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The FFML Refugee List


It's been a long time coming, hasn't it...?

Previous chapters are archived at http://web2.airmail.net/a0011387/fanfic/.
This story will *not* make sense if you haven't read them...

Stormwalker <stormwalker@airmail.net> presents...

     For several moments the Knight Sabers stood transfixed, unwilling
to speak for fear of breaking the spell woven before their eyes.  For
the second time, one of their number had seemingly returned from beyond
the grave.  A stunned silence fell across the room as Sylia's words
sank in.

     Priss was the first to react, her expression torn between relief
and fury.  Wavering, then seeming to decide upon the latter, she
whirled on Mackie.  "You KNEW!" she snarled, advancing on him before
Nene recovered enough to step into her way.  "You little bastard, you
knew all along, and you let us think she was dead!"

     Mackie shook his head evenly.  "I suspected, but I wasn't sure...
and I didn't want to say anything until I knew.  And I was as surprised
to find her here as you were, though I should have expected it."  He
smiled a placating smile, then turned to face his sister.  "I'm glad to
see that you made it, Sis... I was worried."

     Sylia nodded appreciatively, gesturing with her injured arm.  "As
was I, to be honest.  The plan did not work out as smoothly as I would
have liked."  She turned to Priss, who met the gaze with a scowl.  "If
you feel as though you have been manipulated, Priss, you must blame me
for that.  It was I who set this plan into motion, and I who instructed
him for the event of my death.  I am afraid that he has become more
like me than either of us would like to admit."

     Mackie nodded, with a rueful smile.  "That's probably true, too."
He paused a moment, then frowned as he processed the rest of her words.
"You set all of this up, didn't you?  You blew up 633?"

     She nodded.  "I needed to disappear if the Knight Sabers were
going to resume operations.  As a public figure, my movements were
too vulnerable to scrutiny, and each meeting with me was a danger to
the rest of the group.  If it were practicable, I would as soon remove
all of you from the public eye, but Nene at least I need to remain in
her current position."

     Nene nodded.  "I wouldn't leave it if you asked me to, Sylia.
They need me too badly... Leon can't do it all on his own.  Something
bothers me, though... how are you going to keep them from figuring out
that you're alive?  They're going to dig out the rubble eventually."

     Sylia smiled, completing the thought.  "And they will not find a
body because I am not actually dead.  However, the intensity of the
explosion should leave some doubt in their mind.  Also, they have the
remote logs of 633's security system, which recorded my entry by the
elevator less than a minute before the explosion and no subsequent
exits.  The elevator car by which I entered is undoubtedly buried
somewhere in that rubble, as are the remains of my Mercedes.  My
means of escape will have been thoroughly destroyed by the collapse of
the building. leaving them no evidence that I could possibly have
survived.  Finally..." her smile grew slightly.  "...sufficient
application of monetary resources to certain personnel leaves me quite
satisfied that the report will read as intended."

     Nene's eyes went wide.  "I KNEW someone had paid them off... but
YOU?"

     Sylia nodded, a hint of smugness creeping into her expression.
"Surely you don't think this is the first time, Nene?  You, of all
people, should know better... you've done enough legally questionable
work yourself in the last two years to know that sometimes I have to
dirty my hands."  Nene grimaced slightly at that statement, but nodded.

     "I still don't get it," Priss demanded.  "Why couldn't you tell us
in advance?  Why let us spend the last few days waiting for someone to
come finish what they started?"

     Sylia smiled soothingly.  "It was, unfortunately, necessary.
There is a chance that GENOM has acquired all of our identities from
Linna's memories.  If they have, it would be little trouble for them
to see through my deception by observing your reactions... or lack
thereof... to my death.  It was important that you believe me to be
dead, in order to make the ruse convincing.  It was a necessary evil,
and I apologize for it."

     Priss scowled, shaking her head.  "How can we trust you if you
don't trust us?" she demanded.

     Linna cut in before Sylia could answer.  "The same way we always
have, Priss.  We're all fighting for the same things, after all.
Either we trust each other now, or we give up the fight... and I've
got too much of a score to settle to give up now."

     Priss bit her lip and nodded.  "That's not good enough... not
after everything that's happened.  Next time give us a little credit,
Sylia.  This isn't just your private little war anymore... not after
what happened to Linna.  It's all of our fight.  You talk about all the
rules and shit you want us to follow... how about some trust in
return?"

     "I have to agree with Priss," Nene added.  "We're a team, and we
have to be able to count on each other."

     Sylia nodded.  "Very well.  Now... since we are all together,
there are plans to be made.  Shall we get to work?"

*****

Megatokyo 2037
Bubblegum Crisis: Cry of the Phoenix

A fan novel by Douglas A. Reeves

Chapter Five - Ignition!

*****

     "So, where is this place you're taking us, anyway?" Linna asked
quietly as Sylia led them down the long, narrow corridor.  The new
underground complex had a very clinical, untouched feel to it.  Cold
metal walls lined the hallways, devoid of ornament or marking save
the security panels next to each doorway.  It was an eerie environment,
too reminiscent of the laboratories where she had too recently been a
specimen in someone's grand experiment.  Memories floated at the edge
of her thoughts, just out of reach, and she shook her head in an effort
to dismiss them.  If she couldn't remember, so much the better--she
didn't want to.

     Sylia stopped at one of the doorways, tapping a command into the
keypad there.  The door swished open, and she turned to Linna with a
slight smile.  "This is our new operations center.  I apologize for
the lack of atmosphere... this area was originally constructed for my
own use, and I have not had the time to make it as comfortable as I
would like.  However," she added, gesturing through the doorway at the
array of electronic equipment inside, "I think you will find the
benefits of the new systems outweigh what creature comforts we might
have lost in the move."

     Nene stepped through the open doorway, letting out a low whistle
at what she saw.  "Sylia... this is impressive.  Where did you get all
this stuff?"  The walls of the chamber were lined with high-end
computer systems, from secure communications equipment to an expansive
surveillance system which monitored conditions at all of her various
holdings.  The centerpiece of it all, though, was a military-grade
holographic tactical display, a mammoth steel and glass table which
was currently projecting a detailed three-dimensional tactical map of
District 3.  She shook her head, "You shouldn't be showing me this...
half this stuff is illegal."

