My Archives: December 2003
Tuesday, December 9, 2003
“Did you hear that…?”
Just moments after Ghost and Vesper had stepped onto the slow-moving cargo lift, ascending toward the base level of the Cathedral, a voice could be heard shouting up at them.
“Yeah…it sounds like Golem,” Vesper replied, glancing worriedly over at his companion. Ghost, who was not exactly famous for showing her emotions, furrowed her barely-there eyebrows in return. A moment later she was crouched down at the metal screen doorway and shouting in reply.
“What is it?!” she called, her deep voice echoing down the cold metal shaft.
Although they were moving slowly, they were already a good way’s away from the lift entrance, and it was very hard to understand what was being said. Still looking concerned, Ghost listened as best she could. Vesper crouched beside her as well; straining his ears as what sounded like Golem’s voice wafted up to meet them.
“I think he said…something about people outside…possibly dangerous?” said the pale woman, growing more frustrated by the second. Great, she thought. It’s always something. Maruska has probably already left Prague and here we are with some unexpected guests. We’re wasting even more time…
“Yeah. Joy.” Vesper said grimly, crossing his arms and looking uncharacteristically perturbed. “Heh, I think you’re rubbing off on me, Natalie.”
“Well, we’ll go to the top, then, and wait for him to come up and meet us,” she said matter-of-factly. Vesper nodded in agreement. The continued journey seemed to take an agonizing amount of time, and a simmering feeling of claustrophobia hung in the air. The familiar scent of metal and rust seemed especially pungent. Finally, the dim light of the Cathedral basement seeped into lift, highlighting the dour expressions of its occupants as they reached the surface.
As expected, almost immediately after they closed the metal grating, someone at the lower level pressed a button to summon the lift down once more. Ghost threw her bag against the wall and sat down in front of it, having nothing to do but wait.
“Shouldn’t we be on guard?” asked Vesper nervously, pacing around a bit.
“There’s no way someone will break in,” Ghost said nonchalantly. “Even if they did, security would gun them down within seconds. They’d have to be really good to even make it here,” she said, referring to the backstage area where they sat.
“Someone like Evelina, basically?” Vesper asked. Immediately he regretted his words. “I’m sorry, I…”
Ghost waved him away. “It’s no big deal.”
“I know. I just…” he sighed. “…Know you’re worried.”
The pair waited in silence for another few minutes, listening to the clanging and scraping of the clunky, ancient lift. When at last it had finished its journey, the gates flung open and Golem, as expected, hurried out. Although the large man typically appeared calm and collected, he had a tense, nervous look to him.
“Good, you guys are still here,” he said quickly, heaving a sigh of relief. “You must have heard me, then?”
Ghost nodded at him as she rose to her feet and went to stand near Vesper. “What’s up?” she said.
“Right after you left, I got a report from security that there were some strange looking people outside the building,” he explained. “They look like they’re not from around here, and well…these days, you can’t be too careful.”
“You can never be too careful,” Vesper added solemnly.
“Right,” said Golem with an appreciative nod. “Anyway, I’m sure you could handle whoever they are, but since you’re still here I feel it’s my responsibility to let you know.”
“Thank-you, Marcus, we’ll be careful,” Ghost said sincerely, though her mind was still screaming with frustration with wanting to get out of the damned building already. She looked over at Vesper. “Time to go then?”
“Right,” he said, looking over at Golem. “If it’s anything important, I guess we’ll be back.”
* * *
Ghost watched from around the corner as Vesper approached the strangers. He was, of course, armed to the teeth, but there was no reason the guests needed to know this. However, in the era of eternal twilight, any sensible person would expect such a thing.
Natalie, in fact, had left the Cathedral by a side door and was acting as a spot person of sorts, just in case these people were here to cause trouble. So far they appeared peaceful, if not a bit confused and tired, although Natalie was rather wary of the man. He was tall and burly, and she was fairly certain that he was keeping a weapon in his fur coat. The woman had a sincere look to her. She had the kind of look in her eyes that reminded Natalie very much of Julia. At the sudden thought of her friend, Ghost felt her stomach churn. Can’t let feelings get in the way of being practical, she thought, keeping her hands near the silver Austrian Glocks at her side.
After another minute or so of observation, Ghost sensed no imminent threat, and she therefore ventured out of the alleyway to meet them.
Vesper shot her a look which seemed to say, “Act senselessly cheerful!” as he exclaimed, “So there you are then! Osiris, Antigone, this is Ghost.” As she reached the foot of the steps she tried her best not to glare at him. “Ghost, this is Antigone and Osiris, they’ve asked for help to get into the Chatrani.”
She observed them all for a moment. “No offense, but why?”
Antigone related to her that she had a very long story of sorts to tell, which, evidently, Vesper had been listening to earlier, and that she’d like to explain it to Ghost as well once they were inside.
