143. Search for Sanctuary
So, this is Neo-Edo.
In the early hours of morning, Azuka Ingram stood on the balcony of
the highest belfry of the Shieikan, the white-walled labyrinth that acted as
the base for the Yamatoan government and its protectors, the Shinsengumi. Her blonde
hair had been pulled up and she wore a purple and black kimono with a chrysanthemum
and heron print, signifying the beginning of winter. Grasping the wooden rail
of the balcony before her, she cast her eyes over the technological metropolis below.
What had once been a moderately-sized city composed of buildings
made out of clay and wood was now decorated with snaking wires and aesotech
pipes. Every technological accessory carried power to the town from the command
center deep within the Shieikan, granting citizens the gifts of electricity,
air conditioning, and inter-dimensional travel. When Yamato experienced its technological
revolution under the watch of Koga Suzunosuke, the facilities of the new regime
had simply been erected over the old as it remained, resulting in a glowing monstrosity
of metal, wood, and æsotech.
Azuka's eyes traveled over the greyish-brown mess of the city and
looked beyond it. Rice fields and cobblestone roads were just barely visible on
the horizon, despite the fact that they had once peppered the bustling port
town that also served as the nation's capital. Now, monstrous metal satellites
extended from straw roofs of tiny houses, newly-equipped with metal fences.
And this is what I've become, Azuka
thought again, with a small snort. A hidden relic left over from what this
world once was. This is where the shogun hides, along with the rest of the Shinsengumi.
I came here to talk with them and find a road to peace, yet it's clear now that
Hijikata was never interested in any of that.
He was only interested in me – or whatever he thinks I am, and
it's clear that he'll do just about anything to appease me, save for allowing
me to meet his colleagues.
Azuka heard the shuffle of a paper screen door and turned around
to see Hijikata Toshizo, dressed in a white and olive hakama. Ever cautious,
the man gave her nothing but a small nod, studying her face as he stepped out
from his chamber.
He watches me like a cat watches a goldfish, most likely dreaming
of how I might one day melt in his arms, should his efforts prove fruitful. A
challenge, that's what he sees me as. A conquest far more harrowing than what he's
used to – something to be won.
Azuka opened her mouth. "I'm tired of the waiting game,
Toshizo. I've read through your tiresome doctrines, and I've gone over the
history of the city's advances over the past few years. I've listened to your
pleas to give you a little more time to smooth things over, whatever that
means. And now I have a question for you: When will I be able to speak with Koga?"
"Soon," Hijikata replied in his deep voice, keeping his
eyes locked on her. "That is, unless you'd like to take me up on my other
offer."
Azuka shook her head. "I was hoping that was merely an
ill-timed joke."
"If you truly want peace," Hijikata went on, "then
let's take this entire world together. Just the two of us. If we worked together,
no one could stand in our way, I'm sure of it. You think I'm pig-headed and
uncompromising? Wait until you meet the others. They're hardly as patient as
me, and some wouldn't hesitate to cut you down right on the spot simply because
of the blood you possess."
A scoff escaped Azuka's lips. "You would betray your own men,
just like that? Why would that make me ever want to trust you?"
"No, you misunderstand." Hijikata tried to keep himself
as soft as possible, but Azuka could tell he was always nervous when he spoke
to her – completely different from when he spoke to his men. "Most of them
are prepared to follow me to their deaths, as long as I command them. There are
others, though...some who I've never been able to trust from the very start. We'll
just have to kill them off ourselves."
Azuka crossed her arms. "And let me guess, you won't let me speak
with Koga before I decide?"
"Like I've told you before..." Hijikata leaned in with a
frown. "The minute Koga learns of your existence, he will want you dead. Every
time I tell you this, I tell you it purely out of concern for your safety. No
matter how strong you may be, Azuka, without me, you are only one person, all
on your own...in the den of your enemy."