     Linna laughed, moving through the doorway behind her.  She could
recognize some of the equipment, but much of it was foreign to her.
Still, if Nene was impressed... "She knows you can't pass up the chance
to play with all of it."

     Nene sighed wistfully.  "I know, I know... you wouldn't *believe*
how much cool stuff passes through my hands at work... and I can't have
any of it!" she lamented, then grinned at Linna.  "This, though... this
is a NICE setup."

     "I am pleased that it meets with your approval, Nene," Sylia
answered dryly.  Her voice took on a more serious tone as she added,
"You will be spending quite a bit of time in here, and your work is
more important to us than it has ever been."

     "Damn, Sis..." Mackie leaned over the tactical display.  "How much
did all of this COST?"

     "A lot..." Nene answered.  "More even than you're probably
guessing."  She looked up at Sylia.  "Things are going to be different
this time around, aren't they?"

     Sylia nodded, walking to the opposite end of the room and then
turning around to face them all.  "It will indeed.  Before we start on
this again, I want you all to understand.  Before, we fought an
occasional skirmish.  This time, we may find ourselves in a war.  We do
not know how much our enemies know... or even exactly who they are.  I
will not ask you to join me in this; if you wish to fight, it must be
your own decision."  She stopped, letting her words hang in the air as
she looked at each of them in turn.

     Linna was the first to speak, and she shuddered slightly as
Sylia's penetrating gaze fell on her.  "I don't have much of a choice,
do I?  I can't hide from them forever... and I want to know the truth
about what was done to me.  I have to fight."  She felt Nene's hand rest
on her shoulder and she relaxed slightly, wondering why it seemed
so comforting.

     "I have to do this, too," Nene answered.  "Partly because I know
you can't do it without me, and... well, I have my own reasons."  Linna
glanced at her questioningly, and she smiled slightly in response, a
gesture Linna found unnerving in a different sort of way.

     <What is wrong with me today?> she thought to herself.  <I've
known Nene forever, and now when she smiles at me I get nervous?>  She
let out a soft sigh.  <Maybe I'm going insane.>

     "Priss?" Sylia prompted.

     "I'm thinkin'," Priss shot back, a touch of hostility in her tone.
She must still be irritated from earlier, Linna thought.  A few moments
passed in silence, then Priss finally spoke up again.  "I'm in... but
only if you play it straight with us, Sylia.  You can go on about who
needs to know what outside this group if you want to--I don't care
about that--but for the five of us... no secrets."  She glanced around
the room, looking for agreement in the faces of the others.

     Linna nodded slightly.  "She has a point, Sylia.  We already know
the biggest secret of all--each other's names.  If anything happens to
one of us, it's all over anyway.  And I know I'll feel a lot more
comfortable if I know what's going on."

     Sylia seemed to consider that for a moment, then nodded slowly.
"All right.  I will tell you what I know, when I know it.  I'm asking
each of you to put your lives on the line, and it's only fair that I
trust you in return.  However, I far too often find myself working with
incomplete or unreliable data, and if it seems that I am not telling
you something, it is often that I am not certain of the answer
myself."

     Priss relaxed slightly, though the scowl she wore was
undiminished.  "I can live with that."

     "And what about you, Mackie?" Sylia asked quietly, turning to
face her brother.  "I have dragged you into this without your assent,
and yet your part is one of the most critical of all."

     "You don't need to ask, Sylia.  You already know the answer."  He
turned to face her, running his hand along the tactical display's
glass surface as he moved.  "This is my fight as much as it is yours,
after all."

     "So it is."  Moving back toward the rest of the group, Sylia
stopped at the holodisplay's control panel and tapped in a few
commands.  District 3 vanished, replaced by four familiar shapes.
"Two years have rendered our existing equipment obsolete.  In order
to maintain our technological advantage, I have begun an extensive
redesign of each hardsuit.  Mackie, I will need your expertise on the
design side.  Priss, Linna, Nene, you will have two weeks to prepare
for performance testing; I will need the data for the new suits at
that time."  A chorus of nods came in response as the group gathered
around the display, and Sylia continued.  "Each of you will receive
new weaponry and systems based on technology developed during the last
two years.  We will be more dangerous than we have ever been... but
our enemies will be as well."

     "Sylia, I have more experience with the newer-generation boomers
than either you or Mackie," Nene pointed out.  "I may not know how to
design hardsuits, but I can tell you what capabilities we need.  I
should be in on this, too."

     Sylia shook her head.  "While that is true, Nene, there are other
tasks which need your more immediate attention.  Someone out there,
almost certainly someone within GENOM, was responsible for Linna's
resurrection.  We need to know who this person or group is and why she
is so important to them, and you are the only person with the skills to
find that out."

     Nene gave a slight nod.  "That's not going to be easy, you know.
It's one thing to hack a machine looking for information, but we don't
even know whose machine to hack."

     Sylia smiled.  "Exactly.  And who better to find out than the head
of AD Police's Cybercrime division?  You are more than just a hacker
now, Nene."  Turning to Linna, she added.  "Linna, you will need to
assist her as much as possible.  I know it may be difficult for you,
but if you really want the answers you seek, it's the best place to
start."

     Linna nodded, glancing at Nene.  "Would you mind if I continued to
stay with you, Nene?  It might make things easier."

     The hacker-slash-detective smiled.  "I was about to ask you the
same thing."

     "So that's settled, then," Sylia concluded, then turned to Priss.
"Your responsibility is to get yourself back into fighting condition.
We need you at your best, and that is more important than anything else
you can contribute at this time."

     "As you wish," Priss answered with a hint of sarcasm.  "Now that
we've got our marching orders, can we go?  I've got stuff to do."
Sylia silently nodded her assent, and Priss walked out before
anyone else could raise an objection.

     Mackie gazed out the door after her.  "Gee, she's in a really good
mood tonight."

