by Shouji Gatou
He was using a speedloader to fill a spare magazine with 9mm rounds when he heard the doorbell ring. Sousuke said nothing, but took his just-checked submachine gun and bulletproof vest and headed for the entrance. He held the vest like a shield, just in case they shot at him through the door. Eventually, he looked out the peephole.
Kaname’s face filled the distorted view provided by the fish-eye lens. She had changed into her street clothes, and was fidgeting somewhat nervously in front of his door. He opened it, suspiciously. “Chidori. What’s the matter?”
“Wow,” was the first thing she said. “What’s with the scary gun?”
“Things happened,” he said evasively. “Did you run into anyone suspicious outside?”
“Oh, please, of course not! Look, um...” Kaname hesitated, then looked down, then tapped the floor with her toe, and mumbled vaguely. “Um... I think I was too hard on you before. I mean... y’know... It’s not like you were just off messing around... and I’m trying to be understanding about this stuff, I guess I’m just... stubborn, in a lot of ways. So, um, I’m trying to say...” She gulped audibly, and finished, “Well... I’m sorry.” She bowed to him, then looked at him with upturned eyes. It was the face of someone afraid of total rejection.
Good; the incident is finally resolved, Sousuke thought. The oppressive feeling from earlier was gone without a trace—Perhaps he’d been overly sensitive in assuming that she hated him. “I feel like I’m the one constantly making trouble for you,” he admitted. “It feels strange to have you apologize to me...”
“You forgive me?” she asked.
“There’s no need; I’m the one at fault.”
“Really? Thanks so much!” Kaname’s expression instantly brightened, and she produced a multi-tiered lunch box from behind her back. “So anyway, I’ve got some stuff left over from yesterday. I brought it by; you want it? If you let me use your kitchen, I can heat it up, too...”
“Well...” Sousuke racked his brain. Tessa and Takuma were in the apartment. And Tessa was currently...
He hadn’t technically done anything wrong, yet his stomach churned with feelings of guilt.
“Did you eat already?” she asked.
“No, not yet...” The anxiety that clouded her eyes made him hesitant to lie.
“Then c’mon, let’s eat together. Can’t I come in?” Kaname tried to step inside, but Sousuke blocked her way. “What’s wrong?”
“Well... Your kindness is appreciated, but...”
“But what?”
“I’m currently in the middle of a complicated, sensitive situation,” Sousuke told her apologetically. “It would require time to explain, and I lack full confidence that you would understand...”
“What are you talking about?” Kaname asked suspiciously.
Just then, the door to the bathroom (which was just by the front door) opened. Tessa, naked except for a bath towel, peeked out, her wet hair shedding silver droplets onto the floor below. “Sagara-san. Do you have a T-shirt or... oh?”
Tessa and Kaname’s eyes met. For about three seconds, both stood there, dumbstruck. Standing between them, Sousuke felt greasy sweat form on his brow, and shook his head rapidly. He knew on an instinctual level that something very bad was happening. Yes, whatever this was, it was extremely not good.
“Good evening,” Tessa said with a bashful smile and a slight flush in her cheeks. For some reason, she was acting like a leading lady from Hollywood movie, right after a love scene.
“Um. Good evening...” Kaname replied, dumbly. Then, expression blank, she forced the wrapped parcel into Sousuke’s hands. “Here... you two take it.”
“Ch-Chidori?” he stuttered.
“Sorry to interrupt you and your girlfriend. She’s really pretty.” Kaname then spun around and sped down the hall.
Realizing vaguely that things were hurtling in a very serious direction, Sousuke tried to follow Kaname. But...
“Could you please not follow me?” she snapped at him, rooting him in place before he got far.
“Chidori, you have it all wrong,” he told her.
“How, exactly?”
“She’s... my superior. A colonel with Mithril, and the captain of our amphibious assault submarine. She’s out of my league in every possible way.” If Sousuke had been a little less flustered, he probably would have realized how absurd this claim sounded.
“Do you think I’m stupid?” Kaname demanded.
