A DewPrism/Threads of Fate Fanfiction
Standard Disclaimer Applies
by Adelaine Vanguard
Part 2 of 3
The weekend came and went. Monday passed and Tuesday too, and still they hadn’t spoken to each other once. Even their professors had noticed it. Mint and Rue, who before were usually inseparable because of their common duties (extracurricular or otherwise), were avoiding each other. Actually, it was just Mint who was avoiding Rue, but Rue, who had tried to make peace twice last Saturday and again on Monday, finally gave up and reciprocated her efforts by staying out of her way.
It hadn’t been an easy task, considering that they were classmates, and that made it even more obvious to everyone. Neil and Annette once ventured to intervene, but to no avail. Mint was as stubborn as ever. She came into the classroom exactly on the bell, she always disappeared to the gymnastics training hall immediately after class (with or without Annette), and she made sure to keep at least one empty seat away from him during chemistry (the only class Mint and Rue ever sat together).
Whenever anyone would comment on it, Mint would simply shrug. “I’ve been busy. The Gamul games are coming up.”
“Speaking of the games,” Annette was sitting opposite Mint in the cafeteria during Wednesday lunchtime. She grabbed a peanut-butter and jelly sandwich off her tray and started peeling the wrapper. “Tonia and I are still having trouble with your costume. The dress is alright,” she added quickly on seeing Mint’s expression, “but we can’t seem to find the proper accessories.”
“Don’t worry about it.” Mint bit into her own sandwich, and one eye winked mischievously when she replied. “My dance is sooo good I’d win first even if I came to the games dressed in rags.”
Yeah, right. Annette rolled her eyes. “Here comes Tonia.”
Tonia put her tray down on the table and slid onto the seat beside Annette. Turning towards Mint, she said, “Coach Mira wants to talk to you privately after practice. She asked me to give this to you.” She pulled out a note from her blouse pocket and handed it to the red-haired girl.
Mint read the note silently. “What’s it say?” Annette asked.
“Professor Klaus wants us—Rue and me, that is—to have dinner with them tonight. Something about Elroy again.” Her sigh was barely audible. She read the note once more before handing it to Annette. “Could you just give this to Rue for me? I can’t go.”
Annette gave her a puzzled look. “Why not?”
“I need to rest, and I need to practice.” Mint smiled wryly at her companions. “I don’t really need to, of course—I’m already sure I’m gonna win first place—but there’s no point in taking chances.”
Tonia and Annette exchanged glances. Outwardly Mint may still be the brash, over-confident tomboy, but they both knew that she was still shaken over the fated match last week. Her actions towards her inadvertent opponent had been the only indication they needed to be sure of it.
Dinner at the Klauses consisted of mashed potatoes and roast beef and no pumpkins. Rue arrived a little late, but Prima and Elena didn’t mind.
“Rue, Rue! Look!!” Prima was ecstatic as he showed off a piece of paper to the older boy. “Papa says that this means he’s my new papa!”
“So it’s official?” Rue turned towards the professor and his wife. “Prima is one of the Klauses now?”
“Yup.” Elena couldn’t stop smiling too. “It’s so great! Everything went so smoothly, and I finally have the younger brother I’ve always wanted…”
Mira remembered her daughter saying that it was an older sister she wanted (during Mint’s erstwhile stay at their home) but didn’t bother to correct her. “Alright kids, Papa and Rue have some work to do now. It’s beddy-bye time.”
“Bedtime! I’ve got my own room now, Rue!” Prima beamed at him before Mira shoved him off. “Goodnight!”
“G’night, Polly!” Elena said as she followed her mom and Prima up the stairs.
Rue waved goodnight to them. As soon as they disappeared from view, he and Klaus went down to the professor’s basement.
“What news, professor?” Rue asked as Klaus powered up his laptop. “Prima’s adoption was settled so quickly. Did the police find out what happened to his real parents?”
Klaus nodded somberly. “It was a car crash in the city. His dad was an accountant and his mom’s a housewife. Aside from his parents, Prima doesn’t have any other known relatives.”
“Prima said his parents were murdered.”
“Not according to the police records. Prima wasn’t even with them at the time of the accident-he was supposedly at their neighbor’s.” Klaus clicked a few keys on his computer. “They said that he ran away on the same night.”
“Ran away…?!”
“That’s what the records say.” Klaus peered over his glasses at the boy, and there was something in his glance that told Rue he too found it suspicious. “I’ve discovered something else that you might find interesting.” He motioned for Rue to look at his laptop’s screen.
On it was a map of what they knew of the underground tunnels. There were lines that indicated which tunnels were fake, which ones were blocked and which were open—he remembered them from when Klaus first showed him the map several months ago. This time however, there were new lines marked in red that trailed off at the ends of the map. One of them, Rue noticed, led straight to Elroy’s library.
“I took Prima back to the tunnels at Elroy’s to test out a theory of mine, and we were able to open some rooms that you couldn’t access before (but didn’t find anything significant),” Klaus said. “Prima was able to open the rooms simply by moving his hand across a certain part of the door.”
He paused for emphasis, and Rue was deep in thought. “Just like the time that I opened the slab in the lake ruins.”
“Exactly,” Klaus said. “They must’ve installed some kind of sensor in the slabs to detect anyone with the proper …authorization… to access it. Certain parts of the underground passages had been sealed off—I don’t know by whom or how long ago—but some of them have been opened again recently. I think that they’re using Prima’s genetic code as some sort of key to unlock certain passages in the underground labyrinths. The life capsules had been transported to Elroy’s library that way.”
Rue frowned at the mention of the life capsules. He never liked them, and the mere thought of one made him uneasy. If they’d ever dare to put Claire inside one of the cursed things… Unconsciously, he clenched and unclenched his fists at his sides.
“They were all empty, I assure you, and except for Prima’s had never been used.” Klaus started typing again, and produced on screen an email message dated a couple of days ago. “Another thing, they found a plas-skin mask right outside Elroy’s. Unfortunately for us, it’s the newer type that leaves no imprints as to who used it. Even the Ephlesia U. forensics lab couldn’t find anything. But we do have one lead,” Klaus said. “As far as I know, there has been only one laboratory that has managed to manufacture this particular type of plas-skin. The research lab of Cosmos Corporation.”
“So, what’s that got to do with Elroy or Prima?”
“Absolutely nothing. Except that the life capsules had been traced to the Ghost Temple, plus the fact that the amusement park happened to be built completely from electronics manufactured by Cosmos Corp.”
Rue shook his head sadly. “But still no news of Claire.” It wasn’t a question.
“No,” Klaus had to admit. “But we’re getting there. I’m sure of it.”
“You don’t think she’s in any danger, do you?”
Klaus hesitated. “No,” he said at last, “but I think we should hurry just the same.” He turned to look over his glasses at the boy. “Do you think you’re up to a quick trip to the Ghost Temple before the Junon tournament?”
If it’ll get us any closer to finding Claire, I am. “When do I leave?”
“As soon as possible. Tomorrow, if I can convince Mira.”
The next day was Thursday, almost a week since the infamous bout between the gymnastics team captain and the kendo club’s finest warrior. Of course, an event as monumental as that was certain to be talked about, but around this time most of the gossip has already died down (much to Mint’s comfort). However, there remained the odd group of students who occasionally still talked about it.
Belle had heard about the match as well. And she found most of the rumors to be highly amusing.
“…she cheated, I tell you! There was no way someone like her could’ve beaten Rue Kincaid…”
“Nah, she couldn’t have cheated! The entire kendo club was watching, and it was Neil who tallied the points. I was there too—I saw Captain Davis check the score sheet before they announced the winner.”
“But… it just doesn’t seem possible!” one of the girls was obviously a member of Rue’s unofficial fan club. “Rue can’t lose in a fight to someone who doesn’t even fight!”
“It is too possible. Mint really did hit him more times. Let me tell you though…” the boy looked from side to side before motioning for the rest of the group to come closer. He lowered his voice when he spoke, “I think that if they hadn’t used the point system, Rue would have won. When the match ended, he was holding his sword directly over Mint’s head-if he hadn’t stopped it in time he would probably have knocked her out.”
“There, there—see!” the girl jumped up suddenly, a wide grin on her face. “I always told you that Rue is the better fighter, hah!!”
Belle had a hard time keeping her laugher in check as she walked past the gabbing group of students and into the faculty room. Knowing how proud Mint was with her own brand of martial arts, the redhead was probably still grinding her teeth over that event.
She went and sat down inside her cubicle. Mira had talked to her earlier that day, and inside one of her drawers was a pair of gold bracelets that the gymnastics coach had asked her to lend to her student for the Gamul competition.
Mint had worked hard for their team’s spot in the Gamul games, Mira had said. She had bravely endured the ridicule over that infamous match (“Bravely—yeah, right,” Belle thought), and would Belle mind helping them? The bracelets would be perfect for Mint’s costume, and neither Tonia nor Annette could find any that would go better…
She dug through her papers for the bracelets and brought them out. They were identical and made of pure metal—they had neither gem nor jewel, only a filigree of vines and small tendrils ending towards a wreath of star jasmines at the wrist. In the light they glinted a pale gold—the years had not caused their particular luster to fade.
She shook her head reproachfully, remembering who the bracelets once belonged to. No, she wasn’t about to simply give these bracelets to just anyone. The redhead has to first prove that she had earned it.
She pocketed the bracelets and briskly walked out of the faculty room.
Belle kept her face impassive as she walked towards the gymnasium. It seemed a good time as any to finally confront her younger adversary. And Mira was insistent on the bracelets.
It was already late after club practices, and Belle could recognize some of her students exit from the gym even as she entered the building. Some of them greeted her with a wave of “Hi, teach!” or with a slight nod (she would acknowledge them back), some of them ignored her, and still the others she didn’t know. The second floor was empty, most of the students already gone when she got up the stairs, but she knew that Mint would still be in training.
She was right. Mint was practicing her sequence for the Gamul games, without the music, and she was alone. Belle paused at the doorway to watch. She frowned. Belle was a martial artist herself, and to her trained eye, there was something wrong with the way Mint moved.
It’s been almost a week—she can’t still be despondent over her ‘win’ against Rue, can she?
Belle shook her head. If Mint couldn’t get over whatever it was that bothered her, then the redhead couldn’t become a worthy opponent for anyone. The redhead couldn’t be worthy of her sister’s bracelets.
There was one way to find out. Belle smirked. Perhaps it was time for the challenge she had been anticipating since Mint had first called her an old maid in that restaurant three years ago.
She was about to step into the gymnastics hall when she heard voices. Two people—Rue and Tonia, by the sound of it. Deciding that she wasn’t in the mood to make up excuses for a chemistry teacher being in the gym, she hastily left through the side stairway. Her vendetta with young Vanguard could be settled another time.
But a time not too far off, she promised herself.
Tonia was dragging Rue by the arm. Rue was protesting vehemently.
“Mint’s still angry with me over that match! It’s been almost a week, and even in class she hasn’t spoken to me once…!”
“Exactly. That match has been on her mind ever since, and it’s up to you to cheer her up!”
“But why me?!”
Tonia sighed. “You’re her friend, aren’t you?”
“Well, yeah… but what’s that got to do with it?”
“Just trust me on this one, okay?!” She shoved him towards the door. “Go on!”
“T-Tonia!”
“Uh-oh. Sorry, Rue! Urgent call of nature!” Tonia exclaimed suddenly. “Be right back! Make sure you don’t leave Mint by herself without waiting for me!” she ran off towards the other end of the corridor.
Rue swallowed nervously. It was painfully obvious that Mint had been avoiding him since the day of their fateful match, despite his efforts to make peace even though he didn’t know what he had done wrong. Whatever the reason, he was certain that Mint was still angry at him, even though Tonia kept assuring that she wasn’t.
How in the world does he keep winding up in these messes? Let’s just get this over with.
Mint was so concentrated in her dance that she didn’t notice him when he stepped into the room. Rue cleared his throat. The unexpected sound caused Mint to lose her balance in the middle of a twirl, and she plopped ingloriously onto the floor. “Ow ow ow… [expletive]! Tonia, I told you that—”
Her eyes widened for a brief second when she saw who had coughed, and just as quickly her eyes narrowed in mock anger. “Rue! How dare you make me lose my balance!!” She stood up and brushed the dust off her sleeves.
Rue scratched his head absently, aware that the two of them were the only ones in the room. But the fact that Mint had finally spoken to him, albeit in the annoyed manner that she usually reserved for him alone… Maybe Tonia was right. “Uhm… Sorry about that. I just came to wish you good luck on the Gamul games, I guess.”
“Thanks.” Mint sniffed. “Not like I need it,” she said haughtily. “By the way, have you seen Tonia? She told me she’d be back soon, and no way am I cleaning up the room by myself.”
“She just went to the bathroom. Um…” He paused, hesitant to speak. “She said you might need my help in your dance sequence…?”
Mint’s eyes narrowed at him even more. “Why would Tonia think that I’d need your help?” Rue just shrugged. She rolled her eyes. “Nevermind. Just don’t distract me, okay?” She turned her back on him and went on with her practice.
Rue crossed his arms. He busied himself with studying the floor, and every now and then he would scruff his shoes against the mats self-consciously. The silence felt awkward, but Mint was ignoring him again. Tonia was certainly taking her sweet time in the bathroom.
“Oh, you idiot.” Mint exclaimed, suddenly stomping her foot. “Do you know how annoying that is?!”
Rue blinked. He wasn’t doing anything—he was just standing there waiting for Tonia.
But Mint was livid at him anyway. “If you’ve got nothing better to do than just standing there, you might as well do help me with my dance sequence.”
Uh, right. For some reason, there was a lump in his throat that just wouldn’t go away. “What do I do?”
“Stand over there, like that…” Rue stepped into the place she indicated. “Where’s your boken? Oh, nevermind.” She went to her duffel and got a baton, which Rue caught deftly as she threw it at him.
She grabbed her rings and stepped to her place opposite him. “The Blue kendo forms, what are they called?”
Rue couldn’t see where she was going with this, but he decided to play along. “The Blue forms are called the Scales… The Scales of the Water Dragon.”
Mint smiled. “Rain.”
She started humming.
Pagmasdan ang ulan, unti-unting pumapatak
Sa mga halaman at mga bulaklak
A sweet melody filled the room as Tonia (who had somehow slipped inside the room unnoticed) turned on the portable radio from the side stands. Mint did the first few moves of her dance sequence, and Rue was reminded of their match last week. Mint grinned suddenly. “Neil helped me. I patterned my dance sequence against the kendo forms. But the song’s too short, so the dance is patterned against only the Blue ones.”
“From the start, kids?” Tonia asked.
Mint nodded. She turned to Rue, “Just do the Blue forms like you would in practice.”
Tonia started the music again. At a signal from Mint, Rue began the kendo sequence. He moved unhurriedly and without force, timing his moves against the song. The music was soft and gentle, and brought to mind the waters of the ocean. For some reason, it seemed fitting that Mint had chosen to pattern her dance against the Blue kendo forms.
Mint began her own sequence, and she danced. Rue could see that her movements were the same as what she used last week. They were doing the exact same moves, but this time Mint danced.
It wasn’t anything like their match at all. She had patterned her steps against his kendo forms, and this time, instead of aiming to strike, her movements now were graceful, much more fluid, and she moved as if her rings were extensions of her arms. Now more than ever was it evident why Mint was the gymnastics team captain.
Maari bang minsan pa’y
Mahagkan ka’t maiduyan pa
Sakbibi ka’t
Ulan lamang ang saksi
She surrendered into the music. There was nothing in the world but the song, and the melody was everything. Each twirl and turn, tumble and somersault were but part of the eternal dance that was life.
Rue stopped in the middle of doing the second form. He stepped back and lowered his makeshift sword, mesmerized in simply watching her.
The music stopped. Mint was kneeling in her final position, her hands palms-down on the floor at her sides, her head bowed meekly. For some reason, in his mind he imagined invisible wings sprouting from her back, draping about her arms to finally end with their tips at the Dual Haloes as she held the golden rings flat against the floor.
She really does look like an angel.
From the sides he heard Tonia’s clapping. Mint looked up, and she was grinning. “You liked it?”
Tonia nodded. “Best performance yet. I think you’re definitely ready for the Gamul games. Annette kept telling you that you should have asked for Rue’s help rather than Neil’s.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Mint abruptly stood, her eyes narrowed. “Rue stopped doing the forms in the middle of the dance! Neil never did that!”
“That’s not the point. You didn’t dance like that when you practiced with Neil before.” Tonia was having a hard time keeping her mischievous grin hidden.
Both Rue’s and the redhead’s faces flushed slightly. “That’s because I was still learning the moves then!!” Mint exclaimed.
Rue cleared his throat. “The music is nice. This is the first time I’ve heard it, though.”
“It’s a love song from an archipelago in the Asia-Pacific,” Tonia answered him. “Mint insisted it had to be this song and no other. You won’t believe the trouble Annette went through to find it…”
“Don’t remind me—I still owe Annette for that.” She sniffed irritably, and then marched off towards the locker room to change.
“Hey, wait up!” Tonia called. “You still haven’t told me about your private meeting with Coach Mira, and there’s still the matter of your costume…” she made to follow the girl, turning once to whisper a hurried “thanks!” to Rue. She winked at him before running off after the redhead.
Rue frowned thoughtfully, even as he watched the twin ponytails disappear from view as Tonia closed the locker room door behind them. He was on his way to the gym to do something before he had bumped into Tonia, but strangely, he couldn’t remember what it was now.
He shrugged. No matter, it probably wasn’t that important anyway, and if it was he’s sure to remember it in time.
They had always been close as children, and Belle had always looked up to her sister. Perhaps it was just sibling rivalry, as the older woman had always been better than her at it, but her mechatronic skills, her relentless drive towards being the best computer hacker she could possibly be, everything she had worked and strived for she had done with the memory of her sister haunting her and urging her on all the while.
All her tribulations of the past eight years she could trace back to that fateful night when her sister disappeared. Her sister had been her only family. Belle had turned her back on her hometown, her school, her job, her colleagues and friends—everything she had known and was familiar with—as she embarked on a private war to get her sister back.
Duke was her childhood friend, and she had always known that he loved her. He was the only person who had the gumption to stay with her throughout her journey and self-imposed exile, knowing that she needed a companion. In his own way he bonded her to her long-forgotten childhood, to the untroubled days before she had even heard of chroma children and Aeon Industries. He was her one link to the past, and her single source of strength to face the future. It was a future that, undoubtedly for her, was intertwined with that of the biggest manufacturer of electronic devices in the Continent—a company that had a certain interest in memory circuits, psyche amplifiers and chroma children.
They said it was because her nephew was a chroma child, but she knew the truth. They took her sister because she was the best at what she did. She was the only mechatronics expert who had ever been able to integrate magick with electronic devices—the only person to create a psyche amplifier that could be used by those born without the strength of psyche.
Even those born with the gift cannot cast magic so simply. Psyche amplifiers were devices that enable the gifted to magnify their inborn psychic talents, so that they were able to manifest their psyche, or magick, into the physical world. Psyche-amps remain rare, even in their modern day and age, and the devices usually take the form of gloves or tiaras, although there have been rumors about some isolated country in the Orient where they had a famous gun that was actually a psyche-amp…
Aside from her sister’s favorite gold bangles, she still had with her an actual pair of psyche amplifiers, done in the form of silver manacles. It was the special kind that could be used even by those born without the gift of magick, as Belle herself was an ordinary human. She heard that Psycho Master also had a pair of the same kind of psyche-amp, a recent model of similar design, and his produced lightning. But as for her own… hers produced the more conventional form of magical attacks.
Her psyche-amps were her sister’s latest creations before the latter had been taken away, and the twin manacles were tailor-fit for Belle. Her sister had made them for her, simply because she could and she wanted to. But the maker of the bangles never imagined that Belle would be using them in the search for her when she went missing.
In spite of everything, Belle had never lost the hope that someday she would finally be able to rescue her sister from those who would only use her unique knowledge of mechatronics and psyche amplifiers for their own ends. Belle missed her sister so badly. The memory of that night she disappeared was like a scar that had never healed.
It happened over eight years ago, yet she remembered it as if it was yesterday.
“You have to understand,” the raven-haired woman whispered urgently as she held tight to her younger sister’s arm. “I have to go with them. I have to. My son is a chroma child, and they… they’re the only ones who can save him.”
“No, it’s you who doesn’t understand,” the young blonde had whispered back. “They’re just going to take him from you! Don’t you know what they’re going to do to him? Why won’t you listen to me?!”
But the older woman shook her head as she stepped backwards, and her look was one of hopeless anxiety. “I’m sorry, Belle. I have no other choice.”
A white-haired man was there as well, and he gently took the older woman by the elbow to lead her away. “It’s time to go,” he said, his voice solemn. “Goodbye, Belle. Don’t worry—we’ll be taking good care of your sister and your nephew for you.”
