Zoalords
Chapter 19
People
Cloud Gate
The Control Center
Sho watched as Ishi chatted with his girlfriend on his tablet. He didn't realize how lucky he was. He didn't have to worry about Zoanoids attacking Amiko. CHRONOS didn't have a price on their heads, didn't hunt them, spy on them . . . He had nothing against Ishi, he was a good man and a friend who had helped them several times in the past. It just hurt that Sho was denied the freedom of a simple life with the woman he loved.
He cursed the day he found the Guyver Unit.
Lord Czyvek had assigned him comfortable quarters, and Mizuki and the others were free to visit him, but he was a prisoner, albeit in a gilded cage. He could go almost anywhere he wanted within the building, and even leave, if he wanted. But he would be watched. He was always watched.
Mercifully, Barcus had yet to 'visit' him.
"And, when it touched you, it was reabsorbed?" Dr. Nighthawk asked, breaking his revery. She was a small, plump woman, a full-blooded Navajo from America who spoke Japanese with a soft accent. She was a kind woman, trying to make her examinations as easy as possible for him. She was also, he gathered, Lord Czyvek's girlfriend. "Yes. It was, I don't know how to describe it, sucked into the Control Medallion. I don't know if that was what it had wanted, to rejoin the Unit, or if it trying to attack me and was . . . Eaten." It was hard to describe certain things, and his death at the hands of Enzyme I and subsequent 'rebirth', along with his twisted, monstrous twin was beyond his understanding. Still, he answered as best he could, and she seemed to understand his confusion. "I'm asking you this because, in Guyver III's last attack, his arm was severed. That arm grew into a creature like the one you encountered." She explained, "I don't want to harm it, but it is incredibly dangerous. I was hoping we could find a way to control it."
"Did you try to process it? Then a Zoalord shouldn't have any problem controlling it." Sho asked. He couldn't believe he was actually suggesting that some poor creature be processed into a Zoanoid! How easy it was to be pulled in by CHRONOS. Dr. Nighthawk, Ishi and Lord Czyvek himself all sincerely believed CHRONOS a force for good, despite all the evidence to the contrary. He wondered what had led a woman like Doctor Nighthawk to join CHRONOS in the first place.
"His structure is too unstable, his cells fluctuate and change too quickly for conventional processing techniques." She replied.
"I really don't know much about that kind of thing." He admitted. Science was Tetsuro's field, not his. He remembered the creature, how it became him. "Does it ever take Agito's form?"
Dr. Nighthawk nodded, "Yes, occasionally. We believe he may be trying to deceive us with a human form . . ." She smiled, "Thank you for your help. I can't imagine how hard it must be to talk about what happened." Dr. Nighthawk put down her Tablet, "It's almost lunch time, are you hungry?"
"No, not really."
"I understand that you don't have much of an appetite, being here, having to answer all these questions. But even a Guyver needs to eat sometime."
Ishi looked up in confusion, "A Pod has landed. Lord Archanfel and Kenji are here."
Doctor Nighthawk's face registered shock. Archanfel almost never left The Ark, and to bring Kenji here, with Guyver I in the building and Guyver III and Guyot waiting in the wings.
Kenji? Mr. Murakami's son? Sho had been told the basic facts about Murakami Kenji, but had not expected to meet him.
Both Archanfel and Kenji/Ingriam were exited. Kenji would finally get to meet a Guyver, a real, live Guyver, and Archanfel would have a chance to speak with him peacefully. It was a testament to Czyvek's dogged persistence that Guyver I had simply surrendered peacefully rather than fight a losing war. Archanfel had not intended to leave The Ark, or let Kenji leave The Ark, until Guyot was dead. But this was too important not to attend to. It was also a much-needed boost in morale since the disaster in Russia. Guyver I had been quiet for some time now, since Czyvek decided to 'leave him alone' he had been content to live peacefully, but his surrender was still a major victory for CHRONOS. Perhaps they could even persuade him to join them.
Lords Czyvek and Mirabilis stood on the landing pad, unfazed by the lashing winds and high altitude. As the Pod landed, both men were nervous. If their enemies attacked . . .
"Why did you bring Kenji, Lord Archanfel?" Mirabilis asked.
"You know Fukamachi well enough to know that he will not harm Kenji, especially as he knows who he is."
"I wanted to come, dad."
"Please, come inside." Czyvek had to shout to be heard over the wind. Archanfel might not be up to the physical stress of their current location.
"Yes. Let us speak with Guyver I. I trust he has been cooperative."
"Yes," Czyvek held the door as his fellow Zoalords entered, "He is quite reasonable when people aren't trying to murder him and everyone he loves." He could feel Imakarum Mirabilis glaring at him through his dark glasses.
"As I have told you so often, Mikhail, what is done is done." Archanfel said simply, "We cannot change the past, only the future."
