XXX

Reasons

Sitting there next to her in the bath Mayu wanted to ask Nana how she was feeling but just as quickly she decided to remain silent as Nana didn't leave her with the impression that the short haired Diclonius was in the mood for talking. When she had come home she had heard from Yuka what had happened, it went without saying that she was deeply worried about both of her adopted sisters though her immediate concern went out to Nana.

It didn't do her much good when she found Nana lying there on the bathroom floor, rushing over towards her she pulled her up, asking her in a frightened tone if she was alright though it seemed that Nana was just exhausted, both physically and mentally.

Her face had a gaunt feature to it, Nana hadn't been kidding when she had told her that she was simply tired and wanted to rest. Even now she still looked rather pale to Mayu, even more than what she considered normal for a tired person, it worried her to see her friend like this.

"Nana-san, I think it's best if you were to go to bed early today," Mayu mentioned cautiously, ending her silence as she had decided that the well-being of her friend and sister meant more to her. "If you want I can ask Yuka-san if she can get your futon set up for you if you let me help you then you can be in your room shortly."

Then again there wasn't really all that much left that Nana needed to do, Mayu had already scrubbed her earlier to get rid of the dirt and blood. If Nana were to dry herself then she could just go to their room and get the rest she desperately needed.

"I'll do your chores when I get home from school tomorrow, it's only a short day so I'll be back home early. You can sleep a little longer and have the day off. What do you think about that, Nana-san?" Mayu asked as she offered to help, just a day or two of rest would likely do wonders for Nana and from the looks on said girl's face she could really use it.

Still sitting there, her arms wrapped around her shoulders Nana didn't even bother to look at Mayu and answer her in return, she appeared to be still deeply immersed in her own thoughts.

Leaning in closer Mayu asked her, still concerned by her continuing silence. "Nana-san, did you hear me? Are you alright? Do you need me to get you anything? Is there something I can help you with? Nana-san, did you hear what I just asked you?" Was there something wrong with her after all, had she perhaps hit her head when she had falling down the first time?

Unsure on what to do Mayu just leaned in even closer now and pressed her hand against Nana's forehead which prompted an immediate reaction from the Diclonius. Pulled from her thoughts so suddenly Nana let out a confused and surprised impression as she looked in every direction to see what just had happened. "Ehm… M-Mayu…?" She gasped, her cheeks taking on more than a few shades of red.

Hugging her tightly Mayu let out a deep sigh of relief, she was so glad that Nana had come back to her senses. "Nana-san, you had me worried there for a second. How are you feeling?"

Nana blinked in response, "… Well, I ehm… not really sure, I mean I'm tired but I don't want too…" she trailed off, no longer finishing her sentence as she turned her head away from Mayu as if she was trying to avoid her gaze. "…It's just been an exhausting day for me, yeah exhausting. And you see I'm just really tired of it… that's all… nothing serious."

To Mayu, it somehow felt like a poor excuse that Nana was just making up. No there was something else that had worn her down that much, something that Nana was reluctant to share with anybody else. What was it that she could be hiding from her?

"I understand, Nana-san," she said, she was going to find out eventually and if Nana wasn't willing to talk to her about it for now then she likely had a good reason for it. "You should go and get some rest for yourself. You're going to feel a lot better tomorrow after some rest, I'll clean up the bathroom," Mayu said, what Nana was hiding would likely be told to her in the coming days once Nana had gotten enough rest and would feel a little more confident about telling her.

Until then Mayu was going to let her have the breathing space that her sister would need. Besides she had something else to worry about, she was wondering if it would be wise of her to inform Kouta and Yuka after what had happened today.

As Nana left the bathtub and reached out for a towel Mayu remained where she was, thinking about whether she should tell them or not. 'They already have enough problems as it is, what I have to tell them might just be too much for today. Perhaps I should wait and tell them tomorrow when things have died down.'

She felt rather uncertain about it, if something were to happen tonight or tomorrow then there was going to be no way that they could prepare themselves for it but then so far she hadn't made a move. 'They shouldn't be aware that Bando-san is working on this, we should be safe for now. Likely it won't hurt to keep this until tomorrow, they need the rest as well and Kouta-san seemed to be particularly worried about something else as well.'

"Mayu, are you alright? You have a pretty gloomy look," Nana called out to her, finished with getting herself dry she stood there with the towel wrapped around her. "Is there something wrong? Did something bad happen to you or Mei-san?"

It was a question that Mayu hadn't expected, the least of which was because Nana had seemed to be so absent but hearing her ask made her feel better. Perhaps that time for sharing their worries and finding comfort in each other had already come.

Gesturing for her to come and sit down next to her Mayu watched as the towel was dropped on the floor and Nana stepped back in the bath. Sitting right next to hear Nana leaned in closer. "Please Mayu, if it is bad then I want to help you," she whispered.

For Mayu it was becoming a bit too much, even when Nana had been through enough herself she did not stop caring for her friends, it was enough to make her shed a few tears from joy.

