Shinra Bansho [Chapter 15]

[JFC]

“Holy… It’s human!”

Heh heh heh...

I think I’m healing anyway. It’s different from my severed arm healing though. The skin around my bullet wound was actually closing up compared to just stopping with the bleeding.

That ability was probably built into their genetic code as part of the enhanced abilities the scientists would have wanted them to have.  At any rate, it's going to be tough for Shou to explain why she's not dead, though it'll be interesting interesting to see how she'll do it.

She wore a soldier’s outfit and was sort of rugged. There’s a higher chance of her being a real soldier rather than a cosplayer.

If she's a real soldier, then where is her platoon? If she's out on her own, either the others are all dead for some reason, or she's gone AWOL.

In that case, I had better keep a low profile. Linlin did tell me not to let too many people know about my situation, least they decide to mess up the research and what not.

That's probably true that that would happen, especially if Shou's dealing with a real soldier here.  Military training would likely dictate that what has to be done is to destroy anything and everything (i.e. notes/data/equipment) that could possibly lead to the experiment being recreated in the future. Then, in this case, they'd have to make sure all of the mutants were destroys, and they'd likely imprison, if not execute Junjun and Linlin if they refused to cooperate.

I bet she’s thinking that I’m an undead or something.

KR Blade.

“You’re not supposed to be alive!”

She looked at me, her face more or less drained of blood. And the tone she used, it was enough to tell me that she was cautious, and afraid under that entire demanding exterior.

...

“Won’t do you any good keeping me here so please just … pretend it never happened?”

Yeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah...that's not likely gonna happen.  This isn't exactly something that can be ignored.

“I can’t. It’s my duty to rid the city of potential danger. And YOU are exactly that.”

“What are you talking about? I’m perfectly harmless. I don’t even have a weapon with me.”

“Being able to survive a shot to the heart is suspicious enough. You could very well be those ‘things’.”

That WOULD be the first instinctual conclusion to draw. Regular humans don't just come back after having been shot in the chest like that.  If this person is a soldier (as it would appear to be seeing as how she mentions her "duty"), she would have been briefed on the abilities of the mutants that they wanted destroyed.  She would have been told that the mutants would be resistant to gunfire.

Next thing I knew, I got a sharp blow to my head and passed out again. Not only was she stubborn, she sure was violent. Some time had passed when I came to. I don’t think I am at the same place as before anymore. The air felt musty, and all I saw around me was streams of light from the windows. I tried to reach for the bump on my head but was surprised that a rope had been tied around my body, locking my arm in place as well.

A precautionary measure, no doubt. Until Ms. Soldier can figure out if Shou is an immediate threat or not, she needs to be secured to keep her from possibly attacking her, or running away.  Our soldier is looking for answers, so it won't do any good if Shou kills her or escapes.

5 minutes into lying on the floor and light suddenly flooded into the room as the woman came in holding some... grocery bags?

Hmmm...obviously Ms. Soldier didn't feel all that safe where she and Shou first met.  After tying her up she undoubtedly took her inside one of the buildings where they'd be less likely to be spotted by other mutants/creatures and thus (hopefully) be a bit safer.

Still though, where are the other soldiers? It's not good military strategy for them to be off completely on their own when in a hostile situation like this. Unless they're under orders to maintain complete radio silence, Ms. Soldier here should be trying to contact her platoon-mates and/or command centre to let them know that she's alive (assuming that she hasn't done so already). There's got to be some rendezvous point at which they're all supposed to meet up.  Shou would prove to be an interesting prisoner to bring back.

The grocery bags sort of hint that perhaps this soldier really IS on her own, and for some reason is stuck in the city. Perhaps the others are all dead, or they already withdrew and she just missed the ride.

“Damn, you take your ‘duty’ too seriously.”

She shrugged and knelt down on one knee by my side, observing me. She was especially curious with my missing limb, poking at my shoulder without a reason.

“It’s my job as a soldier regardless of circumstances.”

“But the city’s already hopeless, what’s the point?”

“You don’t get it, do you?”

She sounds like one of those "by the book" soldiers.  While that can be a good thing in that it ensures that the soldier knows what is allowed/disallowed as well as what should/shouldn't be done, it also can be a handicap if the soldier relies too much on it.   Soldiers need to follow the rules, but they also have to be able to improvise and take the initiative at times.  Military protocol tries to cover as much as it can, but it inevitably isn't designed to handle every single possible situation out there.