Although there was a big, flashing “danger” sign all over this situation, Ghost, perhaps feeling tired, perhaps having a moment of weakness, gave them the benefit of the doubt. Vesper seemed to believe them, and it was bitter cold out here. So, with some trepidation she said, “Okay, sure, that seems fair to me.”
* * *
When Ghost and Vesper returned to the cathedral with the visitors, Golem accepted them easily enough, and offered to hear their story after a short tour of the Chatrani. Ghost noted that he seemed just a little too cheerful to be letting in complete strangers so easily, let alone giving them a tour and she deduced that he must be glad for the delay. She found this irksome, to say the least.
Upon their arrival at the city center, the strange guests appeared almost in shock. “I’ve never seen anything like it…” Antigone whispered to the dark man beside her, who nodded in reply. He held the willowy blonde woman protectively at his side with one arm over her shoulders, as if she might be snatched away at any moment. She smiled back at him, seeming comfortable with his closeness, and then continued to gaze around in doe-eyed wonderment.
Golem lead the group across the city center bridge, a wide, heavily-traversed structure and the main “centerpiece” of the complex. It was in fact about 10 feet wide and made of concrete and steel, like everything else around them, and served as an alternative route to the circular walkway. As the group made their way across, passers-by glanced nervously at them, and some even stood still and gawked at the foreigners. Although the Chatrani were certainly very eclectic in population, these visitors had a certain, undeniable mystique to them.
“We ought to head to the main room,” Golem told the group, looking apprehensively at the gathering crowd.
“We would very much appreciate that,” said Antigone politely, while Osiris added, “Yes, thank you.”
As they left the city center, instead of continuing straight toward the general housing area, they went down a few flights of steep, zigzagging stairs to the industrial area of the complex. This was where most of the Chatrani went every day to work, most of which had to do with caring for the light crops, food preparation, construction/maintenance or security. It was an extremely noisy, crowded area, which is probably why they didn’t hear Killswitch yelling for them to slow down.
“Christ, you guys, I’ve been trying to catch up to you since you got back,” he huffed; yet remarkably his trademark mostly-ash cigarette was holding together. The group moved into an empty hallway and stopped as he jogged up to them. “I assume you guys are headed toward the meeting room. I saw Ren a way’s back and let him know,” said the lanky redhead, pausing for breath. “So…who might you be?” he asked, nodding toward Osiris and Antigone.
“They’ll explain everything once we get to the main room,” said Golem sternly, looking warily behind Killswitch at the approaching onlookers. “Let’s just all sit down first, alright?”
The freezing-cold underground pathways twisted and turned, past closed doors and windowless rooms, until arriving at an unremarkable doorway in the middle of it all. Golem took out the key to the room and they all filed inside.
It was, as expected, a cold, concrete room with a wooden table filling up most of the space, with barely enough room for chairs at the sides. Golem squeezed past and stood at the front, his large body framed by several file cabinets and a mess of empty cups and plates. This was the Nightriders’ central meeting room, though many a sleepless night had been spent at this scruffed-up brown table simply playing cards and goofing off. As Ghost took her place near Golem, with Vesper to her left and Killswitch next to him, she couldn’t help but remember happier times.
Once Osiris and Antigone were seated, an uncomfortable silence settled in the room. “So,” said Golem, strumming his fingers on the table. “Once Ren gets here, we can get started.”
“Okay,” said the woman, who seemed to infinitely patient. Ghost thought she was unusually pretty, with her bright green eyes, wavy golden hair and all-white attire, and indeed, none of the men could seem to look away from her. Osiris, obviously trying to be polite, cleared his throat several times as the clock on the wall ticked the seconds away.
Just as the clock was beginning to seem loud as a sledgehammer, the tension was broken when Ren knocked on the door, giving a code word, and was let in by Killswitch. The serious-looking mercenary scanned the room once and nodded, taking his place near Osiris, apparently eager to listen.
“Alright, then,” said the woman in a clear, smooth voice, looking at Golem, who nodded. “You all are obviously very curious about what we’re doing here, and I’ll do my best to explain. First of all you should know that we’ve traveled a very long way, from Cairo, in order to speak with you.”
Instantly the anticipation level rose and everyone leaned forward; even Natalie, anxious to leave, forgot for a moment about that.
“We’d like to thank you for accommodating us, as it appears (she looked at Ghost) that you were about to leave, but as I'll explain, I think it’s important that you hear what I have to say.”
The woman suddenly appeared self-conscious, and she glanced over at Osiris, who took her hand reassuringly. “I, well…I don’t know quite how to put this, but we’ve traveled here because I have a warning for you, about one of your friends. I don’t know what she is called, but she’s a pale woman with dark hair and dark clothing…do you know her?”