"Nana-san, thank you so much," Mayu whispered in return as she gave her a heartfelt hug.

"So that is how it is," Yuka remarked, it was about the only thing that she could say after having heard from Kouta about his encounter with this girl who called herself Anna, honestly she wanted to scream and cry at the same time but neither of them would have helped either of them any further. "What do you think she wants from us? Oh why did this have to happen, haven't the girls suffered enough already, haven't we been through pain and misery?" Her anger was rising and unfortunately, right now it was aimed at Kouta as he was the only person with her in the room.

"I know but please Yuka calm down, getting upset about this isn't going to help us. As I've told you I did contact Dai-san and told him the same thing as I've told you. We need to stay calm," Kouta mentioned, doing his best to diffuse her anger and reassure her that she didn't need to worry as he needed for her to remain calm as well. He certainly could do right now with having another person come up with a plan to handle their situation. Even if Dai was going to arrange things there was no guarantee that it would be safe for them, with that said Kouta was determined to find out and see her again.

"We need to make her understand that the girls are no longer a threat to the world. If we can make her see that then it's possible that she will help us. It sounds crazy but she said that she does want to harm any of them, I want to believe her."

Shaking her head in disapproval Yuka wasn't sure if she was supposed to laugh at him for making a really poorly timed joked or that she should just punch him in the face for being that stupid. "You shouldn't joke about it, you know what will happen if you're wrong right? Our lives are going to be ruined but the girls will get killed. I do not want to see any of them get hurt again!" Her fist slammed on the table. "I won't allow anybody to harm our girls! Our girls, Kouta!" she shouted, the tone of her voice rising, she was clearly angry even if her eyes were stained by tears. "They'll have to go through me first before I'll let them so much as crank a hair on their heads!"

"I get it, I get it, alright. Just please calm down Yuka?" Kouta cautioned once more for her to calm down, it wasn't getting any easier. "I feel the same way as you do. Believe me, I know this must be hard for you but you have to trust me on this one."

His words seeming to get through Yuka finally began to calm down though it didn't seem to be easy for her, well he couldn't really blame her for it. If he had been in her position he likely would have reacted the same, he sure wasn't planning on giving up on the girls without giving it his all. They would have to go through him as well before he would let any of the girls get harmed.

"So how are you planning to make her understand and please don't tell me you want for her to meet one of the girls first. I simply can't let you take one of the girls and risk getting caught," Yuka mentioned, still feeling uncertain about the idea. "It's too risky for that."

"I know, I fully know the risks," Kouta answered her, "But I won't be going alone, if Dai-san can convince her to come then I'll make sure that Bando-san will be there as well. Nana-san also has the most experience and between the two of them we should be relatively safe."

To Yuka it still sounded like a poorly plan, her doubts about it remained no matter how hard she tried and while Bando being present did do something to make her feel a little better the mere mention of Nana being present as well scared her. "I still don't like it Kouta…"

"So do I but we have to take action. If we do nothing then who knows what will happen. At least this way we still get to have a say in the matter and I prefer that over having nothing to say at all." Well it wasn't much but it was better than nothing, now he was starting to wonder just how well they could pull this off and whether or not she had been speaking the truth.

"Just promise me one thing, Kouta. If something goes wrong, I want you to take Nana-chan and run home. That the two of you will make it back safely understand?" Yuka demanded as she expressed her concern for the well-being of both him and her adopted daughter, making it very clear to Kouta. "If you don't then I'll break your legs and stop you from going through with this stupid plan."

Kouta smiled as he moved closer to her. "Yuka, thank you for being so worried about us. I promise you that we'll come back safely. Both of us." What else was there for him to say, he knew that it was a promise that would be hard to keep if things were to go sour but still one he had to make even if it was just to help Yuka deal with this unpleasant situation of theirs.

"Now that leaves us with what to do with Saori-chan, we can't afford for her to have another outburst like that again. We were lucky that nobody else was present in the house," he mentioned, his finger now tapping on the table as they discussed the damage to the kitchen.

It was going to be costly to have it all repaired, they didn't have a budget for this and likely it was going to provide problems later on if Nana was to go to school.

"I'll see if it's possible for us to get an extra loan, also we should have a look and see how much we can fix on our own. It's going to be a lot cheaper for us if we can repair most of the damage," Kouta said though he had no idea if that was even going to be possible, from what he had seen it almost seemed like a hopeless situation.

"You're not really the most skilled person for that Kouta, I think you should let that to the professionals before you get yourself hurt. The last thing we need is for you to be stuck in the hospital again," Yuka joked, her mood visibly improving, Kouta wasn't that good at fixing or making things. No, they were going to call somebody else to do that for them but that also meant even more expenses.

Well, it would be a problem for later, first things first. Craning her neck as she gazed at the ceiling Yuka began to wonder how much more pain they would be forced to endure as a family.