“The hell you are!” Belle snapped back suddenly. She jumped him, both her fists aiming for the center of his chest area. “You’re not taking her away from me!!”
The move caught Ruecian by surprise. Her sudden attack hit him dead in the stomach and he doubled over, coughing violently. Belle took that moment to grab her sister and make a run for it.
Unexpectedly, the older woman followed her and ran as well, grasping tightly to her younger sister’s outstretched hand. They made their way out the back door of their house and into a small side alley that would lead them through their hometown’s maze of city streets, never once stopping to look back.
“If you really wanted to go with him, then why aren’t you resisting me?” In spite of the immediate predicament, Belle couldn’t help but smile inwardly. Best mechatronic wizard in the galaxy, my foot… you’re still so indecisive, Sis! Whatever would you do without me?
She led them through the dimly lighted, one-lane streets towards the edge of town, where she hoped they would be able to hitch a train ride to the next city and, hopefully, to freedom. After several sharp turns around dank corners, they reached the end of another alley to find their way blocked by a huge metal gate. The train station was just on the other side.
No way to break through, unless… She squinted slightly as she rapidly surveyed the scene, searching for something—anything!—that could possibly help them in their getaway. There. She caught sight of a computer terminal. With luck, she could hack into it and use it to open the doors… she walked over to the console, quickly letting go of her sister’s hand as she began to type. Her sister stood beside her, unspeaking, tapping her foot impatiently as she looked nervously from side to side. Seeing no one, she flipped her long hair absently before she folded her arms over her chest and cast her eyes down.
It took her a full five minutes of furious hacking before Belle heard an audible click of what (she hoped) was some sort of switch, and the console in front of her started to blink green. Gradually, but definitely, the heavy gates began to open. “Let’s go!” She grabbed her sister’s arm and they walked briskly towards the slowly moving doors.
They were about halfway towards reaching it, when all of a sudden she heard a metallic clang! and the doors began moving shut again.
No! She had already broken through the door’s security codes—it shouldn’t be closing now! There was a sudden clammy feeling in the pit of her stomach as she realized what it meant. Ruecian. He could control electronic devices by mere thought… Ruecian had found them… They ran, Belle leading, but the gates were closing, it was too late and they were not going to make it in time…
A shadow passed in front of her, and Ruecian was there. He hit her hard across the face, forcibly knocking her aside and she bodily hit the wall with a sickening thump. Badly dazed, she slid down onto the dirty floor of the alley.
She felt a drop of cold sweat or blood trickle down the back of her neck. Ruecian spat disdainfully at her, “Idiot. You should have known better.” Helpless and too weak to move, Belle could do no more than look up at him, her expression contorted in barely-restrained fury and her fists clenched feebly at her sides.
“George, you didn’t…!!” The woman started forward, but Ruecian pulled her back.
“Don’t worry,” he waved a hand vaguely to dismiss the older woman’s concerns. “I didn’t hurt her too much. She’ll have a headache when she wakes up, but she’ll be fine.”
The woman bit her lower lip, and Ruecian sighed. He let her arm go. “Make it quick.” She nodded. She went over to the fallen girl and hugged her tightly about the shoulders.
“I’m sorry,” the woman whispered one last time as she pulled away. She smiled weakly, sadly, and a single, glassy tear fell down her left cheek. At the last, carefully wiping at her eyes, she turned away to leave with the white-haired man. The smile and those words were Belle’s last memory of her sister as everything had then gone black.
Of course I remember. “What kind of a stupid question is that, Valen?” Her voice was barely audible as she whispered the words, and she gripped the receiver so tightly as she hung up the phone that her hand was shaking. “Yeah, I’ll get those circuits for you. And I’ll continue to keep an eye on your precious chroma child.”
Her vision turned blurry with frustrated tears, but strangely she found herself laughing. She had heard all about it, naturally—how enraged Doll Master had been when he found out that his band of ‘specialists’ had tried to kidnap Rue Kincaid in his absence, and that they even lost Prima Doll in the process.
But aside from Ruecian himself, none of them knew that Belle was working directly for the big boss of Aeon Industries. It was so ironic, considering that it was Aeon Industries who ruined her life by taking her sister away in the first place. But no—they paid her well—and her loyalties now belonged to Valen and Ruecian whether she liked it or not.
She was the trump card, and she understood what that meant.
“Duke,” she called his name as she heard the soft knock, and the door to her room creaked open. “You’re still awake?”
The dark-haired man raised his eyebrows questioningly at her as he let himself into the dimly-lit bedroom. The moonlight filtered faintly through the window blinds through which Belle gazed to the outside, but even in the dark it didn’t escape him that his lady had been crying. “I thought I heard the phone ring.”
Belle wiped at her eyes somewhat self-consciously, but it was alright—she never hid anything from Duke anyway. “He called. We’re running out of time.”
“What does he want now?”
“Just the usual.” She turned towards him then, leaning backwards against the windowsill. “Klaus is sending Rue to find Cosmos Corp’s missing sollerets, although I doubt that the boy knows what he’s looking for. He’ll be leaving for the Ghost Temple tomorrow afternoon-I want you to get there before he does.”
Duke nodded somberly. They had gone through this before, and he knew what he had to do.
The sun had yet to rise the next day, but Klaus was already up. He was down in the basement, casually clicking his laptop’s keys as he surfed for more information on Cosmos Corporation’s electronics.
Psyche amplifiers… The concept behind psyche amplifiers was actually an old technology, and Klaus had known about their existence even before the first journals regarding their theory had been published over twenty years ago. His work on the Carona Ruins had led him to research on magick a long time ago, while he was still taking up his college degree in Ephlesia University.
He found it rather curious that he was researching on them again. He thought he had known about all the manufacturing of psyche-amps when he had once worked as a junior researcher for Cosmos Corporation, but apparently there were still some things he had missed.
He remembered a time when his fellow researchers had suddenly quit their project for no apparent reason, and later he found that they had been coaxed to switch their loyalties to a rival company. The president of Aeon Industries could be a very persuasive person when he set his mind on it. Dr. Terry Prometheus Valen had a reputation that the people who would work for him could never anymore leave his service. And there were the rumors Klaus had heard from his old acquaintances—that Aeon Industries had no qualms about working on the wrong side of the law, especially since certain aspects of the technology behind psyche amplifiers had been declared illegal because of the irreversible damage they could inflict upon the human mind.
The rumors were just that, rumors… and his colleagues had all kept quiet, of course. But Klaus had his connections. It was because of those connections that he got his limp, in fact…
“Umm, Papa?” He was startled out of his reverie when a small voice called from the top of the basement stairs. After some time Klaus heard the voice again, and its source was a lot nearer him now. “Papa?”
He looked over his glasses at the young boy. “What is it, Prima?”
Prima stood on tiptoe to whisper something into his adopted father’s ear.
“She did, huh?” Klaus thoughtfully scratched his chin. For some reason, he wasn’t really surprised at this particular turn of events. “When was this?” Last night, Prima told him.
“Should I tell mom, too?” He looked up expectantly, his wide-set eyes fraught with concern.
Klaus shook his head. “I’ll tell her. You can go back to what you were doing, son.” Prima nodded, and then went back up to the living room. Sighing, Klaus closed his laptop and cleared his desk a little before making his way upstairs as well.
He found Mira preparing their breakfast on the kitchen table. Gently, he placed his arm about her shoulders.
“What is it?” Mira snapped, although there was no hint of anger or irritation in her tone. They had been married for twenty years, and she knew her husband’s mannerisms well. Whenever Klaus approached her like this, it usually meant bad news.
“I’m afraid that our Elena has run away. She’ll be back—” he added quickly on seeing the change in Mira’s expression. “She went after Rue. But she’s a big girl now… she’ll be fine.” He was concerned for his daughter of course, but there was no point in both of them worrying.
He felt rather than heard his wife sigh in relief. “Oh, I’m not worried about that… I was worried before that she only inherited your bookishness.” She was frowning sternly at her husband, but they both knew the frown was only for show. On the other side of her face that he couldn’t see, her mouth was curved in an amused half-smile.
Another Friday afternoon, a long weekend was coming up, and students as usual were eager to leave school early. But the gymnastics team would leave for Gamul in a couple of days, and Team Captain Mint wasn’t feeling generous. Actually, she was… which was why everyone had to stay a couple of hours extra since she had cancelled their regular Saturday practices.
It was already past five, but Belle wasn’t in a hurry that night. Now that Aeon Industries seems to have finally begun its campaign, she wasn’t sure anymore for how long she could afford to keep slacking off. Her quarrel against Mint Vanguard was a private matter, and she didn’t want to leave Carona without first settling things with the young girl.
She almost bumped into Kirielle as she made her way up the gymnasium’s flight of stairs. Kirielle glanced briefly at her, recognizing the older woman as a faculty member, but she remained ignorant of the fact that Ms. Brie, chemistry teacher, had any connections at all with her boss. Belle kept her face impassive, not betraying that she knew about the strawberry blonde’s role as one of Ruecian’s ‘Masters’.
The training hall was bereft of coach and students when she got there. Belle cursed under her breath. She should have known that Mint, irresponsible and impulsive as she was, wasn’t going to stay any longer in school than she had to. She was probably on her way to the BladeStar Arcade by now, and Belle shouldn’t have waited too long.
With brisk, angry steps she made her way out the gym, past the schoolyards and into the vacant lot where her rented car was parked. She stopped short when she realized she wasn’t alone.
Burgundy eyes were narrowed lividly at her, and the redhead was stomping her foot impatiently. “Tonia told me you visited the gym yesterday. I figured there’s only one reason you’d do that.”
Belle frowned. She had just lost whatever initiative she would have in the fight, and there was no doubt that they would come to blows that night. First point goes to the little brat, she admitted grudgingly. “You know what I want,” she said. “It’s time we settle our differences, Vanguard.”
“Fine by me. Right here, right now.”
The girl didn’t even wait. Too late, Belle noticed that she already had her rings in her hands. She jumped backwards, barely avoiding Mint’s first strike.
She was right, she had lost the initiative. For the next few moments she found herself dodging and blocking the younger girl’s attacks, unable to find an opening in the other’s defense.
Then again, Belle had always meant their fight to be a test. It’s true that she wanted the beat the crap out of the other for making fun of her clothes, but that wasn’t why she instigated this particular confrontation. Mint could think whatever she wanted.
But Belle was running out of options. And they were running out of time.
Belle dodged another blow. “Why aren’t you using your magic?”
The next breath suddenly caught in Mint’s throat. How did she know about my magic?!!
“Don’t look so surprised,” the taller woman was suddenly smirking. “Eyes like that are a dead giveaway, but not everyone can recognize its meaning.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about!”
Belle sighed heavily. “Fine, if you insist on playing innocent…” she circled so that she was suddenly behind the girl. “I’ll go first.”
Mint twirled, turning as fast as she could to come face to face again with her opponent. Too late. The sudden flare forcibly threw her backwards several meters. “The [EXPLETIVE]?!!”
“It’s not real magic, of course. But enough.” Belle shot another fireball at her., and Mint had to jump away to keep from being hit.
“Alright, if that’s your game…!!” Mint whispered through clenched teeth. Deliberately, she lowered her hands at her sides. She closed her eyes, taking deep breaths.
Another fireball came her way, but this time it ricocheted when it came several centimeters from Mint’s face, as if it suddenly struck against an invisible barrier. It flew back towards Belle, who dodged it, and it burst into a thousand harmless sparks upon hitting the ground several meters behind her.
Mint opened her eyes. “YOU ASKED FOR IT!!”
Belle reflexively raised her hands in front of her body to protect herself. She felt intense heat envelop her, and everything disappeared in a bright gust of red wind.
When the flames finally dissipated, Mint was the only one still standing. Belle was slumped down on the floor, defeated but awake. Her clothing were intact but slightly frayed, and she was clutching her arm.
Clutching her arm painfully. The exposed skin was very red, and Mint could recognize the beginning of some bad burns. She bit her lip anxiously.
It was the first time she had hurt anyone with her magic.
[Expletive], but this is Belle we’re talking about… she knew it was no excuse, and she was sorry… but she just couldn’t say it aloud. Slowly, almost hesitantly, she took several steps towards the fallen woman. “Hmph, you forced me to doing it, you know.”
Belle looked up at the girl’s face. Mint’s words might have been half-proud, but the expression in younger girl’s eyes said something totally different. At this point, Mint was probably feeling the pain more than she did. Mint had actually been fair during their bout—Belle had seen that she was intentionally holding back, not wishing to use her magic as an advantage although Belle kept inducing her to do it. Perhaps she had misjudged the girl… or perhaps it was just her past prejudices that kept her from acknowledging it long ago.
It was just a few burns anyway, and she had suffered worse. Belle actually smiled. “I forgive you. I know what your magic is capable of, and I’m surprised you didn’t hurt me more.”
Mint blinked. Her expression softened, as if she was suddenly relieved of a heavy load. Belle thought, She probably didn’t even realize it. But the look in the girl’s wine-red eyes was one that Belle had seen many times before on someone else, and she knew what it had meant.
“Belle, I… uh… How could you know what my magic does?”
The older woman shook her head. “Old acquaintance.” Her tone warned Mint not to push the topic. With her good hand, she slid something out of her back pocket and threw it at the girl. “Here, these belonged to her once.”
It was a pair of gold bracelets. Just the type that would go well with her costume for the Gamul games. “Why are you giving this to me?”
“Don’t get ideas,” Belle huffed. “Mira asked me to give it to you. Make bloody sure you wear it for the competition.”
Just as it wasn’t in Mint’s nature to apologize, Belle wasn’t the type to wish this particular student of hers good luck either. But no words were needed for them to understand it anyway. Belle didn’t even say goodbye as she stood up, still clutching her burned arm, and marched off towards her car. She wasn’t halfway there when Mint already turned her back on the older woman, and with similar brusque steps stomped off back towards the gymnasium.
After a quick shower and changing out of her school uniform, Mint practically ran all the way to the kendo training hall in her excitement.
“Rue! Rue, I did it! I finally defeated Be—” she stopped short when she saw that only Marco remained in the room. “Where’s everybody?”
The boy looked up from his cleaning of the practice swords. “Captain Davis dismissed us early—it’s our last practice and the club leaves for Junon in two days. Neil had to run some errands, but he’s coming back later though. As for Rue… I think Rue left town immediately after classes.”
That came as a surprise. Mint blinked twice. “Rue’s gone?”
“Professor Klaus sent him to some …thingy… (I think it’s an old amusement park, but I forgot what he called it…).”
“Did he say why?”
Marco just shrugged. “I think he said that it has something do with Claire.”
“Oh, I see…” she bit her lower lip. “Well, I guess I’ll be going now.”
The freshman stood up then. “Um, Mint… if it’s something I can help you with…”
She shook her head. “Nah, it’s alright. I’ll be seeing you, Marco.”
“Um, bye!” he waved. His cheeks colored slightly as Mint smiled and waved back at him, but she didn’t notice it. Something else was nagging at her mind, and it kept her too preoccupied to notice much.
I thought we had an agreement, that I was his partner in finding Claire. Why didn’t he tell me anything?
The Ghost Temple was an old amusement park whose theme was based upon several of the old Carona legends. As part of the marketing gimmick (as well as reasons of economy), the park was located in an isolated forest area not too far from Gamul City. It operated for only a couple of years before they shut it down completely. The years of abandonment had left it overrun with weeds that have seeped through the concrete cobblestones, and what was once a clearing surrounding the walls was now riddled with the forest’s young trees and new shoots.
It was late morning when Rue arrived at the road intersection leading to the Ghost Temple gates. The buses didn’t normally travel up the side roads of forest territory, so he would have to walk the rest of the way. It wasn’t very far, only a kilometer or so as the bird flies.
The Arc Edge was out of its familiar violin case under the circumstances, and Rue carried it with one hand. He had gotten so used to taking the weapon whenever he’d go on these trips—whether the occasion needed it or not—that he’d feel practically naked without it… especially now that the girl with sunset red hair wasn’t there to watch his back.
He blinked, suddenly surprised at himself. Only two adventures, and already he had gotten used to having her with him. It was a new feeling.
But one that he couldn’t afford to dwell on now. He had to focus on finding Claire. He and Klaus were getting close to finding her, of that he was sure, and the Ghost Temple was but the next stage of his search. In his breast pocket he carried a disc card that Klaus had given him. The disc card contained several programs and data codes that, he hoped, would allow him access past the Ghost Temple’s locked gates.
Klaus had only noticed it recently. The exposed printed circuitry of Elroy’s box, almost identical to the diagrams in Claire’s diary, seemed to resemble the maps of the underground ruins when they were viewed from a certain angle. But to remake the maps in full, Klaus would need the original schematics that the circuits were based upon. The Ghost Temple was their best lead to finding the diagrams.
Mel was more knowledgeable about Cosmos Corporation’s processes than Klaus was, so the professor had asked Rue to visit her to get more data codes. Mel was kind enough to input what she knew into Klaus’ disc card.
There was something else Mel had said, something of a nature very different from what Rue was supposed to ask her about… no, he didn’t want to think about that now.
The Ghost Temple had several entrances—one at the east side and a smaller entrance at park’s the west wing—but Rue decided to take the frontal approach. He found the computer terminal by the main gates, inserted the disc card into the slot, made his way past Cosmos Corporation’s login screen on the terminal, and typed up all the possible passwords he and Klaus had known about and then some.
‘Access Denied.’ Rue clicked a few more keys. The screen blinked again. ‘Access Denied.’
It’s not working. Rue closed his eyes, sighing heavily in frustration. The doors and walls were too steep to climb and too thick to bash a hole through with his Arc Edge. The side gates were probably the same. What am I supposed to do now? We need those schematics if we want to find Claire… If only this door would open up and let me in… He heard a soft click followed by a muffled metallic clang, and he turned.
The gates were opening by themselves. Surprised, he turned once more to the console, but found that the display had not changed at all. ‘Access Denied.’ What?! He clicked a few more keys, and then he realized that the computer had frozen up completely.
It isn’t possible… his right fist was clenching the Arc Edge so tightly that his knuckles were white. He remembered what Fancy Mel had told him. It simply can’t be true, could it?
There had been certain changes in the park’s layout through the years since it closed. For one thing, Rue was certain that the park owners had never meant their guests to be greeted by monsters. The one that charged at him once he was past the gates was rather reminiscent of the underground tunnel’s skull beast, albeit smaller—it was big, it was scary, and it was apparently intent on killing him.
“Monsters?! Since when was this place infested with monsters?!” Since when did monsters ever look like this?
He didn’t have time to wonder about that, because the Chimera-like beast then shot a pillar of fire at him. Since when monsters ever breathed fire, Rue didn’t know either—all he knew was that he had to avoid the flailing arms, avoid the flames, and bash at the monster with his big sword. The beast’s weak point seemed to be its forehead, and Rue concentrated his attacks in that area.
Suffice to say that after some time he managed to defeat the beast. He kicked its inanimate corpse once, just to make sure it was dead. Something glinted at the corner of his eye, and he saw a solleret attached to the Chimera’s left ankle. They must’ve used these to monitor the beasts. For some reason, he felt that he would need sollerets later, so he pulled it out and placed it in his knapsack.
Two hours and three giant-monster-corpses later, Rue was getting tired. It was starting to get dark too, but still he was no closer to finding the missing schematics. He knew that he was supposed to look for a control room of sorts, but if the park had any, they didn’t bother to put its location on the big map by the front gates.
The park map had told him that there were four of those rooms that housed the Chimeras, and if his first hunch was right, he would need to battle the fourth monster for its solleret as well. He made his way through the amusement park’s maze of passages, to where the map had pointed to the final Chimera’s location.
Only to find that the fourth Chimera was already defeated. Duke stood over the unmoving corpse, examining it, and Elena was standing a little to the side behind him.
“Duke? And Elena?!”
They both turned upon hearing him. “Polly!” The girl shouted cheerily. “I knew you would find us!”
“What are you doing here?” he asked. Elena blushed slightly, but she didn’t answer.
“Milady has sent me on a quest,” was Duke’s reply. “It was a tough fight, but to the winner belong the spoils.” He bent over the Chimera and started searching.
Rue commented as he walked up to them, “I had to battle three of these creatures already. One thing I can’t figure out is how they got here in the first place.”
Elena looked at him strangely. “Rue, the Chimeras are the park’s animatronic mascots. They’re supposed to be here.”
“They are?” he blinked in surprise. The creatures are mechanical?
Elena giggled. “You’re just like Papa.”
Rue looked around. This Chimera room seemed to be bigger than the other three he had been in so far. This one had a small side doorway. There was a glass window on the second floor, and through it Rue could see several computer terminals. That must be the control room he was looking for.
Duke stood up at last, and he pulled out the final solleret. “You said you defeated three others. Did you get these from them?” Rue nodded. Duke averted his face so that Rue wouldn’t see his expression. “I thought you did,” he said under his breath.
“What was that?” Rue asked.
