B I S H O U J O S E N S H I S A I L O R M O O N
A C R O S S T H E B O R D E R
by DARK DAY FOR ANIME (Mark A Page)
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Disclaimer - This is a story containing characters who were created
by anyone but me. That anyone would happen to be Takeuchi Naoko.
Handle it.
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W H A T H A S G O N E B E F O R E
The DEATH SAILORS, Tsukino Usagi III, Hino Rei Jnr and Professor
Mizuno Ami, operatives of President Serenity and the Republic
of Surrealism, have survived what is, for them, a dangerous trek
through their capital city, even if a very short one. Enemies lie
in wait at every turn, ready to kill them, and their only hope is to
reach the prepared safe houses that dot the capital.
Surving this ordeal, they began a debriefing session with their
President when the Lady Luna de Sade makes an appearance. Luna is
to be their guide throughout the region known as Nemesis Gate, where
their next target, the Reality Extremist leader, Adam Jade, is
planning to gather together all the terrorist groups dedicated to
the cause of reality.
The relationship between Lady Luna and Usagi is exposed to be less
than friendly, even though Luna had saved Usagi from death in the
past after a terrorist bomb had killed her family....
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Perhaps Usagi might have looked upon her a little more kindly
if Shingo had lived. He was already dead. A corpse, hanging over
Luna's shoulder, on that day. As dead as the Lord and Lady
Tsukino...
But Usagi didn't want to admit that. She already KNEW Shingo
was dead. As dead as she wanted to be.
Usagi wasn't the only one to lose those she cared for. They
never did find Azentor's body after they put out the conflagration
that had gutted Luna's ancestral home. Somehow, she felt
responsible for that. But what she did had been important to ONE
individual.
She found, at the very least, some solace and redemption in
that fact. But not very much.
----o
Part Three
Insanity Takes Care of Its Own
----o
Lady Luna stepped back into the main room some five minutes
later, dressed in a similar bodysuit to that of the Death Sailors,
with dark blue trim to match the black.
She was somewhat disappointed at the lack of attention the
others were giving her. They were continuing to discuss the
operation with Serenity, sitting on the dais like they were the
moment she first entered the main room.
She did note that Usagi glanced at her, momentarily, then
turned away. Luna sighed, dropping her face. She knew Usagi was
going to be frosty with her, but the drama displayed by the girl
was more than she expected. Sighing, she quietly made her way up
to the dais.
"I take it the three of you have heard of Nemesis Gate?"
Serenity looked at them, questioningly.
"Indeed, I have." Ami nodded. "It is the border post region
with the neighbouring kingdom of Queen Beryl, is it not?"
"Last bastion of the aristocratic regime that once ruled this
land." Luna spoke up, smiling. Serenity lifted her eyebrows.
"I take it you are versed in the affairs of the neighbouring
kingdom, Lady Luna?"
"How could I not be? There are members of my family living
there. They chose to leave, rather than become citizens of the new
republic."
"Was this how you garnered your information about the
gathering, Lady Luna?" Usagi looked aside at her, archly.
"It might have been." Luna smiled.
"Enough of this." Serenity barked, then turned aside as she
was handed a brief from one of her advisors. After a few seconds of
reading, she handed it back. "This most certainly confirms your
suspicions. There is a gathering taking place within that
district."
"My connection are rarely wrong." Luna nodded with
satisfaction.
"Indeed, Lady Luna. You warn us about this quite a while
ago." Serenity sighed. "We should have listened to your reports a
lot sooner."
"Blame it on your staff." Luna smiled, waving a hand at the
screen, dismissively. Rei was furious at the action.
"You can't speak to the President in such a cavalier manner."
"It might very well have been my manner that made them ignore
my reports in the first place." Luna chuckled. "I can live with
that. But it doesn't change the fact that there is more to this
than merely a gathering of the forces of reality."
Luna paced the floor, now with the collective gaze of Serenity
and the trio firmly fixed on her. She smiled to herself, used to
being the centre of attention.
"The reason that Adam Jade has planned this gathering within
the Nemesis Gate district has a lot to do with the fact that it IS
the border post between the Republic and Beryl's Monarchy. We all
know that Beryl has had territorial designs on the Republic for some
time, now. There could be no more effective weapon to use against
us than an organised uprising by those disaffected with out
philosophies."
"So, Adam Jade is merely a means to an end?" Ami questioned.
Luna nodded.
"It would not surprise me at all if Jade is part of Beryl's
forces. He wouldn't be the first to try and infiltrate our
society."
