Le Jeu Sinistre Chapter 7/9
Posted: Mon Oct 27, 2003 11:31 pm
Disclaimer: I do not own Full Metal Panic. Any similarities between the characters and events of this story and those in real life are purely coincidental.
Chapter Seven: Beyond Good and Evil
Kaname was really beginning to despise this cycle of waking up in a dazed confusion.
She was lying on a small bed in a small room with no windows. It was dark. And, she realized, there was a man sitting near her, smiling.
The lights flickered on and she got a good look at his face. He was perhaps in his mid-fifties, with graying hair. Reasonably tall. Of European descent. He looked quite familiar.
And then, realization hit Kaname.
“Good morning, Miss Chidori,” the man said pleasantly.
“What the hell…?” Kaname whispered.
“What’s wrong?”
“Who…?”
The man grinned and stood up to his full height.
“I am Augustine Madaseloma. The High Commander of Mithril.”
“But you’re…”
“And also, Pope John Paul the Third of the Roman Catholic Church.”
Kaname didn’t say anything for several moments.
“Did I… hit my head really hard or something?”
“Not according to our records. Would you like something to drink? Soda? Tea? Wine?”
“No… no… This isn’t happening…”
Kaname put her head in her hands. Augustine laughed.
“I assure you, it is. I imagine you must be more than a bit perplexed at the events of the past few days.”
“No,” Kaname muttered. “No. I’ve been attacked by commandos, flown to Germany with weapons, attacked by commandos again, kidnapped by a super-secret para-military organization and now, I’ve found out that the head of said organization is the Pope. No, I do this every week. Some people commute, I get embroiled in international webs of intrigue.”
Augustine stared at Kaname. He pointed his finger at her.
“That’s funny.” He smiled. “If you’ll come walk with me, I’ll answer your questions.”
Since she didn’t have much of a choice, she figured, Kaname stood up. Just before they were about to leave the room, though, she spoke.
“Where are we?”
“Vatican City, Rome. We’re in Mithril’s Headquarters, underneath St. Peter’s Cathedral.”
“Just checking.”
~
As they walked through the corridors, most of which were decorated with various religious pieces of artwork, Augustine spoke.
“I suppose I’ll start at the beginning. That way, everything will have continuity. It’s a long story, though. Are you sure you don’t want something to drink? You might not be old enough to drink in Japan but here, it’s alright.”
“Maybe later,” Kaname sighed. The thought of wine suddenly reminded her of blood. And blood reminded her of…
“What happened to Sousuke?”
“Sousuke?”
“Sagara Sousuke. He was with me at the Weber Estate. He…” The events of the previous night came rushing at her like a train rushes at a car stalled on the tracks. “Oh my god…”
“Sagara? All our reports show he was killed but, for reasons you’ll soon understand, we didn’t have the luxury of sticking around to check.”
“So… He could still be alive?”
“In theory, yes.”
Kaname gave a sigh of relief. Sousuke had survived worse… hadn’t he?
“Anyway,” Augustine began. “Mithril was formed in 1949, along with the United Nations. From the beginning, it was a secret. There are perhaps five hundred people in the world not affiliated with Mithril who know of its existence. Mithril was originally formed to serve as the UN’s ‘Hand of God’ in world affairs. Essentially, to fight terrorists, communists, fascists and other unpleasant ‘-ists.’ In addition, the UN had a special interest in the Whispered, which they believed to be the final evolution of humanity. Therefore, Mithril also has the task of researching, protecting and, need be, controlling the Whispered. Do you follow?”
Kaname took a deep breath. “Do you really expect me to believe all this?”
Augustine laughed. “It’s far out but-“
“It’s not just far out! It’s like Gundam! What, is the UN made up of a bunch of otaku who try to play out their favorite anime in real life? Let me guess: The Whispered have super psychic powers and you want to manipulate them to further your own ambitions! And you’ll develop kinds of super giant robots to do it. And there’ll be some young teenage hero who defies the odds and defeats you.”
“Bingo. Except for the last part. We’ve gone to great lengths to kill any young teenage heroes who might defeat us.”
“Oh god…” muttered Kaname, putting her head in her hands.
“You’re right, though. It does sound like a bad movie but this is real.”
“What about Sousuke?”
“What about him?”
“He could be the young teenage hero.”
“He may very well be dead. And even then, I doubt he’s in any condition to be a young teenage hero. Can we get off the subject now?”
Kaname sighed. “Yeah. Whatever.”
“Right then. Anyway, over the years, Mithril has become less and less dependent on the UN. Now, we have our own sources of funding and equipment. We don’t need them. Therefore…”
“You’re planning a coup against them, aren’t you?”
“How did you know?” asked Augustine, surprised.
“Lucky guess…” Kaname sighed.
“Well, to be fair, we not planning a coup against just the UN but the entire world. You see, with the Whispered… Mithril has the capacity to take on, not only the UN but the United States and the Soviet Union as well.”
Kaname stopped walking. “What?”
Augustine grinned. “Not directly, of course. The trick is to force the United States and the Soviet Union to fight one another first. And then, once the bodies begin piling up, we, with our advanced technology, will have no trouble defeating both.”
“Oh god…”
“And then, when the two super powers are crippled, who’s left to take the spoils of war? Mithril.”
“So, you’re taking over the world? Isn’t that cliched? Not to mention insane. And you’re supposed to be the Pope.”
“Cliched? Yes. Dozens of rulers throughout history have tried it. I’m not insane, I’m just human. It’s natural and, might I say, healthy to desire power. Just like Napolean or Caeser-“
“Or Hitler,” Kaname added.
“We don’t like to use the ‘H-Word’ around here. Some of our employees have had bad experiences with him and others… worked for him,” whispered Augustine. Kaname just shook her head sadly.
“And think about it: Would you ever expect the Pope? It’s the perfect alibi and it gives me an excuse to be a presence in world politics. Moreover, it gives me access to the sizable resource of the church. But, getting away from that, Mithril’s technology is, at the very least, twenty years beyond anything else the world has seen. There’s no way the armies of the United States or Russia could stand up against us.”