     "Yeah," Linna agreed.  Priss wasn't the only one, either, she
thought.  While the news that Sylia was alive had been a pleasant
surprise, the fact that they hadn't been told about this plan
beforehand had stung them all.  Even Mackie had a sharper edge on his
tone than usual, though it only scarcely showed through the obvious
sense of relief.  "These last few days haven't been good to any of us."

     "No, they haven't," Sylia agreed, and Linna noticed for the first
time the weariness that had crept into her voice as the conversation
had worn on.  "Things aren't going to get any easier from here,
either... not until this is over."  She shook her head slowly, then
added, "Enough doom and gloom for now, though.  I need to get some
rest.  Good night, everyone."  With that, she straightened up from
where she was standing and walked slowly to the doorway.  Finally, she
was gone.

     "Come on, Linna," Nene suggested.  "Let's get back home... I'm
pretty tired myself, and you haven't exactly gotten a lot of sleep
either."  She turned toward the door, and Linna followed closly behind.
"See ya, Mackie," she called.

     "Good night, Nene.  You, too, Linna.  Take care."

     Nene looked back and smiled a weary smile.  "We will.  Always do."

*****

     Nene muttered under her breath as she fiddled with the lock on the
front door of her apartment.  "Stupid door always has been a problem...
keep saying I'm going to get something done about it, never have time."
Finally it yielded to her will, and she pushed the door open.

     "It's better than having one that doesn't lock," Linna pointed
out, stepping inside.  Nene followed, closing and locking the door
behind her.  "At least it's that much harder to break into."

     "Assuming they don't just kick in the door," Nene countered.  "You
really sure you want to live here?"

     Linna turned, collapsing back onto the couch.  "Yes!" she answered
with a quiet vehemence that caught Nene by surprise.  With an apparent
effort, Linna relaxed a little before saying more.  "At least... I'm
sure I don't want to live *there*.  That place gives me the creeps."
Nene looked at her questioningly, and she shook her head quickly.
"It... it reminds me... of things I don't want to remember."  She
crossed her arms tightly around herself, as if suddenly cold, and tried
to suppress a shiver.

     Nene dropped heavily onto the couch next to her, putting an arm
around her shoulders.  "I understand," she said quietly.  "You don't
have to talk about it.  If there's anything I can do for you,
though..."

     Linna nodded silently, leaning against Nene's shoulder as Nene
pulled her closer.  She looked down, then sighed deeply.  "Nene, I'm
afraid.  I want to know what they did to me... but I'm afraid to find
out.  And I'm afraid of what will happen if they find me again."

     Nene leaned her head forward so she could catch the corner of
Linna's gaze.  "Don't worry about that, Linna.  I'm here.  We all are,
just like old times.  Sure, things have changed... for all of us... but
we'll be there for you.  I mean that."

     Linna forced a weak smile.  "I know, Nene.  You've done so much
for me already... I just hope I can make it up to you sometime."  Nene
drew her in closer, and she reluctantly allowed herself to lean more
heavily on her friend's support.  It was, she thought, oddly symbolic;
she was leaning on Nene for support in other ways, too.  She didn't
want to be a burden, but Nene's presence was a comfort to her, a
reassurance that everything would work out in the end.  "Thank you,"
she added in a whipser.

     "You're welcome," Nene answered quietly, already on the edge of
sleep.  Linna smiled at that, suddenly overcome by her own weariness.
She thought about getting up and going to bed, but that might disturb
Nene... and it was so comfortable where she was.  Deciding to stay
there, she closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep.


*****


     Mackie groped blindly for the shutoff key as the unfamiliar alarm
clock blared insistently that it was time for him to get up.  Finally
managing to hit the right button, he collapsed against his pillow,
trying to block out the light that flooded in from his window.  He
hadn't gotten nearly enough sleep the night before, and he wasn't about
to let either a stupid pile of silicon chips or a third-rate star drag
him out of bed just yet--

     There it went again.  Twice as loud.  <Who programmed this damn
clock... Sylia?> he thought groggily, sitting up and forcing his eyes
to open a little.  Not enough... his vision was still blurry with the
aftereffects of too-little sleep.  He opened them a little wider, only
to find himself confronted with a miniature keyboard.  <Had to be
Sylia.  Only she would have an alarm clock like this.>  He tapped at
a few of the keys, hoping it would stop.  It didn't.  Finally, he
reached around and yanked the plug out of the wall, putting an end to
the dreadful noise.  <Better.>

     Unfortunately, the damage was done.  He was awake now, and once
he reached that point there was little to be done about it.  Making a
mental note to get his own less adamant alarm from the apartment where
he had spent the last few days, he dragged himself out of bed.  <What
time is it?> he asked himself, realizing somewhat sheepishly that he
had forgotten to look before unplugging the clock.  <Oh, well.  I'll
find out soon enough,> he thought as he headed for the shower.

     Half an hour later, and much more awake, he walked into what
passed for a dining room in this half-finished apartment.  He was
quietly glad Linna had gone home with Nene, since it had left him with
a place to sleep for the night.  He would be moving into the apartment
Sylia had occupied before her "death", even as the last of the Knight
Sabers' operations were moved out of that location and into this more
secure facility.  Sylia would be living here as well, out of the public
eye.  All in all, it was a good arrangement for him; he got a nice
apartment all to himself, and with Sylia handling the economic business
of the Knight Sabers from behind the scenes, he wouldn't have to burden
himself with it.

     "Good morning, Mackie," Sylia greeted from the table.  She had
already eaten breakfast, it looked like, and was reading her morning
paper.  For a moment he wondered how she managed to have a paper
delivered to her computer in a place that wasn't supposed to be
occupied, then dismissed it as too trivial to bother with asking.  Of
more immediate concern was his sister's appearance.  She was her usual
composed self, of course--anyone who didn't know her well would never
have noticed any difference--but it was clear to him that she had not
slept well.

     "Good morning, Sis," he responded.  <Should I call her Sylia now?
I'm not exactly her kid brother anymore.>  Pulling a chair out from the
table, he sat down across from her.  "How are you feeling?