"I seem to remember that the last one to cause damage to the
Republic was a member of the aristocracy...." Usagi sneered at
Luna. "At least, that was what everybody thought."
Luna scowled. "His actions brought down the aristocracy,
reducing our power and influence."
"Something that you have been trying to make up for ever
since." Usagi shook her head. "I wouldn't put it beyond you, Luna
De Sade, to have arranged this entire gathering, yourself."
"Usagi!" Rei and Ami chorused. Usagi turned away,
unrepentant. Serenity decided it was time to step in.
"Tsukino Usagi the Third!" Usagi turned and stood to
attention at the stern tone of her President. "I do not care what
bitterness has passed between yourself and the Lady, but you shall
not allow it to affect this mission, do you understand?"
"Yes, my President. I apologise." Usagi bowed, slightly.
"There is no need to chastise her, President Serenity. Her
feelings towards me are valid." Luna stepped forward, crossing her
hands in front of her. "We have been involved, in the past, in
some.... For want of a better name, messy operations. She is upset
at having lost some of her friends in those operations."
"Accepted, Lady Luna. However, since it was MY decision to
put the pair of you together on this mission, you shall both push
past hostilities aside for the sake of the Republic."
"Yes, my President." Usagi and Luna said in unison.
"Now, then...." Serenity continued. "I have planned a route
by which you should be able to traverse in safety. It shall take
you three days to get to Nemesis Gate. I suggest you all try to
rest as much as possible, in which time you can study the map of the
region and define the best possible way out of the district when you
have completed the task...."
----o
Adam Jade sat in the small office he had commandeered for the
gathering. Sunk into the deep folds of the vast black leather
chair, fingers of both hands intertwined in front of his mouth in an
expression of deep thought, he contemplated those who were passing
his field of view, through the large open window that looked down
upon the quadrangle below.
He sighed. He hated what he was doing. At least, he hated
these kind of people. Militarists.... Easy to manipulate.
Stupidity made flesh. They would follow any moron for any cause.
He just happened to be the latest model. And that was what he
really hated about it all.
They weren't following him because they were following HIM.
Anybody with the gift of the gab could have worked them up as well
as he had. No, he was not that important to these people. At
least, not in his mind. But he never strayed very far down those
lines of thought. Not that he didn't want to, but too much of that
form of introspection created the kind of madness he found
particularly distasteful, and he had always prided himself on his
immense self-control.
He stood from the chair and stared down at the rows of
soldiers, hands now crossed behind his back. Hundreds of men and
women, and not a neuron between them all.... No imagination. No
imagination whatsoever! What a horrible fate for them to suffer.
Instead of being artists, they were to suffer the indignity of
being art. HIS art. At least, the kind of art that he now found
himself to be a master....
He shook his head. He had to learn to put aside his days as a
member of the art set in the Republic. He had spent much of his
life, trying to make it as a painter, and failed. What else was
there for him to do but become a fascist dictator? He chuckled at
his own black humour. Perhaps he should have been a comedian.
There was still an opportunity.... To back out. To cease
this stupidity, here and now. To try and finish a career that had
struggled up to now.... A smile crossed his face. A dark smile
that understood the private joke he was sharing with himself. Turn
back? What a hopeless individual he was. It would mean admitting
to himself that he was afraid of what he was doing, what he had
created. No artiste should ever be afraid of their work. And he'd
enjoyed, far far too much, the creation of this work. The little
deals and compromises he'd had to make in the underworld of this
society were something he had revelled in.
And that was the crux of it all. He LIKED the idea of playing
the political mastermind and dictator. He LIKED the shadowy worlds
in which he'd travelled these past few years. He wanted for it to
go on forever. But there was no real likelihood of that happening.
For he knew the destiny of all dictators. It was because of
people like that that the Republic had been formed. Artistes who
had been equally proud in their tearing-down of the aristocracy.
They weren't going to allow him to do the same.
"Sir..." He turned to the woman's voice, with deliberate
slowness. His secretary, Titus, stood in the doorway to the office,
saluting him. He swallowed and nodded at her deference, feeling a
nervous tightness building up in his chest at her presence. "It is
time to address the first arrivals."
"I'll be ready in a couple of minutes." Jade waved at her.
He never liked the silky tone with which she would address him.
Titus was different from all the others he had gathered. She DID
have imagination. That was why he had made her his secretary, so he
could keep a close eye on her activities. One never knew when one
might become the victim of a less than supportive critic....
