Belle
Qingyi watched the captured Orbol members be carried away, Soldier Eleven the only one currently ambulatory. Qingyi then turned a frowning face back towards Belle, her eyes drifting slightly to the side. Belle looked over to follow her glance, and saw Lycaon using a tiny lint roller to remove bits of detritus from his clothing. Where had he gotten that? Some pocket or compartment in his legs? Belle had no idea.
She herself was no worse for wear. If anything, only mildly bruised from that one tumble to the concrete. It was a cheap price to pay for escaping the latest assassination attempt, but this one had almost got her. Lycaon surely wasn't even aware that Belle had been a half-second away from death. The memory of the assault rifle leveling at her kept replaying in Belle's mind and her heart didn't seem interested in slowing down.
"Shall we get you to Dr. Ray?" said Qingyi, her arm indicating the hallway down the other end of the T-intersection.
Belle felt jittery, probably from her recent flood of adrenaline and fear. She took a deep breath and found that it didn't really help. Her head was starting to ache. Belle was thoroughly done with this kind of thing. She didn't want guns pointed at her, or at Lycaon, or at anyone she knew. Not because of her.
"Yes, but…I think I need to just… chill out for a second…" said Belle, rubbing at her own brows- as if physical pressure to her face would banish the approaching headache. It didn't.
"Lady Belle? Are you well? I thought you were uninjured!" Lycaon's direct and intense attention was immediate, the lint roller vanishing into his vest with deft movement of his wrist.
The sudden intention and fuss flipped a switch in Belle's mind. She spontaneously felt irritated and angry and frustrated.
"I'm fine," said Belle, trying to keep her own tone even and failing.
Lycaon reached for her, his hands softly exploring her back. "Are you certain? Excitement can hide wounds from the mind, for a time. Let me-"
"I'm fine! Lycaon! Really!" Belle's voice snapped out, sharp and unfriendly.
Lycaon's ears went back on his head. He stood slowly and looked down at her silently, his mouth set stiffly in a neutral expression. Belle immediately regretted saying that, like that.
Qingyi's eyes were drifting between the two of them. "There's a room down there for coffee breaks. Why don't I take you both there."
"Yes, fine," said Belle, her voice still a bit sharp as she was frustrated with herself now.
Qingyi led them off down the hall, their footsteps loud in the awkward quiet between them all. They didn't have far to go. Qingyi indicated a nondescript door and Lycaon stepped forward, peered inside, and then opened it for Belle to enter. She did so, avoiding his gaze. The breakroom, such as it was, was a bleak concrete box. A few tiny card tables stood about with folding chairs. A single-cup coffee machine rested on a rolling cart with an assortment of coffee items.
"Dr. Ray is just down to the left." said Qingyi. "Just come over when you're ready."
"My thanks, Lady Qingyi," said Lycaon.
The door shut behind them and Belle sank into a random chair and rested her face in her hands, trying to calm herself down. She was ashamed now, on top of... whatever it was she was experiencing. Stress, obviously. But that word wasn't enough. It was stress, dread, exhaustion…and- and-
"Belle," said Lycaon softly from behind her. "Peril is not an easy burden. I understand."
Belle stared at the dingy top of the card table, processing Lycaon's words. Had he anticipated her feeling of embarrassment? Or did he just know her that well already? That didn't seem likely, despite their rapidly growing intimacy. So.. then…?
But before she could ask a question of him, Lycaon continued: "I've served many principals over the last few years, Belle. The stress of peril- the burden of it weighed upon them all. In different ways. But not a one was unaffected."
Belle didn't know what to say to that. The burden of peril? It wasn't a concept she was familiar with, but it did make sense. The constant worry, the aftermath of fear from an attack, the regret and guilt of the injuries her protectors suffered on her behalf. It was all a weight, and she was getting tired.
Lycaon approached Belle's little table, a cup in hand.
"I realized that I may have embarrassed you in front of Lady Qingyi," said Lycaon, setting the steaming styrofoam cup of instant coffee before Belle. "I apologize for that. I believe I have misplaced my line of professionalism and denied you your pride."
Misplaced his line of professionalism? Belle could only think of their passionate morning together and feel mildly bemused. Wherever the line of professionalism was, it was now surely over the horizon and out of sight as far as they both were concerned. Belle stared into the steaming blackness of her drink, seeing herself reflected dimly on the surface of the liquid, courtesy of the harsh fluorescent lights overhead.
"Lycaon, you don't need to apologize for caring for me. I wasn't embarrassed. It wasn't that. It's- it's not that."
Lycaon's tail raised up behind him as he sat gracefully on the folding chair opposite the little card table. Belle looked into his crimson eye and found interest and concern for her, but no judgment. If Lycaon wanted any clarity about her statement, he didn't ask for it. He simply looked at her, giving her time to speak if she wanted to. She wanted to. She felt slightly obligated to.
"I- I think you're probably right," said Belle, finally. "I'm tired of this. I just want it to be over."
She'd said much the same to Lycaon recently, but here they were again, trying to regain a sense of normalcy after yet another narrow escape. He took in a deep, slow breath. A large furry arm reached across the table and stroked the side of Belle's head, Lycaon's soft warmth an affectionate balm.
"We will be closer to the end come sunset," said Lycaon, confidently. "Any contact from Lord Wise? Is there news of their operation?"
Fairy's voice emerged from the phone in Belle's pocket. "In-hollow operations are ongoing. They are approaching a likely server bloc as I speak. Do you wish me to assess the progress of the two PubSec operations?"
Belle had forgotten that Fairy was inside her phone, too. But spy on the PubSec operations? Those were the two out-hollow properties that Qingy's PubSec forces were investigating. Belle was curious, but that information could be hers simply by asking Qingyi for it- she didn't want or need Fairy to hack into government systems for such a trivial cause.
