The refugees' stay in the darkness did not last for long. Almost immediately after Tobi had spoken, several rows of overhead lights flickered on, illuminating the chamber they were now within in a soft, yellow light.
None of them had very much time to take in their surroundings, though, because almost immediately after the lights came on, someone decided that it would also be a smart move to activate the artificial gravity that up until this point had been absent. And while the Akatsuki escapees were very grateful to have gravity restored, they probably would have enjoyed it more if the escape pod hadn't been floating in midair twenty-five feet above the ground.
It was, in the words of many hangmen, a short drop with a quick stop.
The immediate effects of the crash included bumps, bruises, and slight concussions for two of the crew on board. None of this mattered to Sasori, because in the crash landing Deidara's hat and glasses had come off, exposing two bright blue hawk eyes and a pair of pointed ears for all to see.
There was a momentary shock as everyone stared at the blonde. Not surprisingly, it was Hidan who broke the seemingly endless trance into which the group had fallen. "Holy shit, he's a Falk!"
"Sasori danna," the blonde whispered softly. His wide, frightened eyes darted to the puppeteer, unsure of what to do now that their secret had been revealed so suddenly. Tragically for them both, the Akasuna had also not foreseen such a rapid exposure of the blond's true identity, and was unable to formulate a suitable cover-up on the spot.
Their panic was soon noticed by Hidan, and the Jashinist was quick to draw his own conclusions. Giving Sasori an accusing glare, the masochist began yelling. "'Danna'? You bastard, you're working for the Falks, aren't you?"
"NO!" Deidara exclaimed. "Danna's just-"
"You shut up!"
"Don't you dare talk to him like that!" Sasori ordered.
"Why shouldn't I? The bastard's a Jashin-damned spy!"
"No he isn't! He's just another kid whose life's been ruined by this war."
"So what, you thought you'd take him in, dumbass? Hmm? Trying to get some good karma so you'll be all set when they send you on a fucking bombing mission?"
"Both of you be quiet," Kisame commanded in an irate tone. "In the last hour, I've found out that one of my newest and most promising soldiers is harboring someone that could be an enemy agent, I've lost my ship, I'm trapped in a crappy little escape pod that smells like vomit and am currently suspended by a safety harness from the ceiling while within the bowels of a ship run by Kami knows who. The last thing I need right now is for you two to start bickering. So SHUT UP!"
"Yes sir," the duo murmured in unison. The fighting could wait until their situation improved a bit.
It appeared that fate had finally decided to smile upon the group, as their ship was suddenly turned upright by an unseen force. Sasori heard a few clicks and hisses, interrupted when their door was suddenly unhinged and dropped to the rusted steel floor, presumably by whomever had sat them up moments earlier. And then, a head poked itself into the vessel.
The person was a female; short brown hair and caramel colored hawk eyes, slight build, and pointed ears adorned her visible parts. She appeared to be wearing a dress of some sorts that matched her red beret, but for the most part kept her body hidden by the wall of the ship.
The Falk peered around at the survivors in the ship, as if to assess whether this batch was alive or dead. As she looked about her nose wrinkled, and she clicked under her breath softly while recoiling ever so slightly. "Deidara, what's she saying?"
"Just that the pod smells like barf, un," the blonde explained. Turning his attention from Sasori to the female, he let out a soft hiss under his breath and smiled at the Falk.
To no one's surprise, the girl was surprised to find one of her own kind amidst the human refugees, as made apparent by the widening of her eyes and slight flinch. Nevertheless, she soon recomposed herself and began conversing with Deidara casually, as if the two had nothing better to do but shoot the breeze while the others looked on in confusion.
Finally, after a good three or four minutes of their constant chatter, Sasori decided it was necessary to interrupt them with a slight cough. "Erm, Deidara…exactly what is going on here?"
The blond Falk looked to the Akasuna and smiled widely. "We've been saved by the Verden Underground Movement, un."
"VUM?" Hidan asked. "What kind of name-"
"They're taking us back to their headquarters, un," the Falk went on, completely ignoring the rather rude Jashinist by now. "The leader is hoping they can garner support from your Army by showing that not all Falks support this war."
"So, we were rescued as a show of goodwill?" Kisame inquired with a bitter smirk.
"Yes, un."
"Well, are we allowed to get out of the pod? It's really starting to stink in here."