"Yes sir." Titus nodded, sly smile on her face, and left the
office, closing the door behind her. He let out a long sigh,
relaxing slightly, picked up the cap that sat on his desk, put it
on, steeled himself, reciting the words he would say to the gathering
in his mind and stepped up to the office door....
----o
Four figures crouched on top of a building, overlooking the
quadrangle within which the gathering of reality forces was taking
place. The Republican operatives that went by the name of the
Amazoness Quartet.
All were dressed and kitted in much the same manner as the
Death Sailors. However, the Amazoness Quartet weren't even close in
attitude when it came to their work. In fact, they were the
Republic's wild cards. It was visible even in the hairstyles they
chose for themselves, and the adornments that they would attach to
the bodysuits, overcoats and backpacks in their posession. They
were as close to insane as anyone allowed to run around, free of
authority, could be. And there were very good reasons for that.
Reasons that only a very few knew or understood.
Just the way they carried themselves whilst watching the
quadrangle said everything about their attitude to their work.
VesVes, the readheaded firebrand with her hair up in a standing
tail, like a flare that had only just been fired, kept watch over
the events.
Her nervous tension was almost at breaking point as she
variously peered through the binoculars and put them down to roll
her fingers with anticipation, licking her lips. VesVes was already
plotting a course of action, to take out the entire gathering in one
fell swoop, in her mind. This was her area of expertise....
Operational assessment and planning. Oh, and of course, she was a
mean hand with a razored whip....
After giggling inanely for a few moments, thinking of all the
heads she'd lopped off with that whip, she glanced back at her
compatriots.
JunJun, who sat behind her, staring at the clouds as they flew
by, her green hair tied up in a three-tail pattern, one up two down,
with the top knot in triple braids, was completely unfazed by the
situation. In fact, she looked a little bored. There was nothing
she could have done to annoy VesVes more.
"Mooouuuu! What is wrong with you?" She pointed at JunJun
with the binoculars. JunJun gave her an imperious gaze, then lay
her head back once more, a slight smile on her face. "You just
can't appreciate the importance of these moments, you know that?"
VesVes crossed her arms and huffed.
"Has there been any change in what the extremists are doing?
Any sign that they've detected our presence, or are about to launch
some attack on helpless civilians?" JunJun sniffed with patent
disinterest, her tone when describing the 'helpless civilians'
tinged with anything but concern. VesVes decided to brief her on
what she was seeing, even though she knew JunJun could have given a
stuff, anyway.
"I think Jade is getting ready to make his first declaration."
She shook her head, making the large pigtail jiggle about. She
simply couldn't understand her partner's lack of enthusiasm for what
was about to happen. "You know, big historical speech and all.
We're about to witness a moment that will go down in all the record
books as a turning point in the history of the Republic and all.
Not that that matters, and all...."
"Ho hum." JunJun turned and looked at VesVes. "Does that
mean we'll have an opportunity to take him out before those Death
Sailors get to him?"
"I do not think that that would be a very wise decision. At
least, not being as close to the gathering as we are." VesVes and
JunJun turned and looked up at the standing figure of CereCere, her
pink hair turned into circular tubing that smacked of spaghetti
architecture, something that she was justifiably proud of. It
encircled her head like a decorative crown that spoke volumes of her
personality.
In some ways, she was the leader of the Quartet, but she was
without the air of authority that it required to lead such a group.
When she spoke, her hands were crossed in front of her, and her
voice was soft and delicate, her words measured and well thought
out. Indeed, she seemed completely unsuited to the lifestyle in
which the Quartet found themselves. A mistake more than one of her
victims had discovered altogether too late.
"PallaPalla wanna throw a grenade at them." The last of the
four pulled a large object from her backpack, which she then
proceeded to detach from its casing. Her short blue hair, lined
with bolas that bore astrange resemblance to a merry go round, shook
as she excitedly held up the grenade to the others, her eyes
sparkling with love for this most treasured of toys. A large
sweatdrop ran down the side of CereCere's head as she watched
PallaPalla run her hands across the egg-shaped object.
"I do not think that would be a very wise decision, either."
CereCere wagged a finger at PallaPalla, who screwed up her nose in
disappointment.
"Aww.... PallaPalla wanna blow up people. PallaPalla likes
blowing up people. It's fun." There was no doubt, in her words,
the game-like attitude to which she considered their occupation.
Something the others had long clued about her and equally tried to
stop. There simply was no point, PallaPalla was not going to get
any better.