"No," said Belle. "And you're not to hack anything that-"
"Yes, Belle," said Fairy. "All previous prohibitions remain in effect."
Belle sighed, taking that as the end of the conversation. Lycaon was watching her placidly, seemingly content in his chair. She sipped her coffee. It sure wasn't a Tin Man Special, but it was hot and the familiar bitterness did help her start to relax. She couldn't feel her own pulse anymore.
Closer to the end by sunset. Surely, either Qingyi or Wise's investigations would find something. Some clue or trail they could follow along the path to Daemon's likely physical location. And they had even more new information, didn't they?
"What do you think will happen with those soldiers?" said Belle.
Lycaon put on a thoughtful face. "I believe Lady Qingyi has the ambition to interrogate them immediately. A mutiny of an entire military unit is undoubtedly extremely worrisome, so she will want to know how it was accomplished as soon as possible."
He put both hands on the table, folded together, one large index finger tapping on the knuckle of the other hand. "It is worrisome to me, as well. If this Daemon can activate such assets in Scott Outpost, I fear the city becomes a great danger to you, Belle. We must consider not only criminal elements but also legitimate forces potentially being turned against you, as they were just now."
It was a grim thought, but she didn't really grasp how that changed her own security situation. But if Lycaon was worried, then it was surely something to be worried about.
"What should we do?"
Lycaon's finger continued tapping. "Regardless the result of the investigations today, I aspire to take you and depart the city entirely."
That surprised Belle. Leave New Eridu City? Go into the Outer Rim? She'd never been outside the city in all her life. Wasn't it all just a crime-ridden wasteland? Nothing but hollows, empty land, and gangsters vying for petty territory?
"Leave the city? Why?! Where would we go?"
"My plan is still developing," said Lycaon. "And it would only be with your agreement, Belle, of course. But the fewer people around you, the fewer threats against your life; and there are significantly fewer people outside the city than within."
"Well, that's true…" Belle mused on the idea. She envisioned a dusty cliff, a wide open landscape far below her, hollows dotting the landscape like giant blisters. And Lycaon would be standing next to her. And there would be no one else for miles and miles.
"I don't hate the idea…" said Belle.
"Miss Ellen would likely welcome the chance to avoid her classes for a time…" said Lycaon, more to himself.
Ellen would go, too? Belle was less enthusiastic about that. But all the same, she felt better. Maybe it was the coffee or maybe it was the fantasy of adventuring outside the city with Lycaon at her side. Eitherway, it was working.
"Ideally," said Lycaon. "We discover a way to destroy your foe and render the city safe. Then your self-exile will no longer be necessary."
And Belle could go back to her normal life, and maybe have a real coffee with an off-duty Lycaon. That would be nice, but it seemed highly optimistic to hope for such a perfect outcome to today's activities. But even the possibility made Belle eager to get started.
"I'm ready to go see the good doctor, Lycaon," said Belle, taking one final swig of her cooling coffee.
"Very well," said Lycaon, standing.
Lycaon led her from the room, checking the hallways carefully before allowing Belle to exit after him. They followed Qingyi's directions and found themselves in Dr. Ray's large computer lab. Staff spotted them immediately and beckoned them over to an examination chair that had all sorts of highly-advanced computer tech attached to it. Belle wasn't looking forward to this… whatever this was.
Dr. Ray walked over to them. She looked as Belle remembered her: a precise-looking, middle-aged woman, thinned and wrinkled by a life-time of overwork and a lack of sleep and proper meals. A person so focused on her job that she'd crafted herself a literal third arm and hand to help her at all times- the robotic arm hovering over her shoulder was holding a water bottle, at the moment.
In Dr. Ray's organic hands, she held a sort of headband or circlet with a pattern of electronics on it- and a bottle of over-the-counter painkillers. She offered the bottle to Belle immediately.
"Here, take two of these and have some water," said Dr. Ray.
Belle compiled while Dr. Ray settled the headband on Belle's head, the soft fabric somewhat tight against her skin. Belle felt the coolness of metal touching her skin at a few points around the headband, most notably around her temples. She handed back the pill bottle.
"Miss Qingyi is down that hallway," said Dr. Ray, her robot arm pointing in the indicated direction. "She thought you might be interested in joining her to watch the interrogations."
Belle was interested in that. "I am. So let's get my head thing started, then, doctor."
Dr. Ray blinked at her. "We already are started. That headband is extracting the data right now."
That surprised Belle. "What! That's it?!"
"That's it," said Dr. Ray. "Just don't take it off, and don't go outside the building. The wifi doesn't reach all that far outside."
Belle blinked, still shocked by how simple this process was turning out to be. "And it just pulls the data out of me? Just like that?"
"The extraction is honestly the easy part, Miss Belle," said Dr. Ray, her organic hands now on her hips. "It's uncompressed raw data, so we can get it out. But reassembling it and making sense of it- that will take all these computers quite a bit of time." Her robotic arm gestured in all directions, indicating the room of computers and server blocks.
"Anyway, I'll monitor your progress from my workstation and advise you when you can take that thing off. I think it might take three or four hours. All right? Miss Belle?
"All right..." What else was there to say?
Dr. Ray walked away and Belle looked up at Lycaon. He shrugged slightly at her, a small and graceful move of his muscled shoulder. Belle had imagined she was going to be strapped into this chair here and have all sorts of machinery attached to her body. This was an unforeseen circumstance- and a good one!
"Shall we go see what Miss Qingyi is doing?" said Lycaon.
"Yes. Let's."
Belle had never met anyone who had wanted to kill her. She was morbidly curious. How had Daemon convinced these soldiers to attack her? A bribe? A really big bribe? Belle honestly couldn't think of any other way. And if that was really the case, where was Daemon getting all the money?