Czyvek's thoughts flashed to the movie Star Wars: Return of The Jedi. Emperor Palpatine had traveled to the Death Star, made himself a target to lure the Rebels into a trap. The plan had drawn the Rebels alright, but Palpatine had been the one to die. Though he considered Barcus to be more like the unfortunate Emperor, Czyvek realized that Archanfel had placed himself in a similar situation. Archanfel was taking a terrible risk. If an attack was launched on Cloud Gate while Archanfel was present, it could be the end of CHRONOS, and the world would collapse into anarchy.
Palpatine was betrayed and murdered by his apprentice, not the Rebels. And I am certain Hamilcar would not find the comparison flattering.
I merely mean that you are placing yourself in needless danger. There is no reason for you to risk your life coming here.
I do not die so easily.
Famous last words.
Have a little faith, Mikhail.
That's the problem, my Lord. I only have a little faith.
The problem with living among telepaths is an utter lack of privacy.
"If Doctor Barcus is Emperor Palpatine, who are you, Mr. Czyvek?"
"Poggle the Lesser. Or maybe Salacious Crumb."
"Poggle was killed by Darth Vader too."
"Yes, Kenji, he was. But I'm armed with more than a bone staff." With that the doors to the Control Center opened.
Everyone in the room knelt as the Supreme Zoalord entered, everyone except Sho, who merely gave a polite bow. He owed no fealty to Archanfel. His eyes were on the young man standing beside the angelic leader of CHRONOS.
Murakami Kenji.
He was beautiful, almost to the point of being feminine. He looked like he'd just stepped from the pages of a Shojo Manga. Slender, graceful with an elegant bone structure so perfect that Sho was briefly convinced that he was a woman. There was a hint of his father here and there, but on the whole he must have favored his mother. And his mother must have been a stunningly beautiful woman.
Archanfel looked over Fukamachi Sho curiously. This child had, by accident, become one of the greatest dangers CHRONOS had ever faced, yet he had surrendered without a fight. He looked thin and tired compared to the last time he had seen him. Three years of battling CHRONOS has clearly taken its toll on his spirit. "Fukamachi Sho. Guyver I." Archanfel's voice was as beautiful as he was, "I am grateful that you chose a peaceful resolution. Rest assured, I shall keep my promise to Mikhail. Your family will not be harmed."
At the mention of family Kenji's mind went back to that terrible day, the fire, his mom's screams . . . Archanfel quickly pushed those thoughts from his mind. Sho's mind was on his father, transformed into Enzyme II and forced to do battle with his own child by Barcus. Slain by Guyver I's own hand.
Archanfel stepped forward and gently brushed Sho's cheek with a thin, elegant finger. Sho reflexively pulled away. He realized that he could, at that moment, strike down Archanfel and destroy CHRONOS once and for all. But killing him in cold blood was beyond his ability. And it was not Archanfel he hated. "CHRONOS has not been kind to you. Mistakes were made." That was an understatement, "You are a remarkable man, Sho. As one of your great religious leaders once said, 'There is no greater love than this, that a man should lay down his life in behalf of his friends.' We have no desire to see you lay down your life, however. In fact, Mikhail has prevailed upon us to spare your life and your friend's lives from the moment he joined The Council."
"I know, and I am most grateful." Sho looked in the Zoalord's direction. Looking into Archanfel's beautiful face with his cat's eyes was almost unbearable for him. Czyvek looked pale and nervous. Archanfel directed Sho's attention to Kenji, "This is Ingriam Mirabilis. You have never met, but I think you will find him pleasant company". Imakarum Mirabilis' head turned rather violently, "Company?" "Relax child. This is merely a brief meeting." Archanfel resumed speaking with Sho, "It might interest you to know that Lord Barcus is greatly pained with remorse for his actions against you and your father."
Only because it made me hate CHRONOS and spoiled his plans. Sho thought bitterly. He could forgive CHRONOS as a group, but not Barcus and Guyot. He could never forgive them.
Kenji/Ingriam put out his hand and Sho took it. His grip was incredible, and he smiled, "Are you going to turn into the Guyver for us?"
"Yes . . . I guess so." It was odd to think that this man standing before him was actually a ten year old child. "But, you have to be a few feet away. The transformation destroys anything within a few feet of me."
Both Sho and Czyvek immediately thought of Tora Kenishiro, Gelpess, who had been vaporized while handcuffed to Sho. He had been one of Czyvek's closest friends, and Sho knew that memory was a painful one for the Zoalord.
He felt like an animal performing for a crowd, but he had nothing against Kenji. In fact, he owed him, and his father, a great deal in many ways. He stepped back, and transformed. "WOW! That's so cool!" Kenji reached out to touch the Guyver armor, "It's warm. I guess it should be, since it's alive." Sho noted that Imakarum seemed ready to pounce at the slightest threatening movement. He honestly couldn't blame him. It seemed even his transformation could not take away his love for his son. "What does it feel like? To wear?"