Could I know your name then, Miss Soldier?”

...

“Takahashi Ai.”

Now while everyone had already known that...still gotta say...YAY IT'S AICHAN!

“Uhh… got any food?”

She gave me that WTF look again and stood up to look through the bags. This is going to be a long day.

No, the grocery bags are full of guns and ammo.  [/sarcasm]


Shou = 

Aichan = 

Funny, I tend to have trouble saying Aichan's name without the -chan >_>;;

Yeah, somehow it just doesn't sound...right without it, ne? 

[inDeceit]

I suppose some soldiers got left behind during evacuation. Shit happens

[inDeceit]

=o 1000pageviews already?
Decided to quicken the pace of the fic. Lots of new characters coming soon.

Chapter 14

I’m still tied up and SOMEONE refuses to free my arm so I could feed myself, and she wouldn’t do me the favor of putting food in my mouth either. She’s either doing it on purpose, or seriously unaware of my situation. I sat upright against the wall, staring at the lunchbox that had gone cold. She had been ignoring my cries of hunger all along, probably thinking that I’m picky.

“I’ve yet to catch your name.”

Ai asked me as she turned around on a stool while munching on a biscuit stick. I bit on my upper lip and stared at the biscuit longingly until it was finally gone. Seeing that I won’t be getting any food for quite awhile, I went back to glaring at the lunchbox, hoping that I will develop some sort of psychokinesis during the process.

“Well? I’m waiting.”

“I’ll tell you if you let me go~”

“How many times must I-?“

“Or at least feed me! I’m too hungry to talk and, no arms.”

“What the- Oooh… Oh fine.“

She was nice enough to finally realized it. I huffed at her, and waited for my meal. Ai sat down in front of me and opened the lunchbox. She shoved the spoon of rice into my mouth and placed the box down.

“Okay, I fed you. Name?”

I choked a little, a string of curses running through my mind.

”Are all soldiers scary like that?”

“…” She glared at me.

“Okay, okay. My name is Shou, don’t hurt me.”

I still am intimidated easily. She nodded and smiled at me before taking another spoonful of rice and holding it in front of me. I looked at her suspiciously until she pushed the spoon closer with no intention of violence, then I dared to accept it. I finish the meal without too much of a hassle. She’s good with this interrogating thing, if one can consider it that (probably just me though, as always). I wonder what her position was in the military.

“By the way, where are we and is this place safe?”

I really am into this whole safety first thing ever since the first time I realized no where's...well, safe. I looked around and asked just as she was about to clean up the place. She stopped to think.

“It <i>is</i>… relatively safe. Hmm…”

She dropped what she’s been doing abruptly and headed for the barred window, tiptoeing to take a peek outside.

“Relatively?”

“Prison cell. These walls are made of titanium but…”

“But?” She appeared a little distracted.

“I’m not sure how well they stand against Shinra’s children though."

“Shinra’s children?”

I had a hunch about what she meant, but I’m not quite sure.

“Some inside information I’ve been told about, but basically, the mutations I’m sure you’ve seen.”

I did a silent ‘ohhh’, but still confused with what she had just said. Perhaps she knows more about the whole story than I thought. She could be useful to us if she wasn’t so… so… hell, I don’t even know how to start describing her.

“Who’s this Shinra person, thing, whatever?”

“The man who-“

There was a sudden loud crash from the outside, and screams followed by an explosion that came through the other side of the room. Guess titanium can’t withstand today’s explosive power after all. We both started coughing at the smoke, our eyes straining to see through the smokescreen.

“Ah! Shit.”

I growled when I saw a few huge silhouettes behind the smoke and smaller ones being held up above the ground. I’ve grown all too familiar to that figure. Taking action immediately, Ai pulled me up to my feet by a stray end of the rope and out through the steel door.

“Let me run myself!”

“Run now, talk later.”

She yelled back and tugged at the rope harder. Damnit, she’s a fast runner. I tripped over my own feet a few times. As we got out of the building, a man ran towards us and grabbed Ai by the shoulders. He looked distraught. Just where are all this people coming from?! Everything was happening too fast. The man shocked Ai, surprisingly, and she ended up stunned on the spot.

“You’re a soldier! Help me! They’re coming!”