     She smiled at him, though it was a thinner smile than it might be,
he thought.  "A little tired," she admitted, "but fine otherwise.
You?"

     "The same.  I haven't slept well since I came back to Megatokyo."

     Sylia nodded.  "Nor have I... not since Linna came back to us."
She gestured with her injured arm and smiled wryly.  "This has not
helped.  Next time I decide to drop a building on myself, I will be
more careful about the help I choose in arranging the explosion."

     Mackie smirked slightly.  "My sister, not cautious enough?  I'm
not sure I believe it.  Are you sure you didn't just fall down some
stairs?"  The humor disappeared from his expression then, and he fixed
her with a serious gaze.  "I know why you didn't tell the others,
Sylia... but why didn't you tell me?"

     Sylia sighed softly, setting down her paper before turning to face
him.  "When I made that decision, I knew I would have to answer for
it."  Her expression grew reflective, almost regretful, as she
considered the question.  "There are several answers, really.  I needed
to know how you would react, how you would handle the leadership role.
I could not risk having you tell the others.  I knew that there was a
very real danger that my plan might fail, leaving you to believe that I
was alive when I was not."  She shook her head, closing her eyes.  A
few moments passed before she opened them again, and met his gaze with
her own.  "The most important reason, though, may be that I knew that
the others' trust in me would be damaged by this decision.  If you had
known, their trust in you would likewise have suffered... and if they
do not trust me fully, I need for them to be able to trust you."

     Mackie nodded silently.  The answer was much what he had
expected, and he could appreciate her honesty in it.  The reasons,
though, were difficult to accept regardless of their validity.  He was,
after all, her brother.  Would he have done any differently in her
situation?  *Had* he done any differently, by not telling the others
about his suspicions?>  A wry smile crossed his face at that thought,
and he shook his head slowly.  "It's not a pleasant game that we play,
is it?" he asked.  "I remember back when I used to think that you liked
the secrecy of it, that you enjoyed the control.  Now... I know
better."

     "I am sorry that you had to learn."  She paused, with an ironic
smile of her own.  "At the same time, I am glad to have someone with
whom I can share the burden.  It's draining... not just the secrets,
but the worry.  I can never tell them that I worry for them, because
if I show doubt, how will they believe?  And yet, I do... doubly so
after what happened to Linna."

     "They have enough doubts of their own," he observed.  "Linna is
nearly paranoid with the fear of being found and caught... and maybe
she should be.  Nene seems confident... but with all she's seen in
the last two years, can we really think she isn't worried?  And then
there's Priss.  Priss doesn't believe in herself right now, much less
you or anyone else.  Keeping this group in one piece is going to be
a challenge at best."

     "C'est la guerre," Sylia answered softly.  "And do not doubt...
this *is* war.  And I, for one, do not like to lose."

*****

     Nene pushed the accelerator down as she merged her Road Chaser into
traffic.  It was, in a way, good to be back on the road again. The
stacks of paperwork she'd had to do since her injury had been a constant
source of frustration to her, and the events of the last few days had
added considerable mental strain of their own.  Sylia's apparent death
and her seeming resurrection had been more of a strain to her than she
cared to admit, especially with the burden of supporting Linna... and
she was glad it was over.

     Linna... there was something else she would have to deal with.  She
rubbed the back of her neck gently, trying to work out the soreness.
The day was quickly turning to night, but the stiffness in her neck was
still there.  What had possessed her to sleep on the couch last night,
she didn't know... well, maybe she did know.  She had woken up a
little while after Linna had fallen asleep... she could have gotten up
and gone to bed... but it had been such a nice feeling, one she couldn't
bring herself to interrupt.  That, and Linna had seemed so peaceful, as
if she had found a moment's escape from the torment.  Nene knew Linna
had been having nightmares lately, waking in the middle of the night
trembling in fear... but there had been none of that last night.  As
close as they were, she would have known.

     "Nene-sempai?" Akiko asked, snapping her out of her reflections.
"Are you all right today?"

     Nene shook her head, drawing herself back to the present.  "Yeah,
yeah... I'm fine, why?"

     Akiko looked a little embarrassed.  "You just missed our exit."

     "What--?" Nene blinked, then looked up at the sign overhead.
"Oh... I'm sorry, Akiko.  I'm just... a little preoccupied."

     "Oh, I see..." Akiko smiled knowingly.  "In *that* case... who is
he?" she asked curiously.

     Nene blushed bright red.  "Where--where would you get that
idea from?" she stammered.

     Akiko giggled, a sound almost frightening in its cuteness and
exasperating to an embarrassed Nene.  "That dreamy look in your eyes,
just like one of my friends when they're all worked up over some guy."

     Nene drew a deep breath, trying to bring her embarrassment back
under control.  "It's not like that," she answered flatly.

     "That's what they all say," Akiko teased, then smiled.  "But I
believe you."

     "Good," Nene answered, breathing a sigh of relief.  The last
thing she needed was her partner poking around in her personal life--a
life that was wild in ways Akiko could not imagine.  Looking for the
next exit, she eased the car onto the ramp and checked the online map
for the fastest way back.  Just as she had almost found it, though, the
map blanked out, replaced by an alert symbol.

     "ADP Dispatch to all units, Dispatch to all units, we have reports
of a boomer incident in District Three.  Repeat, we have a boomer
incident in District Three.  All units in the vicinity please respond!"

     Akiko glanced at Nene for confirmation, then picked up the
microphone.  "Dispatch, this is ADP-one-one-three.  We are westbound
on the Inner Loop, two miles west of the Coastal Highway, over."

     "Roger, one-one-three.  Boomer is a combat model, unidentified
class, first sighted near the St. Regis Hotel and moving southward,"
the dispatch officer responded in a voice of forced calm.

     Nene jerked the car back onto the highway just short of the
concrete barriers, eliciting a nervous gasp from Akiko, then reached up
to flip on the lights and siren.

     "Tell 'em we're on our way," Nene instructed coolly, glancing at
the road signs for distance.  "Three minutes."

