rested in his hands now. The contractor shook his head and with a huge heave walked over to the fridge and got out a six pack of beer. It was apparently one of those nights. Tossing the two agents a beer he reseats himself down opposite them. Shizuma eyed him warily but the man seemed to ignore it.

"What did I do wrong to wind up in this mess? First a crazy delusional killer hires my men for grunt work hauling equipment all over. Now I have you two who wants my services." Matthias talked aloud trying to figure where his misfortunes started

The women shared a look. It seemed Matt had gotten in deep with the Archive to make him close ranks and since he just blabbed that about him they finally got a picture why.

"If you are just his work force why are you so hesitant in this suggestion of ours?" Shizuma asked but when she saw him flinch tried a different approach "Or is it because it's been tried before?"

He drank a long gulp of his drink banging it a little on the table when he was done. Matt looked hard at them switching his gaze from one to the other.

"What did he do to make sure you kept quiet?" Nagisa softly asked

Matt gave her his undivided attention with a stone cold look. Yet that look soon softened as he replied "Might as well tell you, if it gets you to stop with this nonsense. My men got cold feet soon after we took the job. The security that surrounds us when we work was only and still is a part of it, a daunting one. Then there's this…well I'll call them a guy for your benefit who makes you shiver every time they walk past. We were explicitly told not to look at the packages or break them. Not our job to anyhow but they were most severe in their warnings about it. Anyways one day soon after we started we were summoned together." He took a moment to gulp down another long mouthful of his beer before continuing "there he was with the other guy who never seemed to far from him with some helpless sod on the floor kneeling in front. It was one of my men. They killed him and with it came a warning, whoever goes against him meets the same fate."

Shizuma listened and watched as Matthias opened a new can and drank. 'Well it certainly did its job of keeping things quiet. Damn Reede! He kills men in front of others to ensure their loyalty. He isn't hesitant in whatever's he's doing' Shizuma thought over once again on what she had been told, the Shadow was certainly in the background that she already knew. Why on the other hand was still a mystery. The packages Matt talked about could only be one thing, the equipment from the business front or the Virus itself.

"I don't suppose you happened to look inside the packages you're hauling by any chance?" Shizuma casually asked

"After that little stunt?" Matt looked a little nervous

"You did, didn't you?" Nagisa pressured him

"Why should I tell you?" Matt blasted right back

"Because if you don't" Shizuma told him and before he could respond she continued "there will be a lot more trouble and death before this is all over. You don't want that staining your hands"

It took a little while for the words to sink in, past the booze and knocks but he finally caught on. Shizuma and Nagisa just gave him time to muddle through it all, taking smaller sips of their own beers which weren't much to their tastes.

"If I help you" he started haltingly "what's to stop him from killing me if he finds out about the two of you?"

"Our promise that he will never get that information from us." Nagisa softly told him

Shizuma knew as did Matt that Nagisa didn't exactly answer the question. There were no certainties in their line of work, sometimes hard choices had to be made and innocents sometimes got in the middle. Reaching over unseen by Matt, Shizuma gently squeezed Nagisa's hand in reassurance and in turn she got one of her own.

"There was some equipment that looked like sonar devices. The strange thing was there definitely not Greek origin. Plus one of my men was once a sailor in the army and he recognised some serious hardware. He mentioned something along the lines of laser tech"

It took a moment after the little declaration for Shizuma to figure out what Matthias was actually talking about. Then she understood he was answering the previous question. Whatever the Archive was planning he needed some serious stuff. The thing that bothered her was the origin of the sonar ware, if he planned an attack on Greece with the information he stole the reason for having a foreign device puzzled her. More so it enraged her. 'If the attack was planned for this country he would have everything within reach already. He's planning on something else entirely. With who I wish I knew'

"Thank you." Nagisa nodded her head

"I'll help, you have my word." Matt stood up and extended his hand towards Nagisa who readily shook it, and then in turn Shizuma did the same.

After a few more minutes of finalising their deal and exchanging information the two agents found themselves back in the crowded bar. The music was loud and the chatter was barely heard, yet everyone seemed to be having a great time. Shizuma got separated from Nagisa by a trio of slightly drunken women and soon she was lost in the crowd. Like the old saying goes 'Every cloud has a silver lining'. Shizuma spotted something out of place, which in itself was amazing due to the amount of people, but something about these three men was wrong.