“Of course not.”
Kaname had stopped. Her shoulders were trembling. Sousuke couldn’t see her face, but he felt sure that she was angry. He was wrong.
“I’m sorry... I didn’t realize. I shouldn’t have butted in... I guess I’ve been a huge pain in the neck this whole time, huh?”
“No, Chidori. That’s not the case at all...”
“Look, it’s fine. You don’t have to soften it. I’m not angry. I’m just sorry. I’ll be more careful from now on, so...”
“Chidori...”
“I’m just sorry, okay?” Kaname said, and then ran for the emergency stairwell.
The colonel is not to blame. The fault lies with the terrorists, Sousuke told himself. At this point, if he ended up in a firefight with A21, he might be forced to keep shooting until he’d discharged every round in his possession.
When he returned, he found Tessa using the satellite transmitter to contact the Tuatha de Danaan in the Pacific. She was talking to her XO, Commander Richard Mardukas.
Since she had no change of clothes on hand, she was currently dressed (rather alluringly) in nothing but a khaki-colored T-shirt. It was his first time seeing her slender legs; her small, adorable toes. The T-shirt’s too-big collar gave him occasional glimpses of her white chest area, which made it hard for him to know where to rest his eyes. Even a walking block of wood like Sousuke could recognize the appeal of a girl like Tessa. Her defenselessness just added to it; Tessa was confusing him in a completely different way than Kaname did.
Apparently having finished her discussion, she turned off the transmitter.
“How did it go?” he asked.
“They’re sending reinforcements; Melissa and Weber-san,” she said, referring to Mao and Kurz. “They’ll bring an M9 with them. We’ll convey Takuma to the de Danaan, then issue your next assignment.”
“May I ask what that is, ma’am?”
“Recon, to find the enemy hideout. I asked the de Danaan’s mother AI to track transmissions by the police and the JSDF, so we should have a few hints by morning. Once we’ve located them, we can decide whether to leave them for further tracking or subjugate,” Tessa said in her commander’s voice.
“And you, ma’am?” Sousuke wanted to know.
“I’ll remain in Tokyo. There’s a very high chance that the enemies possess special equipment that only I know how to deal with.”
Sousuke chose not to pursue the matter; he knew that even if he asked what the “special equipment” was, she likely wouldn’t tell him.
“So, for now, we just wait. Let’s see...” Tessa sat down in the folding chair and stretched a bit. “Was that girl from before Chidori Kaname?”
“Er?” Her question was so out of the blue that he was at a loss to respond.
“She was Chidori Kaname, wasn’t she?”
“Yes.”
“You seem close,” she observed.
“No, ma’am,” he said after a pause. “We’re not, particularly...”
“Really? It didn’t look that way to me. Making you dinner and bringing it by... she seemed almost like your wife.”
“I apologize, ma’am,” Sousuke said humbly. “I’ll be more careful about mixing business and personal life from now on.”
Tessa smiled at Sousuke’s response. “That’s not how I meant it. I’m the one who approved your guardianship of her, and you were never told not to get close.” It was actually Major Kalinin who had given him the order—but of course, as his superior, Tessa would know about it too. “I was curious, that’s
all... I thought ‘maybe, even Sagara-san has a girl that he likes’...” There was a strange tone in her voice, as if she were sounding him out somehow. Sousuke just froze up, unsure of how to answer, so she pressed him a bit more—meekly, for some reason. “Are you dating her, then?”
“No, certainly not,” Sousuke answered.
“Really?”
“Yes, ma’am. The fact of the matter is, I’m having a hard time building up a true relationship of trust.”
“I see. I’m glad.” Tessa linked her hands and smiled.
Feeling as if his superior had accepted his report, Sousuke relaxed. He was about to salute her, but—No, wait... What does she mean, “I’m glad”? Why would she be happy to hear that things aren’t going well between us?
Tessa just kept smiling. There was no particular air of malice about her.