Looking at her little sister lying there almost peacefully Saeko didn't know what she was supposed to do, a part of her just wanted to stay up here with Saori and keep a watchful eye on her while the other part just wanted to go down and have a word or two with Nana.

"... W-Why... Saori-chan? Why did you have to get... hurt... again? Why don't they try to understand... that you're the one… who's suffering... here... the most?" she wept as she gently held her little sister's hand, it was easy to paint Saori as the bad person here but Saeko knew that deep inside that wasn't what Saori had wanted. Their little sister couldn't help it, it was that infernal device that people had forced on her.

"Nana-chan, likely didn't mean to hurt you either but still she did... why did you have to be so cruel... to your own sister, Nana-chan? It's not like Saori-chan... wanted to hurt you... she really didn't want to."

She wondered if it would be alright for her to leave Saori alone for the moment, she really needed to have a long talk with Nana to clear up what had exactly happened. She was angry, upset, and confused, there was no mistake over the fact that she felt that Nana had been too excessive in the amount of force she had used in order to subdue Saori.

"Nana-chan, you shouldn't have done that. Why... did you do it?" Saeko kept asking her herself in an attempt to try and come up with a way to find an answer to that question. Getting back up on her feet she silently left the room with tears in her eyes, hoping that Saori's health wasn't going to take a turn for the worse while she was away. Her aunt had stressed that for the coming days or even week that it was going to be important that Saori was to get enough rest and not have placed any strain on her already frail body.

If left alone there was a high chance that her wounds would heal but if something like today were to happen again there existed a risk of there being permanent damage to her body, unlike their bodies the one of Saori was degrading at an alarming pace. "If only we could do you for what master did for me, it would solve all of our problems…" she said in an exasperated tone, it served only to make her feel more depressed. Why did she kept thinking about him, it was a vain hope as she knew that he was dead.

She was only fooling herself by wishing that he would come back and help her family like he done back then. Perhaps it would be better for her to simply accept the harsh reality and stop making such childish wishes, she couldn't afford it anymore as she was going to need to take care of Saori even more from now on.

"... She needs me, even more than I need her. I can't let her down, I'm her big sister. Without me, she won't have anybody left. Without me they likely would've cast her out a long time ago, would they've even bothered to help her if it hadn't been for me…?" She didn't dare to think of the others leaving Saori to her own fate and die, that was simply too cruel for words. No, her family could never be that cruel, she absolutely refused to believe that was even possible. And yet a fraction of a doubt remained in her mind as she was all too aware of the trouble that Saori was causing her family and aunt, how many times had she not overheard their discussion over what they were going to do.

It pained her to hear them talk about Saori like that but there was little that she could do to persuade them otherwise, not to mention that she didn't know at all how badly her sister's body was degrading or how she was going to remove that thing stuck on her forehead.

For all of her desire of wanting to help she was effectively powerless simply because she did not know how to help. Just one of those things that would likely keep plaguing the few surviving Diclonius as they had so little knowledge of how this world worked.

Without humans, they were effectively lost as they simply had no idea how a world created by humans actually worked, even something as simple as the electricity that kept the lights on, the water they got to drink or bath in or the gas they used to cook their food. All such simple and vital things to live and yet neither she nor any of her sisters had any idea how it was created in the first place. It seemed to have made the entire rid the world of all humans idea a rather fruitless idea, likely most of the Diclonius would have died out within years. All they would have achieved had their race continued with that idea would have been their own species' destruction as Diclonius needed humans far more than humans would need the Diclonius. Over the past year that had become painfully obvious to her.

"That's right, this world doesn't need us. People have been living here for so long without us, so many of my kind have died and yet it makes no difference to the world outside. Nobody cares about us…" she whimpered, sighing as she said the words. Painful and cruel as they sounded they were also true. Even without the Diclonius the world kept on going and humans kept on thriving, continuing with their everyday lives. "Even so I still like to live in this human world… I love this world… I love my family… and I love… my friends..."

She stopped at the top of the stairs and brought her hands up, burying her face in them she let it all out and cried for what it was worth, all the grief and sadness for those who had died without ever knowing what the world could offer them. Dropping to her knees she cried for all of her dead sisters. Desolation and grief coming over her.

Concealed by the darkness they moved in closer across the top deck of the ship, to think that they had actually been able to board it that easily, security on the ship had to be pathetic. He kept looking to his left and right, always vigilant with every step he took, making sure that nobody was going to either notice them or got the drop on them. If they were to be discovered it was going to be all over.

"Any word from your goons? They're awfully quiet," Bando remarked as they halted at a junction, stairs leading both up and down towards the holds.

"Very funny," Sakai remarked, a hint of irritation noticeable in his voice, " They're maintaining radio silence, only use the radio's when it's absolutely necessary. The last thing we want is to alert our hosts to our presence by being sloppy with the radio's, a man of your caliber should be fully aware of that simple principle."