Planting her feet firmly to avoid being swept away once more she casually, as she could, observed them. They were dressed smartly but casual and seemed to fit in, nevertheless it was their behaviour that didn't seem right. They were nervous and looking for someone. It didn't even take her two guesses as to whom and even if they weren't looking for either her or her partner, it was better safe than sorry. It was at that moment when she had decided to leave that she met one of the goon's eyes. They widened in recognition. It was all the evidence she needed. A hand on her arm made her swivel around only to face an irritated red head, which looked sourly at an admirer she had picked up. Not waiting for any words she grabbed Nagisa's hand and pulled her along dodging patrons as she went heading for the rear of the tavern. Looking for the exit Shizuma hardly slowed down at all.

"What's going on?" Nagisa huffed

"We have unwanted attention and I'd rather not wait around to find out." Shizuma replied as she pushed open the exit door.

'It was going so well too.' It seems that the front of the tavern was easiest to leave by as they stood in front of the three men each looking ready to fight. Letting go of Nagisa's hand Shizuma stepped away a little to give them both room, two followed her, her own eyes was busy scanning the darken alley.

"I don't suppose we can talk this out" Nagisa called out, seeing them look un-amused "I guess not"

Gearing herself for a fight Shizuma quickly assessed her two targets. It was certainly going to be a challenge. The two men started to advance and the last remaining one stalked after Nagisa. The brawl had started with kicks, fists jabs and swipes being flung.

Nagisa was backed roughly against the wall. Powerful arms kept her wrists to the sides, stocky legs kept hers still and from lashing out. Altogether Nagisa was held in a vice grip. Nagisa squirmed underneath him, not like being defenceless one bit and certainly not by an ugly brute like him. Shizuma was too busy with her own opponents to help her out, finally managing to clobber one with a rusty section of pipe. The other man sized her up; the silver head didn't look like much of a threat at first glance, more of a model strutting about. He began to attack more cautiously than before, taking nothing for granted by the woman.

Nagisa was stuck in her own dilemma, after her previous attacker had scored her heavily it had left her open to this one, considering how she was pinned to the wall. He even had the audacity to try and kiss her, not daring to lose his grip, he could only move his head to capture his prize. Nagisa shifted her head away from him each time, making him more and more irritated at every passing failure. Nagisa then cringed in disgust as she felt moist lips kiss her neck. The young agent squirmed violently, testing her strength against his, only to succeed in freeing her leg. Good enough. Bending her knee she brought it forcefully up, right against the man's pride and joy.

Yelling out in pure pain, Nagisa knew she only had seconds to spare, forced him off her dodging his arms as she moved away from him. Unfortunately he hit her wounded side, bringing her roughly to the ground hard. Nagisa yelled in pain, as once more the brute pinned her down. A hard blow landed hard against her cheek, she tasted something of copper on her tongue, realising that a busted lip added to her injuries. Her lower right side was screaming in protest as she tried to use her limbs to once more get free.

"You're mine now" he growled at her

He leaned in with a passion; to claim what he thought was his. Nagisa shut her eyes tight, against the looming man, her searing side and sore face.

"Those lips are mine you bastard!" an angry voice shouted

A loud crack knocked the guy out cold before he could turn around, landing fully on the injured woman. Nagisa opened her eyes to see a heavily breathing Shizuma overhead, looking disgusted at the man she just knocked out.

"Quit staring and get him off me" Nagisa grunted at her

Shizuma had just realised the position that Nagisa was in, not liking it a bit, quickly rolled the thick muscled man off her and took in her appearance. A large cut had sliced her low on the right side, a newly forming bruise on her cheek and not to mention a busted lip. Shizuma thought she still looked adorable, even though she had been beaten up pretty badly.

"You are a mess my little kitten" Shizuma informed her, looking at her warmly, helping her sit up.

Nagisa looked herself over; she was filthy and bloody, agreed with Shizuma. Shizuma took in their surroundings, gladly noting that all the bad guys were accounted for and all out cold. A hiss of pain brought her attention back to Nagisa, as the woman was trying to tend to her wounds, her face got real pale. Shizuma shook her head as she quickly caught Nagisa's hands to prevent her from doing more harm.

"Here let me"

Carefully and cautiously she slid the top up to see a deep gash. Shizuma was relieved to know that this wouldn't require stitches; all it needed was a bandage.

Looking to Nagisa she told her "This doesn't need any stitches Nagisa. Come on let's get you seen to."

"This is so embarrassing." Nagisa groaned as she stood wobbly to her feet.

Shizuma smiled a little by her side, with her arm firmly around Nagisa. "You're nothing but trouble"

Nagisa just gave her a glare, which to Shizuma looked more cute than intimidating.