I don’t understand, Sousuke thought, and he genuinely didn’t. Perhaps it was beyond the understanding of a mere NCO like himself; he repeated to himself that she was still the commander-in-chief of the Tuatha de Danaan, and then tried to change the subject. “If I may, ma’am, we should discuss Takuma. His personal significance aside, what do the forces of A21 consist of?”
Tessa seemed caught off guard by his question, but quickly recovered. “Well... I’m not completely sure, yet. They have very advanced weaponry, and I imagine they’re well trained.”
“How do they gather intelligence?”
“Unknown. There’s a chance they have a mole in the Japanese government.”
“Should we question Takuma?”
“I thought about that... but he hasn’t been very cooperative, and I don’t wish to resort to violence. I’d like to watch things a bit longer before I decide.”
“But—” Sousuke stopped. His expression was suddenly sharp and dangerous. “It seems we can’t stay here, regardless.” He picked up his submachine gun and shoved two spare magazines into his belt.
Tessa furrowed her brow. “What’s the matter?”
“Get into the kitchen and get down.”
Get down—Those two words must have told Tessa everything she needed to know. She didn’t bother asking if she could help in any way; she would know that anything she did would just trip him up. “Be careful,” was all she said, then, before moving into the kitchen.
The doorbell rang. He knew it wasn’t Kaname. He tapped the intercom button on the living room wall.
“Package delivery,” came the response.
“I’m on my way,” he answered, but he didn’t head for the front door. He remained exactly where he was, a finger on the light switch. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. A quiet tension hung over the room. A murderous intent crackled in the air like electricity. I’m back in my element, Sousuke thought.
That status quo lasted all of ten seconds before the veranda window broke, and a grenade flew in. No, not a grenade—a tear gas canister, which immediately spewed its noxious fumes. Its arrival was followed by a man in a black battle uniform, wearing a gas mask and wielding a submachine gun.
This was what Sousuke was waiting for. He shut the lights off in the living room and opened fire at the man in black. The sudden darkness slowed the intruder’s reactions enough that Sousuke’s wall of fire hit him unguarded. He fell, and fell silent.
More are coming, Sousuke thought. The room next door—
Ignoring the tear gas filling the room, Sousuke moved efficiently to the bedroom. He told Takuma to get down, then emptied his clip at the window behind the boy. Glass broke and sparks flew around the frame. He heard a short scream, followed by the sound of someone falling outside on the veranda.
As he replaced his weapon’s magazine in a smooth motion, he next heard a soft blast from the front door: Someone had blown off the hinges and knob with plastic explosives. This new intruder kicked down the door and entered the front way.
Sousuke returned to the living room. Through the darkness and thick fog of the tear gas, he could see a figure in a deliveryman’s uniform, wearing a gas mask and holding a large automatic pistol.
“Drop your weapon,” Sousuke said, offering the mercy of a warning that the man didn’t take. He pointed his gun at Sousuke, so Sousuke didn’t hesitate to shoot him. The muzzle flash created swirls in the tear gas; five 9mm slugs took the “deliveryman” down.
Sousuke checked the communal hall, the veranda, and elsewhere, but he saw no sign of more enemies. “Three of them?” he muttered. “It seems a bit—” Inadequate, he thought. While it was smart of them to surround him, their timing was slightly off. And reasonably skilled though they were, they’d had the misfortune of facing Sousuke.
He could hear Tessa, coughing violently, turn on the kitchen’s exhaust fan. It must be awful if you haven’t built up a tolerance, he thought, before assuring her, “We’re safe now, ma’am.”
“R-Right,” she said through more coughing.
Realizing she wouldn’t be able to talk for a while, he approached the fallen intruder in the living room. He was wearing a bulletproof vest, but shots to the throat and the head had killed him instantly. Sousuke stood there in silence; he felt a pang of something like pity, but it passed. How many security and lab personnel had this man killed in the exact same way? It wasn’t unjust for him to meet a similar end. Cliché though it was to say, this was kill or be killed.