"You can play your games later." JunJun sniffed and turned
back to VesVes, who was gesticulating wildly as she peered through
her binoculars. "Now what's up with you? Not getting enough
caffeine in our diet, or something?"
"He's there! He's there, I tell you!" VesVes whispered
excitedly. "Jade's taking his place on the central platform." They
could hear the distant roar of the gathering as they gave a cheer
for Jade's appearance. VesVes gave her own brand of non-verbal
salute to him as he waved to the crowd.
The other three almost bundled her out of the way to get a
glimpse, much to her annoyance as she landed on her butt, pulling
their own binoculars from their backpacks.
"Hmm.... He doesn't look like much to me." JunJun shrugged.
"I can't see what Serenity is so worked up about."
"He is very handsome, and he has an excellent speaking voice.
It is the mastery of the two elements that makes him such a threat."
CereCere pointed out, waving a finger in the air.
"PallaPalla wanna blow him up." She juggled the grenade in
one of her hands, grinning like a Cheshire Cat.
"Ano... I don't think that's a very good idea..." VesVes,
afyter having lifted herself to her knees, grabbed the grenade in
mid-air and very carefully placed it back in its carry case, much
to PallaPalla's discontent.
"Aww... VesVes is being cruel to me." PallaPalla started to
cry, volumes of tears flying out of the corners of her eyes.
JunJun and CereCere facefaulted, dropping their binoculars.
"Honestly...." JunJun shook her head. "Here, play with this."
JunJun handed PallaPalla a small, well punctured cotton doll.
"Wai! My Daddy Doll.... PallaPalla loves her Daddy Doll."
PallaPalla grabbed the doll and stepped aside, pulling a large, evil
looking needle from her overcoat. "PallaPalla stab Daddy Doll."
And thus she began to skewer the doll with much joy.
CereCere and VesVes looked at JunJun strangely. She just
shrugged. "Don't blame me. It's a kind of Oedipus Complex. Her
father used to nail her to the kitchen wall as a statement of
individuality...."
The irony of the statement was not lost on them. Father?
None of them had such a person.
After several moments, the remaining three stepped away from
the side of the building, growing tired of watching Jade mouthing
his speech without hearing what he had to say.
"Damn, I wish we had the high tech equipment some of the other
operatives have." VesVes punched a fist in the palm of her other
hand.
"They wouldn't trust is with it, dearie." JunJun shrugged.
"So, what do we do?"
"I dare suggest...." CereCere began. "That we wait and see
what the Death Sailors have up their sleeve before we make our
move."
"PallaPalla stab and stab and stab her daddy doll. PallaPalla
loves stabbing her daddy doll...." PallaPalla held the doll up in
the air as the other three facefaulted.
"Maybe we should just send her in instead?" JunJun shook her
head and rested herself back against her backpack.
----o
"So, the Amazoness Quartet are in on this as well...." Rei
rubbed her chin, smiling thoughtfully as she sat on the middle of
the safe house floor, opposite Luna.
"Indeed. With something this big, that group of lunatics were
bound to be attracted." Luna nodded and turned to Ami and Usagi,
who were pouring over the diagram of the Nemesis Gate and
surrounding districts. "Like flies to a carcass...."
"We could do without them." Usagi muttered, grumpily. "We'll
have a hard enough time traversing some of the gullies between the
Vermion Lock and Nemesis Gate without their butting into our
business."
Ami nodded. "The parkland gully between the eastern border of
Vermion Lock and Nemesis Gate is immense. We'd never be able to get
across that without being spotted."
"Then I dare suggest we disguise ourselves as part of the
festival celebrations that are going on there at the time." Luna
wagged a finger at the pair. "I'm sure you're all quite capable of
fitting in with the arts set again. It might even bring back old
memories...."
"Thanks but no thanks. Old memories are something I'd rather
do without." Usagi huffed and threw her nose in the air, obviously
ending the discussion there. Luna shook her head and turned back to
Rei.
"How are they allowed to just run around the way they do?"
Rei scratched her head. "And they get away with it with their
lives, too. It's almost inhuman."
"Who?" Luna blinked.
"The Quartet. That pack of psycho bitches." Rei crossed her
arms, closing her eyes with annoyance.
"Well, it has a lot to do with their backgrounds...." Luna
cleared her throat. "They're.... not quite the same as the rest of
us...."
"What do you mean by that?" Rei gave Luna a strange
expression. Luna cleared her throat and wondered how she could
explain what she knew about the Quartet....