“Never you mind. Elena told me you’re looking for the some schematics? Well, THESE BABIES ARE YOUR KEY TO GETTING THEM!” Duke shouted that last in his annoying mall-greeter/bouncer accent as he waved the final solleret at Rue’s face. “BUT YOU AIN’T GETTING THIS ONE WITHOUT A FIGHT!”
“Aaaahhh!” Rue barely managed to dodge Duke’s punch in time.
“FISTS OF FURY!!”
“I’m not fighting you!” Rue dodged again. This was worse than the Starlight Duke attacks. Although Duke could no longer smother him under yellow spandex, this time, the man’s punches could actually hurt, and Rue certainly didn’t want to find out how much.
It turned out that he wouldn’t have to. Duke slipped and face-flopped.
“Ow ow ow ow ow ow ow…” A big, painful lump was starting to form smack-dab in the middle of his forehead. “I can’t believe… I… lost… (Drat, and I was so inspired by the book, too…)” Duke gingerly rubbed his forehead, and Rue was confused. For the life of him, he couldn’t understand how someone like Duke could actually defeat the Chimera.
“Aww, poor Dukie…” Elena bent over to check Duke’s bump, but Duke waved her off. He managed to stand up without help.
“I am a man of my word. (Milady is not going to be happy about this…)” Duke reluctantly handed the solleret to Rue, and the boy placed it in his knapsack. Rue thought that he didn’t actually defeat Duke, but he wasn’t going to complain about it.
“How’d you guys get in here, anyway?”
“I found the west gate open…” Elena began. “There were fresh footprints. I followed them, and then I found Dukie fighting the chimera.”
“And how did you get in?” Rue turned to Duke.
“Let’s just say I know the old stories,” was his answer. Rue raised one eyebrow quizzically at the other man, and Duke continued, “The passcode are the words of a magic spell from the legends.”
They heard an ominous rumbling. Duke instinctively grabbed Elena, and they all pulled away from the suddenly moving Chimera.
“Blast, this thing has gone crazy!” Duke shouted as the three of them moved away from the out-of-control robot. The Chimera’s arms were lashing about wildly, and given how reliable its AI codes are (not to mention Duke’s notoriously bad luck), it was probably smart enough to pick them out as targets. Although never meant to hurt people, those flailing appendages could very well kill them if they ever connect.
“You must’ve missed its main control circuits when you fought him earlier! What are we going to do now?!” Elena asked. In their haste to move away from the Chimera, they didn’t realize that they had put the monster between them and the room’s only open exit. Duke pointed to the side gateway that leads to the control room stairs. “But that door is locked!”
As if things weren’t bad enough, the Chimera started shooting flames at them.
Duke ran over to the nearest computer terminal and started typing. The door remained closed. “Blast it!” Duke banged his fist angrily on the console. “The password isn’t working!” The Chimera was still coming. Duke raised his fists up, preparing to fight. “This is going to be such a fun way to die…”
Rue closed his eyes. Open, open, open. They heard a click, and then a metallic clang.
“What the—?!” Elena shouted. The doors started moving. “Come on guys, now’s our chance!” There was no time left. Duke broke into a run. Elena grabbed Rue’s arm to pull him away. “Polly!” But Rue didn’t move. “Polly, we’ve got to go…!”
“Leave me alone, Elena!”
Elena’s mouth dropped open in surprise, and she let him go. “Polly…”
“Go. Just go.”
“Rue… Have you ever had… fainting spells?”
“Fainting spells?” Rue frowned. Mel had just finished modifying the disc card for him then, and she asked him to have a soda first before leaving for the Ghost Temple. He was sitting by the counter at the Soda Shoppe when she had suddenly asked him this.
“No, I meant… visions.” Mel explained. “Black dreams, or something of the sort. I don’t know what you’d call them.”
“I used to,” he answered truthfully. “But not anymore.”
“Hmm.” Mel didn’t even look up from what she was doing. “Was there ever a time that… something happened when you just… thought it might? Like the time you repaired my Poppul Purrels, and they shut down for no reason… Did you just, umm, will them to do so?”
Rue abruptly stood up. “Why are you even asking me this, Mel?!” There were very few things that could spark him, and this was one of them.
“There’s no need to get angry. I don’t mean to pry,” she said in an effort to calm him down. “I just remembered something that I came across with when I worked with Klaus before. It’s about, well… about certain beings (mutants, I think they were sometimes referred as) who could control electronic devices with their minds. I dismissed it all as tabloid junk back then, and I kept wondering why Klaus would ever bother with the stuff…” she laughed at her own derision. “Anyway, the creatures were said to look human, and they all have white hair, as well as… a certain mark on their foreheads.”
Reflexively, Rue’s hand rose, feeling under the ever-present cap. He could see where Mel was going with this, and he didn’t like it one bit. “I do have a mark, but… I-I’m sure it doesn’t mean what you’re thinking.”
“Let me see it, Rue.”
He hesitated. No one except for Claire and Klaus had ever seen his mark. But he trusted Klaus, and he had grown to trust Mel too… He nodded, and slowly took off his cap and bandanna. Mel stepped forward, standing on tiptoe so she could see it better.
“I’m sorry,” her voice was soft and tinged with sorrow. “No human could have a birthmark like this.”
It took a long while for the words to sink in. “I…” Rue’s voice was a rough whisper when he could finally speak again. “Klaus never said anything, but I guess, deep down, I… I’ve always known… I just kept hoping that…” He shook his head suddenly in an effort to clear it. “No, no—Mel, you’re wrong! You’ve got to be wrong! I don’t have to listen to this…” He turned and angrily rushed out of the room, practically tripping over his own feet as he did so.
“Rue, I’m so sorry. It’s only fair that someone tells you.” Mel was shaking her head sadly.
“What is he doing?!” Elena shouted as soon as Duke slammed the door shut behind him. They had made their way into the control room in the upper balcony, where even the Chimera’s flames could not reach. “We’ve got to help him somehow!”
Through the glass they could see the lower room clearly as the white-haired boy battled the animatronic monster on his own. Rue was obviously starting to tire—he held his weapon lower than he usually did, and the Chimera’s attacks kept coming closer and closer to its target.
But Rue didn’t need to fight the Chimera at all, Elena realized. He already has the final solleret… and the Chimeras’ programming will not allow them to leave their respective rooms… she watched as Rue dodged the flames once more, too late this time, and his shoulder got singed. But, doggedly, he kept coming at it. As if he wanted to destroy it for its own sake…
She had never seen Rue act this way before. Polly… that’s not like Polly at all! Suddenly Elena couldn’t bear to watch anymore. “I’m going back down-” she started to reach for the doorknob, but Duke raised one hand to stop her.
“I’m helping him. You’re staying right here where it’s safe.”
“No! I want to help Polly!!” she shouted, almost desperately. “I know how to fight too.” There were tears in her eyes.
Duke bent down on one knee so that his face was level with the girl’s. “You and Rue are friends, aren’t you? If ever you get hurt, Rue would only get hurt more.” A pause, and Duke’s eyes twinkled. “He would get hurt here,” he placed his fingertips on Elena’s forehead, “and here,” he lowered his hand over the girl’s heart.
She bit her lower lip, but she nodded in understanding. Duke straightened. “Good. I want you to stay put until we get back, Elena. Don’t. Go. Anywhere.”
The boy didn’t need any help in battling the monster after all. Rue managed to destroy enough of the animatronic circuits that the Chimera finally shut down. And now, the Chimera was clearly inanimate, but Rue was still bashing at it with his Arc Edge. He didn’t notice Duke step up behind him.
“Rue, that’s enough!”
Without warning, Rue turned upon the other man. But Duke was ready. He sidestepped the slashing sword and aimed his kick at the hand rather than the weapon. The Arc Edge dropped, clanging loudly against the Chimera’s hull. Duke grabbed Rue by the collar and slammed him unceremoniously onto the ground.
Rue blinked, and the glazed look in his eyes disappeared. “D-Duke?”
Duke’s face was contorted in anger. “Is this the first time?”
“Duke, what—?”
“Is this the first time it happened?! Answer me, boy!” Duke shook him roughly, and Rue shook his head no. “Blast it kid, I warned you before not to do this!!” He stood up, letting go of the boy.
“It’s not like…” Rue coughed a little, his throat still aching from Duke’s death grip. “It’s not like I can control it.”
“Have you even tried?” Duke snapped. Some strong emotion was in the older man’s eyes that Rue couldn’t explain, and it amazed him no end how Duke could go from silly-idiotic to dead-serious in a matter of minutes. There was definitely more to the man than met the eye, and Rue wondered why he didn’t see it before.
Rue managed to retort, “You think I want it any more than you do?”
Duke’s face softened slightly, and he helped Rue up. “I once knew a man who accidentally killed his best friend in a fit of rage. At that time, his friend had only been trying to keep him from hurting himself.”
Rue didn’t know what to say, but there was something odd in Duke’s tone… “The man who died… you knew him. He was your friend, wasn’t he?”
Duke hesitated a little before replying. “They both were.”
When they got up to the control room, Elena was nowhere in sight. Duke cursed loudly. “I told her not to—”
“I’m right here,” Elena’s voice called. Her head emerged from underneath a toppled-over steel cabinet. “Rue!” she greeted when she saw the pair. “There’s a console here that’s still working! I got as far as the login screen but their security codes have me stumped.”
“Let me take a look at it,” Rue said. After a few moments and with Duke’s help they were able to move the cabinet out of the way. Rue immediately took out the disc card and inserted it into the console’s slot, and he began typing. “Duke… what were the words to that spell?”
“Gizmo, Gia, Gias (no caps, don’t put in the spaces).” If Elena was confused at the words, she didn’t show it. Duke explained it to her anyway. “It’s from an old Carona legend, a spell that translates ‘to you born of Dew, accept your destiny and unseal your powers’.”
Elena stifled a burst of laughter. “That’s a rather funny spell.” Duke just shrugged.
“But it worked, though. I’m in,” Rue told them. Elena leaned over his shoulder to see. “Just give me a few more seconds to find those schematics…” he clicked a key, and then frowned thoughtfully as screenful after screenful of data scrolled up the display.
The data stream ended to display Cosmos Corporation’s logo. At the bottom of the screen, a single line of text displayed, ‘Search request ended. Input memory circuit code to continue.’
He took out the sollerets from his knapsack. “What is it, Rue?” Elena asked, but Rue was too deep in thought to answer her. He searched the nearby desk for some stray console cable, attached it into one of the sollerets, and plugged the other end to the computer terminal.
The screen promptly changed color. ‘Code accepted. Please wait.’ The screen blinked again, and after a slight pause it displayed the schematics that they were looking for. Rue breathed a sigh of relief.
“Duke, you were right. You’re right about the sollerets, how did you—” He turned, only to see that he and Elena were the only ones in the room.
“Sorry, Rue,” she told him. Neither of them had noticed when the older man left.
“Yeah, we got here all right. The competition proper starts tomorrow at nine. Yes, yes… I didn’t forget my costume…I didn’t forget the accessories either… Oh, stop worrying, Annette! I should be the one who’s uptight, not you!!” Mint rolled her eyes. “Whatever. ’kay, bye.” She clicked off the cellphone before handing it back to Tonia.
“Forgive her, she’s just a little excited. More than we are, actually,” Tonia explained. She and Mint were sharing a hotel room for their stay in Gamul City. They were supposed to be three to a room (excepting the coach, of course), but when Kirielle found out that she was staying with the team captain and team manager, she loudly complained that she would rather eat lead marinated in a pigsty, and therefore the deputy captain wound up staying with some first years for the duration of the games. “Have you heard? Kirielle’s brother is coming to watch us.”
Mint sniffed irritably. “Like I care.”
“Just a thought,” Tonia shrugged. “You guys really should at least try to get along.”
“When she stops being such a snotty brat, maybe I will.”
Tonia couldn’t help but smile. “You know, I think I’ve heard Kirielle say the exact same thing.”
And then a white pillow hit Tonia in the face.
“Say, Tonia, want to go visit some ruins?” Mint asked the upperclassman the next morning after the opening ceremonies.
Tonia replied sternly, “Shouldn’t you be training?”
“Hooky, hooky, hooky,” Mint was muttering under her breath, but she looked up when she realized Tonia had asked her a question. She batted her eyes in her most amicable (not to mention mock-pleading) manner. “Just this once? I’ve practiced so hard back in Carona. We’ll only be in Gamul a week, and besides, the gymnastics competition isn’t until the third day.”
“Well, since you put it that way…” Tonia grinned at her. “Why not? When are we going?”
Mint grinned back. “Right now.”
Gamul was a city also famous for its ruins, although those of Gamul were neither as numerous nor as ancient as the ruins of Carona were reputed to be. Legend had it that they were built by the same mythical beings, yet the architectural styles of the ruins were significantly different from each other. The Carona ruins were almost entirely made of stone, varying from the roughly-hewn type to the white and weathered smooth, rising up to extreme heights like the Winding Tower or delving deep underground like the Tunnels and the Lake Ruins. The Gamul ruins on the other hand were made of wood and always to be found on ground level.
But Mint had a certain partiality for heights, brought about by her love of her mountainous homeland, so she dragged Tonia to the tallest of the ruins that could be found in Gamul. This one was a small temple, with several stained glass windows lining the side walls and a bell tower at the back.
The first thing that struck them when they entered the temple were the windows. Truly impressive, wall-size pictures of the mythical Aeons in intricate detail, painted in the late morning light. “They aren’t stained glass,” Tonia was gaping openly. “They’re made of thousands of butterfly wings, amazingly preserved in clear resin…”
While her companion gazed wide-eyed at the picture windows, Mint decided to climb. The temple’s bell tower was nowhere near half as tall as Carona’s Winding Tower, but it would have to do. Up the spiraling staircase she went, and upon reaching the top she turned her gaze upon the horizon.
To the west was Gamul city, larger than most of the cities she had passed in her travels, and more than thrice the size the town of Carona. To the south were mostly forest and grassland, as well as the said town and its ruins, although Carona was too far away for her to see from where she was. She turned to the east.
The East, where her home was… The Ghost Temple should be somewhere to the East too. She shook her head. East wasn’t where she wanted her thoughts to fly to right now. She decided to climb back down.
Rue was in an internet café somewhere in downtown Junon, checking his email. He had asked for a (relatively) private cubicle from the nice saleslady, so that he could hold a video conference with Klaus over the internet. It was imperative that the professor got the data from the Ghost Temple immediately.
“Well? Are these really the schematics that we’re looking for?” The lag time was bad, and the video skipped a few frames every now and then, but Rue could see the professor nod an affirmative.
“I’ve been through the data over and over, Rue. I think Prima’s genetic code holds another key to the puzzle.”
First the ruins and the tunnels, then the schematics, and now genetics? What in the world did we get ourselves into?! “I don’t understand, professor. Why would Prima’s DNA suddenly be important? I don’t want him involved any further than he already is.”
“I don’t either. That’s why I’ve thought of creating some sort of… simulation of his DNA, something that would fool the sensors like we found in the underground tunnel doorways. Incidentally, Elroy’s notes included schematics for such a device, although the circuit does need several modifications…” he trailed off. “I don’t think it’s a coincidence that Elroy knew about this. Truth to tell, the more I discover, the more I don’t understand what’s going on. This thing seems to be a lot bigger than either you and I had imagined at the start.”
Rue sighed heavily in frustration. And yet we are no closer to finding Claire… “I suppose this means you’re sending me on another quest.” It wasn’t a question. “What do you need now?”
“After the Junon competition, I want you to go straight to the Raging Mountains to meet an old acquaintance of mine. Eugene Wylaf, hermit and inventor extraordinaire—we need the perpetual power supplies he invented a couple of years ago. You would need a disc card to enter his lab’s premises though, but don’t bother going back to Carona for it.” A slight pause. “I don’t have proof, but… I’m starting to get worried. There’s a machination out there that has started moving, Rue, I’m sure of it. I think we are running out of time.”
“But how will I get the disc card? You know how fast and reliable snail mail runs in this Continent…”
“I’ll send someone to meet you. Besides, Wylaf is a little on the …eccentric side. I think you might need some help in talking to him.”
“Well, what did you think?” Kirielle asked as she walked up to her brother among the bleachers. “Not a bad performance if I do say so myself, although I think I did better in practice…”
Karwyn nodded thoughtfully. “Pretty good. 8.9 technical, 9.2 for style,” he indicated the scoreboard. “You’d win first easily if the previous performances are any indication of how good the participants in this competition are.”
“Thanks, bro. But you haven’t seen what’s-her-face perform yet.” Her eyes narrowed involuntarily. “She’s right after this one.”
“Well, I’d still be rooting for you,” he grinned, teasing his sister. He sat back and waited for the current performer to end. “8.5, 8.5,” he read the scores aloud.
“Here she comes,” Kirielle pointed. “I haven’t actually seen her entire dance sequence, but the others do tell me that…” she seethed angrily, “Mint Vanguard really is a shoo-in for first place.” She and her brother watched as Mint, wielding her Dual Haloes and waving cheerfully at the audience, took her position in the middle of the dance floor. The soft music sounded from the speakers, and Mint began to dance.
Karwyn suddenly sat up straighter in his seat. He might be extremely myopic, but even to him, the red hair and twin ponytails were unmistakable. “That’s Mint Vanguard?!”
“Yes! (You can be really annoying sometimes, brother dearest, did you know that?) I told you she’s the splitting image of Lulu-Cecille except for the hair.”
“That’s not Mint Vanguard, that’s Mint East Heaven! And she looks like Lucine. (Where did you come up with a name like ‘Lulu-Cecille’ anyway?! I can see why you hate her so much, though-she’s good)” He chuckled softly. “George is going to throw another tantrum when he finds out that the missing princess had been hiding under our noses the entire time.”
“You can’t be serious?!” Kirielle almost shouted that last in her astonishment. “That’s… her?! No way…!!” Mint could not be the missing princess. Princesses were supposed to be demure and high-class, not bratty and tomboyish, and besides, Mint came to Carona practically as a beggar over a year ago. Kirielle couldn’t believe that she had completely missed it the whole time… And then something dawned on her. “Yeeesss way. If she’s Mint East Heaven, then that means she has the inborn magick too?”
Karwyn raised one eyebrow. “Something tells me you’re hatching a scheme, sister dearest?”
She was grinning like a feral cat that had just located fresh prey. “Let’s just say that the Carona High gymnastics team captain has finally bent one rule so much that it would turn around to stab her in the back.”
Straight to the locker room she went after the thunderous applause she received for her performance, and Mint almost tripped over her own two feet in her haste. She closed the door carefully behind her, dismissing her ecstatic teammates with excuses that she wanted to be alone for a moment to clean up, and the next thing she knew she was leaning heavily against the dressing room wall. She cursed mentally when she realized that she was having trouble breathing. Her vision turned double, her knees buckled, and she almost fell.
She felt an arm go about her upper body, supporting her, and she looked up. “T-Tonia?”
“Come on, Mint,” the upperclassman grunted as she helped Mint to the nearest bench. She sat down beside the redhead. “What happened?” Mint could only shake her head weakly. “Let’s get back to our room, okay?” She carefully pulled Mint’s arm over her shoulder and placed her hand on the girl’s waist, preparing to half-carry her all the way if need be. But Mint squeezed Tonia’s shoulder before Tonia could pull her up. Tonia looked at the other quizzically. Mint shook her head, indicating that she was still too fatigued to walk, and they both sat back down again.
Mint leaned heavily against Tonia and closed her eyes. “Tonia, don’t…” she whispered through gritted teeth, “don’t tell Rue or Annette about this.”
Mint won first place. Kirielle grabbed second. It didn’t come as a surprise to anyone, really.
It was a long and quiet ride train back home-at least, it was quiet on Mint’s part. While everyone was at the impromptu party in the train’s luxury car (where the cafeteria was located), she preferred the solitude of gazing out the window in her own seat. Sure, Mint loved parties, especially when she was the center of attention (as she was bound to be in this one—she won first place!), but somehow… there was something missing tonight. Odd, she couldn’t put her finger on it, and even she was surprised at herself. Perhaps I’m just too tired… which was another odd thing actually. As far as she knew, she was hyperactive to the extreme. She used to sniff like nothing at seven hours straight of hiking through the forest trails of her homeland. The fainting episode in the locker room with Tonia was the first time for her.
She shook her head, confused. No, fatigue wasn’t it. A mental strain? Something in her subconscious? [Expletive], maybe I just think too much… Perhaps it was better if she just slept for the rest of the ride. But no matter how many times she closed her eyes and tried to keep them shut, sleep simply wouldn’t come.
They arrived in Carona the late afternoon. Everyone else went directly home, except for Tonia, who could still catch a late school fair committee meeting if she hurried, and Mint, who just felt like dropping off her costume into her gymnasium locker.
The Kendo training hall was empty when she passed it. He’s not back yet… A soft sigh escaped her lips, although she herself wasn’t aware. She entered the gymnastics hall, went straight to her locker, and had just placed her costume and accessories into it when she decided to try the dance once more. Just to try out her own strength. She had no radio, but she could always hum the tune.