“Great…”
“Isn’t it? It’s all thanks to the Black Technology of the Whispered. Are you familiar with the Lambda Driver? That’s one of the most powerful applications of Black Technology.”
Kaname sighed again. “And what does all of this have to do with me?
“You are a Whispered. And a very special one at that. Here, this room…”
He opened a door on the side of the hall that looked a whole lot like all the other doors they had passed.
“I’m going to show you something very interesting now.”
~
When Sousuke awoke, he was in a dizzy, heavy world of pain. He tried to sit up but his waist was too sore. He groaned and lay back on the bed, closing his eyes, trying to fall back asleep so he could forget the pain.
“Bonjour, Kashim,” a smooth voice said off to the side. Sousuke froze and slowly turned his head. Sitting next to his was Gauron.
As he started to scream, Gauron started to laugh.
~
“Now, Miss Chidori, what do you remember of last night, during the flight from the Weber Estate?”
Kaname shrugged.
“Not much. I remember Sousuke getting…” She couldn’t finish the sentence.
“Well, we were able to recover the video of the last moments of the battle. It’s something I think you’ll be quite interested in.”
The room was a sort of meeting room you find in office buildings. There was a large table with chairs all around it and a projection screen on the far wall. Augustine pulled a small remote out of his pocket, clicked it and a small projector attached to the ceiling started to roll.
The film was scratchy and there was no sound. Kaname made out herself. She was standing and five soldiers were approaching her slowly.
And, suddenly, an Arm Slave appeared behind them. It opened fire on the soldiers who panicked. Then, the Armored Slave blew up, crumpling on top of the soldiers. A helicopter streaked past the camera before crashing into the ground, right on top of an armored car.
The carnage continued for several minutes as the Mithril forces methodically wiped themselves out. Kaname watched, entranced, because she knew without being told that it was she who had done it.
When the film cut off, Kaname looked to Augustine, as though begging for a realistic explanation of what happened. The Pope just smiled.
“Congratulations, Miss Chidori. You annihilated 95% of our attacking forces single handedly. The only reason we could capture you was because you fainted from exertion.”
Kaname squeezed her eyes shut, as though that would change things. “Impossible…”
“This phenomenon of yours… it mimics the abilities of a Lambda Driver almost perfectly. Do you know what this means?”
He didn’t even give Kaname a chance to answer.
“It means you are a Human Lambda Driver. The Ultimate Whispered. It’s one thing to have secret knowledge locked away in your mind. It’s quite another to be able to use that knowledge. The Lambda Driver, though difficult to use correctly, is the ultimate weapon of mass destruction because its abilities aren’t limited to destruction. It changes the fabric of reality to reflect the wishes and desires of the user. Therefore, if the user was able to desire it enough, he… or she… could simply cause an enemy country to disappear off the face of the earth. Or cause the population to disappear, leaving the resources for plunder. Incredible, isn’t it?”
Kaname didn’t answer. She couldn’t. Her throat refused to produce words.
“But you… You don’t require external devices to used the Lambda Driver. Your body, for whatever reason, is built differently than those of normal humans. You are a Lambda Driver and, in moments of high emotional stress, can use its abilities with little difficulty. You, Miss Chidori, are the most perfect weapon humanity as every seen.”
Without warning, Kaname stood up suddenly, knocking back her chair.
“No! No, there’s no proof! I’m… I’m not!” yelled Kaname. Tears started to swell in her eyes. “That’s bullshit! I’m… I’m just a normal girl… I’m…”
“No,” said Augustine, grinning. “You’re not a normal girl. You’re a very, very special girl.”
~
“Oh, what’s wrong Kashim?” asked Gauron, leering at Sousuke. He leaned closer to him and the boy soldier kicked him away frantically.
“What the hell are you doing here?!” he demanded angrily.
“I’m here to… protect you…” Gauron said, chuckling as though it were some great joke.
“He’s been keeping an eye on you for the past day,” Melissa said as the light flickered on. She entered the room and walked purposefully over to Sousuke, feeling his forehead.
“Good. No fever. How do you feel?”
“What’s going on?”
“You were badly wounded. You’re in the Tuatha de Danaan infirmary.”
Sousuke looked around slowly.
“The Tuatha de Danaan… Major-“
“We’re not in Mithril anymore, remember? Mao is fine.”
Sousuke nodded. “Mao, what is going on? What happened? Where’s… where’s Chidori?”
Melissa sighed sadly.
“It’s a long story.”
~
“There’s one thing I want to know. Why did you go after Sousuke?” asked Kaname as they left the projection room. “What made him such a big threat?”
“I imagine you figured something like, he’s so madly in love with you-“ Kaname flushed. “-that he’d go above and beyond the call of duty to protect you? Not quite. Are you familiar with a man named Sagara Yamato?”
“I know the name… Wasn’t he a war hero or something?”
“The War Hero. During the Pacific War, Sagara Yamato was a decorated colonel whose exploits were legendary. As propaganda, the Imperial Government broadcast tales of his bravery to inspire the Japanese people. Things like Sagara wiping out a platoon with only his sword. It wasn’t too far from the truth.
“He died a few months before the end of the war by driving his fighter into a US ship. Or so they say. It’s a little known fact but Sagara’s plane was commandeered by another pilot for use. However, it was better for propaganda if Sagara were dead. He could become a ‘God of War’ that way. Do you understand?”
“Sagara…” Kaname said slowly. “Is he related to Sousuke?”
“You catch on quickly. Sagara Yamato survived the war. He only married, however, in the ‘80s. He had a single son before dying.”
“Sousuke.”
Augustine grinned. “Bingo. Sagara Sousuke. The only off spring of the great Sagara Yamato. Being a perfect soldier is in his genes, you might say. Want to know another little known fact? Sagara Yamato was also a notorious war criminal. Most likely, he faked his own death so as to avoid being prosecuted by the Americans after the war. He was a totally ruthless and cruel warrior but he wasn’t stupid. He realized that the Japanese couldn’t keep fighting against the American Juggernaut.”
Kaname closed her eyes. “I don’t give a damn who Sousuke’s father was. He’s not like him. If you think that, you’re a dumbass.”