Azuka turned away from him then, eager to wash away her
frustration with the comfort of the rising sun and glowing sky. "Grand
words. They mean little to me as of yet."
"I've called off all my troops," Hijikata said.
"But I see that has not been enough. What else would you like? Simply name
it, and it shall be yourself. Reparations? The head of the man who murdered
your father? The–"
Suddenly, a clatter sounded out from inside Hijikata's chamber. Quickly, the
Shinsengumi slid open the paper screen door and darted inside. Curiously, Azuka
followed, but the two of them spied nothing within the candle-lit room.
"Do you sense anything?" Hijikata whispered to her.
"No," Azuka replied, flitting around suspicious eyes.
"Is there someone in your midst who'd dare to eavesdrop on you like
this?"
"Not that I was aware of..." Hijikata growled.
Azuka lit up her wooden sword with iridescent psynergy, attempting
to illuminate the darkness
*************
fizzled out around Yamazaki Susumu as he desperately tried to
erase his aura while plummeting down the side of the Shieikan. He'd just done
the worst thing a spy should ever do – alert someone to his presence – and he'd
done it while eavesdropping on the man he respected most.
It hadn't taken long for Yamazaki to notice the transformation that
Hijikata had undergone after he first met Azuka and escorted her back to the capital.
As the only other two Shinsengumi who knew of her presence, Okita and Yamazaki
had both been forced to swear to keep things a secret, although they had not
necessarily been told why. Okita seemingly didn't care, while Yamazaki had been
shaken. But once they returned to the capital, things had only gotten worse. Hijikata
had begun hurrying himself in and out of meetings, sharing less and less with
his two closest confidants, and had all but barricaded himself in his chambers.
Simply put, the man was not himself – he was no longer acting like
a leader of men. And as the one who had sworn his personal loyalty to the man,
Yamazaki felt that something had to be done. Those were the circumstances that
led Yamazaki to swim through the darkness and eavesdrop on his superior,
knowing full well that it might lead to his doom. The way Yamazaki saw it,
there wasn't much of a difference. He could either stand by and watch a true
hero become corrupted with lust or step in and try to return things to the way
they were supposed to be.
But not even Yamazaki had been prepared for what he had heard. The
man would perform mutiny on his own subordinates, the very army he worked to
erect... He'd even offer my head up to her, if she so commanded it. This isn't
right. This cannot be... The shock had been so great that Yamazaki had
fallen to his knees on the spot, bumping an arm into one of Hijikata's bookshelves.
Panicked, he'd slid through the shadows across the hall to a storage room that
thankfully had a window for him to escape from.
As the spy plunged into the moat at the bottom of the Shieikan, he
activated his psynergy at the last moment so that he could safely swim into the
shadows of the water. Yamazaki thought back to that night, just outside of the
Akeogi Forest, when he had thrust his blade into the the bodies of two innocent
boys, and then into the heart of the emperor himself, without a speck of hesitation.
Letting the darkness safely embrace him, Yamazaki heaved
*************
and kept his arms tightly around Wendy's limp body. Gasping for
air with every step, Vance ran frantically down a white-walled corridor deep within
the Shieikan. Bruce was at his side, lumbering as he carried Frank on a
shoulder, while Madeleine led the way.
"I removed the core from the gate after we passed through it,"
Madeleine said, "so no one should be able to immediately follow us. Now, if
only we could find some tanks..."
Turning a corner, they dashed up a cramped flight of stone stairs
and came out on the corner of a wooden rampart that had been reinforced with
metal fixtures. It wrapped along a larger building with walls just as pale and
pristine as on the inside, soaring high into the dawn.
Vance looked over the side of the rampart's rim, scanning the
alien city that spread out below. Then, sensing a flicker of psynergy, he glanced
to his side and saw a man in a blue-and-white robe with long black hair in a ponytail
standing at the other end.
"Excuse me!" Vance called out. "Help us!"