Everyone in the room seemed to stop breathing for a moment, except Killswitch, who had his arms crossed rather smugly, and Ren, who looked merely curious.
“I think we know who you mean….” Marcus said slowly. “Can you tell us any more? What was this, a dream, or…?”
“Well, you see, it was a sort of vision,” said the woman vaguely, “But it was certainly not a dream. All my life I’ve had what is called the Second Sight; many things I have seen have come true. However, this is the first time I’ve had such a strong feeling about someone I didn’t know…someone so far away.”
“So, wait,” interrupted Killswitch. “You’re telling me that you came all this way to tell us you had a vision about someone we may know? Are you for real?” A look of glee spread across his face as he shook his head incredulously.
“That’s what she’s saying,” said Osiris, narrowing his eyes toward the smarmy redhead.
“Continue, please,” urged Golem.
“Well, I’ll tell you the details of the vision,” said Antigone cautiously. “The woman I described, she’s standing in the snow…and she’s crying. It seems almost as if she is staring into nothingness. The woman has a scar, but…the scar is not on her body, it is on her soul.”
Killswitch gave a rude sort of chortle and was met with disdainful glares all around.
“That was my initial vision,” continued Antigone. “Afterward, I knew with certainty that this woman was from Prague, and that we needed to come here and to speak with her or anyone who knows her.”
“Antigone is not one to make up stories,” added Osiris. “She has had this gift her whole life, I swear to you.” The woman appeared slightly embarrassed by this comment, and a pink blush appeared on her cheeks.
“Yes…” she added. “Osiris agreed to come with me right away. It’s been a long and tiresome journey, and along the way, I began to have the feeling the woman would not be here when we arrived. Since you were leaving for a journey, I assume…that you were going to find her?” The question was directed at Ghost, who had an awfully sick feeling rising in her stomach. Well damn, she thought. It’s looking like she’s telling the truth.
Ghost nodded. “We were leaving to find her, yes, and someone she left with.”
“If I may ask, what is her name? It’s just I’ve wanted to know for so long…” Antigone’s voice trailed off.
Natalie hesitated, but Golem, who was clearly a believer, chimed in, “Evelina Maruska.”
“That sounds right,” the woman said with a weary smile.
“Bullshit,” said Killswitch, though as he said it he’d coughed into his hand, using the rather juvenile method to get his point across.
“It’s true,” said the woman defensively, looking like she might burst into tears. “No sane person would travel all this way on something like a hunch. And I can assure you; I’m quite sane. I know this is true. I can feel it in my bones. And all I have wanted this whole time is to help.” She looked around the room for some sign that she was, indeed, believed.
“It’s okay, we believe you,” said Golem. “Right, guys?”
Ghost nodded, as did Vesper. “Yeah,” said Ren. “You’re the real deal, definitely.”
Utterly disgusted for the second time that day, Killswitch said, “Well, now that you’ve told us, what exactly do you plan to do?”
“I don’t know…” admitted Antigone, once again looking at Golem. “All we have wanted for so long is to get this message to you, I never thought past this moment.”
“I thought so,” Killswitch smirked.
“No,” said Vesper, sitting up in his chair as if jerked out of a deep sleep. “You ought to come with us. Ghost and I will be taking the APC, and there’s plenty of room for the four of us.”
Golem merely nodded; he seemed to be reluctant to let them go, like earlier, but knew that with recent events there was no way Ghost would stay behind. Osiris and Antigone seemed pleased with that arrangement, and no more was said as they filed out of the room and back into the noisy, bustling populace.
* * *
Vesper had to arrange to bring some extra necessities for the trip and load them onto his vehicle, which, again, caused delay. The group was mingling about in the underground garage as he hurried to and fro.
“Fucking hell…” muttered Ghost as she leaned up against the side of the towering APC. Vesper seemed to have modified it somewhat, as it was missing its treads and instead sported four gigantic wheels. He also claimed that it was lighter and would have no problem on the cobbled streets of Prague, or elsewhere, and that he had infused it with all sorts of special gadgetry. Ghost didn’t much care for such details at the moment, and would have taken off on her bike if she had it.
“I’m just about ready,” said Vesper as he rushed by her carrying more supplies. “We would have taken your bike, but, err, this is probably better anyway.” He had been packing supplies carefully on the back of the tank (with some help from Osiris) and planned to throw a net over them, which would then be secured tightly to the sides. The tank had two doors, which blended almost seamlessly with the tan-colored sides, and Antigone was sitting just inside one, her legs dangling out as she kicked them absentmindedly.
As Ghost stared vacantly around the vast, echoing garage, something caught her eye and she stood up straight, narrowing her bright blue eyes. Two people were approaching from the underground entrance to the garage, one of whom she recognized: Mackenzie Emmerich. The other, she did not, but goosebumps sprang up on her arms instantly. The girl bore a striking resemblance to herself...but there was something about her that didn’t seem quite right. “We’ve got company,” Ghost said bluntly.