“But how well do you really know Sousuke?”
Kaname opened her eyes. “What do you mean?”
“Being ruthless. Being cruel. Killing. It all is in his blood. It’s his nature, even though he doesn’t know it. Being in Mithril means being restrained. You have to be civilized, even in life or death combat. What do you think would happen if, suddenly, he wasn’t civilized anymore? You already know that he has few emotions. But what-“
“Shut. Up.”
Augustine grinned again. “Oh, did I hit a nerve?”
“fudgie off,” growled Kaname from between gritted teeth. “Sousuke’s a great guy and nothing you say will change that.”
“There’s another thing. In the ‘60s, with the Vietnam War raging, Japan began to tamper with genetic cloning with the United States’ approval. What do you think they were trying to make?”
“I don’t know and I don’t care.”
“A mass produced perfect soldier. And whose DNA do you think they used?”
“Bob Hope’s?”
“Close. Yamato Sagara. And…” Augustine smiled that shit eating “I Know Something You Don’t Know” smile that arrogant people have. “What do you think they called the project?”
“Like I said… I don’t care.”
“They called it Project Gauron.”
Kaname froze.
~
“So,” Sousuke said slowly, recapping the events of the past day. “After Chidori and I were separated from the group, I was badly shot and blacked out. When you found me, Chidori was gone. He-“ Sousuke gave Gauron a dirty look. “-was the helicopter pilot Mr. Weber, who also died, had arrange for?”
“That’s about it,” Melissa nodded.
Sousuke sighed.
“And what happened to the Tuatha de Danaan after Testarossa escaped?”
“Kalinin and Mardukas got in touch with Gauron and together, they figured out more or less what’s happening. We’re in the Mediterranean Sea now.”
“You said that they would’ve taken Chidori to Mithril’s Headquarters. Where’s that?”
“Vatican City in Rome,” Gauron said smiling.
Sousuke stared at Gauron.
“It might be a shock but…” Melissa said carefully. “The High Commander of Mithril is also Pope John Paul III.”
Sousuke now stared at Melissa.
“It makes sense, I guess. Nobody would ever suspect the Pope,” she said, sighing.
“Nor is it the first time a Pope has had a hand in something like this…” added Gauron.
Sousuke shook his head, trying to take in all this information.
“Is there a rescue operation planned?”
“Yes,” replied Melissa firmly. “Tomorrow. You won’t be going on it so don’t-“
“I have to.”
“No, you don’t. You are in no condition to pilot or do much of anything. All things considered, you should be dead. It’s literally a miracle that you’re still alive. Maybe you didn’t notice but your skull was almost spilt in half. You lost nearly 50% of your body’s blood supply. You’re just lucky that Gauron’s the same blood type as you.”
Sousuke’s face took on a horrified look.
“I’m not surprised he’s still alive,” said Gauron coolly, the Cheshire grin still on his face. “When someone has strong feelings tying him to this world, he can go to the brink of death and beyond and still return.”
Melissa sighed. “Even so, Sousuke shouldn’t be allowed to go. Even if he’s still alive, he’ll have trouble walking for awhile.”
“So I’ll pilot.”
“No! The stresses of piloting would be almost as bad.”
“I’m the only one who can pilot the Arbalest. If I use the Lambda Driver in combat, it’ll give us an advantage.”
“But such a large advantage that you’d risk dying for it?” interjected Gauron. Sousuke nodded solemnly.
“Let him go, then,” Gauron stated simply.
Melissa scowled. “I don’t care about whatever macho ‘I’ll Go Into Battle With My Spleen Sticking Out’ ideals you two have. If you go to fight, even if you win, there’s no guarantee that your body will be able to stand the stress.”
“But,” Gauron said slowly. “That’s the same for any battle.”
“…what?”
“It’s the same in any battle. There are soldiers who die of heart attacks. It’s the same for life. From the day we’re born, we’re always slowly creeping towards our deaths. To die is to be human. Kashim knows and understands the risks. It’s his own decision. Let him.”
“He won’t do us any good if he dies out there,” Melissa said stubbornly.
Gauron laughed. “I’ve seen the plan. It’s suicide. You know it too. Mirthril Headquarters… They have dozens and dozens of Arm Slaves. And what do we have? A handful of pilots and barely enough units to go around. The most we can hope for is to do enough damage to them to cripple them for the next few years.”
Melissa sighed. “Even so…”
“But the Lambda Driver… Anything is possible with it. I know. Even if we lose, Kashim could destroy the city. Mutual destruction may very well be the best we can hope for.”
Melissa bowed her head, deep in thought. Then…
“Sousuke. Is it for Kaname?”
“What?”
“You want to go… To save Kaname, right?”
“Yes.”
“A young man will sacrifice his very soul for love…” smiled Gauron.
Melissa stood up suddenly.
“I’m writing my recommendation that you not be allowed to participate.”
Sousuke watched, too tired to argue as she scribbled on a piece of paper for a moment. Gauron smiled. As Melissa finished, she tore it up and tossed it in the trash.
“It’s not my fault if it doesn’t get to the Kalinin or Mardukas in time,” she muttered as she stalked out of the room.
After she left, Gauron turned his grin on Sousuke. “Kashim, are you ready to meet your destiny?”
“Why are you helping us?” Sousuke asked, glaring at him.
“Because I love you, Kashim,” he laughed. “And… I’m paying back an old friend for something he did to me a long time ago.”
~
“Project Gauron?”
“Yes. They named the very first clone Gauron. Now, I believe he’s a terrorist. It took me awhile to understand it, though…” Augustine said, chuckling. “You see, I was one of the scientists who worked on it. Mithril had a hand in the development of the ‘Ultimate Weapon’ against the Red Menace.”
“No way… So, Gauron is Sousuke’s…”
“Biologically speaking, they’d be father and son. However, I doubt they would consider themselves as such. Come on, there’s one more thing I want to show you.”
They finished up the hall at an elevator and got in. Augustine punched in some keys and they were going down to the eighth and lowest level of the compound.
When the doors over, Kaname gasped in spite of herself. They were in a huge hangar, dozens of Arm Slaves lined up next to one another. Workers and pilots of all ages and ethnicities milled around the robots.