The man yelled in our faces, but neither of us had the chance to say anything else when he got swiped away by a blurred figure. This is no good; these ‘children’ of a psycho named Shinra are raiding the entire area. People, actual people are running about in a panic. It’s only a matter of time that they’re done with their prey and begin searching for a new one. I’m only glad that they are single-minded after mutating. I rushed up to Ai and snapped her out of her daze with a hard shove on the back using my shoulder. Her body jerked from the surprise and she looked at me, confused. She then glanced behind me and gasped, apparently people were being attacked mercilessly, no matter where they ran.

 “They must have gotten into the refugee shelter…”

That explains a lot. Didn’t know shelters had been specially set up. We had to start moving again. Needless to say, much would be lost if they caught us.

“No time to care for them anymore. Run, now!”

I repeated the same two words she gave me and grabbed her by the hand with my own despite being restricted. It was harder than I thought, pulling someone along with little space between us. I nearly lost balance during the run.

“W-where are we running to?”

Haven’t thought of that. We got to the same tunnel where we first ‘met’. The only safe place I can think of now is… home, the lab! I don’t care if Linlin’s going to drain me empty for coming back without mutant skin, I’m returning whether she likes it or not. Besides, bringing Ai back might prove to be more useful than some stupid skin. I fully depended on what little memory I had to find our way back to the lab, taking any and every route that appeared familiar.

I only started slowing down when the area started feeling friendly again, or as friendly as it could ever be at least. Already knowing my way around this part of the city beforehand, I led us back to the lab using a much safer detour. It took awhile, but the same old run down building came to view eventually.

[JFC]

I’m still tied up and SOMEONE refuses to free my arm so I could feed myself, and she wouldn’t do me the favor of putting food in my mouth either. She’s either doing it on purpose, or seriously unaware of my situation.

Okaaaaaaaaaaaay...just how exactly does Aichan expect Shou to eat, or is this some type of military technique to get Shou to talk?

“I’ve yet to catch your name.”

...

“Or at least feed me! I’m too hungry to talk and, no arms.”

...

“…” She glared at me.

“Okay, okay. My name is Shou, don’t hurt me.”

I still am intimidated easily. She nodded and smiled at me before taking another spoonful of rice and holding it in front of me. I looked at her suspiciously until she pushed the spoon closer with no intention of violence, then I dared to accept it.

Okay, if Aichan didn't intend to do that food this as a military tactic, she quickly realized that she could take advantage of it.

“By the way, where are we and is this place safe?”

...

“Prison cell. These walls are made of titanium

A prison cell? Hmmm...well they ARE designed to be secure. But prisons are meant to keep people inside and prevent them from breaking out.  No one ever said anything about them being able to stop people from breaking IN.

“I’m not sure how well they stand against Shinra’s children though."

“Shinra’s children?”

I had a hunch about what she meant, but I’m not quite sure.

“Some inside information I’ve been told about, but basically, the mutations I’m sure you’ve seen.”

Shinra must be the name of the original project or the scientist who dreamt them up.  Strange that Aichan, as a military person, would be referring to them that way.

here was a sudden loud crash from the outside, and screams followed by an explosion that came through the other side of the room.

...

I growled when I saw a few huge silhouettes behind the smoke and smaller ones being held up above the ground. I’ve grown all too familiar to that figure. Taking action immediately, Ai pulled me up to my feet by a stray end of the rope and out through the steel door.

Yep. Keeping people OUT wasn't exactly part of the original design plan. Plus the mutants are a LOT stronger physically than your typical human.

As we got out of the building, a man ran towards us and grabbed Ai by the shoulders. He looked distraught. Just where are all this people coming from?! Everything was happening too fast. The man shocked Ai, surprisingly, and she ended up stunned on the spot.

Hmmm...he might be one of the other soldiers that came with Aichan. By the sounds of it, he (and any other soldiers he may be with) are in a bit of a pinch, to put it mildly.  He and the others must have been heavily pursued and/or attacked by lots of mutants, so much so that he's mistaken Aichan as one of them.

I rushed up to Ai and snapped her out of her daze with a hard shove on the back using my shoulder. Her body jerked from the surprise and she looked at me, confused. She then glanced behind me and gasped, apparently people were being attacked mercilessly, no matter where they ran.

 “They must have gotten into the refugee shelter…”

That explains a lot. Didn’t know shelters had been specially set up.

...

“No time to care for them anymore. Run, now!”

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh...so that must be where the other soldiers were.

