Chapter Fifteen

The two agents raced their way along the corridors dodging the security and blending in when it was the normal detail. Shizuma heard the alarms; even so she knew it wasn't enough of a distraction. She came to a complete stop at the foot of the stairs, whilst Nagisa jumped up two at a time. The etoile instead of looking up turned her gaze downwards to the lower level as her mind whirled with different scenarios. 'The beacon wasn't enough, there's hardly anyone out of place. This ship needs to be taken down, who knows how long before help arrives. We have to disable or cripple it so we have a chance.' So engrossed with ideas she barely noticed the red head had come back down to meet her and was now standing by her side with a concerned look on her face. Feeling a slight tug on her sleeve Shizuma whipped her head around to focus on her concerned partner.

"Shizuma? Is everything all right?"

Shizuma paused before replying "This ship needs to be stopped. The beacon was only a single step. We need to cripple this ship somehow before he turns his sights to his next target. Who knows when help will come."

She didn't have to say anymore as her partner nodded her head. Shizuma beckoned with her head as she started to walk down to the next level, with her partner following behind her. As with all of the etoile's plans there was some small flaw and with the flaw came a comment from a certain red head that would always seem to deflate the etoile. This was exactly what happened.

"Shi. Don't get me wrong I get the basic plan. The engine room is down here. I just have one little teeny point. How do we disable the engines?"

Shizuma stopped suddenly in her tracks as the hacker walked right into her back. With a few mutterings and a small glare sent her way Nagisa saw the thoughtful look on her partners face and mentally did a groan. The etoile herself knew it was coming. She honestly did. 'I knew that was coming. Why does she always have to do that? Well I guess we don't have much choice here, we'll have to see when we get there. The old plan of winging it will have to do'

"Come on kitten, we don't have a lot of time" Shizuma then took off at a run

"I'm guessing were winging it then" Nagisa muttered to her herself as she quickly ran off after her partner.

The engine room wasn't at all what Shizuma imagined it to be. It was huge, with conduits running it all directions, valves everywhere along with pressure gages and monitors everywhere. The humming of the engine was louder in here making the etoile wonder how anyone could work in this space for long. It looked like ordered chaos. Men and women were checking it over adjusting it slightly if needed to, as Shizuma tried to think of how they were going to do this.

"Kitten we'll have to have a look around and try and come up with some sort of plan." Shizuma whispered to Nagisa as they both walked in as if they were meant to be there

Shizuma tried to understand how it all worked as she looked around. How anyone could tell what valve to turn if there were six of the same size and colour was beyond her. They weren't even marked. Well that was before she spotted something at the farther end of the room. Moving quickly she stood in front if the glass covered cage. She still couldn't figure if this was a good thing or not. Since when did the mission turn in her favour? Behind the locked cage written in bold electrifying colours were the words 'Emergency Engine Shutdown'with a few valves switches underneath. 'This can't be right. It's just too easy for me to find something like this. Since when did anything go right for me on this mission? I must say the only good thing has been Nagisa. Speaking of which where did that Kitten sneak off to?' Turning around she saw her partner making her way towards her, beckoning her over Nagisa picked up her pace and soon stood by her side.

"Wow. When did good luck come your way Shi?" as she saw what got her partners attention.

"Hey" Shizuma indignantly huffed

"It's true. Since when has anything gone right for us?"

Shizuma uncrossed her arms she previously folded and motioned towards the cage "Well at least we have a way to stop this tub. Go and find a fire alarm or something and pull it, more distraction that will help us."

Nagisa nodded her head and quickly took off in search of her target. Shizuma turned back to the lock; pulling out her lock picks case as she did so. Selecting the right one, with a quick glance around she waited for the alarms that hopefully would come. They blared out the speakers making her flinch in surprise. There was a mad scramble for people as shouts were made with people scurried about; none of this was noticed as Shizuma was focused on opening the lock. It didn't take too long as the lock sprung open and Shizuma began the shutdown sequence. Turning the valve to the right as far as it would go, twisting a mini to the left, flicking a few switches as she watched the gage decrease all the while. It was done and immediately she felt the droning stop. Not waiting for anyone to notice her she ran out mingling in with others, to spot her partner up ahead. Ducking and weaving her way through the huddle Shizuma made her way to Nagisa's side and they both sprinted off to the stairs.

Their side trip and alarms were working wonders on the personnel as no one seemed to really know what to do. The best part was that no one recognised them. They were on the right floor as they jogged their way along. Shizuma was keeping an eye out around her, making adjustments when she saw men with guns. Nagisa was following her with one eye in front and the other on her small hand held device. It amazed Shizuma that the girl can be clumsy with two eyes in front, but with something like she had now was as graceful as a swan. Things were about to heat up.

