Neither Haruka, nor Michiru knew what to expect as they entered the cave; it only took a few steps for the daylight to stop illuminating the cave, and Michiru paused her walk for a moment, digging out the flashlight she had brought along and switching it on, not wanting either of them to twist an ankle on the rough, stony ground.
"Maybe you should walk in front of me", Haruka suggested after a while, as they moved deeper and deeper into the cave, "just in case you get another of those visions and faint or something? Then I can catch you."
"Good point", Michiru agreed, speeding up a bit to move past Haruka, asking her if the flashlight still illuminated the cave well enough for her once she was in front of her, the blonde reassuring her that it was and that she could see just fine.
Hoping that there would be no need for Haruka to catch her, Michiru kept moving, glancing around to make sure that no strange creatures would jump them from the shadows; the cave was quiet though, only a soft drip drip drip of water coming from somewhere deep within it, no other noises reaching her ears.
"I'm surprised that this cave seems so empty", she murmured to Haruka, keeping her voice low just in case, "one would think that, on this planet, all sorts of creepy creatures would make this their home. But there aren't even any insects, it seems."
"That is weird", Haruka agreed, glancing around as well, "maybe it's the vault keeping them away somehow, I mean, if a piece of the key was enough to activate your Siren powers…"
Nodding, Michiru strained her ears for any other noise than the constant dripping of water; and just then, as she took another step, goosebumps broke out all over her body, a shiver running down her spine, as if an ice-cold finger had slowly trailed down her skin.
"You felt that, too, right", Haruka whispered behind her, the sniper not sure if she should feel relieved about this or if it should concern her; she nodded her agreement, belatedly realizing that she had stopped walking and that her hand had dropped to her gun, her heart suddenly beating painfully fast as she looked around, all at once just sure that something would happen any moment… and that it wouldn't be something good.
As if to confirm this, the ground trembled beneath their feet, the way it had in her vision, both of them briefly fighting to stay on their feet; and then, a massive roar sounded through the cave, Michiru automatically taking a step back even though no threat was in sight, bumping into Haruka, the taller woman steadying her immediately by placing a firm hand on her back.
"What the Hell was that", she murmured, once she could be sure that Michiru wasn't having another vision and wouldn't end up collapsing into her arms, "did the weird voice warn you about that?"
"No", Michiru told her, slowly relaxing again as no more trembling and no more roars happened, "but whatever it was, I'm not sure I want to meet it. It sounded… big."
"And hungry", Haruka added, prompting Michiru to wonder how she could tell about this after a simple roar; then, she shrugged it off, turning to look at the blonde, not bothering to hide her dismay when she asked if perhaps, it'd be smarter to just take the mysterious voice's advice and leave.
"I still don't like it that, apparently, we were used to keep Steele from opening the vault", she added, "but it'll be better to live with that than to end up eaten by some gruesome monster."
"Agreed", Haruka gave back at once, looking so relieved that made Michiru smile despite the unpleasant situation, "if what we heard is the treasure in the vault, I'll be very glad to not have it."
"Perhaps it guards treasure", Michiru suggested in response, beginning to walk back to the cave's exit, Haruka next to her now instead of behind her, "but one should know which risks to take and which are best left alone when hunting for treasure, and this seems like too much of a risk."
"Yup", the blonde agreed again, glancing back over her shoulder just to make sure no giant monster was breaking free to chase them, "cause if it can make the cave tremble like that? It's really, really big. Even if it guards a treasure, I imagine there are less dangerous ways to find riches."
"Indeed", Michiru nodded, glad when daylight appeared up ahead, switching off the flashlight and putting it back into her pocket, "and you know what else?"
"What?" Haruka wanted to know, stopping when Michiru did; turning to face her, the sniper smiled, then stepped closer to her, putting both arms around her, and immediately prompting her to return the embrace.
"I came here to find treasure in the vault", Michiru needlessly reminded her partner, "but, well, since that didn't work out, I'll have to stay here longer, until I find another way to get money, or, perhaps, hear of another vault. I can't go home right away again. What a shame."
"Yes, just dreadful", Haruka agreed with a chuckle, causing Michiru's smile to widen, "poor you, your family is gonna be so disappointed. Hey, maybe it can take you quit a long time to hear of another vault, or find another way to make money."
"Yes, who knows", Michiru replied, a wink accompanying her words; Haruka chuckled again in response, then kissed her briefly, the two smiling at each other afterwards before they got moving again, stepping out of the cave a short while later.
They both blinked into the bright sunlight, their eyes somewhat having gotten used to the darkness and weak light of the flashlight inside the cave; and the moment her vision had cleared enough, Michiru let her hand drop down to her gun again, Haruka following suit this time a second later, the sniper's eyes narrowing as she took in this newest development, not quite sure what to think of it.