Not letting his annoyance getting the better of him the man simply kept it at that, preferring to bite back on any further insult that he came to expect from Bando. "Do your job properly and act like a professional. You're not a damn rookie on their first job so stop acting like one you bastard. Or I'll throw you off this ship myself."

Bando grinned, ah he was already starting to enjoy himself. Well, for now, he would stop irritating Sakai but that didn't take away that he wasn't going to take what the man said for granted, even with radio silence in effect he knew that the various teams would contact each other at regular intervals to provide an idea of the progress they were achieving. Besides that he also doubted that these people that Sakai had brought with him were dumb enough to be careless with the usage of their radio's and unless their adversaries were actively searching for the channels they used the chance of them being found out were close to nihil.

Taking a quick peek around the corner he noticed that the coast was clear. "It's safe, move it, quickly," he snapped as he gestured for Sakai to quickly follow him so they could get past and out of the light lest they wanted to be spotted. "The overhead over there should offer us more cover."

"Agreed but we should keep moving, although this location offers us overhead protection we are also exposed to anybody coming through those entrances." Sakai pointed towards a series of doors that could be seen just ahead of them, no doubt those would offer direct access to other decks and parts of the ship. "If somebody comes through any of those they'll spot us in an instant, we need to find a location that is more secure. We should see if we can acquire access to the quartermaster's office and see what their shipping records have to mention."

Keeping his reservations to himself as he doubted that the cargo manifests were going to have noted down any kind of illegal cargo this ship might have been transporting Bando took up position next to the door. Feeling the knob it seemed that it wasn't locked so they could use it to gain entrance to the ship itself. "You open it, I'll provide cover for you," he signaled towards Sakai as he already had drawn his pistol, mounting the silencer he watched as the man took his position and readied his own pistol.

"On the count of three. One. Two. Three." The door was flung open, pistols aimed for any potential targets but the corridor proved to be empty and devoid of any personal. "Coast is clear, let's move quickly. I'll take point, you cover the rear." Sakai was the first one inside with Bando following close behind, thus far it was all going smoothly though somehow they both got the impression that this was going a little too smoothly. They couldn't shake off the uneasy feeling that something very bad was going to happen and it kept their senses sharp.

"You're feeling this too right?" Sakai asked him as they halted near another junction. "This uneasy feeling, something's wrong here but I can't quite put my finger on it."

Bando didn't say a word, he didn't have to as they were both on the same wavelength here.

Both of them understood that these corridors were far too empty, normally they should be alive with crewmembers, not being devoid of any person like they were at the moment. Even if it was rather suspicious they were thankful as it meant they could move quickly and unopposed. Yet despite their rapid advance, they were also aware that it was likely for them to move ever deeper into trouble, the risk of an ambush growing with every step they took. "You would at least expect somebody to be here."

Sakai nodded his head. "Agreed, this is just a little too deserted if you ask me. Now I can understand that most of the crew would be busy in helping with the unloading but it just doesn't sit well with me. Wait here, I'm going to contact the other teams, see what they have encountered so far."

Halting at a nearby room that would offer them some cover Bando kept watch, the last thing they could afford now was for somebody to get the drop on them or hear their talk. "Make it fast," he remarked as he kept scanning their immediate surroundings, never losing sight of the door or the two hallways.

When it seemed the talk was over Sakai turned towards him. "Seems like the other teams are experiencing the same thing as we are, so far it appears that the only activity going on is at the cargo holds. Let's press on but maintain caution, I don't like the sound of how things are going."

Bando found himself agreeing to that, well needed to keep on going anyway. "Did your men report anything out of the ordinary as well? Nothing that caught their attention in particular?" he asked, somehow he got the idea that they had missed something. It kept nagging at the back of his mind, an eerie sensation that felt hauntingly familiar to him but couldn't place.

"No, nothing special. Most of the other places on this ship appear to be extinct. Now let's go and keep your eyes open." They set off again, pushing ever deeper into the structure of the ship, heading for what would they hoped would provide them with an answer to what exactly was going on with this ship.

"It's way too quiet if you ask me," Bando remarked as he kept a watchful eye on the hallway, the last thing they could use right was to be caught. This room was a dead-end which meant that if they were discovered that they would be cornered with no way out.

"Sakai, pick up the fucking pace dammit, we've already been here for far too long. If anybody spots us we may have mere seconds to get out of here. You know what that means right," he growled in irritation as he made a gesture for his companion to quicken his pace.

Sakai's hand shot up. "Keep it down Bando, don't rush me. This is why I brought you with me, to make sure that we don't get trapped inside." His fingers dashed across the keyboard as he worked his way through the manifolds and other documents. "I need more time to find my way through this, there is just way too much documentation here."

Bando just sneered in response, no further point in arguing about the matter, all he could do for now was to make sure that anybody stupid enough to try and take them on would be dealt with swiftly, and if possible, quietly without giving them the chance to raise the alarm.

"Just make it as fast as you can, I prefer to be somewhere else. Besides you really believe that there is anything stored here that could be of any use to us? I say we go elsewhere."