*****

      Leon glanced around the bar, instinctively checking out his
surroundings.  Mentally, he chided hismelf for that... the last thing he
wanted today was to think like a detective, after all.  It had been too
long since he'd been able to relax on his day off, and he was going to
be sure he did this time, if for no other reason than his staff was
bugging him to get out of the office.  Still, he had a nagging feeling
in the back of his mind that something was going to happen.  <Just
conditioning, I suppose... gotten used to bad things happening on my
off-days.>

     Still, it had been pretty peaceful so far,  He'd been able to sleep
in for once, getting some desperately needed rest, and he'd gotten with
some old friends for lunch.  Yes, it had been nice... just the kind of
day he needed to make him forget about his troubles.  Now, he was going
to sit down for a while, toss a few back, and wait for the concert he'd
come to see.  The band, he'd been told, was pretty good... though he'd
yet to find one as good as Priss had been in her heyday.

     Walking over to the bar, he ordered himself a beer and settled
in to wait for the show.  As the barkeep took care of that, he glanced
briefly at the people around him.  If he was guessing right, a certain
other person would be here... someone else he hadn't talked to in too
long.  Of course, if she was in the same condition she'd been last time
he saw her, it might just turn out to be the ruin of his day he'd been
expecting... but somehow he had to find out what was going on.

     Sure enough, there she was... just coming in the door.  So much
the better... he could get to her before she got drunk.  That might be a
mistake, too... but if he was going to be brushed off, he'd rather it
come when she knew what she was doing.  He smiled... she was coming to
the bar.  He turned back to his beer as she approached, trying to give
the impression he hadn't noticed her, and was surprised when she chose
the barstool next to his.

     "Priss?" he asked.  "It's been a while."

     Her response was quick and obviously prepared.  "No, Leon, I'm not
going out with you.  The eyepatch suits you, though," she noted dryly.

     He winced slightly at that.  "I wouldn't think of asking," he
answered quietly.  "Actually, I was rethinking that speeding ticket I
didn't give you a few weeks ago."

     She shot him a disparaging look.  "What do you want, Leon?" she
asked, the irritation obvious in her voice

    "Peace on Earth," he answered wearily.  "No, I take that back.  I'll
settle for peace in Megatokyo.  I want a week to go by without losing
one of my best officers."  His voice took on an edge as some of his
built-up frustrations boiled to the surface.  "I want the Knight Sabers
back, dammit.  Right now, though, more than anything, I want to see you
up on that stage instead of some drugged-up has-been doing bad covers of
your music!"

     Priss recoiled at the heat in his response.  "You don't know the
hell I've been through!" she snapped, her voice barely low enough to
avoid attracting attention.

     "No, I don't," he agreed, the edge still on his voice.  "All I know
is that two years ago something happened and you dropped off the face of
the earth... and that's when the world took a nosedive straight to hell.
If you want to tell me what happened, I'll listen.  If you don't, that's
fine.  But I won't sit here and watch you destroy your life because you
can't deal with it." He paused, reining in his emotions as well as he
could maange. "Look, Priss," he said quietly.  "I know life is tough.
If you need to talk to someone about it, I'm here.  I know your secret
already, so you're not risking anything."

     Red eyes flashed momentarily with fire, then seemed to soften, her
denial and anger crumbling to ash under the weight of truth as he drove
his point home.  "I... can't," she finally answered.  "Not now.  There
are still things you don't know... that you can't know yet."

     "I understand," he answered with a slight nod.  Before he could say
more, though, a soft beep attracted his attention.  He checked his
watch... it was flashing.  <Looks like I was right again,> he thought
with a sigh.  Reaching down to the small radio at his belt, he flicked
it on and listened.

     "Dispatch, this is ADP-one-one-three," a female voice spoke through
a crackle of static.  "We are westbound on the Inner Loop, two miles
west of the Coastal Highway, over."

     One-one-three?  That was--

     "Roger, one-one-three," came the response.  "Boomer is a combat
model, unidentified class, first sighted near the St. Regis Hotel and
moving southward."

     "We copy, Dispatch," the voice spoke again, and this time he
recognized it.  "One-one-three is en route and will intercept in
zero-three minutes."

     He looked up sharply at Priss, his concern reflected in his eyes.
"One-one-three is Nene's unit."

     Priss' eyes went wide.  "Damn... let's go."  He nodded, dropping a
few bills on the bar, and they headed for the door.

*****

     Nene slammed on the brakes, bringing the car to a screeching halt
behind the edge of one of the buildings.  A downtown city street was
exactly the environment in which one did *not* want to fight a boomer,
she thought... but then, one didn't get to pick and choose.  Motioning
for Akiko to get out of the car, she slipped out of her seatbelt and hit
the trunk release.  She wouldn't have much time... further reports had
confirmed a C-class boomer, and it was moving rapidly in her direction.

     Bolting out of the car, she ran around to the trunk and pulled it
open, dragging out a heavy black case.  Akiko had already taken cover
against a wall, and Nene moved to the corner, popping open the case.
Quickly she took stock of the components... she'd assembled this in ten
seconds in practice... she had scarcely longer now if she wanted to line
up her shot.  First the body of the weapon, then the stock... once those
were locked together, she lifted the barrel and fixed it in place.

     "Anou... Nene-sempai...?" Akiko asked softly, her voice trembling
in a mixture of fear and awe.  "What... is that?"

     Nene smiled slightly as she opened the chamber, depositing three
walnut-sized slugs.  <She's scared... good, she should be.> "It's an
apple corer," she explained, her smile growing to a predatory grin as
she hefted the railgun.  "For really, really bad apples.  You know, the
armored kind."

     She didn't have to look to know that Akiko was still trembling.
She remembered well her first boomer encounter, as a member of the
Knight Sabers.  She'd been all but helpless then, as Akiko was now...
but not anymore.  In a ritual of forced calm, she lifted a pair of
sunglasses from her pocket and slipped them on.  Now... she was ready.
Rising to a knee, she leaned around the corner... it was coming.