Thirty minutes, and she was able to do the entire sequence three times before she started to tire. She frowned at herself, confused. That’s funny. When she performed in Gamul, she didn’t even do a single practice run, but she wasn’t as fatigued now as she was then.
Something seemed to click in her mind. She ran over to her locker, took out the bracelets and quickly put them on. She turned to gaze outside the window. On impulse, she tried to cast the rainshower spell.
Nothing. She concentrated, harder this time. Still nothing. Again, try it again! Her breathing abruptly went ragged, her vision turned double, and she was forced to sit down. [Expletive]!! Hurriedly and clumsily she pulled off the bracelets, practically throwing them to the opposite end of the locker room away from her in alarm.
She stood up gingerly. She looked out the window again. She was already drained, but she needed to be sure. She concentrated once more, and again tried to cast the rainshower spell. The cloud that formed in the garden was small, very feeble, and yielded only a few drops, but the fact was that she was able to cast it.
It was a trick! Belle tricked her with the bracelets! But… no… Belle said that it was Coach Mira who wanted her to wear them. But Belle wouldn’t lie to her, would she? Belle might be her ‘enemy’, but she wouldn’t stoop so low as to… but that would mean that it was Mira who tricked both of them? Or that the older women were in cahoots against her? That doesn’t make any sense at all! Mint ran to the bracelets and picked them up. Belle probably didn’t suspect that she’d find out so quickly. She had to know what these things really were and what they did, and fast, before—
A knock on the training hall doorjamb, and Mint almost jumped in surprise. She turned, hastily pocketing the bracelets. “What is it, Elena?”
“Hi, Mint!” Elena greeted cheerily as she quickly walked up to the redhead. “Congratulations on winning first place! Tonia told me you were here, and she told me all about it, too! She said your performance was so awesome, and I really wish I could have seen it…” Elena talked so fast and grinned so wide Mint could have sworn that the girl was perpetually high on sugar, and she was surprised that Elena didn’t actually glomp her. But, that was Elena for you. “…Hey, Mint!” she continued, “Mama said you guys could be excused from classes two days next week! And, well…” she held up a disc card to Mint. “Papa was asking if you could deliver this to Rue.”
Mint raised one eyebrow quizzically. “Deliver this to Rue…? Why don’t you do it yourself? And besides, the Kendo team is still in Junon…”
“Nuh-uh,” Elena shook her head. “The boys got back this morning—they’re excused from classes too—but Rue went straight to the Raging Mountains. That’s west past a couple of towns away from here.”
“And what would be in the Raging Mountains that Rue would find so interesting?” Mint asked as she took the disc card from Elena.
“I don’t know. Papa and Mama wouldn’t say much about it. I guess they think that Rue could explain it better to you…” she trailed off, clasping her hands behind her back thoughtfully. “Anyway, Papa said that Rue needs the disc card to enter this lab thingy of Mr. Wylaf. And that, well… you should go with him when he visits Mr. Wylaf.” She shrugged. “Papa also says you should leave as soon as possible.”
There seem to be a lot of things that you guys aren’t telling us, Mint thought as she pocketed the disc card, but she kept such negative reflections to herself. The bracelets would have to wait as well. Whatever this puzzle was that she had inadvertently stumbled upon, she and Rue seem to be at the losing end of it. That is, if Rue isn’t already in on this together with them.
It was the early afternoon, and past two towns west of Carona were the Raging Mountains where Eugene Wylaf had decided to make his home. According to Klaus’s hastily-drawn maps (done from memory and emailed to Rue), Wylaf’s compound was comprised of a single building, not too big but with three floors, two basements, and one entranceway.
“Tell me again what this ‘phantomite’ is for?” Mint asked as they walked the lamp-less path towards the compound. “And why this Eugene decided to build his beloved abode in such a beautiful, easily-accessible place,” her voice dripped with sarcasm.
“Phantomite are very special power supplies. It’s for the device to mimic Prima’s DNA, so that there’s no need to involve him in the search any more. Only Wylaf’s phantomite can emit the particular frequency needed to bypass the genetic sensors’ fail-safe systems.”
“Whatever,” Mint didn’t really understand what he said. “Let’s just be quick about it, alright?”
Rue couldn’t agree more. He wasn’t enjoying this trip any better than Mint obviously did. Sometimes the relic hunts did get to him, and right now he could think of many things he’d rather be doing. But no, focus on the task at hand—Claire had always told him. Huh? His train of thought broke. Did Claire really ever tell him that? He realized that he didn’t remember.
They reached the computer terminal by the compound’s gates, and Rue inserted the disc card into the slot. After a few minutes of typing, the door remained closed. Mint stood on tiptoe to peer over his shoulder. “Well?”
Rue cursed under his breath. Of all the places for their luck to burn out… “Nothing’s happening.”
“I can see that,” she remarked acidly.
Rue’s fists were clenched at his sides, and there was a pained look to his face. “Step back, Mint.” Just like the Ghost Temple… He closed his eyes, breathed in deeply, and he willed the door in front of them to open.
Nothing happened. Mint glared daggers at him. “What do you think you’re doing?!”
“N-nothing. Nevermind, let’s just try the disc card again.” Nothing happened! The door didn’t open, and yet he did everything exactly like he had done before. They were no closer to getting inside Wylaf’s laboratory, yet Rue couldn’t help but breathe out silently in relief. Maybe the Ghost Temple was just a fluke, and Mel was wrong about me after all.
Mint stomped her foot twice in annoyance. “Oh, let me!” she elbowed him slightly as she took his place, and started clicking away at the console. After some time her eyes narrowed. She indicated the bottom of the display. “What logo is this, Rue?”
Rue moved to see better. “Aeon Industries.”
“Figures. Klaus’ disc card is for Cosmos Corp.” she started typing again, trying out password after password. “Hey, I thought Wylaf made his own stuff?”
“Maybe he still needs the spare parts,” Rue answered. They didn’t seem to be getting anywhere with Mint’s approach, but the girl seemed determined.
“[EXPLETIVE]!!” Finally giving up, she loudly kicked the console. It sparked violently, and within five seconds it started to emit smoke. “Oopsie…” And then they heard a soft click, and the door beside them opened.
Rue shrugged. “I guess dumb luck works sometimes.”
“Did I say that dumb luck works?!” Rue exclaimed as soon as they stepped into the compound. “I take it back! There’s no such thing as dumb luck!!” It was big, it was huge, and it was scary—he’d gone through this before. But this time, it was bigger, it was huger, and it was heck of a lot scarier. It was a real live dragon.
A real live talking dragon.
“WHO DARES TO DISTURB WYLAF THE GREAT?”
A real live talking dragon with clawed limbs and breathed fire—the dragon demonstrated the aforementioned ability right then, intentionally missing both kids as the flames spewed over their heads. Rue froze. “Klaus never said that Wylaf was a dragon.” He was so awed with the fabulous being that he didn’t notice the very, very strange look Mint gave him at that moment.
“MORTAL FOOLS! ADMIT IT! YOU ONLY SEEK MY DEVICES FOR YOUR SOLE BENEFIT!”
“No, Mr. Wylaf,” Rue tried to explain as he stepped forward. “We wish to obtain the power supplies you created—the phantomite—so that we could build this device to save my friend…”
“YOU ARE ALL THE SAME! NONE OF YOU WILL EVER GET THE PHANTOMITE!!”
The dragon attacked. Mint and Rue were forced to split. Wylaf alternated his attacks between clawing at them and shooting flames in the air.
“STAND STILL, YOU RUNTS! YOU SHALL PAY DEARLY FOR DISTURBING ONE AS POWERFUL AS ME!”
Rue was insistent as he dodged a flame pillar. “Look … there’s really no need for this fight!”
Mint’s jaw dropped in amazement. He’s really serious in talking to the dragon itself?! The left arm went for her, she dodged and at the same time struck it with her ring, and from the corner of her eye she saw Rue barely avoid another flame pillar. Even as he bashed his weapon at the dragon’s arms and underbelly, he couldn’t seem to keep his eyes off the dragon’s head. “Rue! Concentrate on what you’re doing!!”
“It’s just that… a dragon… I didn’t think that they actually-”
“Rue, the dragon’s mechanical!”
Surprisingly, Rue’s face flushed. “I can’t tell!!”
That’s right, he can’t… But she didn’t have time to ponder about it now.
Another flame pillar. “TAKE THAT, IMPUDENT HUMANS!”
She struck at the dragon, and she sidestepped again. “You know, this isn’t getting us anywhere.” All their attacks didn’t seem to be affecting the monster any. Mint looked around to see if she could think of any ideas. She looked up. “We’re better off just turning this [expletive] thing off. The control room should be behind that window. Think you can jump up there?”
Rue looked up as well, even as he dodged the dragon’s next swipe. “Too high.”
“Not even if I give you a boost?” Rue turned to her quizzically, and she glanced significantly at the dragon’s wings. Rue nodded in understanding.
Perhaps they really could read each other’s minds. Rue jumped sideways to the left, breaking for the walls, and Mint followed suit (to the right this time) a few half-seconds later. Rue leapt onto the wings, Mint over several crates, and both boy and girl managed to jump onto the dragon’s broad back almost simultaneously. Without skipping a beat Mint knelt and held her hands out, Rue stepped over them and he somersaulted as Mint boosted him up. He held his Arc Edge aloft as he spun, using it to bash through the thick window of the second floor control room.
CRAASH!! The glass broke into a million shards, and Rue deftly landed on both feet inside the room. A lone man was there, holding onto the sticks and knobs that controlled the dragon’s movements, and the man involuntarily jumped backwards from him in abject fear.
“You—you’re one of them!! You’re not getting the phantomite!” Without the amplification of the synthetic speakers, Wylaf’s voice wasn’t as loud, but it still carried an edge. “I knew you’d come for me… but you’ll never get it!”
“Sir,” Rue tried to placate him, stepping forward. “We’re only here for the phantomite.”
“And you’ll never have it!” Abruptly he leapt towards a different console and grabbed a bright red handle. “I shall destroy it firs-”
“Hey, RUE!!” Mint’s voice shouted from the window. A small white hand appeared over the broken pane, and Wylaf stopped short. Mint called again, “A little help?!”
“Coming!” Rue turned and reached his hand to her. He blinked as he inadvertently looked out the window when he helped her up. “You jumped that high?!”
“I’m a gymnast—what did you expect?” Mint brushed the dust off her skirt. “Well?” She turned to see Wylaf studying her. “Hey, didn’t your mom tell you it’s not polite to stare?”
Unexpectedly, Wylaf grinned. “I guess you’re not here to take my life as well as the phantomite after all. Welcome to my lab.”
For a scientist, Eugene Wylaf turned out to be a heavy-set man with a booming baritone and very graying reddish-dark-brown hair. He looked rather young for his age, and if it weren’t for the gray hair Mint could have sworn he was just as old as Klaus.
“So Augustus needs my help, eh? It’s been a long time…” he proceeded to tell them about him and former student. Wylaf used to be Klaus’s chemistry professor in Ephlesia University, Klaus being one of his worst protégés until one fateful afternoon they chanced to get stuck in an elevator together. “It’s amazing how much you can learn about each other if you’re trapped in a cramped space for seven hours straight… no food, no water… no way to relieve yourself…” Wylaf took out a couple of cokes from an antiquated refrigerator and handed one to each of his guests (both refused). “Those were the days… I sometimes miss the companionship. I don’t normally get visitors over these parts,” he remarked (almost) sadly.
Mint slouched in exasperation. “How do you expect to get visitors when you’ve got a frenzied fire-breathing mechanical dragon as your butler?”
“You like her, eh?” He grinned. “Took me two years to design and construct. Probably two months to repair, now.” He looked out the broken window to survey his machine. “Looks like you guys busted her pretty bad.”
“‘Busted her pretty bad…?’” Rue repeated dumbly. As far as he and Mint could tell, their attacks didn’t even affect the monster any, let alone bust it up.
Wylaf raised one eyebrow at them. “I built her, so I can tell. The servos are my own design. They work best under severe duress, just like what you guys put her through, but too much stress and they do break. They will work past fifteen minutes after reaching critical damage.”
Rue was impressed. Mint whispered sideways to him, “I didn’t think that was possible.”
“I didn’t either,” he whispered back. Mint glanced significantly at him, then at the old professor who again ducked into the fridge, this time for some apple cider. At least we now have an idea why Wylaf chose to live so secluded from the world.
“Oh, yeah, the phantomite…” Wylaf remarked suddenly as he sipped his juice. Aside from being eccentric and having a really weird sense of humor, he was a little absent-minded to boot. “It’s over by the other drawer… no, no… downstairs. No… I moved it up here!” He walked over to a steel cabinet on the other side of the room. When he opened it, Rue thought he could see nothing but extra lab coats.
Mint took to looking around the room in the meantime. Her gaze fell towards one of the side desks, at an aged piece of paper that seemed to have gotten stuck awkwardly between its myriad assorted (and probably useless) knick-knacks. Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be a faded photo of Wylaf, Mel, and several others. A much younger Klaus was there, as well as an old man with white hair. The old man somehow seemed familiar, yet she was absolutely certain that she had never seen him before in her life. She frowned.
Wylaf’s voice brought her thoughts back to the present. “Here they are, plus a couple of extra,” he said, handing Rue four batteries that could be easily mistaken for medicine tablets. “Take one of these pills a day, and your headaches will be gone in no time.”
Rue laughed and thanked the old professor. “I guess we should be going now.”
“Give my regards to Mel and Augustus,” he said as he walked them towards his laboratory door. “And don’t ever come back or you will have to fight my dragon again. Next time I won’t be so merciful,” he winked at them as they left.
It was already the late afternoon when they left, the sun low on the horizon. They hadn’t gone too far from Wylaf’s hermitage when Mint stopped walking abruptly, and Rue almost bumped into her. She angrily turned towards him. “Alright, this has gone far enough. What the [expletive] is going on here?!”
He frowned at her. “What are you talking about?”
“Don’t play innocent with me! Something’s going on and I just know it.” One look at Mint’s face and Rue was convinced that whatever she was reaching for, she was dead serious about it. “I didn’t say anything before, ’cause you always seemed so uptight whenever I’d even come close to this topic, but enough is enough! Even you would have to admit that…” she trailed off, and with an obvious effort forced herself to remain calm. She continued, “Rue, I think you’re putting your trust in Klaus too much.”
He winced at the words, and for some unexplainable reason Rue started to feel angry himself. “Let’s not talk about that, Mint.”
“There you go again! For how long are you going to keep blinding yourself like this?!” She stomped her foot in frustration, “Don’t you think that it’s freakin’ weird?! Look at you! You’re a straight-A student with A-pluses in all the mechatronics related classes, you fixed an Aero-scooter whose innards you’ve never seen before without once glancing at a manual, you repaired a two-decade old lamp without even using so much as a multi-tool! And yet you, of all people, can’t recognize these ‘creatures’ as mechanical?!” She was practically seething. “I really think there’s something that Klaus isn’t telling us. If only you’d stop moping so much about a girl whom you don’t even know is alive for you to see what’s directly in front of your face-”
“Stop it!!”
Rue raised his hand to slap her, causing Mint to involuntarily take a half-step backwards in shock, but she held her face up to him defiantly. “Go ahead and do it.” Burgundy eyes narrowed lividly at coal-black ones. He was so angry that his hand was shaking, but Rue had better control than that. With an effort he lowered his hand. “Coward.” Mint swiftly turned her back on him, her hair flying in the soft breeze as she did so, and she began to walk away.
“Wait, Mint,” he grabbed her elbow to stop her from leaving. “Mint, I… I’m sorry I snapped at you.”
She didn’t turn to face him. “That’s not why I’m angry and you know it.”
“There’s something you have to understand. I—I’m not… I mean…” But Mint cut him off.
“Don’t say anything, Rue. When you’re ready to tell, I’ll be ready to listen. Let me go,” she told him, and she pulled away the moment he released her arm. Rue stood unmoving for a long time even after she left.
They came to the Raging Mountains in separate trains, and they left in separate trains as well. Mint took the six o’clock express, but Rue arrived at the station well after that. Mint had taken a taxi to the station—he had decided to walk. The exercise gave him time to think over Mint’s words.
She just had to be wrong. It was Klaus who took him in—took both of them in—when they were turned out from every other place. Klaus gave him hope again when he had all but given up on Claire. He would trust the professor with his life. Admittedly, Klaus did have rather unusual methods… even Rue couldn’t figure out how he got their leads from the seemingly random tidbits that they were able to gather with each relic hunt. Perhaps… perhaps there’s some truth to what Mint is saying. He shook his head. Even if he didn’t know what was going on, he knew that he trusted the professor. That’s all that matters, isn’t it?
But, he trusted Mint too… and earlier, he had almost… almost… He grabbed his head and exclaimed, “Aaargh, I don’t want to think anymore!!” Why does she always do that to me, anyway?! How in all the heavens does she know these things?!! Girls are such a pain!!!
Seriously, he didn’t mean it of course. Still, he couldn’t help but wonder (and silently fume) as he sat on his train seat, staring out the window into nothingness.
It was past midnight when he got back to Carona, but he knew Klaus would still be awake. A sleepy-eyed Mira let him in, and he went to the professor’s basement immediately.
Rue greeted, “Wylaf sends his regards.”
“Ah, thank you, Rue,” Klaus said as Rue handed him the phantomite. “How is Eugene?” Rue couldn’t find any words to describe Klaus’s friend, and the professor laughed at his expression. “I take it he hasn’t changed much.”
“Anyway, how goes your research?”
Klaus shook his head. “I’ve finished modifying Elroy’s circuits, but other than that, there’s nothing new that I haven’t told you yet.” Klaus went back to his diagrams.
Rue bit his lip, wondering how to breach the subject. “Professor, there’s something I wish to ask. It’s about…” he hesitated.
“What is it, Rue?”
“No… Nevermind.” He wasn’t sure he wanted to know, anyway. “Some other time.”
“Speaking of other times, Tonia called earlier about the program for the fair opening ceremonies.”
“The school fair? I totally forgot!!” Rue slapped his forehead in consternation.
Klaus didn’t even look up from his papers. “Remember that the 2-A and 3-A class reps traditionally open the fair. You can’t go without a date.”
“A date?! Heaven have mercy…” As if the search for Claire wasn’t enough for him to worry about. Rue let out a deep, frustrated sigh.
“Where is that girl?! She’s supposed to be helping us hang these flyers!” Kirielle complained loudly as she glanced around the school front yard. The absence of bright red hair in twin ponytails was glaringly obvious to anyone who cared to look. But Tonia didn’t even bother.
“Mint is indisposed. She got back late from abroad yesterday, and she hasn’t had a day’s rest yet since Gamul.”
“You’re always making excuses for her,” Kirielle muttered angrily but quietly, not in the mood to provoke a confrontation. “I bet you don’t even know which city she went to.” But the news that Mint left town immediately after the games was irrefutable, since their source had been Coach Mira herself, right before she announced that the gymnastics team got assigned to doing the front yard decorations for the school fair.
“Hey, Tonia,” one of the junior members called. “What are we going to do if it rains during the program? There was a storm warning on the radio last night,” she said as she indicated the slightly cloud-heavy sky. It so happened that the Carona High Foundation Day occurred very near Christmas, and that was rainy season in their part of the Continent.
Tonia sighed, just a little. “There are extra tents being set up in the soccer and tennis fields, and most of the booths are indoors anyway. We just cross our fingers and pray that the storm doesn’t hit us.”
Rue didn’t finish the earrings. But half-completed Christmas presents were the least of his problems right now.
Neil was at the shop class door, distracting the group of first year girls who all wanted to talk to Rue about the Christmas fair (all of them hoping to be the lucky chosen date). Apparently there was a rumor circulating among the freshmen that Rue, being the astute gentleman that he was, could never say no to a girl who was insistent enough. It was common knowledge that as of that morning he was still dateless, and therefore, up for grabs. Maybe the rumor did carry some truth, albeit just a little, for Rue always had a weakness in saying no to anyone (not just girls).
Not for the first time, Rue wished that he could just duck into the broom closet until everything blew over. Since the workshop was located on the building’s main floor, he managed to sneak out through a window.
“You’re better off just hiding someplace until the afternoon,” Neil had advised.
“Where am I supposed to hide? There are students in every corridor and classroom!”
“What did you expect?” a girl voice asked him. “Tomorrow’s the school fair!”
“Elena?” Rue blinked. “What are you doing here?” In his apprehension over where to go, he had traveled to the front of the principal’s office without realizing it. Elena and Prima were sitting by the nearby stairs, Prima busy with some crayons and a coloring book.
Elena shrugged. “It gets stuffy in dad’s office. And Prima and I didn’t want to stay home.”
“Lookie, Rue!” Prima shouted suddenly, and he raised a bandaged right thumb for them to see. “I got a paper cut from Papa’s phone book! But big sister kissed my finger and made it all better!” Prima grinned and hugged the girl.