“Incredible, isn’t it?” Augustine said, chuckling. “Here alone we have fifty of our standard Armored Slaves. More than enough to repel any direct attack made by the United States or Russia. But that’s not all…”
They stepped onto a sort of moving sidewalk like those at air ports and they were off. It took about a minute for them to get across the hangar and they entered a second one.
There were fewer Arm Slaves in this one. Perhaps twelve or so. Kaname recognized them as being similar to the one Sousuke piloted…
“And these,” Augustine said proudly. “Are our Arbalest Mass Production Types. Almost as powerful as the unit Sagara used in battle. Although their conventional performance isn’t as good, they have a mass-produced Lambda Driver installed that more than makes up for any deficiencies there. But, this isn’t the pride of our operation. Do you want to see it?” Augustine was like a little child with a secret he couldn’t wait to tell someone. They continued along the moving sidewalk till they got into the third hangar.
Only two AS were in this one. The first looked a lot like the Arbalests except it was A.) Bigger and B.) Had wings. The other looked like no Arm Slave Kaname had ever seen. If she had to compare it to something, she thought perhaps a European knight in full formal armor. It was certainly more elegant and beautifully designed than any other AS she had seen.
“This one,” Augustine said, pointing at the winged AS. “Is the Arbalest Mark II. The performance is increased nearly three fold over the original prototype. Not only that but it can support a wider variety of conventional weaponry. However, this unit was designed around its Lambda Driver. It’s almost ten times as powerful and sensitive as the original. Plus, it has sensors to gauge the strength and negate the effects of enemy Lambda Drivers.”
“So, it’s designed to counteract Lambda Driver units?” Kaname asked, not really interested in the Arbalest Mk. II. She was more interested in the beautiful knight…
“Exactly. And this…” Noticing Kaname’s interest, he pointed to the knight AS. “This is the Gnostic. Do you know what makes this one special?”
Kaname shook her head.
“It has no controls in the cockpit. It’s controlled totally through the Lambda Driver. As a result, only a Whispered can pilot it. The result, though, is that its overall performance is incredible and, of course, the Lambda Driver is more powerful than even the Mk. II’s. And this, Miss Chidori, is where you come in.”
Kaname eyed him strangely. “What do you mean?”
“I mean…” Augustine said slowly. “I want you to pilot this.”
~
Now that Sousuke was actually participating in the operation, he was busy getting ready. It had been enough trouble to get out of bed but once he did so, he found that he didn’t have so much trouble getting around. He could use his hands and feet just as well as before and, he reasoned, as long as he stuck to piloting, that’s all he needed.
As it turned out, Gauron had expected that Sousuke would be going and had packed his satchel for him before hand. Sousuke, ever suspicious of the older man, blew it up in a safe area and packed his own. It was while he was packing that Tessa visited him.
“Sagara,” she said simply as she entered the room. She had long since changed out of the Bonta-kun pajamas.
Sousuke looked up. “Testarossa. Will you be taking part in the operation?”
“I’ll be commanding. I heard that you’re going along.”
“Yes.”
“Even though you’re injured?”
“Yes.”
Tessa looked away. “I won’t let you.”
“What?”
When she turned back to look at him, Tessa’s eyes were streaming. She gritted her teeth.
“I won’t let you go!”
“Why not?”
“If you do… You’ll die… Sagara, I can’t lose you.”
“I won’t die.”
“Just because you say that doesn’t make it true!” Tessa yelled. She dove on the bed next to Sousuke and looked up at him fiercely. “I already thought I lost you once… I won’t lose you again!”
Sousuke looked at her sadly but then went back to packing his bag.
“Humans are so fragile…” Tessa whispered. “I just know it… If you go, you’ll die. Even if you just pilot.”
“It’s something I have to do.”
“No! No, it’s not! Sagara… Sagara… This isn’t a war we’re fighting here!” Tessa squeezed her eyes shut. “In a war, either side can win. We can’t win this. We lost from the day it began. All we can hope for is-“
“…mutual destruction? The Tuatha de Danaan will be using nuclear weapons if the battle goes badly?”
Tessa’s eyes widened. “How…?”
“I guessed,” Sousuke said nonchalantly as he kept backing his bag. He put his trusty Glock in last and zipped it up. Then, he turned to look at her.
“This is something I must do. You said it yourself. We have already lost this war so what does it matter if I die? I’ll die one day. This way, however, I’ll be able to die doing my duty. Right now, that’s all I can ask for.”
Something inside of Tessa snapped. She leaned forward, grabbed Sousuke by the cheeks, careful of his scars and kissed him. It was the kind of kiss you see in the movies. Tongue and all.
After a few moments, she pulled away. The lip balm she had been wearing was smeared across Sousuke’s lips. She couldn’t read the expression on his face but it seemed like he understood.
“It’s for her, isn’t it?”
“What is?”
“You. Going out there to fight. You’re doing it for Kaname, aren’t you?”
“Yes.”
Tessa closed her eyes. “Why does it have to be like this? What did we do wrong? Why do we end up killers and soldiers while people like Kaname get a normal life?”
“I don’t know.” Sousuke slung the bag over his shoulder carefully. “However… I’ll gladly be a soldier and a killer if I can assure that people like Chidori don’t have to be.”
And with that, he saluted Tessa and marched towards the door. He stopped there and hesitated.
“Tesatarossa, I have trouble understanding emotions. I can’t understand my own and I don’t understand yours or Chidori’s. However…” He glanced at her over his soldier. “If Chidori didn’t exist, I wouldn’t be here right now. But, if she didn’t exist… You…” He never finished the sentence. He turned back around and left for the hangar.
Tessa stared at the door for a second. Then, she let herself fall and onto the bed and began to cry.
End of Chapter Seven
Author’s Notes: Wow. Not even twenty four hours since the last chapter was posted and the new one is done. The things one can do on a day off… Anyway, the story will soon be resolved. Look for more violence, more angst, more vague religious references and more deep monologues!
And, for the record, the Pope in this story is not the same as the current Pope. Although it probably won’t be explained in the story, Pope John Paul III/Augustine takes over after the death of Pope John Paul II/Karol Wojtyla during the infamous assassination attempt in the ‘80s.
