The Togakushi Shrine (local time: 1:57 PM)…
"I accept your explanation and apology, Kaiete-san."
Hearing that from Kujū Mai, Senzō could only smile as he straightened himself. He was currently seated beside Negako in front of a cozy hearth fire, with the Kujūs, Anna and Madarao on the other side. Mai's two closest friends sat behind her, with Senzō's and Negako's aides behind them. The guests from Fūka sat off to one side as they enjoyed tea and snacks while they watched this meeting. "Arigatō, Mai-san," Senzō then said. "Much that I believed the Wisdom Alliance has the better interests of the whole planet at heart when they do what they do, now that I know of the Avalonians and what they are doing now for our planet, perhaps it is time to reassess my group’s relationship with them."
"Negako-sama, could the Alliance be a threat to your people?" Shūichi asked.
"The only possible threat they could provide to us is via their influence through the economies of various nations on the potential 'mob mentality' that could erupt should skewered or inaccurate information concerning Avalon be released to the public before they are prepared to understand what such information would ultimately mean to them," Negako stated, which made Senzō nod. "As far as we can tell, the Alliance is not yet aware of the presence of Avalonians on Earth, though they are beginning to see some of the more concerning after-effects of their presence here, especially given the display of military hardware in Welland when Invader's people came. However, as the Alliance's leadership sees itself as enlightened, always striving for goals that would bring improvement to humanity as a whole, it would be intellectually dishonest for them to ignore the advantages of what Avalon has brought to Earth."
The others in the room nodded. "Thirty Earth-sized planets, all habitable and available for the taking," Shūichi noted. "Each with roughly the same amount of water-land ratio Earth itself has. Seven billion Terrans and two-and-a-half billion Avalonians." He paused as he did a quick mental calculation. "If a population of nine-and-a-half billion people were divided among thirty-one planets…"
"Somewhat over three hundred million persons per planet," Kenmochi breathed out, and then he shook his head. "Gods! There goes all the questions about population overload, global warming, resources being consumed without replacing them…"
"And the gifts of technology the Avalonians brought with them," Senzō added. "We no longer would be so dependent on oil, for example. Nuclear fusion technology, all forms of renewable energy resources such as solar, wind and hydro power, even the use of antimatter-based technology…" A shrug. "All oil would be needed for from this day forth is to provide the basics for all forms of plastics."
"The land would be free and be renewed," Madarao breathed out. "The skies would be clear, the air clean. The seas renewed with new life now that overfishing would no longer be an issue." He then hummed. "Are there people living on these worlds?"
"At most, they boasted very small military settlements with a local economy that was only supported by interplanetary trade from worlds deeper within the Seifukusu Dominion," Negako stated, and then she blinked on hearing her telephone ring. As the others gazed expectantly at her, she pulled it out of her slacks. "Moroboshi," she called into it.
"Ane-chama, we got a problem!"
"What is it, Kurumi?"
"Two incoming helicopters, both look like ex-military Sea Kings, coming towards the mountains en route to your location!" Matsûra Kurumi reported from the H-70 that Negako and her friends had used to fly to Nagano; she and her partner, Sakurai Yukie, had remained aboard with two of Senzō's people to act as overhead warning just in case their leader's meeting with the Kujūs was interrupted. "A pass over the roads south of the lower shrine show the prefectural highway has been totally blocked off, by police and private cops as well! One of Kaiete-sama's people just reported seeing something rather big and looking humanoid in the passenger compartment of one of the Sea Kings."
Senzō breathed out. "Tsukiro…"
By then, Tokiha Mai had her cell phone out and was texting off a message…
The Fūka Academy, that minute…
"Another free period," Higurashi Akane mused aloud as she stepped out of class…
…only to tense on hearing her cell phone chime an alarm. Getting it out of her skirt pocket, she flipped open the device, and then read the text she just received:
FR: Kagutsuchi
TO: Harry
RE: Artemis
We need help now from topside. Incoming Orphans at our place.
M
"Oh, DAMN!" Akane hissed as she raced off, her fingers texting a quick acknowledgement back to her friend as she raced for the central courtyard so she could get to the elementary school wing and find Alyssa Searrs as quick as she could…
Togakushi…
"There, Madarao-sama!"