The intruder must have rappelled from the roof to the veranda. His unused submachine gun was loaded with specialized bullets for wars against terrorism; both were far beyond what you could get from local crime syndicates. Sousuke removed the man’s gas mask and looked into his face. He sobered, silently. The man was young and Japanese; not much older than Sousuke. His eyes, wide open in shock, stared emptily past him.
Sousuke checked the other two bodies on the veranda and at the entrance. They were the same way; likely Japanese, and not much older than twenty, if that.
He’d thought the same thing when looking at the pictures in yesterday’s operation... just what kind of terrorist organization was A21, that it was comprised entirely of boys like these? They didn’t seem like a political organization, but...
Once she was recovered, Tessa came out of the kitchen. She made it to the bedroom and looked down, pale-faced, at the man lying on the veranda. She didn’t give voice to her feelings, but simply asked, “How did they know we were here?”
“I doubt they followed you here,” Sousuke said. “They would have had countless chances to attack you and Takuma before you arrived.”
“True. It’s hard to believe they could have an informant in Mithril... Perhaps I underestimated their intelligence network. The only other option is...” She suddenly stopped. Her voice cracked. “Is...”
“Colonel?”
“I’m sorry, I...” As if unable to bear it any longer, Tessa threw herself at Sousuke. Her slender fingers clutched at his button-up shirt. Her shoulders trembled, and her breathing was ragged. “I... I know it’s strange to act this way... because of something like this, after all this time... But I’d been... letting my guard down, and...” She squeezed out the words, her head pressed against Sousuke’s chest.
Sousuke didn’t know that he was the reason she had let her guard down. She’d let herself fall into the mindset of a normal girl, talking to a boy her own age, so this sudden reminder of the world she really lived in had brought forth a surge of emotions. “I’m sorry. I’ll be back to normal soon. I’m sorry,” she repeated again and again, fighting her tears as hard as she could.
Sousuke just stood where he was, uncertain of how to respond. Just then, he heard a chuckle from the nearby Takuma. “Is something funny?” he asked.
“No... but it’s interesting that you think you have time to spend on crying,” Takuma replied.
“What do you mean?” Sousuke asked, carefully prying Tessa off of him.
“You’re going to share their fate soon enough. There’s nowhere you can run... As long as I’m with you, my comrades will find you.”
“You must
be quite important.”
“I am. Very,” Takuma asserted with confidence. “You’d be better off letting me go now... Just a friendly warning.”
“There’s another way to resolve things.” Sousuke pointed his submachine gun at Takuma’s head, suggesting a much simpler way of keeping him out of the enemy’s reach.
“You’re going to kill me?”
“I believe you know that I’d do it if necessary,” Sousuke returned.
“No, Sagara-san,” Tessa warned him from behind. Her crying had ceased by now.
“Ma’am. May I ask why not?”
“Well... I agree that it’s the safest and most logical course of action. But... that’s simply not how we do things,” Tessa said, as if she was the one who needed reminding. “Don’t you understand? If we do that, we’ll be just like they are. The entire point of having an organization like ours, doing what we do, will be lost.”
Sousuke remained in position. He looked at his gun, then at the expression on Takuma’s face beyond it. The boy had seemed arrogant before, but there was emotion on his face now. Most people would miss it—the tiniest sign of fear.
“Sagara-san, do you think I’m naïve?” Tessa asked.
“Of course not.” Sousuke lowered the gun. “Be grateful to her,” he said, then turned around and left.
Takuma watched him go, then looked at Tessa. “Do you expect me to act like I’m in your debt?”
“No. And that isn’t why I stopped him, anyway.”
“So much virtuous posturing...” Takuma sneered. “It’s how you make yourself feel special, I’m sure.”
“Think that way if you wish,” Tessa said indifferently, then followed Sousuke into the living room. “Thank you, Sagara-san.”
“Not at all,” Sousuke replied. “But it’s going to be trouble if more of them come.”
“You’re right,” she agreed. “We can’t stay here.”
“I’ll dispose of the bodies. Can you contact the de Danaan? For our destination, tell them...” Sousuke thought about where to go next. “Tell them, ‘We’re going to study Japanese history.’”