We got to the same tunnel where we first ‘met’. The only safe place I can think of now is… home, the lab! I don’t care if Linlin’s going to drain me empty for coming back without mutant skin, I’m returning whether she likes it or not. Besides, bringing Ai back might prove to be more useful than some stupid skin. I fully depended on what little memory I had to find our way back to the lab, taking any and every route that appeared familiar.

It's going to be interesting to see how the scientists react to the soldier, and vice versa.  The two sides are notorious for not seeing eye-to-eye on many things, particularly in how to deal with unknown situations. 

Even more interesting is that even though the lab is the place where Shou's been poked and prodded and basically has been treated like a lab rat...she thinks of it as "home".

[inDeceit]

Chapter 15

“Why the hell did you bring a <i>soldier</i> back?”

Linlin pulled me to the side not long after I had stepped into the laboratory. Junjun on the other hand, she took it upon herself to keep an eye on Takahashi. Those two appears to be having a showdown. The taller of the two watched the other like a hawk, while the other glared back suspiciously. One wrong move and the building may very well blow up. Sometimes I wonder if Junjun’s stoic, but seeing how she flared up last year when we first met, I take back my words. I ignored them for now and turned my attention back to the younger scientist.

“What? No 'Welcome back, we missed you?' and what's wrong with the soldier?”

“Everything! She’s going to nuke us with her military powers! To refresh your memory, we aren’t exactly authorized!”

“Powers…? What the hell.  But she might be useful, she knows stuff.”

“So? She’s still go- wait, stuff? What stuff?”

“Everything <i>you</i> want to know. Mentioned something about those uglies belonging to some guy called Shinra.”

“Hmm.”

Linlin shoved me aside and joined her partner in observing our guest. She’s not being all that tactful when the next thing she did was point a finger at Ai and yelling. I detect a minor case of ADD.

“Tell me everything you know!”

Too bad for her, Ai had already zoned out from reality. I’m starting to conclude that after a certain period of time of not interacting with the woman, it causes her to switch off completely. Interesting. I slapped my forehead and moved to drag an excited Linlin away to a corner.

“What are you doing?”

“You said she knew what we want!”

“Being straightforward with her is not the way! It’s probably all confidential, and she will probably really nuke us, like you said, if she knew what we had been doing.”

“Oh, when did you become smart?”

“…”

I suppressed the urge to pop a vein and flicked my finger against her forehead before walking back to Ai. It’s becoming old to keep making fun of my brain. Before Linlin could start her whining, I had already led us out of the lab and into another room. Lucky for us, there’s Junjun to save the day. I heard her successfully persuading her partner into going back to their current research and something about someone arriving in awhile.

In the new room, I sat down on a stool and offered a chair to Ai. I’m surprised that she’s been quiet all this while instead of trying to restrain me. Maybe because she knew that this isn’t her territory anymore. At least she’s cooperative, to an extent.

“So… where were we?”

“Something about your intelligence?”

“You heard?! Argh! Whatever, I think you were about to tell me about Shinra?”

“ I don’t know. It’s confidential. Why would you want to know anyway?”

“Uh, I’m curious?”

“Or perhaps, you’re intending to continue in his footsteps? Hmm?”

“What? That’s crazy talk!"

“It’s completely logical. You are his child after all, in a figurative sense. And who wouldn’t want the abilities that he had hoped to grant the people? You’d be a god if you accomplished what he failed to finish.”

“Okay… you’ve confused me right there. And I’m not a mutant, nor do I want to be one.”

It’s partially true on the former claim, not denial!

“I’ve ruled out the possibility of you being human. But what if it was possible to remain one AND retain the powers as well? Can you admit that you wouldn’t want it?”

Why and when did SHE become the person in control of this conversation? Is she playing with my mind? Because I’m quite sure there’s some doubt growing in me now. What if… no… I don’t want to suspect that that is what they’ve doing all along. I don’t want to plant the idea of being deceived into my head right now, not when I’m feeling secured, not when I’ve found a place to return back to and be able to call it home even if temporary. If I continue asking about the project at the moment, I’ll be digging my own grave.

“Damnit. Can we… you know, change the topic?”

“If you wish.”

“Soldiers should’ve evacuated from the start, why are you still around?”

Her blank, slightly cold expression dropped to something along the lines of being upset, or worried.

“ I’ve been searching for someone. Then again, waiting should be a better word.”

Ai definitely had no thought of holding back on revealing personal plans. It’s tough facing someone unusual like her. One moment she could be saying everything and the next, you’d probably think she’s mute. For once, I’m not even going to discuss this thing called ‘Trust’ with her. I guess we’re even on that part.