Getting up from behind the computer Sakai looked at him. "You're right, it might be better if we go towards the cargo area and search the office of the loading master. My best guess is we can find the cargo manifolds there and see what it is that they are transporting."

Not exactly what Bando had been wanting to hear, that meant they were going to need to go further down and towards those areas most likely crowded now. The risk of them getting discovered was going to rise exponentially and they weren't exactly invited upon the ship.

The crew was going to treat them as hostiles without a doubt and even he wasn't so anxious to get caught in a confined hallway while having to fight off several dozen men.

"That's going to take us closer to where the crew is, you know what is going to happen when they catch us?" Bando remarked, outside it was still quiet but that didn't make him any less tense. There was something gnawing at the back of his mind, something that kept him from relaxing and yet it remained so elusive.

Sakai walked away from the computer but not before turning everything off so it seemed that nobody had been here, the less evidence of their presence the better. "Don't remind me of that, I don't like going there any more than you do, Bando! But unless we get that information this whole operation will be for naught! Like hell, I'm going to let that happen! Now move your ass, we're going down there!" He was done here anyway.

Checking outside the hallway to make sure that the coast was clear Bando signaled to Sakai that they could move further. Restricting themselves to mere hand signals to move further without making a noise, right now stealth was their best ally. Moving from room to room they were surprised to find that there was nobody on this floor, one might think that some crew would be resting but this place was also deserted.

It was odd and yet there was very little that they could do about the situation right now, all that remained was for them to move forward and find what they needed and then get off the ship before being discovered. At least there was also an advantage to this area being deprived of any crew as it removed the risk of a premature discovery.

A quick gesture from Bando made them both stop, hunkering down in the shadows they listened, somewhere up ahead they could hear noise, it sounded like voices but it was difficult to tell for certain. Sakai moved in closer, to the point that he was right next to Bando.

"Hostiles? Any advice on our course of action?" he asked, willing to let Bando offer a suggestion based on the situation as the man had been in this kind of situation more often that he had.

"Don't know," Bando replied when in the distance the voices died down. "But it seems to be clear for us to move further for the moment, still I advise caution. We might just have the bad luck of them having finished unloading their cargo."

"I doubt it," Sakai pointed out to him. "They had not even prepared the unloading protocols when we entered the ship, there is simply no chance that they can get that all done in less than an hour. We should still have some time left before they're finished."

Bando nodded in agreement, somewhat impressed by the man's astute observations. "Alright then," he grinned. Just then the radio came alive as Sakai was called out by one of the other teams.

"Sir, reporting heavy activity in the forward hold, seems to be something big going down there. Requesting immediate reinforcements. Alpha out."

Exchanging glances Bando and Sakai knew what to do, they had a new location to go to.

Moving while keeping to the shadows as much as possible to avoid detection they made their way quickly towards the main cargo hold, damn this sure was a big ship but until now it's vast size hadn't really gotten through to them yet. Bando had lost count on how long it had taken them to get here after they had received the call, apparently there was a sudden surge of activity within one of the forward cargo hold. Though of course, that could mean a lot.

Bando wasn't entirely happy when the message had come through but he couldn't just tell Sakai not to go, he had no authority over these men and even if he wanted to he wasn't going to risk his own hide for them. He owed these people nothing, if things went sour he was gone.

They would be on their own if it were to come to that, which is why he had made sure that he had come prepared even with the assurances of Sakai that this was going to be an easy assignment for him. 'Fucking hell it is, I don't know any of you people and I sure as hell don't trust any of you.' he grumbled as that thought surfaced, this wasn't worth him risking his neck. Not for any of these people.

A frustrating feeling he had been having ever since they had arrived here and one that only kept on growing the longer this operation kept on going. 'I wonder if that idiot Sakai even knows them well enough, sure as hell doesn't leave that impression on me.'

His suspicions kept on gnawing at the back of his mind, his senses razor-sharp as his blood was up, there was going to be one hell of a fight later on. He was pretty certain that something was going to go horribly wrong before this night would be so much as over.

"It seems we're in luck agent Bando, with so many people there the remainder of the ship appears to be equally deserted. If this keeps going then we might just be able to get what we came for and be able to leave without any them ever finding out," Sakai said, the tone of his voice betraying his rather optimistic mood, not a good sign to Bando as it made it too easy for the man to lose his vigilance.

"I don't believe in luck Sakai, luck is for cowards and ignorant fools. I find that message being a little too convenient and us having not run into anybody is just too suspicious to me."

he spat, already he was looking far ahead of him to spot any points where there could be an ambush, in these long narrow corridors it was almost impossible to dodge enemy fire. They were simply too vulnerable and too easy to pin down.

Their only hope was to make sure that nobody were to spot them and get through these corridors as fast as possible, once they would reach the area where they were going there would be more room to maneuver but until then he would prefer not getting spotted.