The whole clerical staff at the temple were now assembled on the lawn near the upper shrine, all looking up. They were quick to see the boat-shaped fuselages of the Mitsubishi-built replicas of the famous twin-engine shipborne anti-submarine warfare helicopter, now coming in from the south. Off to the southwest was the lone shape of the Seahawk helicopter that served as Negako's personal conveyance. Gazing at the approaching machines, the grandmaster of Saikō Jinseijutsu-ryū could only scowl. While she could call upon her considerable knowledge in ki to thoroughly scan the machines now approaching Togakushi-jinja, she had — thanks very much to her four years wandering around the planets of the Noukiite Outmarches — toned down her sensitivity so that she wouldn't be as violently bombarded by the tsunami of potential information conveyed through each planet's network of ley lines. In essence, she had fallen out of practice, especially since she had been taken on as part of the staff of the Imperial Household Agency as the unofficial Lady Grand Chamberlain of Japan, the Emperor's personal hatchet-woman and special representative concerning "sensitive" affairs.
"Mai?"
"Hai?!" both Kujū Mai and Tokiha Mai called out together.
People snickered as Negako sighed before she gazed on the Mai from Fūka. "As soon as Akane has Alyssa somewhere private, have her use Artemis to threaten those helicopters. One warning shot between them; make sure she does not cause collateral damage."
"Hai!" Mai said as she whipped out her cell phone…
On one of the Sea Kings…
"Damn!"
"What?!" the leader of the Alliance personnel in this mission demanded.
"One of the HiMEs is got her cell phone out!" one of the two lookouts with binoculars reported. "She's probably trying to text someone!"
"Didn't we get the towers shut down?!"
"We did, but…!"
Fûka…
"I see them now, Onē-chan…"
"Okay, Alyssa…remember not to hurt anyone…"
"Hai…firing now."
The sky over Togakushi suddenly lit up like brightest noon — or the heart of a very big bomb exploding — as a bolt of energy seared down from the southeast and very high in the sky to rip between the two Sea Kings and slam into the valley off to the east of the middle shrine. Everyone aboard both machines screamed out in shock as the pilots of both machines automatically jinxed away from each other, dropping altitude as they tried to avoid the air turbulence and get down to hide among the nearby mountain peaks.
"WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?!" the pilot of the lead machine cried out as he tried to shake off the last of the rolling air from Artemis' strike, and then he moved to climb back up again, ignoring the growl from the trapped creature well behind him.
"Some sort of laser attack!" another of the men bellowed out.
"CALM DOWN!" their leader screamed out before he looked back. "Let him go!"
The man at the cage door jolted. "WHAT?!"
"Open the damned door and let him out! Pilot, fly us right over the target!"
"You got it!"
The man blinked, and then he turned to gaze fearfully at the being within the cage as he moved to key open the controls to pull away the bars, and then he stepped back as he unlocked the starboard side door, pulling it open for the creature to head out…
"Here comes one of them now!" Anna warned. "I can…!"
"Wait, Anna!"
She turned to stare in confusion at Negako, and then she tensed on hearing a faint whistle that was growing louder and approaching from the southeast. "Was…?" she demanded in German as she turned to stare into the sky. "Oh, my…"
"Who IS that?!" Kujū Mai cried out as a Sea King soared right at her.
"MAI!"
She cried out as Shūichi grabbed her and dove for the ground…
…just as something leapt out of the Sea King passing overhead, heading down for the ground, an inhuman howl escaping it as it plunged right for the Kujūs…
…and then said howl turned into a gasped yelp of shock and surprise as someone snared the oversized man's cape and yanked it and him well away from the temple before dropping him to the ground well over several dozen metres away from where his targets were. "Excellent!" Anna whooped on seeing that the beast sent by the Alliance was now well and clear away from her beloved as she turned to focus her eyes on the second Sea King, which was now moving to intercept the flying being in the black-and-white jumpsuit as she moved to land in a position that would put her between Tsukiro and Mai.
On the machine that just had Tsukiro…
"Who the hell is THAT?! How is she FLYING?!"
"My God! Is it another psychokinetic?!"
"CALM DOWN!" the leader bellowed as the pilot moved to send the Sea King towards the shrine and Kujū Mai and Anna Garten. "The other chopper's moving to take a closer look! Get ready to grab both Kujū and Garten as soon as Tsukiro's subdued them both!"
"HAI!" the others chanted…
On the other Sea King…
"Can't see her face clear enough!"
"Pilot, get some turbulence down to blow that hood off!"
"You got it! Hang on!"