"Well.... It's hard to say.... You were quite right by
describing them as inhuman. They're not, so to speak."
"They're not what?"
"Human. Not as you or I would understand the term...."
"What do you mean by that?" Rei frowned as Luna fumbled for
words. Within seconds, all were lying on the floor after the
building had shaken. The rumbling noise of an explosion echoing
throughout the city.
Rei was the first to her feet. "What in hell was that?"
END OF PART 3
Rei stared up at her grandfather as they watched, from the top
of the Marques Building, the bonfires and fireworks that signified
the end of the Festival of Ephis for another year.
"Ojichan...." Rei tugged on his coat tail. He looked down at
her, raising an eyebrow, quizzically.
"What is it, child?"
"Why do we go out and destroy so much?"
"Hmm?"
"Our expeditions.... Into the streets. We blow up things and
such.... Why do we do this?"
Her grandfather smiled and knelt down to the five year old,
thinking deeply about how he would answer this question. "Rei-
chan... Being so young, you may not understand. We only get so
many years of life, into which we must pack a myriad of experiences,
and make some kind of impact on the world. And yet, there are so
many voices, crying out to be heard...."
Rei nodded, still not quite understanding his words, but
willing to listen. He nodded, knowingly.
"All these voices, Rei-chan. All of them, trying to make a
statement.... Of belief. Of ideology. But most of all, trying to
get people to LISTEN. What better way to make people listen than to
impose yourself upon them in as dramatic a manner as possible...."
"But would they listen to us?"
"Eh?"
"It just sorta seems that.... Y'know.... If we do bad
things, then they'd be too angry to listen."
He chuckled and put his hands on her shoulders. "Oh, my
child. You speak with the voice of guiless youth.... You don't
understand the complexity of the adult mind, yet.... One day, you
shall see that what I say is the truth."
"The truth?"
He picked her up and sat her on his shoulder, standing tall as
fireworks exploded above them. Rei stared at the glimmering lights,
set upon the black veil of night.
"That is what this festival is about, Rei-chan. To celebrate
the thoughts and feelings of Montxo Ephis.... The founder of the
ideology by which we follow." Her grandfather shouted over the
explosions. "One day, you shall make as great an impact, in your
own way...."
----o
"How are they allowed to just run around the way they do?"
Rei scratched her head. "And they get away with it with their
lives, too. It's almost inhuman."
"Who?" Luna blinked.
"The Quartet. That pack of psycho bitches." Rei crossed her
arms, closing her eyes with annoyance.
"Well, it has a lot to do with their backgrounds...." Luna
cleared her throat. "They're.... not quite the same as the rest of
us...."
"What do you mean by that?" Rei gave Luna a strange
expression. Luna cleared her throat and wondered how she could
explain what she knew about the Quartet....
"Well.... It's hard to say.... You were quite right by
describing them as inhuman. They're not, so to speak."
"They're not what?"
"Human. Not as you or I would understand the term...."
"What do you mean by that?" Rei frowned as Luna fumbled for
words. Within seconds, all were lying on the floor after the
building had shaken. The rumbling noise of an explosion echoing
throughout the city.
Rei was the first to her feet. "What in hell was that?"
----o
Part Four
Open Invitation
----o
"It's a car bomb." Ami gasped. "At the base of the
building."
"They're trying to draw the local authorities into our
battle?" Luna stared, disbelievingly at the smoking wreck, sitting
on a grass verge on the southern side of the old school building.
"So?" Rei blinked, not understanding as she pushed Ami aside
to get a better look through the window.
"Baka! The authorities shall search the building for the
perpetrators. It's standard procedure." Luna replied, haughtily.
"And they'll find the safe house.... Or its security system."
Ami nodded, grimly.
Rei's mouth hung open. "And if the security system goes
off.... killing members of the constabulary..."
"They'll certainly think we were involved." Luna finished.
"And if we shut off the security system, this shall, no
longer, be a safe house. Not for us, anyway." Usagi turned from
the window and ran over to where her backpack and coat were sitting,
against the far wall of the room. Luna watched her.
"What are you thinking of doing?"
"Scuttling the safe house. It's the only way to make sure the
constabulary who arrive aren't hurt." Usagi threw on her overcoat
and started to hitch some of her weaponry to their attachments
underneath. Luna spun to her and stepped forward.
"Scuttle the safe house? You must be mad. That's just what
the assassins are hoping we'd do.... Burn our nest and run."