“Hey man, what’s up?” asked Vesper as his friend approached.
“Hey…” Zero replied, scratching the back of his neck. He had the air of someone who was there reluctantly. “Um, this is Kay; none of you have met her yet. Kay, introduce yourself.”
Golem, who was standing near Ghost, moved closer to her and whispered, “What the fuck?”
“My name is Android Model Kay-RX11. I am also known as Kizana,” said the woman, scanning the group with her magenta eyes. They were set deeply in her pale skin, and peered out curiously from behind a thick layer of purple-striped bangs. She looked back at Zero, who had flushed a deep red. “Was that good, Mackenzie?”
“Yeah yeah, that was good, only next time introduce yourself as just Kay,” said the boy.
Kay had fixed her gaze upon Ghost and was tilting her head to the side curiously. Ghost looked back at her, then at Zero, who began to speak. “Did you miss me?” he asked nervously, looking around at everyone but Natalie. Seven pairs of eyes stared back blankly.
“Never knew you left, buddy,” Vesper replied. “What’s going on? We were just about to take off.” He quickly explained to Zero and Kizana about the situation with Eve, and how two strangers had shown up with a story that seemed believable. As he described Antigone’s nightmarish vision, Kizana appeared agitated.
“That’s why we’ve come back,” she said. “Should I explain, Mackenzie?”
“It’s okay, Kizana,” he said placatingly. “Well, I decided to take Kizana to the surface, you know, to…well, it doesn’t really matter.”
Golem gave him a scolding look.
“Yeah, I know, but I thought she might like to see the world…” he floundered a bit. “Anyway, we’ve got news. Lux Divina is planning an attack on the Nightriders. Kay heard all about it, just by accident.”
“There is a woman—I did not hear her name—who is out to collect a bounty on Evelina and her companion…” Kay paused then, as Vesper had approached her and was gazing at her intently. She looked at him and blinked. “Yes?”
“Wow, interesting... I remember I used to work with these kinda android things back when I first joined White Tide. Of course, they weren't this fully realized, you could say... Skin composition is tricky business…Kind of an art, really... She's somewhat of an older model, isn't she? Seems durable, though-"
Kizana looked horrified. Her magenta eyes widened, and she turned to Zero, asking, “Mackenzie…I’m…old?”
Mackenzie’s eye gave a twitch. “D-don’t listen to him, Kay.”
“What’s up with the outfit?” Vesper continued, giving it a little tug. He was, however, smiling, and the android looked back curiously.
By now Mackenzie’s ears had gone red. Evidently the scrutinizing of his creation’s appearance was too much for him. She was dressed rather strangely, though. Aside from the hooded cloak, Kizana wore a tattered-looking purple tank top and an unmistakably lavender bra; one of the straps had fallen down to her elbow. A nondescript, similarly ragged black skirt hung down just past her knees, and at the end of her chalk-white legs was a pair of shiny brown penny loafers with mismatched socks.
“I picked it out myself,” Kizana answered with a smile.
“That’s wonderful,” said Vesper eagerly.
“I gathered as much,” said Killswitch with his trademark sneer.
“Whatever. Where did Evelina and that other chick go, anyway?” asked Zero.
“Marena,” said Golem tersely. His agitation level seemed to have surpassed Natalie’s, and she shot him an “It’s about time, could we leave now?” look. “And we don’t know where they went. Ghost and Vesper volunteered to go find them, and now Osiris and Antigone are going as well.”
“How are we going to protect the Chatrani if we’re losing both Vesper and Ghost?” asked Ren.
Marcus gave a thoughtful look. “I am worried about that myself, but we don’t have a choice,” he replied. “We’ll manage, recruit some more help amongst the Chatrani if need be. I’m worried about Evelina and Marena now, too. Let’s not waste any more time, okay?”
“Take care, guys,” said Ren, who turned to leave, along with Killswitch. Zero and Kizana wandered away, speaking quietly to one another. Golem stepped forward and hugged Vesper, who returned the gesture along with a pat on the back. As Vesper was securing the APC, Ghost stole a quick glance at Marcus, who was looking at her like he might cry.
“Don’t worry about us, okay?” she said, a bit softer than normal. She hesitated, unsure of how to say goodbye, and settled on extending her hand toward him.
“You’re so stubborn,” he said affectionately, pulling the pale woman toward him in a tight embrace. “Always have been. Take good care, Natalie.”
“Right,” she said, stepping away quickly, flushed with embarrassment from actual human touch. “See you.”
Golem watched the tank until it had disappeared up the garage ramp which lead to the surface, but even once it was gone, he didn’t move for several minutes. Finally, with a sigh, he whispered, “See you…”
* * *
Posted by Sylpheel @ 11:44 PM CST [Link]