A bright white flash made the two agents stop and squint. The light was so intense that it took a while for it to return. Shizuma kept her hand on her gun, yet no attack came. Blinking a little she saw the bare outline of the metal walls and in its centre was a deep shadow. A small growl to her right confirmed her dread. The Shadow had appeared. They stood directly in their path, a small open space where the corridor became rounder and an untended arena.

Shizuma felt more than saw Nagisa as she threw something to the left of their obstacle, in an instant it sprung flames shooting high and wide. The Shadow dodged the first strike leaving the way clear. The etoile tiptoed her way across with Nagisa sticking close. It wasn't that simple. The Shadow threw shuriken in their way, as the two barely dodged their razors edge, as they stuck in the wall with the force of the throw. 'Oh great! They will never let us go through easy. It will take too much time. There's only one thing to do' However someone beat her to it.

"Go Shizuma! I got this one" Nagisa urged her to go, keeping her eyes locked firmly on the attacker.

Shizuma knew Nagisa can get stubborn sometimes, too much for own good, yet she doubted her skill at facing this one. The Shadow was a tough opponent. Her feelings she knew was getting the better of her. So to prevent anything silly she was about to say, Shizuma pulled Nagisa into her arms, kissing her firmly on the lips. She left as quickly as she could, Shizuma couldn't stay or watch anymore, her own quarry needed to be hunted down. Nagisa still a little startled by the sudden kiss, pulled herself together; turning to face the black clothed figure head on, pulling out two batons from her waistband, flicking them out to their full length. The Shadow themselves prepared, as two serrated blades came into view. A standoff ensued as each waited for the other to make their move.

As if a signal went off, both started their attack in sync, clashing weapon against weapon in a deadly dance. The Shadow was quick and graceful on her feet, moving in flawless harmony, catching Nagisa unawares multiple times, landing small cuts to her arms and chest. Blocking and parrying the two blades Nagisa gained an insight on the skill The Shadow displayed. A part of her knew she was no match for the trained assassin, yet she also realised that there was no one else that could keep them busy and distracted long enough.

A heavy forceful kick to her lower abdomen caught the redhead unawares, throwing her back roughly against the wall. Doubled over in pain and breathlessness, Nagisa watched as The Shadow drew nearer. She only had one shot in escaping this trap, the timing was crucial. Holding her batons close to her chest, her hands only resting on the padded material, Nagisa clicked the edge in readiness. Red eyes travelled up to face her opponent who had stopped a few steps away. A shiny glint was all the warning Nagisa needed. Barrelling forward, her back shoulder taking the brunt of the strike, Nagisa swung her own batons right into their chest. A low yelp of pain made The Shadow stumble back a few paces giving Nagisa the edge she needed. Wasting no time she went on the attack. Her hits made more dangerous due to the electric current now running through her weapons. 'I can't keep this up for much longer. I need a plan!'

Nagisa's eyes scanned the room looking quickly for anything she could use. Deflecting the strikes and delivering her own, she noticed something that could possibly use to her advantage. Swiftly and with force the agent kicked them hard flinging them back into the wall, giving her much needed time. Nagisa ran to the corner where a small ledge was jutting out, springing on to that she launched onto the roof where exposed cables ran along. Grabbing a hold of the small supports she tugged hard at the cables, they were holding firm, bracing herself she gave one last powerful tug. Ones that were pocketed into the room were torn from their sockets, sparkling with electricity they now hung loosely and dangerously low in the small alcove. The agent dropped to the floor only to be met with pain. The Shadow lunged at her bringing her roughly to the ground. Nagisa was struck once flinging her head to the side a dribble of blood leaked out her mouth. Just about to strike the agent a second time, Nagisa moved her head at the last possible second, hearing a grunt of pain coming from the cloaked figure.

It was her turn now. She drove one of her batons into their stomach flinging them back, giving her much needed to room to stand up. Before the assassin could charge, Nagisa hit them twice more with powerful blows forcing The Shadow back towards the hanging cables. With one last swing of her baton Nagisa forced The Shadow right where she wanted them. Without missing a beat the agent grabbed one of the cables, carefully avoiding the exposed wires, whilst she quickly positioned one of her batons near the skin of the huffing figure. She drove the cable onto the baton. The result was instantaneous. An ear-piercing scream of pain split the air as the once terrifying right hand figure was now huddled and twitching on the ground as Nagisa removed the cables.

"I'm not going to kill you. That would make me like you. But I'll leave you with a little reminder of what happened here"

Nagisa gingerly picked up one of the fallen serrated blades and kneeled down by their side. Pausing as if in two minds about her choice, Nagisa plunged the knife deeply into their side eliciting another pain filled screech.

"Better hope I never run onto you again" Nagisa warned her before she sprinted off down the corridors, knowing where she would find her partner.