The Sea King dived down towards Tsukiro, who had managed to get to his feet and was now glaring intently at the lone woman in the odd clothing now standing between him and the people his leaders wanted to have captured. Growling a challenge, he then raced at her, ignoring the overhead helicopter as it zipped past him to blow down waves of air at the woman ahead of him. Sure enough, the hood covering her head of deep pink hair was pulled away, revealing the very calm and serene face of a woman appearing to be in her early- to mid-twenties, possessing deep chestnut brown eyes that were now fixed on the titan of a man now ten metres away from her, they over blooming flower tattoos on each of her cheeks. And the thick bangs of hair over her forehead barely hid the crow's nest of bumpy bone ridges radiating from the bridge of her nose and barely appearing in the middle part of her hair beyond the top of her forehead.
Seeing that, Tsukiro blinked as he stared intently at the strange woman, and then he slowly straightened himself to his full five-metre height. As he did that, she simply looked up at him, her face neutral yet curious, her body standing casually at ease. Noting that this woman seemed not interested in attacking him, the giant then grunted as he turned to walk around her and approach his ultimate targets.
"Remain where you are."
He stopped, growling a question at the stranger as she turned to gaze at him.
"Your father will be very mad at you if you hurt Mai or Anna."
Tsukiro blinked…
Seeing that from his position, one of the lookouts on the second Sea King was gaping as he lowered his binoculars. "An alien…gods, she's a damned ALIEN!"
"What?!" another man screamed out.
"I'm serious!" the lookout snapped. "She's got forehead ridges like a Klingon straight out of Star Trek! She doesn't look at all like those Oni that appeared in Canada!"
The others in the machine all gasped in shock on hearing that, and then the leader of the team spun over to another man. "Get a camera on this woman! NOW!"
"Hai!"
Father…
Yes, he has a father…
A man who loved and cared for him…
A man who only wanted the best for him…
Looking around, Tsukiro found himself gazing at an elderly man in flowing robes as he walked away from the crowd to join the strange woman who had stood in his way of getting the people he had been sent after. On seeing him, the giant growled as his mind instantly called up the hours and days of endless PAIN that he had endured to become what he was now, and then he moved to march right at Senzō…
"Tsukiro, stop."
It was the strange woman again.
"Your father is very sorry for what he did."
Tsukiro blinked, and then he turned to stare at the woman, who was now shifting herself to stand beside a wide-eyed Senzō as the information broker took in all the remarkable details of the alien's face and clothing. What caught his eye immediately was the string of alien characters flowing down the outer flap of her uniform — up close, he could see that this was a two-piece affair, not so different from a martial artist's standard uniform, though it was trimmed in soft gold and shaded black and white — from her collar to just above her waist. Noting the remarkable similarity to Korean han'gŭl (he was familiar with that language), he began to read, "Sae…u…"
"No."
The alien was now looking at him, an amused smile on her face. "Eh?" Senzō began…
Aboard the lead Sea King…
"Ryū-sama, are you seeing this?!"
"I am," came the voice of Ryū Sogen over the radio link. "This alien…"
"What should we do, sir?!" the leader stated.
"Sogen."
Silence.
"Who's this?!" the mission leader snapped. "Who's on this line?!"
More silence.
"Moroboshi Negako."
Still more silence.
"You are interfering in affairs that are none of your concern, Agent 49," Sogen then growled out, ignoring the gasps onboard the helicopter and at the Alliance's home base back in Switzerland. "Stand aside and let us take Kujū and Garten!"
"No."
The Alliance's leader then shuddered. "You DARE…?!"
"Akane, can you hear me?"
"Perfectly, Negako-sama."
More gasps. "Who is this?!" Sogen demanded.
"A friend from Fūka," Negako calmly replied. "Listen carefully, Sogen. You may now believe yourself quite powerful, but tell me this: Do you have a space-based particle laser weapon — a LIVING one — under your command and control at this time?"
The mission leader gulped. "That was YOU…?"
"No, it was me!" a young girl's voice snapped over the line.
"Alyssa-chan!" Akane then scolded.
Sogen's eye went wide. "The Searrs brat…!"
"HEY!" Alyssa yelped. "I'M NOT A BRAT!"
"Alyssa, be calm," Negako then bade. "Where is Artemis right now?"
"Moving fast around the planet to get to Switzerland! Where else, Onē-chan?!" Alyssa said, the pride in her voice shining through loud and clear.
More cries of horror from Switzerland as the mission leader blinked in disbelief. Even if they could capture Kujū and Garten, it would be a Pyrrhic victory, especially if the artificial HiME the Searrs Foundation created decapitated the leadership of the Alliance with just one shot of that whatever-it-was now in orbit over the Earth.
Before he could blurt out anything more, a new voice broke into the link, "Ryū-sama?"
Sogen blinked. "Kaiete…?"