If the woman casually leaning against their car would have wanted to attack them, she could have done so while they were still adjusting to the bright sunlight; Michiru also couldn't see any weapons on her, but knew that this meant nothing, keeping her own Siren powers in mind, powers which allowed her to generate balls of energy out of nowhere and toss them at people, the thought that perhaps, this woman could do the same or at least something similar, not seeming all too ludicrous to her anymore.
Only belatedly, Michiru realized that she could see the car through the woman's body; and from the gasp Haruka let out next to her, she had noticed the oddly transparent appearance of the woman, as well, the sniper almost rolling her eyes as she asked if now, after all this, they had to deal with some sort of ghost, as well.
"Have no fear", the woman said, smiling kindly at them, not perturbed the slightest by their reaction to her voice as they both recognized her immediately as the one who had been speaking to Michiru through visions and to Haruka once, "I'm not here to harm you. I'm here to thank you."
"For not opening the vault, I imagine", Michiru replied, feeling slight anger again as she reminded herself that this person had used both Haruka and her, perhaps with good intentions, but that didn't make it much better; the woman smiled in response, either not noticing her anger, or ignoring it, nodding her agreement.
"For stopping Steele, getting the key, and not using it", she then told the couple, unperturbed by how Michiru crossed her arms over her chest, "you would have unleashed a great evil upon this world. The creature within the vault is called the Destroyer, and you can surely imagine that it did not gain this name without reason."
"Indeed", Michiru replied, "but I am not quite happy with how you made use of Haruka and me to make sure everything turns out the way you want it. You kept telling me not to give up, that I have to reach the vault, and never once considered to simply tell me what your real intentions are?"
"I couldn't be sure you'd listen", the woman pointed out in response, "you did try to go the vault, and if the Destroyer had been smart enough to keep quiet, you would have opened it, wouldn't you? Even though I told you otherwise."
"Perhaps", Michiru had to admit, still not bothering to keep her anger out of her voice, "but, as I said, I do not like it to be used. Especially not by having treasure dangled in front of my eyes, only to find out that it doesn't exist."
"You did not get what you came here for, that is true", the woman gave back, still not all too perturbed by the sniper's ire, "but I do believe that you got what you truly needed. Not only do you have good reason now to stay away from a mother who can't accept you and a father who just uses you, but you also found love."
Michiru recoiled as if she had been struck, her eyes widening; surprised at this harsh reaction, Haruka shot her a concerned look, but before she could say something, the sniper spoke up again, the breathless sound of her voice prompting the blonde to put a calming hand on her shoulder.
"How can you know this", she demanded to know, still feeling as if the air had been knocked out of her, all the anger gone, "who are you?!"
"My name is Setsuna", the woman gave back, smiling kindly at her, as if to silently reassure her that she hadn't meant harm with her words, "I am a Siren, like you. The oldest one alive, and the only one who knows the contents of the vault. I apologize for not speaking freely when you were still searching for it, but I had to make sure that Steele wouldn't get there first."
"Well, you accomplished that", Michiru regained her composure at last, a bit shocked by how long this had taken her, "so congratulations. I assume this is all you wanted from us?"
"Yes", Setsuna confirmed, smiling again, her image flickering oddly, as if she was having trouble keeping the projection of herself up, something she confirmed with her very next words, "and, as you can see, I can't talk to you much longer. Appearing like this is quite tiring, and not even my energy is unlimited. Just let me tell you one more thing… if you are still after treasure, there are many others here on Pandora. Not as dangerous as the vault, and not as difficult to acquire."
She smiled again, the projection flickering more and more; still she took the time to tell the couple to take care, then she vanished, the abruptness with which this happened, from one second to the next, making both of them blink for a few moments, until Michiru finally recovered and shook her head.
"Well", she then stated, looking at Haruka, "guess our little adventure is over, then. And I can't even give you your share of the treasure, cause there is none."
"Doesn't matter", Haruka shrugged, "I got an awesome new car out of that little adventure, as you called it, and that armour we took from the Crimson Lance guys should bring quite a bit of cash, too."
"And Setsuna did say that there is more treasure on this planet", Michiru pondered, "perhaps, this is worth an investigation."
"Sure", Haruka replied with another shrug, "even though she could have given us more information."
She didn't inquire about the things the mysterious Setsuna had said about Michiru's parents, and for that, the sniper was thankful; she smiled and stepped closer to her, putting both arms around her, her smile widening when immediately, Haruka returned the embrace.
"But before we go treasure hunting", the smaller woman stated, "I think we both deserve some downtime. Why don't we go back to Fyrestone and take a few days to relax there?"
"Good idea", Haruka agreed at once, absent-mindedly caressing the sniper's back; Michiru briefly pulled her even closer, then stole a quick kiss, gesturing at the car afterwards.
"Shall we get moving, then?" she suggested, earning another nod from her partner; they kissed once more, then moved to the car, soon driving away from the vault, neither of them looking back once.