A quick hiss and a few clicks later, Deidara had confirmed that the group had permission to remove themselves from the vessel. This didn't necessarily mean that everyone was willing to exit the craft, however. "The hell I'm setting foot out of here," Hidan protested from his seat.
"Hidan, you can't stay on here," Sasori tried to reason as he unstrapped himself, before assisting Deidara in removing the harness around him.
"You shut up, traitor. I don't trust that blond as far as I can throw his Falk ass, damnit. For all we know, he could be selling us out right now."
"Fine. Stay in the barfy ship. I'm getting out," Sasori declared with an air of finality. Not looking back at the stubborn zealot for even a moment, he grabbed Deidara's arm and hauled the duo out of the ship.
Almost immediately they were pounced on by another Falk.
Yet another female, this solider dressed in camo capris and a solid green tank top. Around her waist was a thick, black utility belt and a hunting knife, easily within her reach should the need arise to use them. A red beret sat atop her head, nicely complimenting her short blue hair and eyes. All in all, the woman looked like she meant business. "You are ze refugees?"
It was the voice with a French accent that they'd heard on the communicator, and who had warned them about the approaching tanker. "Yes-" Sasori began.
"Sir, I am ze leader of zis section of ze movement," the woman stated with a salute. "Chief Konan is my title, and I am at your service for ze duration of your stay."
"Thank you," Sasori replied with a surprised tone and a raised brow. Collecting himself a moment later, he cleared his throat and motioned to the blue-skinned man behind him, who had just now been able to exit the pod. "This is my commander, General Hoshigaki-"
"Please, introductions later," the woman pled. "We are still looking for more survivors, and if we don't leave zis room immediately, we will be sucked out into space." The woman beckoned the group to follow her across the room, presumably to an exit from the chamber.
"Hey, wait a minute!"
The humans and Falks turned to see an angry-frightened Hidan standing in the escape pod's doorway, looking at them with confusion on his face. "What about me, damnit?"
Konan smirked at the silver-haired male. "No one is forcing you to come, monsieur. If you wish to stay and be, 'ow you say, thrown into the vacuum of space, we won't stop you." You could see Hidan's expression change from slight bewilderment to full-blown terror in a heart beat. Before you could say Jashin damnit, the male was out of the pod and with the rest of his group.
Konan made quick work of leading them across the large, vacant chamber to the room's only exit. Sasori was a bit surprised by the door; unlike most modern ships, where all you had to do was push a button and the doors would slide away into the wall, this tanker's door had to be manually opened by twisting an oversized, rusted wheel in the center, and then swung back into the hallway. How old was this ship?
"Geez, this thing's older than me," Hidan stated as they entered the corridor and waited for Konan to seal off the chamber. The hall was narrow and lined with steel doors, most of which were closed. Like the other room, this area was illuminated by yellow light bulbs, more than a few of which were burned out.
"It is old, monsieur loud-mouth, but it gets ze job done," the chief informed him. "Now zen. We 'ave many rooms for you to stay in while we return to headquarters. My assistants will be more zan 'appy to-PEIN!"
A man with multiple piercings, pale skin, and messy orange hair poking out from beneath his beret had just exited a nearby room and froze at the name. Nervously, he turned his head towards Konan and clicked something in reply.
Instantly the female was upon him, clicking, hissing, and clawing at the poor soul that was now desperately trying to shield himself from the attack and click back at her. "All right, I'll bite," Kisame said. "What's gotten into her?"
"Apparently Pein activated the gravity too quickly and we fell because of that, un," Deidara translated. "She thinks it made a bad impression."
"Exactly what is she saying, though?" Sasori pressed.
"Something about his mother and a curling iron…you don't want to know the rest, un."
With a firm shove back into what had been revealed to be a control room, Konan abandoned Pein and spun around to look at her guests again, smiling nervously at the soldiers. "Sorry about zat. Pein is, erm…well, a pain at times. Now, as I was saying, ze ozer resistance members will be more zan 'appy to find you people rooms to stay in. But I must be going now. Au revoir!" With a wave, the commander was off to fulfill her other duties, leaving the refugees in the hands of a few Falks.
As they walked down the hall, Sasori chanced asking Deidara a question, even though he was fairly certain he knew what the answer would be. "Deidara, what did they mean, return to headquarters?"
"What do you think they meant, danna?" Deidara asked with a carefree smile. "We're going to Verden, un!"