Chapter Seven: Beyond Good and Evil
Kaname was really beginning to despise this cycle of waking up in a dazed confusion.
She was lying on a small bed in a small room with no windows. It was dark. And, she realized, there was a man sitting near her, smiling.
The lights flickered on and she got a good look at his face. He was perhaps in his mid-fifties, with graying hair. Reasonably tall. Of European descent. He looked quite familiar.
And then, realization hit Kaname.
“Good morning, Miss Chidori,” the man said pleasantly.
“What the hell…?” Kaname whispered.
“What’s wrong?”
“Who…?”
The man grinned and stood up to his full height.
“I am Augustine Madaseloma. The High Commander of Mithril.”
“But you’re…”
“And also, Pope John Paul the Third of the Roman Catholic Church.”
Kaname didn’t say anything for several moments.
“Did I… hit my head really hard or something?”
“Not according to our records. Would you like something to drink? Soda? Tea? Wine?”
“No… no… This isn’t happening…”
Kaname put her head in her hands. Augustine laughed.
“I assure you, it is. I imagine you must be more than a bit perplexed at the events of the past few days.”
“No,” Kaname muttered. “No. I’ve been attacked by commandos, flown to Germany with weapons, attacked by commandos again, kidnapped by a super-secret para-military organization and now, I’ve found out that the head of said organization is the Pope. No, I do this every week. Some people commute, I get embroiled in international webs of intrigue.”
Augustine stared at Kaname. He pointed his finger at her.
“That’s funny.” He smiled. “If you’ll come walk with me, I’ll answer your questions.”
Since she didn’t have much of a choice, she figured, Kaname stood up. Just before they were about to leave the room, though, she spoke.
“Where are we?”
“Vatican City, Rome. We’re in Mithril’s Headquarters, underneath St. Peter’s Cathedral.”
“Just checking.”
~
As they walked through the corridors, most of which were decorated with various religious pieces of artwork, Augustine spoke.
“I suppose I’ll start at the beginning. That way, everything will have continuity. It’s a long story, though. Are you sure you don’t want something to drink? You might not be old enough to drink in Japan but here, it’s alright.”
“Maybe later,” Kaname sighed. The thought of wine suddenly reminded her of blood. And blood reminded her of…
“What happened to Sousuke?”
“Sousuke?”
“Sagara Sousuke. He was with me at the Weber Estate. He…” The events of the previous night came rushing at her like a train rushes at a car stalled on the tracks. “Oh my god…”
“Sagara? All our reports show he was killed but, for reasons you’ll soon understand, we didn’t have the luxury of sticking around to check.”
“So… He could still be alive?”
“In theory, yes.”
Kaname gave a sigh of relief. Sousuke had survived worse… hadn’t he?
“Anyway,” Augustine began. “Mithril was formed in 1949, along with the United Nations. From the beginning, it was a secret. There are perhaps five hundred people in the world not affiliated with Mithril who know of its existence. Mithril was originally formed to serve as the UN’s ‘Hand of God’ in world affairs. Essentially, to fight terrorists, communists, fascists and other unpleasant ‘-ists.’ In addition, the UN had a special interest in the Whispered, which they believed to be the final evolution of humanity. Therefore, Mithril also has the task of researching, protecting and, need be, controlling the Whispered. Do you follow?”
Kaname took a deep breath. “Do you really expect me to believe all this?”
Augustine laughed. “It’s far out but-“
“It’s not just far out! It’s like Gundam! What, is the UN made up of a bunch of otaku who try to play out their favorite anime in real life? Let me guess: The Whispered have super psychic powers and you want to manipulate them to further your own ambitions! And you’ll develop kinds of super giant robots to do it. And there’ll be some young teenage hero who defies the odds and defeats you.”
“Bingo. Except for the last part. We’ve gone to great lengths to kill any young teenage heroes who might defeat us.”
“Oh god…” muttered Kaname, putting her head in her hands.
“You’re right, though. It does sound like a bad movie but this is real.”
“What about Sousuke?”
“What about him?”
“He could be the young teenage hero.”
“He may very well be dead. And even then, I doubt he’s in any condition to be a young teenage hero. Can we get off the subject now?”
Kaname sighed. “Yeah. Whatever.”
“Right then. Anyway, over the years, Mithril has become less and less dependent on the UN. Now, we have our own sources of funding and equipment. We don’t need them. Therefore…”
“You’re planning a coup against them, aren’t you?”
“How did you know?” asked Augustine, surprised.
“Lucky guess…” Kaname sighed.
“Well, to be fair, we not planning a coup against just the UN but the entire world. You see, with the Whispered… Mithril has the capacity to take on, not only the UN but the United States and the Soviet Union as well.”
Kaname stopped walking. “What?”
Augustine grinned. “Not directly, of course. The trick is to force the United States and the Soviet Union to fight one another first. And then, once the bodies begin piling up, we, with our advanced technology, will have no trouble defeating both.”
“Oh god…”
“And then, when the two super powers are crippled, who’s left to take the spoils of war? Mithril.”
“So, you’re taking over the world? Isn’t that cliched? Not to mention insane. And you’re supposed to be the Pope.”
“Cliched? Yes. Dozens of rulers throughout history have tried it. I’m not insane, I’m just human. It’s natural and, might I say, healthy to desire power. Just like Napolean or Caeser-“
“Or Hitler,” Kaname added.
“We don’t like to use the ‘H-Word’ around here. Some of our employees have had bad experiences with him and others… worked for him,” whispered Augustine. Kaname just shook her head sadly.
“And think about it: Would you ever expect the Pope? It’s the perfect alibi and it gives me an excuse to be a presence in world politics. Moreover, it gives me access to the sizable resource of the church. But, getting away from that, Mithril’s technology is, at the very least, twenty years beyond anything else the world has seen. There’s no way the armies of the United States or Russia could stand up against us.”
“Great…”
“Isn’t it? It’s all thanks to the Black Technology of the Whispered. Are you familiar with the Lambda Driver? That’s one of the most powerful applications of Black Technology.”