"As pessimistic as ever, be grateful for it because the sooner this is over the sooner we can part ways. I do not wish to be stuck with you for any longer than I absolutely have to!" Sakai didn't hold back the contempt he held for Bando, he wasn't interested in any of his complaints or other drivel. He was just here at his request to provide additional backup when needed, not to be here and criticize every part of this operation.

Bando stopped in mid stride at that remark. "Let's get this straight here and now Sakai! I sure as hell don't like you! I think this entire operation is a giant waste of my time! Your men are in my opinion nothing more than a bunch of amateurs with guns!" He simply had it.

"Don't you dare to cross that line, Bando! You're here at my request, if you keep up with this insubordination then I will-."

Bando cut him off right then and there. "But you won't right?! You fucking won't?! You came to me, Sakai! You came to me to ask me for help! You must be pretty desperate to come and ask a man you loathe so much for help! No, the way I see it you need me fucking more than I need you!" A wide grin started to appear on his face as he knew that had Sakai by the balls so to speak. He didn't need to be here, it wasn't his call to be here.

Sakai hissed underneath his breath. "You damn bastard! I'm going to make you pay for this!"

Laughing at how pathetic that threat sounded Bando smiled as he planted the muzzle of his weapon against Sakai's chest. "I would like to see you try after this is over, make no mistake. I won't hesitate to pull the trigger if I have to. You and your threats mean nothing to me!"

'Go ahead you bastard, give me any reason to pull this trigger, I won't give a damn if you die here miserably and by yourself.' Bando was ready, daring for Sakai to make a move.

Letting out a deep sigh Sakai relented, his voice sounding exasperated, "You win, just don't think that the last word on this has been spoken. Now if you would so kindly remove this." His finger resting on top of the barrel the man looked down at the weapon. He had been defeated and though it loathed him he also admitted to it.

Turning around Bando set off again towards the cargo holds, he was done here anyway.

Standing in front of the window and staring at the dark street below him Dai had an uneasy feeling that he just couldn't explain nor shake from his mind. Leaning against it, he wondered if he was feeling guilty about having rejected the request that Bando had made to him this afternoon, at that time it had seemed like yet another one of his wild goose chases that were likely going to end up in them getting their asses handed to them.

His body still bore the scars of the last one, he was still recovering which made him all the more reluctant to go with him, he also didn't want to put his family through this kind of fear again. Casting a quick glance across his shoulder he let out a disturbed sigh, lying on the bed behind him was Mako, she was his wife and he had a responsibility to her, he had one as well to their children, all three of them.

Sei was luckily still too young to even understand which meant that if he didn't go through with it anymore then he would never have to worry about explaining it to the boy but sadly the same could no longer be said for either Kyou or Ryou. That last chase had really gotten both of them pretty scared not to mention angry at him for being so stupid. He couldn't bring himself to make any of them go through such an ordeal again, he just simply couldn't do it anymore.

They were sound reasons, any sane person would agree with him and yet he could not shake this uneasy feeling he was having. Was the guilt for having left Bando to go on his own with those people getting to him? No, it couldn't be, Bando was capable of handling it himself.

The man was more than able of saving his own hide than he was, no, he could look after himself just fine. Didn't matter how many people he would be facing, Bando would pull through.

Dai knew that in those cases the man was more likely to get out unscathed unlike him for instance. How many times had he relied on getting helped by Bando? How often had he come to depend on Bando's skill to make it out alive? He had kind of lost count after the tenth time.

"… You're awake…?" Mako asked as she let out a soft yawn, opening her eyes slowly, seeing him standing there she clumsily rose up from underneath the blankets. "You should get back in bed, it's already pretty late or early depending on your point of view."

"I can't, I'm not really tired you know. It's just that…"

Mako smiled, still with a sleepy expression on her face, "You're feeling guilty about having said no to him am I right?. I guess that means you have become to like his company don't you? Do you think you did the right thing by staying here?"

He sighed once more as he heard her questions, he didn't know what was worse. That she actually asked him? Or that she was pretty much spot on? Guess he had been spending too much time and going on too many wild chases with Bando. "Is it that obvious? Besides, I thought you didn't want me to go out anymore whenever those chases of him are concerned? You don't like him do you?"

"I'm your wife, you shouldn't feel guilty about it nor should you feel obliged to. You're right, I don't really like Bando-san nor do I like having him anywhere near my children or my niece for that matter. The more distance there is between us and him the better if you ask me."

He fully turned around, yeah she did have a point there. "So if I may ask then, what do you think of Bando then? You think that I should have gone with him and possibly get myself into a lot of trouble?"

She pushed herself up, sitting up straight now on the bed as she looked up to him. "He's a bit of an ass, very foul tempered, definitely a total jerk, and undoubtedly a deranged gun maniac. But I also find him to be somebody you can depend on even if the going gets tough."

Well, that last bit had certainly come as a surprise to Dai, never thought he was going to hear Mako actually say something positive about the man. He wondered what had caused that or was it perhaps that she had always thought of Bando like that?