"Your desires for Mai-chan and Anna-chan, not to mention all those like them, are but one step in a goal that has driven your life since you first joined the Alliance," Senzō stated. "What if I were to tell you that many of the goals your Alliance now seeks are almost within a hair's breadth of being obtained?"
Back in Switzerland…
Sogen blinked as he considered those words. While he could not ultimately trust such a man as Kaiete Senzō, he knew through years of observation that the former Imperial Japanese Army military police officer was both a very honourable man (in his own fashion, of course) AND a man who rarely spoke lies to other people, especially those he held with some mode of respect. And if what he just said was true…?
"If — note I say 'if' — you speak the truth, Kaiete-san, how can the people of Earth benefit from our NOT taking Kujū Mai and Turm Garten under our guidance?"
Negako sighed. "Sogen, first of all, the woman you know of as 'Turm' does not use that name as her preferred form of address. It is 'Anna' from her second name 'Annalise.' Your organisation needs to improve its intelligence gathering capabilities more."
Hearing that stern critique made Ryū Sogen gape as some of his junior executives all seemed to drift between outrage that this strange being would say things like that about them…and blushing embarrassment that she was noting such shortcomings in their own organisation's capabilities (and doing it so openly!). "Furthermore, think of this, Sogen," Negako added. "For the past five years, the populations of many nations on Earth have increased quite noticeably, especially when it comes to young women! Why has the Wisdom Alliance not noticed this? Your connections to both industrial groups and governments worldwide are well-entrenched and quite informative for you to take advantage of. Why did you not see with your own eyes as to what has happened? Surely that ALONE should have informed you something was occurring."
Sogen blinked, and then an amused laugh escaped him. "Alright, then! You have done much to pique my curiosity, Agent 49! I will come to Japan to speak to you!"
"If I may, I offer my humble home as a place for your meeting," Senzō added.
A nod. "I accept, Kaiete-san. Kojiro?!"
"Hai, Ryū-sama?!" the mission leader called back.
"The mission is terminated. Leave Mai and Tu-…" He caught himself just in time. "…um, Anna…alone for the time being!"
"Hai!"
Togakushi…
"You bluffed."
"It was necessary," Negako stated after the Sea Kings had flown off to a nearby heliport for refuelling before returning back to their base. The Seahawk she used for her own personal convenience was also heading in for refuelling, and then would remain on standby to await the grandmaster's desire to return to the Imperial Palace. "Artemis can't be moved from her current position in orbit, but Sogen did not know that. No doubt, he may call us on his bluff, but hopefully, we might be able to persuade him to ally with us as we were able to persuade les Soldats to join us."
Senzô's eyes widened, and then he smiled. "That is a most ancient organisation you have dealt with, Negako-sama. That you pulled a feat like that is most impressive." He then bowed his head to his old wartime comrade. "If you require any assistance in dealing with other such organisations in the future, all that I control is at your disposal, Negako-sama." He then sighed. "I pray you do succeed with Ryū-sama."
"Let us worry about him at another time," Negako stated, and then she turned to see Tsukiro now sitting on the ground, with a smiling rose-haired Noukiite metahuman free warrior standing in front of him, reaching over to rub his forehead playfully.
The information broker looked over. "How was your friend able to calm my son down?"
"Your son's natural instincts have been augmented with the genetic changes done to his body by the Alliance," Negako noted. "He is, in many ways, more like a trained attack dog than a young man. Kyech there the blood of a Noukiite sky-dragon in her veins. She finds the company of animals more comforting to her than most people."
"Dragons really exist on her planet?"
They turned as Kujū Mai and Anna Garten came up to them. "They do," Negako stated. "Average length of their bodies are approximately one to 1.5 kilometres in length. They are extremely long-lived and quite intelligent, far more so than most humans could be." She sighed. "Some of them are quite loquacious when it comes to encountering a being that can converse with them, which is why they gladly converse with…"
A threatening growl from Tsukiro then made everyone look over to see Mai's best friends standing nearby, both with books in their hands. "HEY!" Rie snapped as she and Yumiko both glared at the giant being. "You be nice! We want to talk to her!"
Another snarl from Tsukiro, and then he jolted as a finger tapped his head. "They mean no harm," Kyech scolded before she gazed at the two Terran-form Avalonians. "Yes?"
Both girls then bowed. "K'EKHECH-DONO, MAY WE HAVE YOUR AUTOGRAPH, PLEASE?!"
Anna roared with laughter and Mai giggled while we now…
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(Posted Sun, 23 Jan 2011 20:06)
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