     <Three shots,> she told herself.  <I only have three.  I can't
afford to miss.>  The boomer was closing now... tearing up the buildings
in its path as it moved nearer.  Forcing down a surge of anger, she made
herself wait.  <Not yet... not yet...>  Suddenly, it turned toward her,
charging directly toward her hiding place.  <It's seen me!  No... stay
calm!> she chided herself... <In range... now!>

     Slowly, steadily, she squeezed the trigger.  The weapon kicked
violently back into her shoulder, its earsplitting crack the most
impressive evidence of its firing.  The boomer staggered as the slug
ripped through its shoulder at five times the speed of sound.  <Got his
shoulder,> she thought.  <Not good enough!>  Correcting her aim
slightly, she squeezed again... another jolt, another sonic boom, and
again the boomer staggered.  <Other shoulder this time... one shot
left!>  Apprehension held her heart in an icy grasp.  <Can't miss this
one,> she told herself.  <Have to wait for it to get closer.>

    It was coming now... and coming quickly.  Any second now it would be
in range of its own weapons, ready to rain down destruction on their
hiding place.  <Steady...>  It's arms were helpless now... but it still
had its mouth laser, and now it was charging that last weapon.  Moving
the stock slightly inward to better brace the railgun, she checked her
aim again, willing her last slug home... <NOW!>  As evenly as she could
manage, she squeezed the trigger.

    She felt more than heard the crack as the slug tore through the air,
temporarily deafened by the first two shots.  A brilliant flash seared
her eyes, blinding even through her sunglasses.  <Did I hit it?>  She
blinked in a vain attempt to clear the spots.  <I know I hit
*something*!>  A seeming eternity passed in panic as she waited for her
vision to clear.  Slowly it returned, revealing the hazy image of a
headless boomer.  "GOT HIM!" she cried out, nearly dropping the railgun
in relief and excitement.  She breathed a sigh as the cyberdroid toppled
forward, brain-dead and non-functional.

    "That was close," she gasped, turning to Akiko.  "You can breathe
now," she told her partner softly.

     Akiko sighed deeply, a little color returning to her deathly pale
features.  Even then, as if disbelieving, she crawled to stick her head
around the corner and see for herself.  "You... wow... Nene-sempai," she
whispered in awe.  Then, seeming to recover a bit of herself, she asked
softly, "Can you teach me to use one of those?"

     Nene shook her head vehemently, trying to laugh but lacking the
energy.  "Leon would have my head."  Then, glancing at the headless
boomer and finding some irony in the situation, she found the energy to
laugh after all.

*****

     By the time Leon and Priss arrived, several ADP units were on the
scene.  As they cordoned off the area to examine the aftermath,
emergency workers milled about, treating innocent bystanders hurt in the
boomer's rampage.  One or two of them looked up, acknowledging his
presence with a nod before turning back to their assigned tasks,
thinking nothing of his presence on the scene.  They were used to it by
now, he thought... he spent a lot of time at these sites, usually trying
to figure out what had gone wrong.  This time, he thought, it would be
different.

     Priss followed a few steps behind, close enough to him as not to be
questioned about her presence, but keeping her distance as well.  She
had said nothing on the trip over, and he quietly wondered whether it
was anger at him or concern over her friend that led her to keep her
silence.  He would find out soon enough, he thought... as soon as he
found Nene.

     Stepping around another of the barricades, he caught a glimpse of
Akiko standing beside a Road Chaser.  She was talking excitedly to
someone as he approached, and he smiled slightly... it was a good sign.
Walking up to the side of the car, he asked, "Where's Nene?"

     "Down here," a weary voice answered from behind the car.  He looked
around to see Nene sitting on the ground, cradling the railgun in her
hands like a precious thing.  He had to grin at that, remembering only
to well a time when Nene would have been terrified of such a weapon.
She had become a lot like him over the last couple of years, for good
and for bad, and at times the resemblence showed very clearly.

     "Used the railgun, I see.  How do you like it?"

     She grinned up at him, seeming suddenly less exhausted.  "Same as
always... the new stock is better, but it still needs some work."  She
rubbed her shoulder slightly where the railgun would brace against it.
"This is going to be pretty sore tomorrow."

     "Wait a minute," Priss interrupted, her voice tinged with
disbelief.  "You people are setting me up or something.  Where did you
get that gun?"

     Nene grinned up at her.  "Hello, Priss.  When did you start hanging
out with Leon?"  Priss scowled at that, and Nene laughed. "All high-
ranking ADP Inspectors have these, Priss.  Didn't you know that?"

     "You've got to be kidding me," Priss muttered, shaking her head.

     Leon smirked at that.  "So, where's the boomer?"

     Nene pointed toward the wreckage, where a cluster of officers had
gathered around it.  "Well, what's left of it is over there."  Leon
nodded, and started to walk in that direction.

     "This I gotta see," Priss muttered, following after him.  When they
reached the fallen cyberdroid, a couple of the officers stepped out of
the way to allow Leon to see.  The damage was simple to identify...
holes punched in both shoulders by railgun shells marked the first two
shots she had taken.  The third was accounted for by the missing head,
pieces of which where scattered across a five-meter area.  The neck and
shoulder area were scorched from the explosion of the laser capacitor in
the boomer's mouth.

     "Bu-55-C.  It was getting ready to fire when she hit it," Leon
observed.  "She's lucky she got the shot off when she did."

     Priss just stared.  "You can't be serious," she said quietly.
"Nene did this?"

     Leon nodded, turning from the boomer wreckage and leading her a few
steps away from the crowd.  "She's changed a lot, Priss.  I thought you
would have noticed that already, though."

     Priss shook her head.  "It's just... hard to believe.  I mean, I'm
out of it for a while, and..."

     He shook his head slightly, keeping his voice low.  "You said that
I don't know the hell you've been through.  But Nene does.  She knows it
and then some.  Aside from whatever happened to the Knight Sabers, she
lost one of her closest friends not a year ago when an assassin boomer
had the nerve to break into ADP.  We've lost ten officers in the last
three months... and that's like losing family.  It changes you."