“Whom are you searching for?”

“A friend. She told me many things regarding Shinra’s project. If it wasn’t for her, I’d still be as clueless as you are. Though it’s only on account of friendship that she mentioned them, since it doesn’t exactly concern me back then.”

“Like, overstressed leading to a whole load of babbling?”

She shrugged. I’m taking that as a yes.

“Then, where did she go?”

“Disappeared. Heard they sent her to the borders, but it’s impossible to survive there.”

“She could be dead for all we know and you’re still waiting for her to return?”

She nodded and I wonder why. Our conversation was interrupted when Linlin barged in.

“She’s here!! You two, lab, now!”

We exchanged glances, then got up to follow the mad scientist back to her self-proclaim sanctuary.

“Shou, meet-“

Oh my god, are those antennas on her head?!

[glcorps2002]

Hacker Eri!!!

[JFC]

“Why the hell did you bring a soldier back?”

...

“What? No 'Welcome back, we missed you?' and what's wrong with the soldier?”

“Everything! She’s going to nuke us with her military powers! To refresh your memory, we aren’t exactly authorized!”

Now while this particular statement might seem a bit over-the-top, it does basically summarize how the military are thought of by many people in the scientific community.

“Powers…? What the hell.  But she might be useful, she knows stuff.”

“So? She’s still go- wait, stuff? What stuff?”

“Everything you want to know. Mentioned something about those uglies belonging to some guy called Shinra.”

“Hmm.”

Hmmm indeed. If Aichan really DOES have information about the mutants, it can greatly help in their research.

“Tell me everything you know!”

...

“Being straightforward with her is not the way! It’s probably all confidential, and she will probably really nuke us, like you said, if she knew what we had been doing.”

  Because of military protocol, as soon as Aichan finds out what they've been doing in that lab, her training will tell her to contact her superiors ASAP in order to report it in.  In order to find out what Aichan knows, the three of them are going to have to be really subtle, so as to not arouse her suspicions (though that's not likely going to happen given the mistrust that exists between scientists and the military).

“Oh, when did you become smart?”

“…”

Linlin =

Shou = 

Junjun = 

Aichan = 

Before Linlin could start her whining, I had already led us out of the lab and into another room. Lucky for us, there’s Junjun to save the day. I heard her successfully persuading her partner into going back to their current research and something about someone arriving in awhile.

A visitor? Is it the hacker?

you’re intending to continue in his footsteps? Hmm?”

“What? That’s crazy talk!"

“It’s completely logical. You are his child after all, in a figurative sense. And who wouldn’t want the abilities that he had hoped to grant the people? You’d be a god if you accomplished what he failed to finish.”

Thinking like a military person, this conclusion does make sense. Right now they're in the process of trying to eliminate all evidence of Shinra's work, and as such there whould be no other reason why anyone would want to continue studying/researching it.

“Soldiers should’ve evacuated from the start, why are you still around?”

Her blank, slightly cold expression dropped to something along the lines of being upset, or worried.

“ I’ve been searching for someone. Then again, waiting should be a better word.”

So then Aichan's not really here under military orders. She's gone AWOL.

“Whom are you searching for?”

“A friend. She told me many things regarding Shinra’s project. If it wasn’t for her, I’d still be as clueless as you are. Though it’s only on account of friendship that she mentioned them, since it doesn’t exactly concern me back then.”

Was this friend of hers a scientist that was actually involved in the project in some way?  If so, why is Aichan waiting for her? Were they supposed to rendezvous somewhere?

“Then, where did she go?”

“Disappeared. Heard they sent her to the borders, but it’s impossible to survive there.”

“She could be dead for all we know and you’re still waiting for her to return?”

She nodded and I wonder why.

This friend (I'm guessing it's Risa) must mean a lot to Aichan. She knows that she's in all likelihood dead, yet she still holds out hope that she'll turn up.  Even if they find her and see that she IS dead, at least Aichan will KNOW what happened to her, which is better than not knowing at all.

"She’s here!! You two, lab, now!”

That's nice, but again...WHO IS IT???

“Shou, meet-“

Oh my god, are those antennas on her head?!

WTF???

Hacker Eri!!!

Erien invasion? 

[meowz]

Chapter 15

“Shou, meet-“

Oh my god, are those antennas on her head?!

Lol Kame immediately popped into my mind too!
Argh cliffhanger! Keep posting!