Shizuma rushed through the corridors, her boots clicked on the metal grate underneath whilst her mind raced as fast as she ran. She knew exactly where to find her target; The Archive would be on the observation deck or the control room if you wanted to be specific, the top most floor of the entire submarine. The new design he had implemented on the sub allowed him full view both inside and out. 'I hope there aren't many guards there with him. His right hand is kept busy…Nagisa. Please let her be all right. I want to be with her after all this is through. No more lies like last time.' Shizuma careened around the corner screeching to a sudden halt.

"Not good" she whined softly

Four guards turned to face the runner, showing their surprise when they saw her. Still dressed in the security garb herself, the etoile tried to play it off. Straightening her jacket she walked a few steps towards them.

"Urgent message. I need his authorisation codes and signature." Trying to sound in the know

"Who sent you?" one of them asked

Looking at the four as they fingered their guns, with their stance changing from casual to aggressive. The etoile knew her stupid ploy had failed and braced herself for the oncoming fight. Her luck took a dramatic whole submarine rocked dangerously, red alerts were being shouted down the intercoms and the once bright lights turned to red and near darkness. They were being bombarded. Shizuma toppled sideways into the wall as the first shockwave hit, the guards in front did the same. Using it to her advantage she lunged. Bashing one hard over the head driving to him to their knees, she dodged a blow from another swiping a low leg swipe to the third as she did so. Dodging and weaving in an intricate dance she barely kept up as the four men closed in.

Before Shizuma realised she was grabbed tightly from behind, pinning her arms to the side in a bear grip earning the three men she could see smirks of malicious intent. One of the men took a step forward cracking his knuckles. Shizuma knew what was coming. A heavy punch knocked all the air from her longs with a lasting pain of the reminder. Shizuma was still held tightly in the grip as the intercom blared into life making them pause.

"All hands abandon ship. I repeat all hands to abandon ship. Sectors two and five are locked down."

Their pause was all Shizuma needed along with the help of gigantic shockwave. It knocked them literally off their feet. As the cables burst, lights went out and alarms shriller than before. The etoile landed in a somewhat soft landing as the douchebag underneath took the brunt of it. Swiftly getting to her feet something heavy rolled into her foot making her look down and in a flash it was in her hands. Without wasting a single second she went from guard to guard, clobbering them into unconsciousness with the dented fire extinguisher making it easy work. As the last one fell to the floor she chucked the extinguisher away, much dented than it previously was, wiping her hands on her jeans as she stepped forward.

"I guess you mother never told you to not hit women. We're a bitch for revenge" as she stepped past them and in to the control room.

The room was just as she remembered it from her earlier visit. However the lights were now red making it almost eerie, the alarms screeched out the speakers and the most important thing was that there were only about four other dedicated people left in the room. Her target was nowhere to be seen. Shizuma cautiously took a few more steps in, her eyes scanning the room for possible threats whilst some part of her made notes of handy strategic spots. Shizuma's eyes widened slightly. The etoile had found her target. Reede in a now dishevelled suit and wild hair was hunched over a console tapping furiously away. His appearance of calm and superiority were certainly lacking. Knowing she had some small element of surprise she quickly crept over to one of the people still at their posts, un-holstering her gun as she quickly put the barrel to their head.

"Make a move or sound and I put a bullet in you." Shizuma whispered harshly and received a vigorous nod of compliance "send out an SOS and an alert of abandoning ship to the vessel above."

Shizuma watched as a small grimace of dislike appeared on their face nevertheless doing as they were told. The etoile never took her eyes off her captive and with the final click of a button and a nod of their head all was done. Nudging her up with gun still trained, Shizuma ushered her so she could view the whole room, her number one target still having no clue she was there.

"Get to the escape launches and take your buddies along with you. If you notice the fallen idiots outside help them or not I don't really care" Shizuma flicked her gun to the door she came in from.

It was then that The Archive finally turned around and gaze upon his fleeing subordinates looking somewhat surprised, as he finally caught sight of her. Shizuma had to admit that he hid his shock surprisingly well, yet still kind of pissed that he didn't really think her much of a threat. Shizuma took a few steps in his direction never taking her eyes off him as he did the same. Despite the alarms and the echoing rumble of the stressed out vessel it was calm in the control room with the added bleeps and whistles coming from various consoles.

"I should have just killed you in the control room as my ally proposed." Reede sighed

"That's your loss. I'm here for The Trojan Horse; you can either step aside and surrender or be a cliché villain and die in trying."

"Why do you fight me?" Reede asked incredulity "I do this for you too, to free you from the lies you wrap around yourself surely you must tire of it all"

Shizuma quirked an eyebrow as she watched him intently and in disbelief. 'Did he really just ask me that?!'