"Well, it's kind of like a warm blanket. But tough, too. It's hard to describe."
A sudden, muted pinging noise rang through the air. Guyver I looked down and almost laughed. His cellphone was ringing. He powered down and looked at it. It was Mizuki. "I'm sorry, Mizuki-chan, this is a really bad time." He held up the phone and sent her a snapshot of Archanfel, "I'm alright. Don't worry. I'll call back later. And I love you."
Kenji and Ishi laughed, and even Archanfel managed a smile. "Keeping you on a short leash, is she?" Mirabilis chuckled.
"Let's go see the Zoanoids." Kenji said abruptly. "Have you seen the Unit Remover Zoanoids yet, Sho?"
"No. I haven't." In truth he had no desire to see the processing center or the labs. Despite this, Sho accompanied the Zoalords down into the processing center. He hated the place, where men and women willingly gave up their humanity. Or had it stolen. There were so many tubes, so many types of Zoanoids. There were insects, reptiles, wolf men, octopi, and things he couldn't recognize as related to anything in nature. There must have been thousands of people in this single lab, and it was only one of several in Japan. Worldwide, hundreds of millions of people were probably being processed, or had already been. Soon, there would be few, if any, non-Zoanoid humans on Earth.
Finally, they reached the Unit Remover Zoanoids. They were massive, especially their upper bodies. So massive, in fact, that Sho wondered if they would be able to stand upright. So, this was the ultimate weapon. He had fought, and destroyed, much larger foes, but these were walking Unit Removers. He wondered if they would actually be capable of removing the Guyver from its host. They would know very soon, according to the charts under the closest tube the Zoanoid would be fully processed and ready to fight within two weeks.
Kenji was excited, like a kid in a candy store. So many cool Zoanoids. Czyvek had the most diverse types of Zoanoids of any other Zoalord, in part because he refused to discontinue models that didn't 'work out', unless the 'mistakes' harmed the Zoanoid. Kenji had a say in that, too, with Doctor Barcus. He wasn't about to let them stop making Zoanoids he liked, like Curvill. He knew that Czyvek also liked Curvill, they reminded him of Fenris and his people. There were older model Enzymes, too. Kenji especially liked Enzyme I, it was like a big, fluffy white teddy bear. Czyvek was even trying to recreate certain models designed by CHRONOS' enemies, including the Branchai, Gastal and a more stable, longer-living Libertus. In addition, he was mingling different breeds, and had already given Ishi the Gastal's ability to turn completely invisible.
Sho noticed that Kenji had wandered off, admiring the Zoanoids. He wondered what damage Guyot had done to the boy's mind. Archanfel had undoubtedly altered his mind as well. He looked sadly to Imakarum Mirabilis. There was so little of Murakami Masaki left that he was, effectively, dead.
Would that happen to him? To Mizuki? To their child?
"You said that you had a Guyver-Creature, Dr. Nighthawk." Sho asked, " Is he here?"
"No, we keep him at another base. We aren't sure how to safely transport him, and if he got loose in Cloud Gate . . ." She shrugged, "So we keep him were he was 'grown'."
"Does the creature interest you, Sho?" Archanfel asked.
"I'd like to know what I have in my head even more than you do." Sho turned to Archanfel, "I'd also like to know a lot of things. I'd like to know about you. What do you want? What is all this for? CHRONOS, The Ark, X-Day, why?"
Archanfel turned, "Lord Czyvek has already explained my motivations, albeit in a somewhat biased way."
"What will you do if they come, and they attack you?" Sho pressed, "What would you do if they try to destroy us again? Make the moon crash into the Earth or . . .?"
Archanfel frowned, "I see Czyvek's paranoia has affected you as well."
"Just because you're paranoid, it doesn't mean you're wrong." Sho replied.
Archanfel walked away. He clearly had no desire to discuss that possibility further.
Czyvek merely shrugged helplessly. It was clear he had attempted this conversation before.
Mirabilis walked away as well, looking for Kenji and leaving Sho with Czyvek, Ishi and Dr. Nighthawk. Sho looked at Czyvek, "What will you do if the Creators attack?"
"Whatever I can to stop them. Lord Purgstall wanted to bring peace to the world, not destruction. And I believe Lord Archanfel would fight them as well. He nearly died saving the world from them before." He looked out over the rows of Zoanoids, "But, they may have to the ability to control us just as we Zoalords can control Zoanoids."
"They can't control a Guyver."
"No, they can't. Perhaps if . . . No. It's for the best, I think. Without the Guyver, you will have a good chance at a normal life. It may be centuries before they arrive, if they come at all."
Sho could only hope he was right on both counts.
To be continued . . .