Rue couldn’t help but smile. Elena and Prima got along so well. So much like him and Claire, over five years ago…
“There he is!” a girl’s voice shouted from the end of the hallway. “I saw him first!!” Rue quickly snapped out of his reverie, and he almost panicked. Not again…
“You’d better run, Rue,” Elena sympathized. “Prima and I will try to distract them here.”
There was only one place in the whole building that (possibly) didn’t have any students—the second floor storeroom where the extra textbooks were kept—and that was where he made his way to after making sure that no one was following him. He let out a sigh of relief as he closed the door. Alone at last… But not exactly. Of all places to duck into, and he had to choose the same broom closet where she was hiding from committee work assignments. “Mint?”
“What?!” she asked irritably. “You’re invading my privacy here, in case you haven’t noticed! And you’d better not tell Annette where I am or you are gonna be sooo dead.” She raised one eyebrow quizzically. “What’s with the face?”
“Umm, it’s just that… n-nothing,” he shrugged it off. Mint glared daggers at him, and he blurted it out before he knew it. “The Fair opens tomorrow night, and I still don’t have a date.”
“Sheesh.” Mint rolled her eyes, annoyed. “So go get one! I’m sure girls are falling all over themselves to ask you out.” The words stung Rue for some reason, or maybe it was just the way she said it. Mint didn’t notice. “I bet that’s why you’re here in the first place—trying to hide from them.”
How does she keep doing that?! He plopped down on the closet floor across from her. He had known from the start that relatively a lot of girls would ask to be his school fair date (although his first estimate was less than those who did ask him out-he kept underestimating his popularity). He didn’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings, so he couldn’t play favorites, and besides, he really didn’t want to go with any of them. Truth be told, he didn’t know anyone whom he’d want to go with (he’d go with Neil as a last resort but it just wouldn’t look right, and besides, Neil was already going with Annette). The only girl he’d sincerely consider going to the fair with would be either Claire or his bright-eyed chemistry seatmate.
Well, Mint was sitting in front of him right now. Even sans Neil and Annette’s urgings, the thought of asking her out had occurred to him before (several times), but he never thought he’d ever get a chance to actually— He self-consciously scuffed the floor with his heel. She did say we were partners.
“Umm, Mint…?” He pried his eyes away from his shoes and hesitantly turned towards her. “It’s tradition for the class reps to open the fair, and since you’re my assistant… umm… how about…” he coughed just a little, and prayed that his face wasn’t as flushed as it feels. “How about we go together?”
Mint turned and inclined her head to one side, studying him, and if she was surprised at his asking her, she hid it well. “Do you know, Rue, that 2-A is the only section with an assistant class rep?”
“So you’ll go with me?”
“Sorry,” she shook her head. “I already have a date for tomorrow night.”
Rod was in his garage that doubled as a workshop, temporarily leaving the store to Johnny Wolf’s capable guardianship. Mint found him slouched over some weapon magazines at his desk when she visited him after school.
“Rod? There’s something I’d like to ask you.” Mint said. She didn’t knock when she came in, but the weapon-smith never minded. He swiveled his chair towards her and she pulled out the pair of gold bracelets from her knapsack. “Could you tell me what these are?”
Rod frowned thoughtfully as he took them. “Where did you get this?”
Mint merely shrugged. “Someone just gave it to me.”
“These bracelets are very stylized, but I’m sure I’ve seen something like this before.” He turned the bracelets over and held them up. “It has these markings underneath… is that the Cosmos Corp logo? There’s something funny about this. Let me check, alright?” He placed the bracelets down on his desk and pulled his laptop out of the nearby drawer. He tapped his fingers on the wood absently as he waited for his computer to boot up.
Mint was looking at him expectantly. “What’s so weird about the bracelets?”
“It’s not the bracelets…” he whispered, almost inaudibly. He clicked a few keys to open his favorite Internet search page. He glanced once more at the bracelets, turned to his laptop, and after reading the data that came up he turned towards the girl. “These are very powerful psyche-dampers, Mint. Psyche-dampers are the opposite of psyche-amps—they prevent the ‘gifted’ from using magick, and are used as manacles for the telekinetic/psionic criminals who cannot be held captive by ordinary handcuffs.” His eyes glinted as he peered closer towards the girl’s guarded face. “I wonder why someone would give these to you.”
“Maybe she didn’t know what they are,” Mint tried to shrug it off, even as she cursed mentally. If Rod hadn’t guessed it before, he would almost certainly guess it now. She tried her best to keep her expression impassive. “That’s everything. I’ll see you later, Rod.”
“Going so soon? How about a game before you leave?”
But Mint shook her head no. “Maybe next time. I still have a couple of packages to deliver, and one last Christmas present to buy. By the way, thanks for the stuffed toy, although I really wanted that new and very expensive IllusionScape video console…” she winked at him.
“You opened your present already?!” Rod asked sternly.
Mint grinned mischievously as she nodded. “Speaking of presents, here’s yours.” Without warning, she bent and kissed him on the cheek.
Rod’s jaw dropped ever so slightly in stunned surprise, but with a manly effort he was able to conceal it. “Cheapskate.”
Mint couldn’t help but laugh. “Kidding. Here,” she handed him a small package wrapped in brown paper. “Don’t open it now or I’d get embarrassed. See ya, space cowboy.”
She closed the garage door quietly behind her. Rod combed his fingers through his hair absently, and he let out a deep, contented sigh as he leaned back his chair.
“Holy—!!” He almost fell out of his seat when he opened his present. It was The Last Hero, a rare book that he had been practically dying to get for ages now. He didn’t even remember when he had told her about it. Cheapskate, my foot, she had given him a mint first-print copy. She must certainly have connections to even know where to purchase it.
With a sigh and his feelings in turmoil, he gently placed The Last Hero on the desk. He noticed that the bracelets were gone. Mint had taken them when she left.
School fair night, and Rue (2-A class rep), Tonia (3-A class rep) and their dates were to assist Principal Klaus and his wife with the opening ceremonies. Neil went as Tonia’s date just for the occasion (his real date was Annette), since Tonia had been too busy to get a partner (and Annette threatened to force-feed him burnt homemade goods if he didn’t help Tonia out). Rue went with Annette as a last resort (the whole ‘double-date’ being Annette’s idea, since Elena was still in junior high and Mint literally disappeared after lunchtime).
How would Mint say it? Booooring… Rue couldn’t help but think. Suffice to say that he had to try very hard to keep his eyes open throughout the entire program. He almost wished that the storm Tonia was so worried about did arrive—at least with the ceremonies rained out, he wouldn’t have to force himself through it.
After the traditional ribbon-cutting and all the fancy stuff, he was ready to go back to his dorm. Annette and Elena kept jiving at him for being such a spoil sport, but the plain truth was that he was too preoccupied with other things, and he knew that he’d only spoil their experience of the fair if he went with them.
Neil accompanied him to the gates after they got Rue’s school things, with the promise that he’d go back to the group after seeing Rue off. When no one was looking, he handed Rue a small package, indicating the other to open it quickly. Rue almost gaped in surprise when he opened the present.
It was the latest multi-tool from the mechavehicle equipment shop. The one with the auto-lock mechanism and built-in antigravity meter.
A note fell out of the plain paper wrapping, and he bent to pick it up. It read: Merry Christmas, Rue! Neil told me that your multi-tool broke, so I hope you can use this one.
The note didn’t say who it came from, but somehow he just knew it was from her. He shook his head, not knowing whether he should be happy that she had thought of him or remorseful that he hadn’t been able to give her anything.
Mint. He wondered how much effort it took on her part to get him such a gift.
He took a deep breath, even more determined now to finish those [expletive] earrings.
“I saw her walking towards the path to the lakeside,” Neil told him.
Rue didn’t have to ask what Neil meant, and he shook his head, absently fiddling with the strap of his violin case. “She’s already meeting someone—”
“I really don’t think so,” Neil cut him off knowingly. “All up to you, of course. The others are still waiting. I’ll see ya, Rue.” With a wave he turned and walked back towards the fair.
Rue stood unmoving for a long while, silently battling with his thoughts. Mint said she was already seeing someone. But Neil kept insisting it to him over the past months, and Neil was always so damn sure that… Oh, what does Neil know, anyway?!
Thunder crashed in the distance. Maybe the storm really was coming. And if Mint was at the lake, then that means she could be in danger when the waters become tremulous…
That decided him. Without further thought, he ran.
It was nearing midnight when he got to the lakeside, and it had started to drizzle. He looked around, but there was no sign of fiery red hair. Maybe she decided not to come here after all…? But he decided to check anyway.
He was halfway around the lake and up a steep bluff when he saw her, trapped on the ledge below him. The rock formation that connected it to shore submerges with the high tide—the lake connected to the ocean through an outlet way below sea level. On the other side of the same ledge was a cave that opened to Carona’s maze of underground tunnels, but Rue knew that that particular opening was a dead end.
“Mint!” He called down to her. “You’d better take shelter quick! A storm is coming!”
Mint turned, surprised to see him, but her expression didn’t say that his intrusion was unwelcome. “So what? I don’t mind a little rain!”
“But—” he was about to protest that she might catch a cold, but somehow he found the idea really weird and petty right then. “Oh, alright. You do what you want.” He sat down on the ground, letting his feet dangle over the cliffside.
Mint looked at him strangely. He’s going to wait for me until I return to shore?! She wrinkled her nose at him. “If you’re gonna wait, you might as well get down here and keep me company.”
“How will I do that?” Rue shouted. “The tide’s up, and it’s a sixteen meter drop!”
On impulse, she told him, “Jump, Rue!”
Rue blinked. “You’re serious?!”
“Jump! I promise you’ll make it!”
Perhaps Mint knew of a hidden path or ledge halfway down that he couldn’t see from where he was. But Rue trusted her. He jumped.
It was a straight drop. But strangely, he got down safe, and deftly landed on both feet. Mint greeted him with a hello and a smile. He couldn’t understand it, and it wasn’t until much later before he would realize what had really happened.
They barely made it into the tunnel opening when it began to rain in earnest. Rue turned quizzically towards the girl, “I thought you said you had a date tonight?”
“I do. I have a date with the stars,” she said as she waved vaguely and looked outside the cave entrance. She had just come down from the Winding Tower when Rue came, but she wasn’t about to tell him that, not yet anyway. “The twenty-third of December, eleven in the evening, and I always look towards the East. It was the day the angels took my mom. Eight years ago, today.”
Rue didn’t know what to say. “I’m sorry about your mom, Mint.”
“Don’t be,” she replied. “She died peacefully in her sleep. How did you know I was here, anyway?”
“Neil told me,” was his answer.
“Neil has a big mouth,” Mint scowled. And then she timidly glanced sideways at him. “Say, Rue… can I ask you a question? But promise you’ll answer me truthfully, ok?”
He hesitated. But after some time he agreed. “Alright.”
Mint seemed hesitant too. “Rue… tell me, what do you really think about Claire?”
It was the last question he had expected her to ask, and he was slightly taken aback. “S-she’s like my sister,” he answered truthfully. “She took me in when no one else would.”
“I see…” Mint whispered as she continued to gaze out at the rain.
“Hey, Mint,” he called, and she turned towards him. “I answered your question, so now you answer mine. How did you get the multi-tool? Oh, don’t give me that look—I know it’s from you.” Mint was pouting.
“That’s a secret,” she grinned suddenly. She wasn’t about to tell him that it took her sixteen trips into the tunnels at Elroy’s to find enough of the rare earth metal ores to raise enough money to buy the multi-tool. Oh, and also two weeks of gambling with the mechavehicle shop owner (who happened to be an ardent PS4 player during his teenage days) so that he would sell it to her at 80% discount. “Why don’t you ask me something else? I promise I’ll answer that one.”
“Alright,” he paused, thinking. He didn’t want to waste the question. “Remember the song for your dance sequence? What does it mean?” A pause, and Mint giggled. “What’s funny?”
“It just seems so… ominous that you’d ask me that now.” she smiled at him, and there was no hint of any teasing—she was just plain glad. She turned outside the cave and raised her hands to catch the wet drops. “It’s raining.” Rue was confused, and Mint laughed. “The song is about the rain. This is as best I can translate it.”
She lowered her hands to her sides, and Mint sang. Even without accompaniment, the melody was beautiful. The raindrops falling on the leaves outside seemed to be music enough.
Can you see? Here’s the rain that gently falls upon the earth
Upon the trees and flowers like a million tears
Can you feel the darkness come? The shadows covering o’er the land
While all around us the rain shall fall
Shall it come? With the rain, your endless beauty overflows
Can you hear the wind as it sings its song?
Can I ask you to stay? To hold me tight in your embrace
As long as the wind and the rain has not yet gone
Call upon the rain, do come to fall, and drown this world below
Just like the endless flow there’s nothing can stop this heart of mine that’s all aglow
My love for you will ever grow
My smiling eyes can never show
The joy that I can feel when it rains and I’m with you
Can you see? Here’s the rain that slowly ceases falling down
And when it goes, I know you’ll leave me too
Can I ask just once more? To hold me tight and not let go
All I want is to stay in the rain with you
Once again, o rain, do come to fall, cease not forever more
Though you bring with you the storm, it’s the pray’r I keep within my heart that burns so true
My love for you will ever grow
My smiling eyes can never show
The joy that I can feel when it rains and I’m with you
“Rue, there’s something that…” she bit her lip self-consciously. “We’re partners, right? And, well… there are things that partners shouldn’t hide from each other.” You jumped the chasm. You trusted me. I told you about the song—mother’s lullaby—that I’ve told no one else, that neither Annette nor my own sister knows about. I can tell you about my magic. There can be no secrets between friends, right?
Rue placed one hand over her mouth to stop her from speaking, and his eyes twinkled mischievously (to Mint’s eternal shock). “Don’t say anything. Not here.” He grabbed her by the arm and pulled her deeper into the tunnels with him.
Rue had passed through these particular tunnels before—that much was obvious. His step was quick and sure, and Mint followed him without any trace of her usual defiance. “You know, I still can’t believe you brought that thing,” she referred to the black violin case. Rue really did carry it everywhere. Then again, who was she to talk?—she went to the lakeside with her Dual Haloes tied to her belt.
He merely shrugged. “I had a feeling I might need it.” Rue grinned inwardly, although he kept his face impassive as they went deeper and deeper underground. He felt a strange fuzziness inside. Mint for once seemed… different tonight. She actually let him lead her by the hand. She didn’t ask any questions either. Perhaps she trusted him as much as he trusted her, although it didn’t seem that way sometimes.
By all rights they should be in complete darkness. But there was a diffuse glow that illuminated their path, and Rue could never figure it out, no matter how many times he had gone through there in the past. He supposed it could be some strange chemical in the walls, or even a particular strain of photophyta that thrived outside sea water. But it didn’t matter.
He stopped when they came upon an ancient clearing. “We’re here.”
The popular name of this particular ruin was the Fallen Tower, just as its twin, the Tower of Eternal Sun, was nicknamed the Winding Tower because of its spiraling staircase. Only in the past month had Rue discovered the other secret to the nickname, aside from the fact that this ruin was completely submerged under the lake by an earthquake—the Fallen Tower was actually a tower that opened underground.
Even Mint—who had probably seen more of Carona’s Ruins than he had—was awestruck. The clearing was dotted with crystal-like plants and tree stumps that have petrified over time, and the walls seemed to be reflecting moonlight. Except that it couldn’t be moonlight because it was raining outside… She looked up. The light came from above, from thousands—no, millions—of glass fibers that bored towards ground level and managed to reflect the outside light deep into the underground where they were. Except that it couldn’t be glass if these ruins were built long before the concept of fiberglass was even conceived. And then she realized, that just like windows of the Gamul ruins made of preserved butterfly wings, the Aeons had used spider silk to build it… the huge hollow sphere that glowed like an underground satellite…
“The Tower of Never Moon.”
“Yes,” Rue whispered. “That’s why they called it that.”
“Not even in my homeland can you find ruins like this,” she was practically gushing. “Thank you for bringing me here.” She turned to face him, a smile radiant on her face, and in that single a moment she seemed so much like an innocent child. Rue felt a slight pang when he realized that her smile was one that he had never seen on Claire, but he pushed the thought away. There was something else that was more important. He didn’t know why he had brought her here tonight, but since they were here now…
He carefully put down his violin case and stepped towards her uncertainly. “Mint, there’s something I have to tell you.”
“You don’t have to tell me anything,” she assured him. But Rue shook his head. He took his cap off and let it drop to the floor.
“There can be no secrets between friends.”
Mint frowned, slightly surprised at his words. “No Rue, that’s not what I meant by—” But she saw his expression and the protests died unsaid on her lips.
“I want you to know.” Slowly, deliberately, he untied the white bandanna, and then raised his head up for her to see.
“GYAAH!” Mint jumped backwards in mock-terror. “Is that— is that—” She was only kidding, but the look on Rue’s face told her that she shouldn’t have joked about it. “Sorry, Rue,” she whispered. “I didn’t mean it like that.” She uneasily stepped closer towards him. She raised one hand tentatively, hesitating, but Rue took her hand in both of his and pressed her palm over his birthmark.
“It’s real. I’ve had it for as long as I’ve known.” She had to stand on tiptoe to reach it, and Rue lowered his face towards hers.
A dark blue gem that pulsed with an unnatural inner light.
It felt warm to Mint’s touch. Not as warm as his living skin—but warm enough, as it would be if the jewel was alive in itself. Rue closed his eyes tightly, not wanting to see how she would react to his… abnormality.
“Rue…” For once, Mint didn’t know what to say. Rue let go of her hand, and she stepped away from him. “Why?”
Rue spoke as if he hadn’t heard her question. “It was seven years ago… no, exactly eight now. It was the twenty-third of December too… and then three weeks in the hospital after Claire found me… I guess I just didn’t want to remember it before. I still don’t, but…” He shook his head in a futile attempt to make sense of the memories that came rushing to him now as he tried to sort them out. He stammered when he spoke, he didn’t know what he was saying but he didn’t care. He wanted her to know. “I dream. Always the same dream. An empty blackness that I can’t explain. I can control electronic doors and robots sometimes, just by thinking it. Mel told me about some mutants she read about—mutants with white hair and the same powers—and she told me that my mark isn’t natural.” He turned to gaze directly at her. More than anything he needed her to accept him as he was. “Mint… I—I don’t even know anymore if I’m human.”
“Pah!” Mint’s eyes narrowed at him, and she scowled angrily. “You’re an idiot for saying that! What the [expletive] makes you think it anyway?! Of course you’re human, Rue!” She took his hands, palms up. “You have two eyes, two ears and a nose, and look, we… we have the same hands. Just because you have that weird blue thing on your forehead doesn’t mean you’re a freak. Okay, so maybe you are a freak…” she hastily corrected herself, and then blushed in embarrassment when she realized what she said. Rue had been gazing down silently at her all this time, as if he hung on to her every word. She bit her lip anxiously, she frowned and her eyes glistened. “But… err… oh, you know what I mean!!” She let his hands go. “Look, Rue… you’re not the only one who—”
She stopped suddenly and her eyes grew wide. Rue turned around. They were no longer alone.
Rue pulled the girl behind him protectively, even as he turned to face the masked man. “Who are you? How did you find us?”
When the man spoke it was with a voice as cold and cruel as sterling steel. “Find you? Hmm… Maybe I’m just lucky. I’ve been watching you for some time now, and these eyes aren’t my only ones. Let’s just say… that an older brother always looks out for his own kin.” Red-gold brass knuckles, a black costume, and a black mask that didn’t hide the white hair. He smiled without trace of amusement, and gestured a taunt with his right hand.
The movement and the metal glove seemed somehow familiar, and Rue winced involuntarily. Eight years had caused the bruises and scars to disappear, but the old ache was like a ghostly shadow of the past. “I remember you.” His voice came out as a whisper. “I remember that weapon. We… we’ve fought before.”
“Yes, when you were all but seven years old. Shall we fight again tonight?” he asked nonchalantly.
It was Mint who snapped back scathingly at the masked man, “You profess to know a lot about Rue Kincaid, Doll Master. Then again, you never did your own homework anyway, or else you wouldn’t have known about us. Who’re the spies under your pay this time?” She was clutching Rue’s arm in silent warning, her fingers digging into his flesh.
Only then did Doll Master notice Rue’s companion, and he started, breaking into a grin. “An East Heaven scion! We meet again, your highness.” He gallantly bowed before her. “Still as boorish and untrusting as ever. You haven’t changed much in four years.”
“‘Your highness’?!” Rue was incredulous. He turned to the girl, “You’re a princess?!!”
“You didn’t know?” Ruecian laughed. “I dare say you two have been friends all this time, and yet you had no clue who she is? Who do you think you are, anyway? Little boy, do you think to become this lady’s protector, just like the white knight who saves the princess from the clutches of the evil dragon? Like in some fairy tale?” His eyes flashed. “Or like in the many archaic legends of Carona. Fool,” he spat. “She could protect you better than you could ever do for her. One thing I’ll say—your taste in women has improved, even if your fighting skills are as pathetic as ever. Take out your weapon, now.”