Kaname sighed again. “And what does all of this have to do with me?
“You are a Whispered. And a very special one at that. Here, this room…”
He opened a door on the side of the hall that looked a whole lot like all the other doors they had passed.
“I’m going to show you something very interesting now.”
~
When Sousuke awoke, he was in a dizzy, heavy world of pain. He tried to sit up but his waist was too sore. He groaned and lay back on the bed, closing his eyes, trying to fall back asleep so he could forget the pain.
“Bonjour, Kashim,” a smooth voice said off to the side. Sousuke froze and slowly turned his head. Sitting next to his was Gauron.
As he started to scream, Gauron started to laugh.
~
“Now, Miss Chidori, what do you remember of last night, during the flight from the Weber Estate?”
Kaname shrugged.
“Not much. I remember Sousuke getting…” She couldn’t finish the sentence.
“Well, we were able to recover the video of the last moments of the battle. It’s something I think you’ll be quite interested in.”
The room was a sort of meeting room you find in office buildings. There was a large table with chairs all around it and a projection screen on the far wall. Augustine pulled a small remote out of his pocket, clicked it and a small projector attached to the ceiling started to roll.
The film was scratchy and there was no sound. Kaname made out herself. She was standing and five soldiers were approaching her slowly.
And, suddenly, an Arm Slave appeared behind them. It opened fire on the soldiers who panicked. Then, the Armored Slave blew up, crumpling on top of the soldiers. A helicopter streaked past the camera before crashing into the ground, right on top of an armored car.
The carnage continued for several minutes as the Mithril forces methodically wiped themselves out. Kaname watched, entranced, because she knew without being told that it was she who had done it.
When the film cut off, Kaname looked to Augustine, as though begging for a realistic explanation of what happened. The Pope just smiled.
“Congratulations, Miss Chidori. You annihilated 95% of our attacking forces single handedly. The only reason we could capture you was because you fainted from exertion.”
Kaname squeezed her eyes shut, as though that would change things. “Impossible…”
“This phenomenon of yours… it mimics the abilities of a Lambda Driver almost perfectly. Do you know what this means?”
He didn’t even give Kaname a chance to answer.
“It means you are a Human Lambda Driver. The Ultimate Whispered. It’s one thing to have secret knowledge locked away in your mind. It’s quite another to be able to use that knowledge. The Lambda Driver, though difficult to use correctly, is the ultimate weapon of mass destruction because its abilities aren’t limited to destruction. It changes the fabric of reality to reflect the wishes and desires of the user. Therefore, if the user was able to desire it enough, he… or she… could simply cause an enemy country to disappear off the face of the earth. Or cause the population to disappear, leaving the resources for plunder. Incredible, isn’t it?”
Kaname didn’t answer. She couldn’t. Her throat refused to produce words.
“But you… You don’t require external devices to used the Lambda Driver. Your body, for whatever reason, is built differently than those of normal humans. You are a Lambda Driver and, in moments of high emotional stress, can use its abilities with little difficulty. You, Miss Chidori, are the most perfect weapon humanity as every seen.”
Without warning, Kaname stood up suddenly, knocking back her chair.
“No! No, there’s no proof! I’m… I’m not!” yelled Kaname. Tears started to swell in her eyes. “That’s bullshit! I’m… I’m just a normal girl… I’m…”
“No,” said Augustine, grinning. “You’re not a normal girl. You’re a very, very special girl.”
~
“Oh, what’s wrong Kashim?” asked Gauron, leering at Sousuke. He leaned closer to him and the boy soldier kicked him away frantically.
“What the hell are you doing here?!” he demanded angrily.
“I’m here to… protect you…” Gauron said, chuckling as though it were some great joke.
“He’s been keeping an eye on you for the past day,” Melissa said as the light flickered on. She entered the room and walked purposefully over to Sousuke, feeling his forehead.
“Good. No fever. How do you feel?”
“What’s going on?”
“You were badly wounded. You’re in the Tuatha de Danaan infirmary.”
Sousuke looked around slowly.
“The Tuatha de Danaan… Major-“
“We’re not in Mithril anymore, remember? Mao is fine.”
Sousuke nodded. “Mao, what is going on? What happened? Where’s… where’s Chidori?”
Melissa sighed sadly.
“It’s a long story.”
~
“There’s one thing I want to know. Why did you go after Sousuke?” asked Kaname as they left the projection room. “What made him such a big threat?”
“I imagine you figured something like, he’s so madly in love with you-“ Kaname flushed. “-that he’d go above and beyond the call of duty to protect you? Not quite. Are you familiar with a man named Sagara Yamato?”
“I know the name… Wasn’t he a war hero or something?”
“The War Hero. During the Pacific War, Sagara Yamato was a decorated colonel whose exploits were legendary. As propaganda, the Imperial Government broadcast tales of his bravery to inspire the Japanese people. Things like Sagara wiping out a platoon with only his sword. It wasn’t too far from the truth.
“He died a few months before the end of the war by driving his fighter into a US ship. Or so they say. It’s a little known fact but Sagara’s plane was commandeered by another pilot for use. However, it was better for propaganda if Sagara were dead. He could become a ‘God of War’ that way. Do you understand?”
“Sagara…” Kaname said slowly. “Is he related to Sousuke?”
“You catch on quickly. Sagara Yamato survived the war. He only married, however, in the ‘80s. He had a single son before dying.”
“Sousuke.”
Augustine grinned. “Bingo. Sagara Sousuke. The only off spring of the great Sagara Yamato. Being a perfect soldier is in his genes, you might say. Want to know another little known fact? Sagara Yamato was also a notorious war criminal. Most likely, he faked his own death so as to avoid being prosecuted by the Americans after the war. He was a totally ruthless and cruel warrior but he wasn’t stupid. He realized that the Japanese couldn’t keep fighting against the American Juggernaut.”
Kaname closed her eyes. “I don’t give a damn who Sousuke’s father was. He’s not like him. If you think that, you’re a dumbass.”
“But how well do you really know Sousuke?”
Kaname opened her eyes. “What do you mean?”