     Priss looked away, back toward the wrecked boomer.  "A little anger
goes a long way," she said quietly.

     "Yes, it does," he agreed quietly.  "In many different directions,
too."  Glancing back at the boomer wreckage again, he shook his head.
"All right... I've seen enough. Do you need me to take you back to pick
up your bike?"  Priss nodded silently, a distant look in her eyes.
"Let's go, then," he suggested with a slight smile.  "It's not too
late... we might still be able to catch that show..."

*****

     Linna glanced up from the television at the sound of a key turning
in the lock.  <I will not panic... it's only Nene,> she told herself,
fighting down the desperate paranoia that was triggered anytime that
door started to open.  Every day it was like this, she thought.  Every
day she wondered if someone had found her, if they were coming to take
her back to the lab.  And every day, thank the kami, it was only Nene.
Eventually she would conquer that fear, learn to be comfortable... and
that would be the day they would come for her.

     She fixed her eyes upon the door as it opened, ready to bolt if
necessary.  It was Nene... she was sure of it, but if it was not she
would not be taken without a fight.  Then the door was open, and an
exhausted-looking Nene was there.  Linna breathed a sigh of relief as
Nene closed the door behind her, and moved over to allow her some space
on the couch.

     "Hey, Linna," Nene greeted wearily, walking slowly to the couch
where she collapsed unceremoniously.  "How was your day?" she asked,
rubbing her right shoulder gently.

     "Same as always," she answered, her expression one of concern.
"Looks like yours was a bit on the rough side.  Did you hurt your
shoulder?"

     Nene shook her head weakly.  "Just sore... railgun recoil.  There
was a boomer incident today... had to take it out."

     Linna's eyes went wide at that.  "Take it out... you had to fight a
boomer with no hardsuit?"

     Nene smiled slightly.  "Well, that is what AD Police does, you
know... though if they'd known what type it was before I arrived they'd
have sent in a K-12.  I got it, though... that's why they give us the
railguns."  She winced slightly as she touched a sensitive spot on her
shoulder.  "Ow... that's gonna hurt tomorrow..."

     Linna shuddered slightly, her voice hushed.  "I'm just glad you
made it back okay," she whispered.  "That had to be a scary experience."

     "Not really... you don't have time to be scared.  After it was
over... that was when it was scary... I only had three shots, and I
needed all three.  Thinking about what would have happened if I'd missed
the third... that was the scary part.  I wouldn't have had a chance...
Akiko was there, she'd have been done for, too."  she paused a moment,
then turned to look Linna in the eye.  "And you... I thought of you."

     Linna swallowed hard, caught off guard by the surge of emotion she
felt in that instant.  "Me?  ...why?"

     Nene started to answer, opening her mouth to speak... and then
closing it again, seeming to have lost the words.  "I'll... we'll talk
about that later, ok?"

     Linna nodded, caught up in her own thoughts.  <I could have lost my
closest friend... the one person I care about most... and I'd never have
known, until she didn't come home...>  "Nene... promise me you'll be
careful out there."

     Nene answered with a weak smile, a hint of something Linna couldn't
quite discern beyond the weariness in her eyes.  "I always am, Linna...
I always am."  Her voice wavered slightly in that moment, indicating how
little faith she put in those efforts... in her own safety.

     "I understand," Linna whispered, the cold chill that had overtaken
her fading but still very much there.  <I've lost so much already,> she
thought sadly, wanting to say the words but unable to find the voice.
She drew her arms in close to herself, seeking warmth but finding none.
<I don't want to lose you, too.>

*****

     Leon McNichol lay awake in his bed, staring at the ceiling with his
one good eye.  He was tired--exhausted, really--but the thoughts running
laps inside his head would simply not allow him to fall asleep.  Too
much had happened in one evening, too much he could not predict.  Too
many words that could not be retracted... too many images he could not
forget.

     He worried... worried for Nene, wondering how one who was once so
innocent and gentle had become so aggressively angry.  He knew the
answer, of course... now better than ever.  He had attributed it to the
losses they shared... of dearest friends and of comrades-in-arms... but
there was another loss, one that had torn her heart in places he would
never see.  And yet, he worried less about her now than once he had.
Something had changed... he could see a spark in her eyes that he had
not seen there for years, a positive energy to balance the fury so often
reflected there.  Nene was strong... strong in ways very few understood.

     He worried for Priss, too, wondering if he had said too much.
Despite what she might believe, he did understand her pain.
Something... something terrible and tragic... had happened to the Knight
Sabers those two years ago... and tragedy was something he knew
intimately.  He had lost so many friends over that time... so many
people he took for granted, now gone.  He knew what it had done to
him... and could see what it was doing to her.  Always before... before
that time, she had seemed so self-assured.  Now, that was gone, and he
wondered if it would ever return.

     Had he helped or hurt with his words tonight?  He hadn't meant to
say that much, certainly not that soon... and yet, perhaps it was what
she needed to hear.  He had seen too many lives destroyed, he couldn't
sit back and watch her wreck her own.  Not her.  To see her as she was
now... weary, broken... *beaten*... hurt him in ways he could not
explain.  Perhaps, he thought, it was because she reminded him of
himself.

     He, too, had lost so much... not just the people around him, the
ones he cared about, and cared for... but much of himself as well.  The
injuries had been hard to deal with; they had robbed him of his
strength, of that all-important sense of immortality that let you walk
out into those streets of fire and know you would come home again.  The
job had done worse, forcing him to sit helplessly by as those under his
charge fell... again, and again, the vicious cycle never ending.  He did
the best he could for them, and yet it was never enough... and it never
would be.

     A surge of hatred swelled up within him... hatred for GENOM, who
manufactured death for profit.  Hatred for the system that let them do
it.  Hatred for the officials who lacked the principles or the guts to
do anything about it, the ones who gave him hell every time he tried to
investigate an incident.  Hatred for his own helplessness to stop the
violence.  Was *this* what Priss felt?  Was this were all that anger and
bitterness came from?  It had always been there before... before loss
stole the fire from her heart.