Rue wordlessly did as the masked man told, gently pushing Mint away as he opened the violin case. This would be his fight. This should be his fight. Doll Master rushed at Rue the moment the boy stood up and faced him, lifting the metal glove high for a killing strike. Rue raised his Arc Edge to block and steeled himself for the blow that never came. Mint was there, and many things seemed to happen at once.
Swift as thought she had thrown one Halo to knock away Ruecian’s metal hand, and moving behind him she slid the other ring over his head so that it locked against his throat like a noose. Down she went, kneeing him hard in the back to throw him overhead and they both tumbled—Ruecian grabbed onto her arm as she threw him and they both flew through the air in an arc. He managed to slide free of the Halo while Mint kicked at him, and with one fell sweep he knocked her aside. Their trajectories split paths in mid-air and they both hit the ground solidly. Ruecian managed to stand. The girl, now weaponless, did not.
“Mint!” Rue made to move towards her, but weakly she raised her hand to stop him.
Her voice was faint but even. “It’s my fault, Rue. I’m sorry for not saying anything earlier. What I meant to tell you was… that I… I’m a freak too. I can use magic—it’s the gift of my bloodline. I was going to tell you tonight, but…” she trailed off, wondering mirthlessly at the irony of it all. “Looks like this psychotic guy here beat me to it.” She forced herself to stand. “Well, George, what are you waiting for?!”
“I was hoping it wouldn’t have to come to this, your highness.” Oddly, there was no trace of sarcasm in his tone, not even in the formal way he kept addressing her. Without warning, he rushed towards the girl. She wasn’t expecting it—thinking that he’d go for Rue—but she managed to sidestep him. A punch, blocked, a kick, evaded, and then Ruecian used magic.
Twin fireballs in quick succession, and then lightning. Mint crossed her arms to protect herself. She screamed when the fireballs exploded in front of her, causing her to slide backwards several meters, and she screamed again, louder, as the electricity agonizingly coursed through her body. She stiffly fell onto one knee. Ruecian frowned at her, curious. “You saw that coming. Why didn’t you use your magic to block?”
“Why should I?” Again, she forced herself to stand. “I’m not the one you’re gunning for tonight.”
Through the mask, Doll Master smiled. “Ha hah! You truly are an East Heaven scion, and one of the more gifted children of this generation at that. But even one such as you can’t help him… I’m afraid I can’t let you stop me.”
Rue had been standing still all this time, uncertain, hesitant to intervene lest he distract either of them and cause a fatal error on the girl’s part. Ruecian attacked him now.
And so they fought. Their weapons clashed in the dimness of the ancient clearing—metal glove against Arc Edge blade glinting dully in reflected moonlight—and Ruecian’s elemental magic. Mint’s psychic shield could not stop the physical weapons, but it protected Rue every time Ruecian would cast a fireball or charged bolt his way. But Mint was already in pain, and the shield was clearly weakening each time it caused one of the fireballs to ricochet away… Rue heard her gasp, finally spent, and from the corner of his eye he saw her falter. “Mint!!” The shield was gone. Rue got distracted. The next fireball hit him dead in the chest, the small explosion causing him to fly backwards through the air to far end of the clearing. The back of his head connected with a primordial tree with a loud thud, and he unceremoniously slid down, badly dazed and almost unconscious, onto the cold ground.
Ruecian walked over to the girl who could no longer stand. He pulled her face up by the chin, leaning so close she could feel his breath, and he gazed deep into the burgundy eyes that were trying very hard to blink back tears. He moved his mouth closer to her ear and whispered, “I’m sorry, I truly am. You’ve sensed it, haven’t you? The black dreams?” Weakly, she nodded. He explained, “We all went through it. I was the only one from the first generation who survived. Just as your magick is the gift of the East Heaven bloodline, this is the blessing and the curse of those who bear the Aeon Shard.”
“Don’t you dare do it,” she whispered through clenched teeth. “You hurt him, and I swear I’ll kill you.” Ruecian raised an eyebrow quizzically.
“Death threats from someone on the wrong end of the knife don’t mean much to me. Strange, that you actually care for someone other than yourself now?” he chuckled softly, but immediately turned serious again. “It’s been eight years since I let him escape, and in that time he should’ve grown up somewhat. For his sake, I certainly hope so.” He stood up, carefully removing his mask, and it was only then that she realized Doll Master’s eyes were instead an azure blue. On his forehead, he had the same baneful mark as Rue’s. “I took Claire from him because she was making him weak. But you’re not Claire,” there was something that passed for relief in his tone. “I will let you stay with him for now.
“You must understand, your highness. You of all people should know, that those who are given the power are not given the right to shirk their duty—or the choice to escape their destiny.”
He walked towards the semi-conscious boy, half-dragging, half-carrying the red-haired princess by the elbow. He released the girl and placed his right palm over the blue gem that gleamed faintly on Rue’s forehead. “Gizmo, Gia, Gias.” A colorless spark, an invisible flash of light.
Rue screamed, an inhuman howl that reverberated from the darkest depths of the soul. The dreams had been nothing compared to what assaulted him now—the voiceless shrieking that had suddenly engulfed his mind came in waves so intense that they wouldn’t even let him fall unconscious onto the sweet, sweet release of death or mere sleep, and Mint, whose psyche could sense but a little of his inner turmoil, found herself moaning involuntarily in shared pain. Doll Master forcibly turned and pushed Rue backwards, shoving him unceremoniously towards an already weakened girl.
“CLAIRE!!” He called the name the moment he felt Mint’s arms wrap protectively about him, and instinctively he held on to her. “Claire! Make them go away, Claire!!” The blackness was overwhelming… they were coming for him and they were going to take him away like they did so many others before… he was scared, he was afraid, but Claire would make everything right… He was clutching her so tight he could almost suffocate her. They fell, Mint being unable to support him upright in her condition. “Claire…!”
“Hush, Rue. It’s alright,” she whispered soothingly, unmindful of his weight on top of her as she cradled his head onto her chest. “Everything will be fine.”
Claire had said the exact same words before, somewhere in the shadows of his long-remembered past. But there was a distant part of his mind that the black waves had not conquered. Part of him still knew, part of him remembered where he was, and that part of him that remained in the present clung desperately to the one who held him now. “M-Mint?”
She would never know it was her name he called at the last that night. And he would never know, by the time he had cried himself to sleep in her arms, Mint had already fainted.
When he woke up, he recognized the ceiling as that of the Klauses’ former guest room (now Prima’s). When he woke up, he remembered everything.
Everything. The eerie green glow of unmade life capsules, the half-completed circuits meant for the mechavehicle support systems, the empty metal halls that housed the people that Aeon Industries had isolated from the world. Other children, with white hair like him, who had died in those halls while he survived. His mother, too, taken away when he was but three years old. The countless experiments and the endless training, all because he possessed the accursed Aeon Shard. And all throughout, Ruecian was there—always in the background, but always there nevertheless, watching over him like some surreal self-appointed guardian.
Groaning, he sat up, his head still woozy from the events of the previous night, but except for that he was uninjured. Off-hand he wondered where Mint was. Either at her dormitory or in Elena’s room, probably. He sincerely hoped she wasn’t hurt. His palm over his eyes, he shook his head in a vain effort to clear it. Everything seemed covered in a gray fog.
His cap and bandanna were on the nightstand beside his bed, and he carefully put them both on. Prima’s room had an extra bed, and he noticed that it was unmade—the entire Klaus family must be awake downstairs by now. Of course they would—the wall-clock read 2 o’clock. It was already afternoon.
He stood and walked out of the room, knowing that the professor was probably in the basement. What he saw when he exited the door almost made his heart stop. The living room was in entire disarray. The furniture were thrown about and most of the ceiling lights were smashed. Papers and shattered glass from the windows were littered all over the floor.
Almost running, he went straight to the professor’s basement, and saw that it was in the same ransacked state as the living room. Most of the relics that he and Klaus had collected over the years were broken, probably beyond repair. Some of the boxes were missing. Rue hurried past the cluttered items, and he breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Klaus unhurriedly beginning his efforts at reorganizing everything.
“Professor,” he said softly, not wishing to startle the other, and Klaus turned towards him. Worriedly, he asked, “Is everyone alright?”
Klaus replied, “They’re fine. No one was here when this place was attacked. The family spent the night with Fancy Mel, and the only things missing are Elroy’s box, and my notes and laptop.” Klaus hesitated a little. “We found you in the underground tunnels by the lake last night, Rue. What happened?”
Rue bit his lip anxiously, uncertain how to begin. He opened his mouth, twice as if to speak, only to clamp it shut both times. He closed his eyes and sat down on some debris, burying his face in his hands. “A man named Ruecian confronted us last night. He… he opened up my memories.”
He felt a consoling hand on his shoulder, but he didn’t look up. “I understand now, why I have these strange abilities. I’ve had them since birth. Ruecian and… there were others… they trained me as a child to use my powers. They took my mother away… and my father whom I never knew… or maybe they weren’t my real parents. I… I’m not human, Klaus!”
But it wasn’t Klaus who spoke next. “It wasn’t a joke last night, Rue. I said you were human.” Mint was standing by the door.
Rue lifted his head from his hands, his expression pained, and he watched her slowly walk down the stairs. “And just because you said it makes it true? How do you even know—”
“I don’t know!” she snapped angrily. “I just… know.”
She just… knows. Just like the underground tunnels when she thought that something or someone was going to meet them outside. Just like the first time he dreamed again in two years. Just like the fake Claire. Mint just knows… And Rue knew that he trusted her. His face softened, just a little. For some reason, her reassurance was enough for him. At least for now.
Mint raised her hand towards the professor, palm up. “Mint, wha…” Rue began, but one look from her made him stop short.
“This charade has gone far enough, professor.”
Klaus raised one eyebrow quizzically at her. “What are you talking about…?”
She answered by sending a charged bolt his way. “MINT!!” Rue shouted, abruptly getting up on his feet. Klaus didn’t even move, the bolt fizzing past his ear to dissipate when it hit the wall behind him. Rue made towards the girl, but suddenly found his way blocked by an invisible wall. “MINT, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!”
“Mira and Elena aren’t here because they spent the night at Fancy Mel’s,” she stated. “And they’re at Mel’s because Prima was kidnapped last night.”
“WHAT?!!”
“I’d say he was kidnapped at about the same time you were all at the fair. Someone went for him right after we were attacked in the tunnels. That’s where you found us, right? You went looking for us after Prima was taken. Ruecian took him, didn’t he?”
“Mint, how did you—” Rue asked, and Mint, without moving her palm away from the professor, held up something in her other hand.
“I found this under the sofa in the living room. And this isn’t yours, or Mira’s, or Elena’s, or even Mel’s handwriting—and certainly not Prima’s.”
Rue walked towards her and took it. It was a note, but not from any paper that he knew Klaus to use. Unsigned, it said simply: The third generation child is now with me. These mind games are over, Augustus. Mint spoke again, “I have a feeling it’s not Ruecian’s handwriting either.”
“What would you have me say?” Klaus spoke gravely, the first time since Mint attacked him. “That I once knew the man responsible for mutilating Rue’s mind and implanting on him the Aeon Shard?” He sighed. “Alright, consider it said.”
Mint said, “What do you want from us, professor? You owe us an explanation—”
“Actually, I think he owes you more than that.” Mint turned sharply to see Belle at the top of the basement stairs. “Besides, I’d like to know the whole story myself.”
“You—!” Mint shouted angrily and raised her hand towards the older woman, but Rue was faster. He grabbed her from the side, pinning her arms down. Mint struggled. “Let me go, Rue!!” He didn’t even speak, but the look he gave her was enough. If anyone deserved to know the truth, it was him. Mint exhaled, more felt than heard, and her body relaxed. Rue let her go.
“It’s better if you all sit down,” Klaus told them. “This will be a long tale.”
“Terry Prometheus Valen used to be an old friend. We were neighbors before I moved to Carona—we’ve known each other since I was a boy of six. Although he’s over thirty years older than I am, I looked up to him as a brother, and you could say that we became best friends. He was always a recluse, and even that young I was already a class-A nerd, and it was our love of machines that brought us together. He had graduated from college at the age of nineteen, the youngest and up ’til now, still the best mechatronic student in the history of Ephelsia University. Terry wasn’t normal—he was born with a strange condition that was rare at the time and not documented by medical science until much later. He was a chroma child, as he liked to call it, just like you, Rue.
“About twenty years ago, when I was in high school, Terry was already a board member of Aeon Industries, and that was when he became obsessed with psyche-amplifiers. Chroma children were supposed to be psyche-strong, but their particular condition caused them to go mad if they ever try to use their magick. Terry thought that psyche-amps were the key for chroma children to be able to tap into their psychic potential, but previous researches suggested that even psyche-amps wouldn’t help. Terry realized that the reason chroma children couldn’t use their powers was because their abilities were the result of a mutation—unlike the East Heaven scions’ magick for example, which had been in their bloodline for countless generations—and the mind of a chroma child was too weak to adapt to the pressure caused by using the magick. He developed the Aeon Shard System as a special psyche-amp, to be imbedded into the chroma child’s cranium, so that it will siphon unto itself the mind’s pressure build-up when casting spells. It’s an irreversible operation, since it involves the A. S. System’s sampling tendrils to literally bore into the chroma child’s brain tissue. To keep it small enough physically, he limited its abilities to controlling electronic devices. All of Aeon Industries’ circuits from that point on were fitted with a fail-safe system loop that prevents a chroma child with a locked Aeon Shard from manipulating it.”
Mint was deep in thought. “That explains why Rue wasn’t able to recognize the creatures as mechanical. His Shard was unlocked only last night.”
Klaus nodded an affirmative. “Cosmos Corp circuits don’t have the fail-safe, and that’s why Rue was able to control them with a locked Aeon Shard.
“I didn’t know that Terry was already working on the Aeon Shard System, then. I even helped with his psyche-amp research when I became a student at Ephlesia U. There were five of us in the group—Terry, Eugene Wylaf, and Benjamin Atenacius from the older generation, and me and Fancy Mel. Mel was my classmate for only a short time, but we both wound up working for Cosmos Corp after we graduated. But even as a junior researcher for a rival company, I still kept in touch with Terry and his psyche-amps.
“The Aeon Shard will only work on chroma children, and when I discovered that Terry was using his position in Aeon Industries to conduct experiments illegally, I was already too late to stop him. He had already tested the prototype psyche-amps on a …batch… a generation of chroma children rather, and all but one of them died. They were too old for their brains to handle the operation. That’s when he decided to implant the Shard on newborns.”
“…and I was one of those.” Rue spoke softly. “All along you knew. How come you never told me before?”
“I didn’t think you needed to know it yet,” Klaus replied somberly. “And it’s not over. Valen hopes to achieve immortality with his Aeon Shard System—I don’t know how or why, all I know is that he will keep up his experiments until he achieves that goal. I confronted Valen once I found out…” he winced, remembering how he got his limp.
“Mind games,” Mint interrupted. “The note mentioned mind games.”
“For the sake of our old friendship, Valen made me a deal. He told me that he will stop the experiments if ever I break his code before he builds the third tower of Carona.”
Belle spoke next. “In that case, you are already too late. By the way, your highness,” she turned to the red-haired girl, “I think you too will be extremely interested in this.” She took out a copy of the day’s paper and threw it towards Mint.
“Why would I be interested in the boring old news…” she trailed off. Her eyes quickly scanned the page, and her knuckles turned white as her grip on the paper tightened.
Rue leaned closer towards her to see. Tower of Maya Construction Completes Today, the headline read. The small photo featured Doll Master and a red-haired girl who had Mint’s burgundy eyes. “Maya East Heaven?”
“My little sister,” Mint whispered through clenched teeth.
“From what I hear, she had been a more responsible crown princess than you ever were,” Belle remarked snidely. “A pity-she seemed more sensible than you are. Then again, Ruecian can be a very slick talker when he tries.”
“Why you—” Mint raised her fist, but Rue’s grip on her arm stopped her and she reluctantly calmed down. There was no point in fighting amongst themselves.
Belle continued, “Basically, it says that the new Tower will house extra offices for Aeon Industries, plus a few research labs with the latest equipment focusing on psyche-amp technology development. They’re actually trying to keep it quiet, but this article got through somehow.” She placed her index finger on the news photo, on a small figure that could easily be missed. The little boy had white hair and was being held by the hand by one of Maya’s guards. “If you plan to rescue him, tonight would be the best time, before they get the kinks ironed out of their security system. I already know the rest of this story—I’ll meet you two at the outskirts of town at 1800.” And then she left.
“Where do Elroy and Prima fit in? And why did they take Claire?”
Klaus frowned thoughtfully, absently scratching his chin. “Prima is the third generation child, that much we know. As far as I can tell, Elroy and Claire both somehow just stumbled into Aeon Industries’ research. Perhaps they were just at the wrong place at the wrong time, but Terry can’t afford any loose ends.”
“Did you ever figure out the code?” Rue asked.
Klaus shook his head. “I sent you on the relic hunts with that in mind—and all we came up with were uncertainties. I tried my best to narrow it down, but still I failed. It could be a pattern found in a completed map of underground tunnels, or maybe the circuits of Elroy’s box, or even Prima’s genetic code…” he sighed. “I even thought that it could be the aura pattern of an East Heaven scion. When Belle told me about you, Mint, three years ago, I had hoped that with you I solved the code already.”
“You mean…” Mint said, “Belle was the reason you found me?!”
“Yes,” Klaus replied. “Is there anything the matter, Mint?”
“No, it’s just that…” she frowned. “Nevermind.”
There was still one thing that Rue wanted to know, though. He turned towards the redhead, “Mint, can I ask? What did Belle mean, when she said that you used to be a crown princess…?”
To his surprise, Mint’s face flushed. “Idrathernottalkaboutit.”
“Huh?”
“None of your business!!” She stood up in a huff. As she stomped off, he thought he heard her mutter, “When I conquer the world, she is gonna be sooo dead! Both of them!!”
An hour and a half later, when Rue and Klaus finished tidying up the living room somewhat (Mint was skulking upstairs in Elena’s room), Belle called with further news. It was Rue who answered the phone, and Belle told him. All the vehicles in town were out of commission. “They’re sending out a jamming signal from somewhere in the city, and all circuits manufactured by Aeon Industries have completely shut down.” Aeon Industries had close to a monopoly on mechatronic circuits in Carona Town.
“We know,” Rue said. “The power’s on, but only the low-tech stuff work properly. Any ideas on why they’d do this?”
He could almost see the other shake her head. “Valen is that afraid of you, Rue.” A disconnecting beep, and she hung up.
Rue mentioned the news to Klaus, adding, “I guess Mint and I are walking to the outskirts, then. We’d better leave now, or we won’t make it in time.”
“No good,” Klaus shook his head. “It’s a long hike. Don’t bother to deny it, Rue—both of you are still tired from last night’s encounter. If you walk all that way, you won’t be able to stand against whatever enemy you might come across in the Tower of Maya.”
“But if we have no choice…”
“Maybe we do,” Mint called from upstairs. She leaned against the railing, her chin cupped in her palm. She had heard enough of their conversation to know what was going on. “Rod’s got a car, and from what he told me, his girlfriend made the circuits herself, and not from any Aeon Inc. parts either. I’d better give him a call.”
Later when it was time to go, the two kids had rested and felt much better. Klaus handed Rue a modified disc card in the hope that it might help them, and Rue slid it into his shirt’s breast pocket. The two kids made their way towards Rod’s arcade. Rod greeted them and led the way to his garage at the back.
“Hey, it’s not so bad, Rue! Let’s beat the stuffing out of them and get Prima back, alright?” Mint nudged her companion gently, only to find that Rue had lapsed into silence again. After some time the boy sighed, wistfully and unconsciously whispering an all too familiar name. Mint frowned at him, but it passed quickly. “Idiot.”
Rue heard that last, finally realizing that she had spoken to him, and he turned. “Mint, what did—” but he didn’t get to continue, as Rod opened the garage door right then. He proudly grinned at them as Mint and Rue gazed at his vehicle. Mint was the only other person who had seen it before.
“I haven’t told you her name, have I? She’s the Pulsar Inferno Typhoon Omega.”
Mint raised her eyebrows skeptically at him. “You’re absolutely sure this Pinto can take us to the Tower of Maya?”
”Watch your tongue!“ Rod said, getting irritated. “It’s the Pulsar Inferno Typhoon Omega!”
“Pulsar Infer-whatsis or whatever, a car’s a car! (And Pinto is a much better name anyway…)”
“It’s Pulsar Inferno Typhoon Omega!”
“PINTO!”