“Being ruthless. Being cruel. Killing. It all is in his blood. It’s his nature, even though he doesn’t know it. Being in Mithril means being restrained. You have to be civilized, even in life or death combat. What do you think would happen if, suddenly, he wasn’t civilized anymore? You already know that he has few emotions. But what-“
“Shut. Up.”
Augustine grinned again. “Oh, did I hit a nerve?”
“fudgie off,” growled Kaname from between gritted teeth. “Sousuke’s a great guy and nothing you say will change that.”
“There’s another thing. In the ‘60s, with the Vietnam War raging, Japan began to tamper with genetic cloning with the United States’ approval. What do you think they were trying to make?”
“I don’t know and I don’t care.”
“A mass produced perfect soldier. And whose DNA do you think they used?”
“Bob Hope’s?”
“Close. Yamato Sagara. And…” Augustine smiled that shit eating “I Know Something You Don’t Know” smile that arrogant people have. “What do you think they called the project?”
“Like I said… I don’t care.”
“They called it Project Gauron.”
Kaname froze.
~
“So,” Sousuke said slowly, recapping the events of the past day. “After Chidori and I were separated from the group, I was badly shot and blacked out. When you found me, Chidori was gone. He-“ Sousuke gave Gauron a dirty look. “-was the helicopter pilot Mr. Weber, who also died, had arrange for?”
“That’s about it,” Melissa nodded.
Sousuke sighed.
“And what happened to the Tuatha de Danaan after Testarossa escaped?”
“Kalinin and Mardukas got in touch with Gauron and together, they figured out more or less what’s happening. We’re in the Mediterranean Sea now.”
“You said that they would’ve taken Chidori to Mithril’s Headquarters. Where’s that?”
“Vatican City in Rome,” Gauron said smiling.
Sousuke stared at Gauron.
“It might be a shock but…” Melissa said carefully. “The High Commander of Mithril is also Pope John Paul III.”
Sousuke now stared at Melissa.
“It makes sense, I guess. Nobody would ever suspect the Pope,” she said, sighing.
“Nor is it the first time a Pope has had a hand in something like this…” added Gauron.
Sousuke shook his head, trying to take in all this information.
“Is there a rescue operation planned?”
“Yes,” replied Melissa firmly. “Tomorrow. You won’t be going on it so don’t-“
“I have to.”
“No, you don’t. You are in no condition to pilot or do much of anything. All things considered, you should be dead. It’s literally a miracle that you’re still alive. Maybe you didn’t notice but your skull was almost spilt in half. You lost nearly 50% of your body’s blood supply. You’re just lucky that Gauron’s the same blood type as you.”
Sousuke’s face took on a horrified look.
“I’m not surprised he’s still alive,” said Gauron coolly, the Cheshire grin still on his face. “When someone has strong feelings tying him to this world, he can go to the brink of death and beyond and still return.”
Melissa sighed. “Even so, Sousuke shouldn’t be allowed to go. Even if he’s still alive, he’ll have trouble walking for awhile.”
“So I’ll pilot.”
“No! The stresses of piloting would be almost as bad.”
“I’m the only one who can pilot the Arbalest. If I use the Lambda Driver in combat, it’ll give us an advantage.”
“But such a large advantage that you’d risk dying for it?” interjected Gauron. Sousuke nodded solemnly.
“Let him go, then,” Gauron stated simply.
Melissa scowled. “I don’t care about whatever macho ‘I’ll Go Into Battle With My Spleen Sticking Out’ ideals you two have. If you go to fight, even if you win, there’s no guarantee that your body will be able to stand the stress.”
“But,” Gauron said slowly. “That’s the same for any battle.”
“…what?”
“It’s the same in any battle. There are soldiers who die of heart attacks. It’s the same for life. From the day we’re born, we’re always slowly creeping towards our deaths. To die is to be human. Kashim knows and understands the risks. It’s his own decision. Let him.”
“He won’t do us any good if he dies out there,” Melissa said stubbornly.
Gauron laughed. “I’ve seen the plan. It’s suicide. You know it too. Mirthril Headquarters… They have dozens and dozens of Arm Slaves. And what do we have? A handful of pilots and barely enough units to go around. The most we can hope for is to do enough damage to them to cripple them for the next few years.”
Melissa sighed. “Even so…”
“But the Lambda Driver… Anything is possible with it. I know. Even if we lose, Kashim could destroy the city. Mutual destruction may very well be the best we can hope for.”
Melissa bowed her head, deep in thought. Then…
“Sousuke. Is it for Kaname?”
“What?”
“You want to go… To save Kaname, right?”
“Yes.”
“A young man will sacrifice his very soul for love…” smiled Gauron.
Melissa stood up suddenly.
“I’m writing my recommendation that you not be allowed to participate.”
Sousuke watched, too tired to argue as she scribbled on a piece of paper for a moment. Gauron smiled. As Melissa finished, she tore it up and tossed it in the trash.
“It’s not my fault if it doesn’t get to the Kalinin or Mardukas in time,” she muttered as she stalked out of the room.
After she left, Gauron turned his grin on Sousuke. “Kashim, are you ready to meet your destiny?”
“Why are you helping us?” Sousuke asked, glaring at him.
“Because I love you, Kashim,” he laughed. “And… I’m paying back an old friend for something he did to me a long time ago.”
~
“Project Gauron?”
“Yes. They named the very first clone Gauron. Now, I believe he’s a terrorist. It took me awhile to understand it, though…” Augustine said, chuckling. “You see, I was one of the scientists who worked on it. Mithril had a hand in the development of the ‘Ultimate Weapon’ against the Red Menace.”
“No way… So, Gauron is Sousuke’s…”
“Biologically speaking, they’d be father and son. However, I doubt they would consider themselves as such. Come on, there’s one more thing I want to show you.”
They finished up the hall at an elevator and got in. Augustine punched in some keys and they were going down to the eighth and lowest level of the compound.
When the doors over, Kaname gasped in spite of herself. They were in a huge hangar, dozens of Arm Slaves lined up next to one another. Workers and pilots of all ages and ethnicities milled around the robots.