"How can such a smart man be so dumb? Sure we wrap ourselves in lies and shadows but that's the way the world is now. We dive into the depths of blood to find and stop those before they strike. If I had the opportunity to choose this life again, I would do so willingly. I serve my country all you do is serve yourself." Shizuma replied with feeling trying to find the words that expressed what she felt

Reede kept a stoic face as she spoke his hand twitching slightly. Shizuma aimed her gun at him getting ready for whatever he would throw at her, knowing he would never come quietly. She was right. He drove his hand into his pockets and dodged the fire from the etoile's gun.

The agent didn't have time to aim again as she flew to the floor and rolled behind a counter, just barely missing a red laser which cut through the floor where she had just stood mere seconds ago. Shizuma heard the distinct hum of the laser, moving behind her cover dashing to the side as it missed her by an inch. Using the time granted she searched for Reede. Instead she got fired on. Luckily they all missed as once more she took cover returning fire of her own. She was kept on her toes as yet more laser fire was being directed at her. Knowing she couldn't keep dodging bullets and lasers she had to find her target and fast. A glimpse of a black suit alerted her as it moved up on the raised platform before she lost sight of him. Crouching down she sped in the direction not encountering anything as she did so. 'What is he up to? Biding his time? Duh! I just have to get him to the open somehow or better yet get that damn switch off him. How dare he use laser tech on me'

Still in a crouch Shizuma crept up the few steps peeking around the console to see a still figure with switch in hand looking like a statue. Slowly and quietly she raised her gun and fired. A loud scream of pain echoed through the room as Reede clutched his hand to his chest, blood running from it like a river. The switch now lay on the floor. Shizuma dove at the switch her fingers barely grasped it before a heavy foot collided with her had knocking it further away. A fist knocked her further back as Shizuma tumbled away from any further physical strikes. Forcing herself to her feet she noticed him with the submachine gun held awkwardly in her direction as he fumbled to get it steady. Shizuma lunged. Knocking the gun from his hands, kicking it away from them she landed two powerful punches disorientating him and not to mention a crooked nose.

KABOOM!

The whole room shuddered with the impact of the explosion as the room now looked like one big metal scrapyard. Some consoles were thrown clear across the room whilst others exploded with the amount of pressure they had just received. Leaks were sprouting everywhere some were the size of sprinklers others gushing forth seawater. It was a time bomb in itself. A grating sound penetrated the room as metal was shoved around and a figure emerged, a bit beaten up and breathless with a few scrapes scattered on her person otherwise she looked fine. The etoile looked around eyeing the Virus console with some distaste as it sat proudly displayed. 'Shit. Just my luck.' A growl came from behind making her whirl around in response, her gun lost somewhere beneath the rubble. A blood coated man stood up with blood still from his holey hand and now a stream dribbled down the side of his face.

"You will pay for this. Maybe not today but you will one day. This I promise." Reede growled out

A low droning hum made the two occupants wary. With the last explosion any number of weapons or back up plans could have been damaged. Most likely the dangerous ones in Shizuma's experience. The Archive not waiting any longer charged at the woman, throwing wild punches with abandonment. Knowing the Archive had not much skill his anger made his fighting work for him. Shizuma dodged and delivered her own as she tried to get through his defences. The humming had gotten louder. Shizuma was swept of her feet as Reede tackled her to the ground pinning her under him. The humming stopped. Reede was about to deliver some serious hurt, noticed the look of fear in her eyes as he took his eyes off her to see. The laser system had come back on; multiple streams of red light were streaming across the room cutting through anything in their path.

In that one second Reede took to see Shizuma kneed him and shoved him off her rolling to her feet as she took in her options. Shizuma was more concerned of the rays than the man just getting to his feet. The reason soon became clear why. Reede was barely on his feet his eyes had a glazed look as he struggled to focus. Shizuma decided this had to end forced him backwards with a solid kick throwing him clear in the path of the lasers. One went through his ankle making him scream in agony and another only just nicked him on his chest making the flesh burn and swell. The last laser ended his misery as it seared his head clear off.

Shizuma was heavily panting, not being able to tear her eyes away from the gruesome scene before her. Her back towards the exit she failed to notice the door swish open filling the room with noise from the outside. Her focus was still on the red lights still cutting their way across the room. The humming of power returned and with it the lasers flared brightly and disappeared. The etoile had won. The price was the scene in front of her. Shizuma felt someone next to her as she whirled around still in her battle mode to be face with an endearing sight. The pump of adrenaline didn't allow her to do much of anything as she stood stock still exhausted both mentally and physically. Somewhere in the back of her mind was telling her there was some work left to do.

AN: Hey readers sorry for the wait. I had real trouble writing this one as action scenes are not my strongest suit so I hope you like this. Nearly the end now and I'll post the chapters quickly as I've finished writing them all :) One a day if you're lucky lol