Rue didn’t speak, feeling left out of the discussion for some reason. Mint stomped her foot impatiently and cracked her knuckles. “Let’s just get on with it! Oh, I want to beat my little sissie up so bad…”
“Wait, wait!” Rod exclaimed. “The PULSAR INFERNO TYPHOON OMEGA seats only two, which means that someone has to sit on someone else’s lap, and there’s no way Rue and I are sitting together.”
Mint’s face flushed suddenly. “[Expletive], Rue would never agree to sit with me—”
“Actually,” Rue spoke, scuffing the floor with his boot. “I wouldn’t mind it.”
“Well, I would.” Rue looked up, startled at Mint’s suddenly altered tone. “I’m sitting with Rod.”
Rod absently combed his fingers through his hair, “Well, sure if that’s what…”
“Rod’s going to let me drive!!” She laughed, and then broke at a run towards the Pulsar Inferno Typhoon Omega. With a surprised shout of “No Way!” Rod chased after her.
Rue frowned. “Ow!” he exclaimed—he had bit his lip without realizing it. He shook his head once before walking towards the redheaded pair, and wondered uselessly at what the big deal was all about, anyway.
The Tower of Maya was a tall building with no less than a hundred twenty-three floors, located several kilometers outside of Carona Town. It was surrounded by a dense forest that was littered with the odd clearing here and there. A concrete fence surrounded the Tower’s oversized parking lot. From above, Mint could see only one entrance to the compound, and she understood better why Belle suggested that they wait for nightfall. It wasn’t quite that dark yet, but it would be soon enough.
Her eyes scanned the forest area, and she pointed at the small clearing where the green Hexagon was waiting. “Drop us off there, Rod.”
“There’s Duke,” Rod commented offhand as the dark-haired man flagged their vehicle down.
Mint was just a little surprised. “You know Duke?”
“Yup,” Rod answered. “We come from the same hometown.”
Easing the steering wheel, he carefully set the Pulsar Inferno Typhoon Omega into the clearing. Mint jumped off as soon as they landed, not even bothering to open the door, and a couple of seconds later (after unfastening his seat belt), Rue came down as well. “Meet us back here in a couple of hours, alright?” Mint said. With an affirmative nod, Rod tipped his hat at them and flew off.
Duke was preparing to leave too. They couldn’t use the Hexagon for a sneak attack into a high-security office building anyway. As soon as he was gone with their mechavehicle, Belle walked towards the two kids. “Are you ready, guys?”
“As ready as we’ll ever be,” Rue answered. He noticed something sticking out of Belle’s back-pocket. “Belle, is that…?”
“…Klaus’s device that contains Prima’s genetic code, yes.” She finished the sentence for him. “It’s finally completed. Come on,” Belle led their way through the foliage.
“So, how are we going to get in?” Rue wanted to know.
Mint spoke up. “I say we bust in through the front door, threaten them with really big cannons, and demand that they give us back Prima and an additional three hundred million zenny or we’re going to blow their precious tower into a billion zillion smithereens!” Rue looked at her like she was crazy. “Just kidding.”
“A fire exit?” Rue ventured to guess. “Or a hidden passageway? I know that some of the underground tunnels lead to this area.”
Belle smiled at him. “You’re absolutely right—some of the tunnels run directly underneath the tower. They chose this location because of that, and because of its close proximity to the lake ruins. But Mint’s method is actually closer to what we’re going to do.”
Rue stopped short. Only then did he realize that Belle wasn’t leading them towards the Tower of Maya, but rather, she had led them to the largest of the lakeside ruins. In the dim light of dusk, Rue could see a man sitting down against a toppled-over pillar, patiently waiting.
“You’re late.”
Belle huffed. “It’s not my fault you decided to go dramatic on them last night.” The man stood, and he wasn’t alone. Trap Master and Psycho Master were with him, the former carrying a video cam and the latter holding what appeared to be some sort of remote or signaling device. Psycho Master was also carrying an unconscious Prima in one arm.
“[Expletive]!!” Mint involuntarily took half a step backwards. “I knew she couldn’t be trusted!” It’s just one battle after another isn’t it? Rue’s expression said it all.
A laugh was heard from the shadows of the nearby trees. “She couldn’t be trusted? Or perhaps you’re referring to yourself?”
Mint suddenly grabbed Rue’s arm, her eyes darting towards the sound. She whispered warningly, “I know that voice.”
“You should,” Maya told her. “We are family, after all. Tsk, tsk, tsk,” she shook her head somberly. “You haven’t changed. You’re still as irresponsible as ever. You’ve been gallivanting through these ruins without a care in the world, when it is our family’s sworn duty to see to their protection and preservation…” she sighed deeply. “I bet you never even knew that.”
“So, the tomboy here’s really a princess, huh? A true scion of East Heaven, kingdom of the sorcerer-mages… but I’m not impressed.” Belle said, stepping forward. She pulled out Klaus’s genetic-mimicry device and threw it towards Maya. “Here, just like we agreed upon.”
“Not all of it yet, but I thank you,” Maya nodded. “Doll Master, I trust you can handle things on your end.” A fireball shot towards her suddenly, but Maya sensed it coming and sidestepped. She turned to Mint, pulling out the Cosmo-Penalty. “You really will never learn.”
“We’ll see about that!” Mint raised her rings as she prepared another spell. She would’ve cast an ice bolt this time, but Maya pulled the trigger first.
Mint ran away screaming. Maya gestured for her guards. The younger princess disappeared back into the shadows, presumably to return to the Tower, and leaving Ruecian and his Masters to finish the job.
Rue made to run after Mint, but Belle placed one hand on his arm. “Your business is here.”
“Belle…” he frowned as he turned towards her, still not fully believing what was happening. “Why are you doing this?”
Belle shook her head. “Maybe someday you’ll understand. Maybe then you’ll forgive me.” Without warning, she grabbed his arm that held the Arc Edge and twisted it behind his back, the weapon dropping uselessly upon the ground. Rue didn’t resist her even as she slapped electronic handcuffs on him. “Valen is still biding his time. It’s not you they’re after now.”
“What, then?” he whispered back.
“All they want is a demonstration of your abilities. They agreed to release Prima afterwards.” She lowered her voice suddenly. “I hope you live to realize that he isn’t the real enemy, but is stuck in the turning cogs of fate just as helplessly as you are. She’s not in the Tower of Maya, Rue.” Belle straightened, raising her voice again. “Ruecian will explain it better to you.” She inclined her head towards the older man.
“It’s simple, really. All you have to do is to defeat my minions.” Ruecian vaguely waved his hand, and several critters of the type Rue had never seen before appeared before him. They were chest-high and spider-like, and they hovered like Aero-Scooters. Unsurprisingly, Rue could recognize them as mechanical now. Not only that, but as if by instinct, he knew what they were and how they worked, down to the very last microchip. And he knew that they would obey Ruecian’s telepathic commands to the very best of their limited AI capabilities.
So that’s it. It all boils down to whose will is stronger. Gritting his teeth, Rue mentally prepared himself for the battle to come.
There were no tricks this time, no unexpected attacks. He couldn’t sense Ruecian’s instructions to the creatures, but he could second-guess their movements, and it was a simple matter of jumping and sidestepping to avoid the claws and slashing appendages.
It was something that he hadn’t done in eight years. Although he vaguely remembered the drills and the training, he had done it so often before that it was practically second-nature to him. He responded subconsciously, and he didn’t even need to think as he evaded the creatures’ attacks.
He was a child, and he didn’t know how old he was. Ruecian took him to the training room. The door closed, and he was left in total darkness. Cold, it was very cold, and he was freezing. “When the body is numb, that’s when you can focus on the mind. Sight and Sound are your primary senses, but they won’t help you now. Feel with your thoughts, sense with your mind!”
“Sense with your mind. Reach with your mind. Learn to control them!” He had learned, and he had survived. The handcuffs fell off from his wrists, releasing him.
Rue dashed sideways and grabbed the handle of the Arc Edge, evading the creatures all the while. Trap Master recorded it all on disc, of course.
The man held the Arc Edge before him. His hands were still too small to hold the weapon properly, and he could barely even lift it. But the man had laughed and pressed him to use it anyway. “You’ll learn eventually. It’s all in the wrist. Practice, practice, practice.” He couldn’t even remember the man’s name or what he looked like.
He destroyed one, two, five of the creatures before he realized that it wasn’t working. There were too many of them. He had no choice but to try and wrest their control from Ruecian. He lowered his weapon, concentrating.
“He has the potential,” Valen said. “I have high hopes for this one.” They watched him from behind the safety of transparisteel glass as Rue battled the mechanical creatures, weaponless and alone, all in the name of training.
As one, the creatures turned on Ruecian. Psycho Master switched on the remote and it emitted a jamming signal to disable the creatures. It was meant as a last resort only if things go wrong for the Masters. The creatures stopped dead in their tracks.
Ruecian was running towards the lake in retreat. Rue chased after him.
It was midnight. The door to his room had opened suddenly, without reason. Rue stepped out, hesitant, knowing he would be punished if he was caught. But the corridors were empty. He picked up his sword and walked up ten flights of stairs to ground level. The parking lot was empty and the lights were all turned off. He didn’t see a single soul. He took his chance to run away.
Ruecian didn’t go farther than the water. He turned, brandishing his weapon. The metal glove and the Arc Edge clashed, and the sound of metal hitting metal echoed across the lakeside.
Ruecian caught him past the gates. He had no choice but to fight. And the next thing he knew, he was in the hospital with Claire.
The creatures were moving again. Too late did Rue realize that the jamming signal had disappeared. Caught between several enemies, he froze. It was enough. Ruecian kicked him, and he fell down.
Ruecian jumped onto a creature and used it to fly up. “Come on, Rue,” he taunted. “Surely you can do better than that.”
“I’m sure everything will be alright, Rue. You should never give up hope. Never, ever give up.” Claire would always smile whenever she would say that. But her smile was always sad.
Rue jumped onto a creature as well. Ruecian smirked. He knew that the boy couldn’t control the other creatures and maneuver the one he was standing on at the same time. If they fought like that in the air, Rue would definitely lose. Rue knew it too, but he didn’t see any choice except to fight on. He couldn’t even get close to Ruecian as he bashed almost helplessly at the other creatures that Ruecian was once again controlling.
Ruecian struck him from behind. Rue fell, barely managing to keep his balance as they hovered high above the water.
Claire. If I get defeated here, I won’t be able to save Claire.
He tightened his grip on the Arc Edge. He was starting to tire, mentally and physically. He gritted his teeth, determined to fight until the last.
Claire had the prettiest brown eyes. In the sunset, sometimes they look red and almost exotic… But I don’t remember her having red eyes.
“What the [expletive] do you think you’re doing?!!”
A flame shard zipped so close to Ruecian’s cheek that it left behind a red welt. They both turned to see Mint at the lakeside, her clothes muddy, her hair and face splotched with dirt. Somehow she had managed to neutralize whatever Maya had thrown at her earlier. The dual rings impossibly twirled across her arm without touching it as she used her magic. Prima was with her, his small hand clutching her belt, and he watched the aerial battle with child-like wonder. There was no sign anywhere of the other Masters—Mint must’ve defeated them already.
Ruecian cursed loudly. He sent what remained of the creatures towards Mint and Prima, planning to handle Rue by himself. Mint met the creatures head on, and one by one she managed to destroy them. When she had no strength left to cast magic, she struck them with her rings. As the last creature was destroyed, she fell on her knees, finally spent, and Prima had to support her.
The sight of his friends in danger snapped Rue out of a slight daze. With one last effort of will, he jumped. He grabbed Ruecian by the arm and bodily threw him down towards the lakeside. Ruecian hit the ground solidly, but he managed to stand up at once. Rue hovered down and landed, readying his weapon after using it to disable his erstwhile vehicle.
The squeal of fusion-propulsion engines made everything suddenly stop short. A sleek, black mechavehicle was upon them. They all watched wordlessly as it landed. The ventral hatch opened, and a man in a floating wheelchair came down to meet them. He was old and wizened, and although he could no longer move his body from the chest down, his demeanor was regal. There could be no doubt as to his identity.
“Master, you’re here,” Ruecian immediately got down on one knee, his surprise evident.
“I wanted to see him for myself,” Valen said. He turned to the younger white-haired boy. “You have exceeded all of my expectations, Rue.”
When Mint recognized him, she screamed. “You!! You’re the black man of my mother’s dreams! She died because of you!” Rage blinded her like she had never experienced before. Without thinking, she jumped him, her bare hands aiming for the exposed neck. But Valen wasn’t so helpless as to be defeated by such a reckless attack. As soon as she came within striking distance, Mint’s head struck an invisible force field, the collision and her own momentum sending her sprawling backwards onto the ground. Quickly she stood and prepared to attack again, ignoring the blood that trickled down her face.
Rue grabbed her from behind, his hands circling her waist and pinning her arms to her sides. “LET ME GO!!” She thrashed wildly, but he held her fast. After some time she calmed down, and her entire body shuddered in vexation. Rue felt her slacken. Still holding her tightly, he helped her to sit on the ground.
“Very good, Rue.” Valen told him approvingly. “It’s only right that you should protect your father.”
When Rue replied, his tone was soft and oddly cold. “I did it for her sake, not yours.”
“Do you think I care what your reasons are?” It was a rhetorical question, but there was something in Valen’s tone as he said it. “But I’m not that heartless. Merry Christmas, my son. Take your friends and get out of here.” He turned and floated back into the ship.
“This isn’t over,” Ruecian whispered. He followed Valen into the ship, and the doors closed behind him soundlessly. The ship then soared up into the darkened sky and headed back towards the Tower of Maya from where it came. Rue let go of the girl and stood up, and his eyes followed the black mechavehicle as it faded into the distance. With a sigh, he turned once more to his companion.
She was staring at him, and several expressions seemed to pass over her face all at once. Her eyes narrowed, blurry with unshed tears. Softly and accusingly she whispered, “You’re Valen’s son?”
Rue could only gaze back at her. “I don’t know,” he answered truthfully. Mint shook her head and wiped frustratedly at her eyes.
She walked over to Prima and bodily picked him up. “Let’s go, Prima. Rod should be waiting for us by now.” She forced a smile at the child. “Tonight’s Christmas Eve, isn’t it? We can all of us have a fancy dinner at Mel’s, and I’m sure Mira and Elena will have everything ready when we get there. It’s going to be so much fun! Don’t you think so?” In answer, Prima hugged her tightly about the neck and snuggled into her arms. Carrying the boy, she walked across the empty ruins without once looking back. Rue picked up their fallen weapons and followed the two silently.
Christmas passed uneventfully, and the New Year came and went. Rue spent both holidays with the Klauses, while Mint spent them in her dormitory with Mrs. Cartha. Rod had invited her to a week-long hiking trip with him to the Nibelheim Mountains, but Mint didn’t feel like going.
The school year resumed. Mint sat alone in class, since Annette was still visiting relatives overseas and was scheduled not to come back until next week. Rue avoided her even worse than she avoided him, seemingly. The fact that Valen was his father still hung thickly in the air between them. And since there was no news and no new leads from Klaus, there wasn’t anything they needed to talk about anyway.
It was late Tuesday after the dismissal bell, and Mint walked out into the hall, planning to skip gymnastics practice that day. Hey, she already had a gold win under her belt—she sure as heck was entitled to some time off. It had been a long and weary Christmas break for her, if it could even be called that. Right then, she was feeling very eager to totally humiliate a certain someone at Nightmare Altar.
But that would not be the case this afternoon. She heard quick footsteps and a familiar voice call to her, and she turned to see Tonia walking towards her at top speed.
“What’s the matter, Tonia?”
From the look on the other’s face, it wasn’t good. “Trouble. Big trouble. You’re wanted at the conference room beside the Principal’s office, immediately.”
Mint frowned inwardly, even as she fell into a brisk pace alongside her upperclassman. “What happened?” Tonia merely shook her head, which Mint took as a sign that whatever it was, Tonia couldn’t or wouldn’t be the one to tell her. No matter, she’d find out soon enough. She opened the conference room door and went in.
They were met with the entire Carona High school board and then some. Coach Mira was standing by the window with a worried expression. Principal Klaus was there too, one arm placed comfortingly around his wife. “What is going on here?!” Mint asked, momentarily forgetting her place.
“Ms. Nikolai, and Ms. Vanguard?” An old gentleman motioned to them. “Please, sit down.” Tonia nodded her thanks as she and Mint took seats at the long oval table of the conference room. “Alright, let’s begin.” The man introduced himself as Benjamin Atenacius, deputy chairman of the school board.
He went straight to the point. “You all know why we’re here. Cheating has always been considered a very serious offense, especially in inter-school competitions. Coupled with fraud, it could be grounds for expulsion. Ms. Vanguard,” he turned. “Do you deny that you are the eldest daughter of his Majesty, Mathias East Heaven?”
Mint abruptly stood up in shock. “W-WHAT?!! What has that got to do with anything?! I haven’t cheated in any way!!”
“Just answer the question, Ms. Vanguard. And please, sit down.”
Reluctantly, Mint obliged him. A pause, and she clenched and unclenched her fists at her sides. “Yes, I am his Majesty’s daughter.”
“Then do you deny that you are psionic or psyche-strong?”
“Y-yes, I mean, I don’t deny it, but I still don’t see—”
Atenacius silenced her with a wave. “It is against the competition rules for the contestants to use artificial stimulants to improve their athletic prowess. In the case of psionics, they may not, repeat, not use their powers when competing with or against ordinary students. Non-wearing of committee-approved psyche-dampers for psionics during a tournament or competition is considered cheating and is a major offense.”
Mint’s jaw dropped half-open. “I… I didn’t know,” she whispered so softly that only Tonia heard her. Suddenly she couldn’t think clearly. How did they find out who I am? All of a sudden her vision turned blurry—No! She wasn’t going to cry over this! Even if it seemed that only bad things had ever happened to her recently, she promised that she won’t ever cry! First it was Doll Master, and then Maya and Belle’s betrayal… And then there was Rue, Rue being who he is… and now She could only recollect vague pieces of rest of the conversation after that. “No proof that she…” “We have videos. Clearly you can see that she wore a pair…” “…no, it’s not good enough.” “The board cannot overlook an accusation of this magnitude!” “…if she can produce the bracelets, and we prove that they really are psyche-dampers, then she’s off the hook.”
“Well, Mint?” It was Coach Mira who spoke next. “Where are the bracelets? You have them, don’t you?”
Mint blinked, suddenly realizing that she was the one being spoken to. “Err, what was that?”
“Where are the bracelets that Belle gave you?” Mira asked insistently.
She bit her lip so hard it almost bled. “I… I don’t have them any more. I thought that…”
“Then, I’m sorry,” Atenacius spoke up. “There’s nothing we can do. The board will now decide on the proper action.”
Klaus cleared his throat and was recognized. “My wife and I maintain that we have full confidence in Ms. Vanguard’s innocence. Perhaps there’s another way she can prove it. Will you accept it if she performs her dance sequence again in the same manner, while wearing the psyche-dampers of your choosing?”
Murmurs of yea and nay were heard across the table, but the matter was quickly settled with a show of hands. “Alright,” Atenacius said. “Ms. Vanguard will perform again this afternoon, in half an hour at the Carona High gymnasium, to prove her innocence of the charge of cheating during the Gamul competition. This meeting is temporarily adjourned.”
“Where did you put the bracelets, Mint?” Tonia was sitting down on a bench in the girls’ locker room, watching the other change into her gymnastics uniform.
“I told you,” Mint answered as she fixed her hair in front of the mirror. “I don’t have them anymore. I asked Mrs. Cartha to dispose of them for me.”
Tonia pursed her lips thoughtfully. “If I know Mrs. Cartha, she wouldn’t have gotten rid of them just like that. She probably hid them somewhere.” Tonia stood up. “I’m going to run over there and ask.”
But Mint grabbed her arm as she turned. “No, Tonia. I don’t need those bracelets to prove myself. I can do this on my own.” It was unspoken, but Tonia understood. Mint wanted her friend to be there.
Tonia nodded. “Alright. I’ll get the radio.” Mint reached for a pair of silver bangles—the committee-issued psyche-dampers—and she snapped them on. Oddly enough, they felt like handcuffs.
Together, she and Tonia stepped out into the training hall, where everyone was waiting for them. Tonia put the radio down on a long table by the window. “Dance like you’ve never danced before, Mint,” she whispered in encouragement. “Not only the medal, but your position on the team is at stake as well.”
“Hey, have you ever known me to fail?” The words and the tone she used were as brash as usual, but Mint’s expression did not mirror it. Ever so briefly, Tonia thought she saw a pained look pass over the wine-red eyes. With deceivingly confident steps Mint walked to her position at the center of the mats. “I’m ready!” Tonia turned the radio on.
Mint danced. It started out as well if not better than her performance at Gamul was. But forty seconds into the sequence, it became apparent that something was wrong. Mint’s eyes were blinking too much, as if she was having a hard time keeping them open. Suddenly she gasped and raised her arms in front of her awkwardly, right before collapsing into a dead faint.