“Incredible, isn’t it?” Augustine said, chuckling. “Here alone we have fifty of our standard Armored Slaves. More than enough to repel any direct attack made by the United States or Russia. But that’s not all…”
They stepped onto a sort of moving sidewalk like those at air ports and they were off. It took about a minute for them to get across the hangar and they entered a second one.
There were fewer Arm Slaves in this one. Perhaps twelve or so. Kaname recognized them as being similar to the one Sousuke piloted…
“And these,” Augustine said proudly. “Are our Arbalest Mass Production Types. Almost as powerful as the unit Sagara used in battle. Although their conventional performance isn’t as good, they have a mass-produced Lambda Driver installed that more than makes up for any deficiencies there. But, this isn’t the pride of our operation. Do you want to see it?” Augustine was like a little child with a secret he couldn’t wait to tell someone. They continued along the moving sidewalk till they got into the third hangar.
Only two AS were in this one. The first looked a lot like the Arbalests except it was A.) Bigger and B.) Had wings. The other looked like no Arm Slave Kaname had ever seen. If she had to compare it to something, she thought perhaps a European knight in full formal armor. It was certainly more elegant and beautifully designed than any other AS she had seen.
“This one,” Augustine said, pointing at the winged AS. “Is the Arbalest Mark II. The performance is increased nearly three fold over the original prototype. Not only that but it can support a wider variety of conventional weaponry. However, this unit was designed around its Lambda Driver. It’s almost ten times as powerful and sensitive as the original. Plus, it has sensors to gauge the strength and negate the effects of enemy Lambda Drivers.”
“So, it’s designed to counteract Lambda Driver units?” Kaname asked, not really interested in the Arbalest Mk. II. She was more interested in the beautiful knight…
“Exactly. And this…” Noticing Kaname’s interest, he pointed to the knight AS. “This is the Gnostic. Do you know what makes this one special?”
Kaname shook her head.
“It has no controls in the cockpit. It’s controlled totally through the Lambda Driver. As a result, only a Whispered can pilot it. The result, though, is that its overall performance is incredible and, of course, the Lambda Driver is more powerful than even the Mk. II’s. And this, Miss Chidori, is where you come in.”
Kaname eyed him strangely. “What do you mean?”
“I mean…” Augustine said slowly. “I want you to pilot this.”
~
Now that Sousuke was actually participating in the operation, he was busy getting ready. It had been enough trouble to get out of bed but once he did so, he found that he didn’t have so much trouble getting around. He could use his hands and feet just as well as before and, he reasoned, as long as he stuck to piloting, that’s all he needed.
As it turned out, Gauron had expected that Sousuke would be going and had packed his satchel for him before hand. Sousuke, ever suspicious of the older man, blew it up in a safe area and packed his own. It was while he was packing that Tessa visited him.
“Sagara,” she said simply as she entered the room. She had long since changed out of the Bonta-kun pajamas.
Sousuke looked up. “Testarossa. Will you be taking part in the operation?”
“I’ll be commanding. I heard that you’re going along.”
“Yes.”
“Even though you’re injured?”
“Yes.”
Tessa looked away. “I won’t let you.”
“What?”
When she turned back to look at him, Tessa’s eyes were streaming. She gritted her teeth.
“I won’t let you go!”
“Why not?”
“If you do… You’ll die… Sagara, I can’t lose you.”
“I won’t die.”
“Just because you say that doesn’t make it true!” Tessa yelled. She dove on the bed next to Sousuke and looked up at him fiercely. “I already thought I lost you once… I won’t lose you again!”
Sousuke looked at her sadly but then went back to packing his bag.
“Humans are so fragile…” Tessa whispered. “I just know it… If you go, you’ll die. Even if you just pilot.”
“It’s something I have to do.”
“No! No, it’s not! Sagara… Sagara… This isn’t a war we’re fighting here!” Tessa squeezed her eyes shut. “In a war, either side can win. We can’t win this. We lost from the day it began. All we can hope for is-“
“…mutual destruction? The Tuatha de Danaan will be using nuclear weapons if the battle goes badly?”
Tessa’s eyes widened. “How…?”
“I guessed,” Sousuke said nonchalantly as he kept backing his bag. He put his trusty Glock in last and zipped it up. Then, he turned to look at her.
“This is something I must do. You said it yourself. We have already lost this war so what does it matter if I die? I’ll die one day. This way, however, I’ll be able to die doing my duty. Right now, that’s all I can ask for.”
Something inside of Tessa snapped. She leaned forward, grabbed Sousuke by the cheeks, careful of his scars and kissed him. It was the kind of kiss you see in the movies. Tongue and all.
After a few moments, she pulled away. The lip balm she had been wearing was smeared across Sousuke’s lips. She couldn’t read the expression on his face but it seemed like he understood.
“It’s for her, isn’t it?”
“What is?”
“You. Going out there to fight. You’re doing it for Kaname, aren’t you?”
“Yes.”
Tessa closed her eyes. “Why does it have to be like this? What did we do wrong? Why do we end up killers and soldiers while people like Kaname get a normal life?”
“I don’t know.” Sousuke slung the bag over his shoulder carefully. “However… I’ll gladly be a soldier and a killer if I can assure that people like Chidori don’t have to be.”
And with that, he saluted Tessa and marched towards the door. He stopped there and hesitated.
“Tesatarossa, I have trouble understanding emotions. I can’t understand my own and I don’t understand yours or Chidori’s. However…” He glanced at her over his soldier. “If Chidori didn’t exist, I wouldn’t be here right now. But, if she didn’t exist… You…” He never finished the sentence. He turned back around and left for the hangar.
Tessa stared at the door for a second. Then, she let herself fall and onto the bed and began to cry.
End of Chapter Seven
Author’s Notes: Wow. Not even twenty four hours since the last chapter was posted and the new one is done. The things one can do on a day off… Anyway, the story will soon be resolved. Look for more violence, more angst, more vague religious references and more deep monologues!
And, for the record, the Pope in this story is not the same as the current Pope. Although it probably won’t be explained in the story, Pope John Paul III/Augustine takes over after the death of Pope John Paul II/Karol Wojtyla during the infamous assassination attempt in the ‘80s.