"Then I don't intend to disappoint them." Usagi shot Luna a
withering look. "Anyway, we can't allow the constabulary and the
local authorities to get mixed up in our activities, and I'm damned
if I'm going to allow the Amazons to have Jade."
"She's right." Ami nodded. "It's the most logical thing to
do." And with that, Ami started following Usagi's example, readying
her own equipment for a quick evacuation.
"But there isn't another safe house ready for us." Rei
gestured, helplessly. "And anyway, this kind of thing has happened
before...."
"This is different, Rei." Usagi pulled the collars of her
overcoat firmly, assuring herself everything was in place.
"In what way?" Rei stepped past Luna, seemingly keen to argue
the point with Usagi.
"It's because of the festival." Usagi turned and picked up
her backpack, throwing the restraints over her shoulder.
"What festival?" Luna frowned.
"Of course!" Rei punched a fist in her other hand. "The
Festival of Ephis.... It's within the parkland border of Vermion
Lock.... There will be constabulary on alert throughout the city."
"Their reaction time to this will be halved, if not quartered.
Often, this kind of thing is seen by the authorities as a form of
artistic expression.... That's how a lot of terrorist activity has
been given a free reign.... Artistic expressionism through
bombings, riots and lootings." Usagi tightened the straps of her
backpack. "But not during the Festival of Ephis.... It represents
all aspects of counter culture, some of it quite violent and
reprehensible."
"I understand that well enough." Rei nodded, now following
her partners' examples with her own equipment. "I was brought up
within such groups."
"And as such, you'll understand how keen, during the weeks of
the festival, the authorities will be to keep things under wraps."
Usagi smiled, grimly.
Luna put a hand to her forehead. "The cheers that rose up
when you detonated the mines on top of this building...." She
sighed, looking up at Usagi. "There wasn't the smoking remains for
the constabulary to home in on, so they wouldn't have been able to
track down the source of the blast...."
"But the burning remains of a car bomb is a very different
matter." Usagi put her hands on her hips. "Don't you think you
should get yourself prepared to run or die, LADY Luna?" Usagi threw
her nose in the air, arrogantly.
"That's not really the point...." Luna protested. "It's one
thing to cut and run, but we have no set destination to run to.
Nowhere that is safe, anyway."
"Oh yes we have." Rei smiled as she helped Ami secure her
backpack.
"What?" Luna blinked. "Where?"
"The parkland border of Vermion Lock."
"You must be joking.... We won't be able to reach that far by
foot.... Not in safety, anyway. And besides, the festivities that
are occuring there.... There could be any number of terrorists
amongst the crowd."
"Listen.... Firstly, there IS a way we can reach the border
without the necessity to traverse the city streets.... Well, not
ALL of the streets, anyway." Rei swallowed, her mind rapidly
mapping out an evacuation plan, and attempting to make it sound
convincing to the others. "Secondly, the parkland border IS full of
people, right now.... Full of people in DISGUISE.... Costumes and
such are a major facet of the festivities...."
"We can disguise ourselves, in an attempt to cross the
border." Ami nodded.
"But first, we still have to get there." Luna crossed her
arms, then jumped as Usagi threw her overcoat over her shoulders.
"Well, why don't you just shutup and listen to Rei's plan,
there's a good kitty...." Usagi sneered at Luna's expression of
contempt.
----o
Detern, the leader of the Realist force's 34th operations
squad, crouched in the small room within the apartment block, some
short distance south of the safe house in the old school building.
Placed on watch duty, again. Punishment from on high for not
always following the orders of THEY WHO MUST BE OBEYED. There were
times when even he questioned whether the Realists really had all
that much going for them.
But then, Detern was neither the brightest, nor the most
imaginative, person within the Realist forces. He was unlikely to
change his lifestyle, rapidly.
He watched the movement within the safe house through the
large window, and listened to the crackle of information, beamed
through his radio, from his comrades, who were moving in on the safe
house through the lower levels of the school building. After
watching them place and set off the car bomb, he wondered when he
would get his chance to have some fun.
It started a lot sooner than he expected. The safe house
exploded in an immense ball of flame, blasting debris across the gap
between the buildings. Detern only just managed to duck in time as
the force of the blast shattered the window, through which he was
watching, into tiny fragments, scattering across the room.
As he lifted his head, he heard cries of distress and calls
for backup coming from those within the lower levels of the
school.... It seemed the Death Sailors had chosen to make their
move a lot sooner than the Realists had expected.