"So what else is keeping you awake? Are you also worried about what Kouta-kun told you, about that girl having found out about the girls? It's troubling but isn't it better for you to get enough rest and think about it tomorrow with a fresh head, you can't plan everything."

Staring at her he was at a loss for words, she was right. If he kept pounding himself like this then he wasn't able to do anything tomorrow and it was more important than ever for him to be properly rested as they couldn't afford to make any mistakes. "You're right."

"Of course I am, I'm your wife. Also while I have your attention, have you made up your mind about letting the girls stay over for the week at the inn? I'm a bit hesitant with them being found but if she knows about the inn and the twins then likely she knows about us as well."

Dai nodded as he slowly approached the bed, he had reached that same conclusion a while ago. There was no reason to think otherwise and it was better to just plan for the worst case scenario.

"It likely won't make much of a difference if they stay here or not. Even so, I still want them to have fun and not feel like they are confined to this house, they can go as far as I'm concerned."

Mako had to smile and yawn at the same time before wrapping her arms around his neck, pulling him down to her level she whispered in his ear, "… I'm sure they will… appreciate it…"

Having reached the main cargo hold Bando hunkered down near a large pile of crates, this was going to provide plenty of cover. Signaling that it was clear for Sakai to move in as well he nevertheless kept a certain distance between himself and Sakai.

There had been a growing distrust between the two of them since their little argument earlier but right now Bando couldn't give a rat's ass about it. No the only thing that mattered right now was for them to get the damn information that Sakai and his goons were after and then to get the hell off this ship. With that, he would part immediately ways with his current company and make sure that he was never going to see sad company's ugly face again.

Risking a peek from behind the crates he noticed that it certainly was busy down there but most of his view was obstructed by various large shipping containers, if he wanted to get a better look then he was going to need to get in a lot closer but doing so would also risk him being exposed.

He wasn't too fond of that, especially when he didn't know the exact numbers and composition of the enemy below, well staying here wasn't going to help him get that information either. Taking a chance he moved forward cautiously, keeping himself as low as possible, although moving slowly he made good progress as he crept ever closer. It was difficult to move at such a slow pace but at least he wouldn't risk being detected like this.

Throwing back a glance he was satisfied that Sakai kept to the crates and not expose himself needlessly, if he kept there then at least he would have an early warning if somebody were to come from the back. Once he had reached his new vantage point he dared a glance below he saw much to his own dissatisfaction that there was precious little to see, dammit he needed to get even closer.

Signaling to Sakai that he was coming back he took one last look, catching a brief glimpse of a figure standing out from the men around the person of interest. But as briefly as the figure had appeared just as quickly it disappeared from his sight. He didn't know why but that figure felt like a bad omen.

Getting back he quickly reported to Sakai what he had seen, "I don't know about you but I'm getting a bad feeling about this. There is something going on down there alright but I don't have a single clue as to what that might be."

"Aye," Sakai nodded as he held out the radio for Bando to see. "Contact with the other teams has also gone down, I can't raise any of them. It might be the way this ship is constructed that interferes with the signal or you might be right about what you said earlier. Not even the team who reported something going on in here is calling in, dammit."

He wasn't going to argue over that, Bando knew that right now it was more important to either establish contact again with the other teams or failing that finding out what had happened to them. Right now what was going on in the cargo hold was going to have to wait.

"So where do we go now? We don't even know what their last positions are?" Bando was already feeling his reservations about just going and look for the missing teams, with the sheer size of the ship who knew how much time was going to be wasted. There was also still the mission priority of them finding out what was going on and what the cargo was.

Sure enough, Sakai didn't disappoint him in the least. "We'll go to the office first, find out what they are transporting. Keep your eyes open as we might run into the missing men."

"Not much of a team player are you?" Bando sneered, still watching for any sentries who might patrol this area. "Your men must be feeling so safe knowing that you have their backs!"

"Enough with that, the mission comes first. These men have all been briefed on that. And I distinctly recall you making it pretty damn clear that these men mean nothing to you," Sakai said in an angry sounding retort, not holding back on what was clear to them both. "You're no saint either Bando, keep that in mind. We go for those manifolds and on our way back we will look for the others. With some luck, the damn radio might start working again." They set off, heading towards where hopefully there was the office containing the manifolds they needed. At least they were planning to until a loud commotion from down below in the cargo hold caught their attention.

They were caught in a difficult situation now, none of the others teams had called in or could be reached, something big was going on down below and it was impossible for either of them to tell what exactly.

"Either we move further and look what is happening or we go back and try to find that office. We need to make a decision Sakai as staying here longer isn't going to help us!"

Sakai carefully considered their options, if they went looking for the office and the cargo manifolds then they would have what they had come for but it was going to take time to locate it, on the other hand, if they went in closer and see what was happening down below they could gain a clearer understanding of what exactly was happening.