It was humiliation of the highest degree, especially for someone as proud as the displaced East Heaven princess. After a lengthy discussion, and as soon as the girl could stand, the school board publicly declared her crime, stripped her of her medal, and expelled her not only from her captaincy, but totally out of the gymnastics team. Her offence merited expulsion, but despite the evidence (or lack thereof) Klaus and Mira refused to acknowledge her guilt, and were somehow able to convince the board to be lenient. There would be no suspension from classes, although she was to write a formal apology and have it published in the local paper, as well as posting it in every bulletin board in school.
Mint disappeared immediately after the board declared its decision. She was absent from class the next day, and by then, the entire school knew.
Rue was distraught. He fully believed in Mint’s innocence, even if half the class did not. Neil was using all of his verbal charm to convince those who opposed his views on the subject, and Rue could only nod quietly as he listened. It was big news of course, but it turned out that class’s sentiments weren’t as much sympathy or abhorrence as it was disbelief. The handful who have actually seen Mint perform asserted that the charge was a complete fraud, a certain select were convinced that Mint was a cheater of the highest order (how else would she have gotten into the A section with her abysmal grades?), while the rest of the class simply refused to form an opinion, still stunned and unable to believe that Mint was capable of such a thing. But they did pass the news along.
The gymnastics team took it especially hard. They all but one had walked out on the school board’s announcement yesterday in sympathy for their captain. They declared a boycott on gym practice for an entire week, and Coach Mira actually approved it. The atypical silence of the gymnastics hall that afternoon struck at Rue and unexplainably made him feel awkward.
“Something on your mind?” Neil asked him as they did their kendo practice slashes side by side. Rue could only shake his head dismissively.
I should have been there for her. For some reason, he couldn’t stop thinking about it.
They finished the extra drills and Rue and Neil changed out of their kendo garb. As Rue slung the strap of his violin case, he felt a hand on his shoulder. Neil inclined his head towards the exit where Tonia was frantically trying to get their attention. The boys walked towards her.
“What’s the matter?” Neil asked, but Tonia didn’t know how to begin. “It’s about Mint, isn’t it? Where is she?”
“We can’t find her,” Tonia said. “I already called Rod and Mrs. Cartha, and I went to her usual hangouts, but she’s not anywhere.”
“Maybe she just needs some time alone,” Rue suggested.
Tonia sighed audibly, her expression serious. “I know that, but I’m worried. You know how high-strung she is, and especially after everything she’s been through recently… I just want to be sure that, that she won’t try anything we’ll all regret…”
They could see where Tonia was going with this, and Neil was starting to get worried too. He asked, “Have you tried the Starlight Mall? Or the one at Spencer?” Tonia nodded an affirmative.
“She’s not at either. Rod’s out looking for her in the ruins they have visited together before—”
“What about the Library?”
“Rue, you know she never goes to the library!”
“I’m going to the Atelier,” Neil stated. “Maybe Mel knows something. Tonia, you’d better call Annette ASAP.” Neil didn’t even wait for an acknowledgement from them as he half-walked, half-ran out of the gymnasium.
“What can I do?” Rue said apprehensively.
“Mint usually visits the ruins when she gets like this. Rod said…” she bit her lip anxiously. “Rod said that once Mint impossibly climbed up the Winding Tower. Rue… if she’s there… it’s a long fall, even only midway…”
At those words Rue’s heart suddenly caught in his throat. Mint was just about impulsive enough to do it too. “I’m going.” Slinging his violin case, he started out the door.
“Wait, take this.” Tonia grabbed his arm and thrust her cellular phone into his hand.
“How will I be able to contact you then?”
Tonia shook her head. “Call Neil—I’ll contact him. I’m going to try the malls again.”
The sun had begun to set when he arrived at the Winding Tower. He sprinted up the spiraling stairs, stopping only when he came to the broken steps.
They said she was able to climb up once… He shook his head. He couldn’t risk the chance that she might be up there and just maybe do something rash. He had to climb up and check, or he’d never be able to live with himself otherwise.
He surveyed the gap, and decided that it was too wide to jump. He had no rope, and even if he did there was no place to tie it to. How could she have climbed up? On a sudden idea, he looked out the window.
Sure enough, there was a long crack just the right size for him to use as a foothold. If he could maneuver himself on the outside of the tower, using that crack to reach the next window, he could climb in and jump to the other side of the broken stairwell. The problem was that he couldn’t quite reach the crack from where he stood.
With a fiercely determined look, he took out the Arc Edge. He could make the crack longer if he bashed at the tower wall hard enough. It was dangerous, he knew—a couple of misplaced blows and he could very well bring the entire tower crashing down—no, probably not, but one could never tell. He judged that one properly-aimed strike should suit his purposes. He carefully climbed out the window and, gritting his teeth, he struck at the tower wall.
CR-RNCH! He estimated correctly. The crack widened, just a little, and extended half a meter both ways. He had better not try it again. But the first one was enough. He dropped the Arc Edge on the inside tower steps and made his way across the outside. Eventually he reached the next window, climbed in and hurriedly walked up to the top.
She wasn’t there. And judging from the thin, windswept coating of dust over the flat marble floor, no one but him had climbed up there recently.
He crossed the roof deck to the side nearest the lake and peered over the parapets. The waters rippled calmly far below him, undisturbed except for a gentle breeze. Sighing, he sat down with his back against the stone wall, torn between his feelings of relief and anxiety for his red-haired friend.
Tonia’s cellular phone rang. He stood, pulled it out of his pocket and clicked it on. “Hello?”
“Rue? Rue, is that you?” A familiar voice called from the other end. “Thank the heavens. Where are you?”
“Annette? I’m at the Winding Tower, but Mint hasn’t been here—”
Annette’s voice interrupted him. “We’ve found her—she’s at Cousin Jargen’s bar. But Jargen says she seems really upset though.” Her tone turned pleading. “Rue, could you go to her please?”
He nodded unconsciously. “I’ll go there straightaway.”
“Thank you so much.” And then she hung up.
It was late dusk when he finally found her at the bar. She was slumped over the counter, seemingly asleep, her twin ponytails covering her face, arms and shoulders. There were several empty glasses beside her, and Jargen was only then starting to clean up. He acknowledged Rue as the boy entered the almost empty shop.
“Is she alright?” Rue whispered. Jargen merely shrugged as he cleared the glasses away. Rue walked over to the girl and gently shook her. “Mint? Mint, are you okay?” She muttered something incoherent, and he brushed the hair from her face. “Mint?”
“Who cares?” She exclaimed, suddenly sitting up. At least she tried to—she shook a little, and Rue had to raise one hand to support her. “Who the [expletive] cares where the freak came from, anyway?! He’s my friend, and that’s all that matters… isn’t that right, Annette?” She turned to him and blinked twice, squinting to see his face better. “Oh, you’re not Annette… Hah, it’s Rue! Hiya, Rue! Annette and I were just talking about you… where’d she go?”
She plopped face-down on the table again. Drunk?! The fact that she was thinking about him while in such a state hadn’t fully sunk in yet. Rue turned sharply to the bartender. “What’s wrong with her?!”
Jargen had been watching them wordlessly, and he was just as surprised as Rue. “I only served her a few malteds.”
“Spiked?”
“Only with this. She seemed to need it.” He indicated a bottle of a very mild tonic on the counter.
Rue unscrewed the cap and sniffed at its contents. “Phew! Are you sure this thing is labeled properly?”
Jargen took the bottle from him and smelled it. “Oh, no… It’s gin pomelo. I’m really sorry about this—Doyle must’ve gotten careless again.” His expression was sincerely apologetic. “Excuse me while I get rid of this, alright?”
Rue sighed. “Well, it’s too late now, and there’s no point in laying blame…” Mint waved vaguely as Jargen ducked into the back storeroom. Rue turned to her then. What am I ever going to do with you…? “Come on, Mint. I’ll take you home.”
At his touch, Mint abruptly sat up again. “Hey, Rue!” she swiveled her chair and leaned her face up to his.
“Mint, you’re drunk. We should go.”
She didn’t seem to hear him. “Did I ever tell you that I’ve always thought you were weird? Weird. We-e-ei-rr-d. Freak—a—zoid.” Her glazed eyes narrowed. “But you’re cute.”
Rue’s mind blanked suddenly, and he stood dumbly in front of her, unmoving, at a loss of what to do next. That was the very last thing he had expected her to say, and just like that the mood in the room had changed. Rampaging six-foot toys, manic animals and even monster mechavehicles mano a mano he could handle, but this—
Mint turned angry all of a sudden. “Didn’t you hear me? I said, you’re weird, but I think you’re cute. Can’t you understand?!” She stood and stepped forward, her knees wobbling, and she would’ve fallen then if Rue hadn’t suddenly rushed forward to catch her. She looked up into his face, her eyes bright and half-closed.
Clumsily, impatiently, with one hand she pulled off his cap, letting it drop to the floor unnoticed. She tried to pull off the white bandanna as well, but her hands were already too feeble from dizziness. Rue for some reason found himself powerless to resist her. Mint lowered her hands with a sigh, finally giving up, and instead wrapped them weakly about his neck.
She grinned innocently up at him like a child. “You’re even cuter without the cap. Will you be my first kiss, Rue?”
And then she promptly fell asleep in his arms.
At this point, Rue was already beyond thinking. And so, like the gentleman that he was, he carefully picked her up and carried her all the way to her dormitory, ignoring the puzzled stares of people not used to seeing him without the ever-present orange-and-olive-green cap. After asking permission from Mrs. Cartha, he took her up to her room and tucked her into bed. Just once, with his fingers he gently traced the outline of her face and brushed a stray strand of hair away from her closed eyes.
He made sure the door was locked when he left her alone in her room that night.
Shop class was the last subject of section 2-A every Thursday afternoon. It was the class where the students tended to linger the most, since they had a free run of the lab equipment for as long as Professor Cadmon remained in the faculty area (Despite his tendency to require the dreaded 40-page technical essays, Professor Samuel Cadmon was considered as one of the most easy-going teachers of Carona High, along with Ms. Belle Brie). That afternoon, however, there were only a handful of students who were still in the workshop. The ambient mood of section 2-A was still gloomy, apparently.
Rue and Neil were part of the said handful who had remained after class. It was a typical scenario, since their kendo practices were MWF only. What wasn’t typical, however, was straight-A student Rue Kincaid botching his shop class projects more than three times in a row.
What was even stranger was that Rue himself didn’t seem to notice it. His favorite volume of discrete mathematics lay wide open on the workshop table, and he was using his new multi-tool’s bottle opener to bore a dowel hole in the wood he was working on.
Neil was watching him, and he seriously wondered at what could have caused Rue to suddenly act like this. Rue palmed his face in frustration, and Neil heard him mutter, almost incoherently.
“Aagh, she was drunk! It doesn’t mean anything!!”
Neil rolled his eyes. Whatever it was, he wasn’t sure he wanted to know it now. No matter—Rue would probably snap out of it soon enough, give or take a few days.
He stepped out of the classroom and into the corridor, his hands in his pockets. As chance would have it, he saw Tonia at the far end of the hall. He walked towards her, and Tonia acknowledged him as he approached.
“Is Mint alright?” she asked. “I heard that Rue found her.”
Neil answered, “He found her at Jargen’s and he took her home last night. I couldn’t get anything more out of him than that—he’s being as tight-lipped about it as ever.” He sighed deeply. “I wish Annette was here. She’d know better how to handle these things.”
“Tell me about it,” Tonia said.
Neil turned squarely towards the upperclassman. “Tonia, I’ve heard the rumors, but I want to know the truth from you. What really happened?”
“That’s already common knowledge. Mint fainted in the middle of her performance—”
“No,” Neil said, “I meant, do you know who accused her of cheating?”
“It was an anonymous tip directed straight to the school board. But, there’s only one person who had any motive to do that.” Neil quizzically raised one eyebrow at her, but Tonia’s silence meant that she wasn’t about to tell him who it was.
“We know it’s a false charge. Is there any way we can prove it?”
Tonia pulled something out of her pocket and showed them to Neil. “I got the wanted bracelets from Mint’s dormitory yesterday. I was right, and Mrs. Cartha still had them stashed away in her safety vault.” Tonia smiled knowingly. “But I’m not the one taking them to the school board.”
“You’re not going to try to clear her?”
She shook her head. “I won’t have to.”
Mira Klaus was the one who usually picked up her adopted six-year old son from preparatory school, but Elena had volunteered for that duty this week. This week happened to be Elena’s junior high’s foundation celebrations, so she could get off school early. Besides, what with the recent events in the school where her father was principal, Mira was needed more in the high school, and Elena wasn’t feeling up to browsing the booths of her junior high fair anyway.
Elena sat on a sidewalk bench outside of Prima’s prep school. Her eyes were busy studying the concrete, but her mind was on other, more important matters. She was worried about Mint, of course. Although it seemed to some that Elena was nothing more than the stereotypical ‘bubbly blonde’ (her naturally pink hair notwithstanding), she was actually more perceptive than most people give her credit for.
For one, she had known Mint for about a year and a half now, and she had always known that the redhead was psyche-strong. The wine-red eyes were a dead giveaway for those who knew what they stood for, and being the daughter of a former Cosmos Corp researcher who once dealt with psyche-amps meant that Elena was more familiar with their history than most kids her age (or most people for that matter). Klaus didn’t know that she knew about Mint, although he probably suspected. Despite her reputation as being very talkative, Elena did know how to keep secrets.
In her own way, Mint was just as hyperactive as Elena and Prima were, and ever since she came to town, Mint had a habit of tirelessly traversing the many and varied ruins of Carona—often on her own, although there were a few times when Rod accompanied her. Elena had never known anyone who could even come close to matching Mint’s spunk and spirit. She knew that with or without psyche-dampers, a dance sequence lasting no more than five minutes would never have tired Mint out the way it happened yesterday.
She was sure that there was something else to it, but what it could have been, Elena didn’t know. But she did know that Mint had been …slipping… lately, as if Mint was often tired. She first noticed it a few months ago—Mint wasn’t as spunky as she should or would normally be, and whatever this tiredness was, it had gotten worse over the past few weeks. As proud and high-strung as Mint was, of course the redhead would do her damnedest not to let anyone catch on to it. Offhand, Elena wondered if she was the only one who noticed.
Come to think of it, she hadn’t been feeling that well herself recently. She placed one palm over her forehead, and then decided that it was only a slight fever. Definitely nothing to be concerned about.
She heard the dismissal bell. Parents had begun to arrive to pick up their children, but Elena paid them no mind as she looked for her adopted brother. “Prima!” she waved. “Prima, over here!”
“Elena!” Prima greeted cheerily as he ran to meet her. He stopped in front of her, noticing something amiss. “Elena, Sis?” He looked at her with concern. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine, just a little tired,” she forced a smile, and then changed the subject. “Lookie, Prima.” She pointed towards a pair of twin calico cats sitting closely together on a fence across the street. “Those cats must be brothers—they look so alike. They’re so cute, aren’t they?”
Prima looked, and then he blinked his huge eyes at her. “I only see one cat, sis.”
“Huh?” Elena squinted. “Oh, that’s right. She’s a very cute cat, isn’t she? What say we go to Mel’s for an ice cream before we head home?”
“Yay! Ice cream!!” Prima jumped up ecstatically. “I’ll race you!”
Tonia confronted her the next day. It was after lunch, and Kirielle was on her way back to class.
“Lockheed,” Tonia called softly, but her voice carried an edge. “There’s something you should know.”
Kirielle narrowed her eyes, even as she turned to meet the other. “I don’t want to hear it, Tonia. I only did what any right-minded citizen would do.”
But Tonia shook her head. “Mint is innocent. Do you remember these bracelets? She wore them in Gamul.” Tonia held them up for Kirielle to see. “They do happen to be psyche-dampers.”
“No.” Kirielle frowned, suddenly feeling caught. “No, Tonia. Why should I believe you?”
“Perhaps because nothing I tell you now will change the fact that Mint had been publicly humiliated and stripped of her medal. Nothing I say will change the fact that she fainted in the middle of her second performance. It wasn’t the first time—did you ever know that? She almost fainted in the locker room after her performance in the Gamul games, because of those bracelets.” The way she talked, it seemed as if Tonia had been keeping those words in for a long time. She continued, “Not only has Mint been removed from her position as team captain, but she has been kicked out of the gymnastics team altogether. And yet she has done nothing wrong.” Except to beat you time and again. The words were at the tip of Tonia’s tongue, but there was no need to say it aloud. “Let me tell you something that Annette told me. Do you know why Mint worked her butt off for the Gamul games? Because you’re graduating this year. These were her exact words: ‘[Expletive], we need Kirielle.’”
Kirielle could only listen, at a loss of what to say. But she wasn’t about to give in. “No. Ever since she came to Carona High, you and Annette have always been covering up for Prissy Miss Vanguard.” Her eyes narrowed lividly. “You’re lying, Tonia.” Tonia merely shrugged.
“Perhaps, perhaps not. I guess there’s nothing else for us to talk about.” She handed the bracelets to the other girl. “Goodbye.” She looked back, just once, before leaving.
It was the third straight day Mint was absent, and for some reason Rue couldn’t take it anymore. Without a word to anyone, he stomped off to her dormitory immediately after the dismissal bell, totally forgetting about kendo practice and ignoring the puzzled glances that Neil and the rest of his classmates exchanged.
“Mrs. Cartha?” he asked. “Mint has been absent from school for a while now. Would you happen to know where she is?”
But Mrs. Cartha shook her head no. “I haven’t seen her recently, but she hasn’t come in late after curfew, I’m sure. We could check if she’s in her room if you want to.” Rue nodded his agreement.
The door was locked when they got there. Rue banged loudly upon it. “Mint! Mint, open up! After the trouble you put me through two days ago, the least you could do is be sober on me…!” Mrs. Cartha placed one hand on his shoulder to stop him knocking, and she took out her keys. She unlocked the door, and they both stepped into the room.
They found her sleeping peacefully on the bed. She was sleeping in the exact position that Rue had tucked her in a couple of days ago.
Rue rushed to the girl’s side, urgently grabbing her wrist in an effort to check for a pulse. But his fingers were trembling too much, and Mrs. Cartha took over. “She’s alive.” Rue held his hand over Mint’s mouth and felt the faint exhalation of breath. Thank the heavens.
“Mint, Mint! Wake up!!” he shook her roughly, but she wouldn’t move. “Mrs. Cartha…!”
“I’m on it,” and with brisk steps the landlady disappeared into the corridor.
Mint… please wake up… you’ve got to wake up… Rue fell on his knees beside the bed, his hand still holding tight to her wrist, and his head drooped to lean against the girl’s coverlets. There was nothing he could do now but wait for help to come.
She was rushed to the Carona General Hospital in an ambulance. They took her directly to the Intensive Care Unit, with Rue and Mira accompanying her as far as the emergency room. Klaus took the children to spend the night over at Mel’s before going to the hospital as well. After several hours with no change in Mint’s condition, it was agreed upon that there was no point in all three of them worrying and doing nothing, so Mira shooed the boys back home.
Rod came as soon as he heard what had happened. He stayed outside the ICU with Mira while the doctors attended to Mint. He remained when Mira could no longer stay, with the promise that he would call the Klaus household if anything should turn up. It was three a.m. when they finally wheeled the girl out of the ICU and into a private room.
With a heavy hand did Mira hang up the kitchen phone. She turned to Rue and her husband, who were waiting in the living room for any news. “She’s still asleep. Everything turned up negative. They can’t find anything wrong with her, aside from the fact that she won’t wake up. They’ll perform more tests tomorrow. Rod has offered to stay with her in the meantime.”
Klaus sighed audibly. “Well, let’s all hope for the best. You can stay in Prima’s room tonight, Rue. I’m just grateful that tomorrow’s Saturday.” He stood up, preparing to go upstairs and get some sleep, when he noticed that the boy was oddly quiet. “What’s the matter?”
Rue was deep in thought. “Claire… Claire was always weak too. We must’ve gone to three different clinics, but none of them could ever find anything wrong with her either.”
Klaus rubbed his chin thoughtfully, and it was some time before he spoke again. “Hmm, according to her diary… Rue, did you know that Claire used to be a member of the track and field varsity before she met you?”
“I remember her telling me about it once. But that was before she got sick…” he trailed off. He turned sharply to the professor. “You think there’s a connection?”
“Whatever this condition is (or sickness, if it could be called that), it cannot be natural. That simply means that both girls had been exposed to the same substance or pathogen at one point in their lives… and the only way for that to happen is if they ever went to the same place or environment. We know from Claire’s diaries that she never left her hometown, and I know for a fact that Mint had never gone there in her travels before she came to Carona.” Klaus hesitated significantly before he spoke again. “The only thing that both girls have in common that I can think of right now… well, that would be you, Rue.”
Quick Links:
Prev |
Next |
Part 1 |
Part 2 |
Part 3 |
Glossary |
Bloopers |
Chapter 25: Aftermath