Detern peered through the now-empty window ledge at the ground
below, and spotted some figures, fleeing the building at great
speed.
"Damn bitches...." He muttered to himself, and picked up his
rifle, which had been sitting next to him. He watched as they
opened up a manhole in the ground, not far from where the burning
wreckage of the carbomb was sitting. "Dammit.... They're making
for the sewer system...." Detern jumped to his feet and ran from
the room.
----o
"This is, like, totally uncouth." Luna landed at the base of
the metal stairs on the brick-lined floor of the sewer. The large
tunnel that she had found herself in seemed to go on forever,
disappearing into the darkness in both directions. It was big
enough to run a vehicle through, which was what had happened in days
gone past, during the sewer network's construction. "What, in the
name of the republic, made you think of using the sewers as a viable
method of escape?"
"Lateral thinking." Rei peered down as she pulled the manhole
cover back into place, attaching something to it before handing
Luna's backpack down the ladder to Ami. "The sewers were there, so
I thought to myself 'let's use them'."
"The smell in here is godawful..." Usagi turned up her nose.
"We'll probably be on antibiotics for months after wading through
this sludge."
"Suffer, pleb." Rei and Ami stepped down from the ladder and
reattached their backpacks, removed in an effort to get through the
manhole. "I know my way through these tunnels like the back of my
hand."
"Yes.... I can see it's just the kind of place you'd hand
around." Usagi's eyebrows jerked in Rei's direction, who stuck out
her tongue at her partner.
"We better get moving." Ami said, quietly, as she helped Luna
with her backpack. "Some of the operatives will have seen us come
down here."
Usagi wiped her hand on the side of her overcoat when she
noticed it was covered in blood. "Fortunately, not those within the
safe house building."
"Feeling happy about tearing that soldier's skull open with
your bare hand, Usagi?" Luna sniffed contemptuously, taking note of
Usagi's almost unconcious action.
"I do what I have to do, LADY Luna. This isn't a game."
Usagi pulled a large torch from her jacket and shone it along the
tunnel.
"No. To you, I suppose it isn't." Luna replied, softly as
they started to make their way along the sewer, Rei taking the lead.
----o
Detern was at the main doorway to the apartment block when he
saw three of his comrades, attempting to open the manhole cover.
"WAIT! DON'T DO THA...." His cry came a few seconds too late
as the manhole exploded in a ball of flame, enveloping the soldiers.
Detern fell flat on his back as he felt the warmth of the blast rush
over him....
----o
The explosion echoed through the tunnels, followed by a gust
of warm wind that gave the four cause to grab hold of the brickwork
on the sides of the sewer.
"Great, Rei.... You could have at least warned us about that
mine you planted on the manhole cover." Usagi gritted her teeth.
"I'm gonna be deaf for weeks, now...."
"You SAW me put the bloody thing on, you fool...." Rei
growled, grabbing her partner by the collar. "Come on.... That
won't hold off those bastards for long...."
----o
Detern wandered, almost emotionlessly, up to the large hole in
the ground where his comrades once stood. He could clearly see into
the sewer below, although much of the brickwork and earth that had
once sat there was now piled on the floor.
He looked around, hoping at least one of his comrades were
still alive, and making their way to join him right now. he saw
nobody. Either the rest had taken flight, or they really were all
dead.
With a sigh, he clutched his rifle with both of his hands and
leapt onto the pile of rubble on the floor of the sewer. Not the
smartest move he could have made, as his foot slipped on a rock.
With a short cry of surprise, he pitched forward and rolled
down the mound of rubble, coming to a quick stop at the base as his
chin hit the tunnel floor.
Ouch, he thought, as he picked himself up.
----o
The tunnel eventually reached a larger passage.... Newer and
cleaner, with smooth cement walls. At the floor of the new passage
was a gentle stream of relatively clean water, about half a foot
deep. Rei stepped into the stream and stared along the passage,
both ways.
"Where are we?" Ami asked as she stopped at the junction.
"This is the main waterway that leads from the eastern
districts to the water processing plant at Mulwin Head. It used to
be an underground stream."
"The eastern districts including Vermion Lock and Nemesis
Gate...." Ami chuckled. "I had an inkling that might have been
your intention...."
"You seem to know a lot about these tunnels." Luna raised an
eyebrow, appreciatively.
"I told you, I know them like the back of my hand."
"How?" Luna followed Rei into the stream, looking down at the
water with distaste.