     What could have done this to her?  Had he guessed correctly... had
one of the Knight Sabers fallen?  It seemed almost impossible to imagine
after all they had survived.  And yet, it would explain many things...
their sudden disappearance... the change in Nene, which had begun even
before ADP's troubles... he could think of nothing else which could
explain Priss' sudden loss of her will to fight... and even to live.
And if so, what did the things he had seen tell him.  Were the Knight
Sabers to return?  If so... how, after two years in absence?

     It was unlikely, he thought... but not impossible.  And if it could
be done, perhaps there was hope for them all.  For Nene, for Priss...
for himself and the AD Police... and even for Megatokyo.  He had long
since learned not to put much stock in such hope... but it was a
comforting thought, nonetheless.

*****
     Another sleepless night, Nene thought.  She'd had far too many of
those lately, and she'd hoped they would end now that Sylia was back
and things were returning to some semblance of normalcy.  Well.. normal
for the Knight Sabers anyway.  She had hoped the rampant worries and
fears and thoughts that had kept her up by night would fade... and they
had.  Now, though, she found herself faced with new, more personal
fears, and with thoughts and feelings that would not be silenced.

     Her brush with death had shaken her deeply, forcing her to the
realization of just how much she had to lose.  There had been a time,
a very recent time, when she might have welcomed such an end as she so
had so narrowly avoided today, an escape from the hell that her life
had become, but now... now she had too much to live for.  People
depended on her now, needed her, and she could not let them down.

     She thought of Akiko, then... the girl was only seventeen, all
dreams and innocence and so full of desire to make the world better.
Nene knew those dreams well, for they had once been her own... dreams
that had long been buried under layers of bitterness, anger, and pain.
She could not allow that to happen to another, not as it had happened
to her... and yet if she died... it had been so close.  Was that what
Leon had wanted her to see?   If so... the lesson was well learned.

     Then, there were the Knight Sabers... Priss, and Sylia... and
Linna.  Priss, who was fighting for some sense of self amidst the
shambles her life had become, who needed her friends to stand by her
now more than ever.  Sylia, who had sunk so much of herself into the
Knight Sabers that she had little else left.  While neither of them
would admit it, they needed this... needed another chance to fight,
to renew the crusade, to have something to believe in.  If she
allowed herself to fall, that too would be lost.

     Her eyes fell then on Linna, who slept fitfully beside her,
unable to find refuge from the horrors she faced even in sleep.
Nene could scarcely comprehend what must have been done to scar her
so deeply... before, Linna had been the one who always bounced back,
no matter how difficult things became.  Now, she was wounded, nearly
broken, leaning on Nene for the strength to make it from day to day.
The pain and the fear that hid behind the icy blue of those eyes,
sometimes masked, but always there, pained Nene's heart.  Linna's
plea echoed in her thoughts... she could not fall, could not allow
her friend to suffer so... she would not allow it.

     Her friend... no, there was more than that now.  The worst
fear of all was not of death... not anymore.  She feared to leave
Linna... no, she feared to lose her.  Somehow, somewhere through
all the pain they had shared, she had found something beautiful,
something to cherish and protect, within Linna's tortured soul.
Something... someone... to hold onto and never let go.

     "I love her," she whispered softly, the revelation finding her
voice of its own accord, too powerful to be denied.  Yes... that was
the answer... but with it came new fears.  What could she do?  What
would Linna think?  She wasn't so sure what she thought of it
herself.  She pushed away her fear, holding tightly to the one thing
that was clear.  This was too important to her, and she had lost too
much already; she would not give this up now.

     Another movement... Linna was turning again, tortured by her
haunting dreams.  Abruptly, Nene felt a trembling hand grasp her
arm, and Linna's breasts pressed against her back.  "Linna?" she
gasped softly.  "You're awake...?"

     There was no response.  She started to turn over, the back of
her neck brushing against Linna's cheek as she turned, feeling the
wetness there... Linna was crying.  "Linna!" Nene whispered
anxiously, turning to take the one she loved in her arms to comfort
her.  "Linna, it's ok... I'm here..."

     "Nene...?" Linna's voice was soft and weak, almost childlike
in its plea.  "Nene, don't leave me..."

     Nene's heart seemed to tear with sympathy at the desperation
in that voice.  She drew Linna tightly against herself, running one
hand through her hair.  "I won't leave you, Linna," she reassured
her softly, feeling her trembling subside to a shiver as she held
her closely.  "I'll never leave you."

     Linna buried her head in Nene's shoulder then, clinging
desperately to her.  Tears ran down her face, falling lightly on
Nene's skin, each teardrop a torture for Nene as she tried to take
on some of Linna's pain.  She held her there until the tears
finally ran dry and the cold shivering gave way to the warmth and
comfort of that embrace, and even for all her concern she could
not help but find a certain pleasure in the closeness they shared
in that moment.  For a long while they held each other even then,
before Linna raised her head, whispering in Nene's ear.  "Thank
you."

     "You're--" Nene fell silent as she felt Linna's lips brush
her own, then press lightly against them in a gentle kiss.  The
touch was electric in its desperation, hot with tension and
desire yet restrained by fear.  She parted her lips, giving
herself over to it willingly, shuddering with the unexpected
intensity.  Then, as abruptly as it began, it was over... Linna
pulled back, trembling again.

     "I... I'm sorry," Linna gasped softly, her voice wavering
in fear.  "I shouldn't--"  Nene's thoughts reeled in that
moment--Linna thought it was a mistake!

     "Oh, no you don't!" she whispered heatedly, pulling Linna
back to her and kissing her passionately, unwilling to let her
escape.  Linna shuddered, reluctant at first, but slowly letting
herself be drawn in, finally melting into the kiss.  She pressed
herself against Nene, both trembling then in the heat of the
embrace.  When finally they did break the kiss, breathless, Nene
held Linna tightly to herself.  "I'm not letting you get away
from me that easily, Linna-chan" she added softly, her tone
intense with the passion of the moment.  "Not now... not ever."

*****

End Chapter Five.

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