Then there was also that they needed to reestablish contact with the other teams or go and look for them, it might even be that they had been discovered and captured by the ship's crew which meant that the operation was likely already compromised.

But Bando had been right, they couldn't remain here for any longer, action had to be taken, decisions had to be made. Remaining here was only going to make sure that the mission was going to fail.

"We'll go and check for the manifolds but if we are to get word of the missing teams before we have located it then we will move in to support them. If the contact can't be reestablished with the other teams we will revert back to the original goal of retrieving those manifolds and then make our escape."

That was his decision, what was going on down there wasn't important. If they moved now and quickly then it might be possible for them to correct the situation and still maintain the initiative. "You're okay with that? If not then you can go to hell and get your sorry ass off this boat, I don't need you. I need men who can do their fucking job!"

Bando chuckled, finally, it seemed that things were going to become a bit more interesting to him. "Lead the way, just make sure you don't die all too quickly." Holstering back the pistol he had been carrying ever since getting on board, he unslung the submachine gun he had brought along with him as well, given that it did have a silencer it was going to be more in handy and in these confined corridors he preferred the higher rate of fire. "I trust no objections if I use this should the situation demand it?"

Sakai gritted his teeth. "Be my guest, I'll likely join in as well." the man remarked as he also changed his sidearm for a similar looking submachine gun. "These bastards try anything, we'll respond in kind."

Laying down their futons down on the Nana was, at last, starting to feel a lot better now that she has had the chance to talk to Mayu, she had been right after all; it had been the right choice to tell her sister what had been troubling her. "Mayu, thank you for having taken the time to listen to me, I'm really glad you did as it gave me the confidence to tell you about what happened between me and Saori-chan."

"It's okay Nana-san, I'm just glad as well that you were willing to stay and talk to me about it, I also appreciated it that you listened to what I had to say. I feel so much better now that I had a chance to tell this to somebody. I just wish that I could have told Kouta-san and Yuka-san as well as they deserve to know."

Nana listened, that was true but then if those bad people weren't aware that Mayu was looking for them then what possible risk could there be involved for them. She knew Bando just as well as her sister did and she knew that the man wasn't going to leave any trace behind, to her it didn't seem like that waiting until tomorrow was going to cause them any more trouble.

"It should be alright Mayu, with Bando-san doing his best you shouldn't worry. I mean he knows what he's doing and besides he doesn't seem like the person to give us away."

That was true, Bando would never betray Mayu's trust towards him, he would rather die than to let that happen. No, for now, they would still be safe.

"I guess you're right Nana-san but I'm going to tell them about this tomorrow anyway," Mayu said in response to her sister's comforting words, she was feeling less anxious and less guilty about not telling her guardians about her problem already.

"Then I'll be there as well to support you, I'm not going to let you go alone." Nana smiled as she took off her shirt and pants, it was already pretty late and she just needed to change to her pajamas. A good night rest was likely going to do more to help her to enable what happened to sink in with her just like Mayu had said. Then she would go and talk to Saeko about what to do about their little sister, it still weighed heavy on her that she had not gone and talked to her kin-sister about this earlier. Sure a lot had been going on in her mind but as far as she was considered that was a rather poor excuse as this concerned their little sister.

"I'm sure that she'll understand, just explain to her. She's your sister and she loves you just as much as you love her. Besides right now I don't think that her mind is willing to talk, she seemed pretty worried about Saori-chan when she heard it, give her some time to let sink in as well with her."

It gave Nana something to think about but somehow she also felt that it was going to make the first few moments of their talk rather tense, it made her feel a little nervous but likely Saeko was going to be just as nervous about it as well. It might even be that if they were to have their talk now that either of them might say words that they did not mean, the last thing she wanted right now was to say something that would hurt one of her sisters.

Kneeling down next to her Mayu let her hand rest on top of Nana's hand, comforting her and letting her know that it was going to be alright. "Trust yourself Nana-san and trust the love this family has for each-."

Mayu didn't get the chance to finish her sentence as they were interrupted when the door slid open and Saeko stepped inside, her red-stained eyes staring at Nana with anger. "Nana-chan, m-my dear sister. W-Why… did you do… that to… our little sister… why did you… how could you… why...?" Tears ran down her cheeks.

Author's note: Well folks there it is, the newest chapter and just in the nick of time before the holidays begin. Firstly I want to wish all of you reading this a Merry Christmas, be certain that you can spend the coming days with your family, loved ones, friends and those who you hold dear. Savor and cherish the coming days that you get to spend with them.

Secondly, enjoy the chapter, I'm looking forward to reading your thoughts and opinions. I'm gonna work hard in the coming days to try and see if I can manage to get one more chapter edited and posted for you to enjoy before this year comes to its end.

Anyway, I'm going to wrap this up quickly before these author's notes turn into an essay of their own. Once again a Merry Christmas to you all.

Right, that's enough of my rambling.

Until next time, enjoy the holidays, and take care folks.