"When I was young, and still living with my grandfather, the
groups we were a part of used the sewer systems as a method of
escape from the constabulary, after we would make some
pseudopolitical statement.... Usually involving much violence."
"Montxo Ephis.... He was a founding member of the group you
were brought up in, wasn't he?" Usagi flashed her torch along the
passage.
"Yes.... Yes, he was."
"And he espoused the philosophy of extreme violence as an
artistic statement...." Usagi chuckled. "You know, it just occured
to me.... If Jade was a true artist, in the style of Ephis, then
this whole idea, of rounding up the reality militias into one
cohesive group, then setting them on the republic, could be his
greatest artistic statement...."
"My God...." Rei put a hand to her mouth. "The Festival of
Ephis reaches its high point in four days.... Absolution Day...."
"Indeed." Usagi nodded. "There would be no more symbolic an
occasion for the reality militias to make their move than on that
day...."
"Shh..." Ami put up a hand to silence the others. They
looked at her, quizzically.
"What is...." Usagi began, but Ami simply hushed her again.
After a few seconds of silence, they could hear footsteps, coming
down the tunnel.
Ami snapped her fingers and pointed upstream of the new
passage. Rei nodded and gripped Luna's arm. The pair quickly put
some distance between themselves and the junction.
Ami pulled out a small device from her backpack, like a pair
of disks, connected via a string. Usagi kept watch, nervously, as
Ami attached one of the disks to one side of the tunnel.
"Do you really think a tripwire mine is going to work?" Usagi
whispered. "They surely won't be that stupid."
"That's why I'm expecting you to shoot them if it doesn't."
Ami replied as she pulled out the wire far enough to be taut, across
the exit of the tunnel, and attached the other disk to the opposite
wall.
"Great. Great plan. I'm glad you're the brains of our little
party."
"And don't you forget it." Ami stood and smiled at Usagi,
grabbing her partner by the arm and pointing at a small depression
in the passage wall, some distance away.
The pair waded their way towards the depression, removing
their backpacks so they could press themselves back against the wall
as much as possible, to present as little a target as they could.
They waited, nervously peering around the corner as the sound
of the footsteps came closer and closer.
Whoever it was HAD to have reached the junction, because the
footsteps came to a dead stop. There was an almost intolerable
pause, in which all that could be heard was the sound of running
water. Usagi pulled out her double barrelled revolver from within
her overcoat as Ami fidgeted with a small device she pulled from her
pocket.
"You must think I'm stupid..." Came Detern's voice, as he
leaned against the wall of the tunnel, glancing down at the tripwire
mine. "A trap that obvious.... Even I could see it coming."
Usagi swallowed and ducked out from the depression, firing a
double round into the opposite wall of the tunnel. The shot
ricocheted off the wall and missed Detern's head my inches. He
nervously stared at the mark in the wall where the bullet had
struck, swallowing.
"That didn't work either...."
"This will, though..." Ami smiled and pressed a button on the
device.
The mines went off, blowing Detern back along the tunnel for
some distance, stunned, with shrapnel wounds in his legs. The roof
caved in on the junction, and dust filled the passage.
As it cleared, Usagi looked back at Ami, who was pocketing the
small device with a smile on her face.
"Don't tell me.... The trip wire was a dummy, right?"
"Oh come on.... You know me better than that." Ami picked up
her backpack and started after Rei and Luna, her back receiving dark
looks from Usagi....
END OF PART 4
--------------------------------------------------------------------
ACROSS THE BORDER
In the heat of the day
Many miles away when the
Sun is beating downthe main street.
I'll be waiting at the station,
I gotta move down the line.
They'll be dancing and singin'
And doin' their thing
And they'll be rockin' and rollin'
Until the day is done.
You know I've got to
Make the deadline-
I gotta get that southbound train tonight-
If I don't get to the border then I'll write.
The Mardis Gras
Will be blowing strong
And the people dancing
All across the city
I'm leavin' here tonight
I gotta move down the line.
I'm gonna catch a ride
On the 9.05
I'm gonna ride the rails
Until we reach the morning,
Maybe three or four
Hundred miles.
I gotta get that southbound train tonight-
If I don't get to the border then I'll write.
When the wind is blowing
Softly throught the streets
of a little town
And the music's playin',
You're waitin' somewhere
Over the horizon.
I gotta get that southbound train tonight-
If I don't get to the border then I'll write.
-Jeff Lynne-
----
MAPPY (The RIght Dishonourable Mark A Page)
ayanami@merlin.net.au