Turning around to heed their call was a man with long eyelashes,
rosy lips, and a soft, androgynous face. "Foreigners? How did you get in
here?"
"We've come on the behalf of Grayson Lee," Vance said quickly.
"My name is Vance."
The Yamatoan revealed an eerie smile and placed a hand on the katana
strapped to his belt. "Grayson Lee? Oh, you mean the genius who created
the Greymatter? What about him?"
Eyes locked on the man, Vance kept his tone firm. "I'm his
son. Our company just got attacked and destroyed. We need to temporarily borrow
your facilities to heal our guards. Can you assist us?"
The man slowly gazed over the group before letting out a soft chuckle.
"Well, we're already hiding one foreigner here, what can a few more hurt? C'mon,
I'll show you to our regeneration room. Okita Soji, Captain of the 1st
Division of the Shinsengumi, at your service, Mr. Lee," Okita said with a mischievous
wink.
All Vance did was nod in silence, slowly creeping after the robed
young man like a deer waiting for the right moment to cross a dark highway.
After a series of similar corridors and computer-locked doors, the aliens found
themselves in a room with three long rows of Regeneration Tanks. Around them were
other doors, elevators, and even a small rest corner equipped with tatami mats,
cushions, and tea.
As soon as Okita led them over to the tanks, Bruce ripped Frank's
raggedy clothes off and tossed his body into one, perhaps a little less gently
than he should have. Meanwhile, Madeleine refrained from transforming, but
still tried to help Vance support Wendy's body while he hastily undressed her
and loaded her body into a separate tank.
Before they turned back to Okita, Vance glanced at Madeleine while
slightly nodding his head back toward the Shinsengumi, who had been watching
them with curious eyes the entire time from one of the cushions. Madeleine
merely gave him an exhausted shrug in response, then tiredly climbed into her
own tank.
The moment that Vance stepped out from behind the curtain and began
to look for his own, Okita spoke up again. "Are you really the son of
Grayson Lee?"
Vance's heart skipped a beat. "You didn't believe me?"
"It just sounds like a very convenient claim," Okita said
with a chuckle. "Our group had a nasty run-in with some foreigners recently.
For all I know, you could be one of them."
Vance crossed his arms. "What did they look
like?"
"Wouldn't you like to know?" Okita smirked. "Then
again, you did come from one of the private tunnelers inside the Shieikan...and
I can't sense your psynergy. Does that mean you're stronger than me?"
Vance thought for a moment. "Have you ever met Grayson Lee yourself?"
"Well...no."
Vance regained his confidence. "I thought so. If you had, then
this wouldn't have surprised you one bit. We take psynergy seriously where I come
from."
Okita raised his eyebrows playfully. "Then you have to promise
me something. In return for saving your friends' lives, when you get out, each
of you owe me a friendly spar."
Vance didn't reply. He was trying to sense Okita's aura, but his own
drained state made it impossible.
"What's wrong?" Okita asked. "Too busy?"
Vance thought quickly. "Well, there's one chore I'd have to get
out of the way beforehand. I need to stop by the Greymatter factory and collect
data for a report on production."
Okita shrugged. "Alright, well how long will that take?"
"Depends how long it takes me to get to the factory and back.
Where is it?"
"The Greymatter factory?" Okita laughed. "It's all
the way across town! Out of town, in fact. And there's no way to warp there,
either."
"Why not?"
"Security reasons." Okita grinned. "To keep people
like you out."
Vance furrowed his brow. "Look, do you trust me or not? Make
up your mind."
Okita covered up his mouth and let out a small cough, then waited
for a surprisingly long time before lowering it. "You know, I like you.
I'm looking forward to our battle. Just head out the west gates of the city, and
you'll see the factory. Or should I have someone escort you there?"
"No, I'll be fine," Vance said quickly. "Thank you,
Okita."
"Anytime." Finishing his tea, the lithe Yamatoan stood
up and gave Vance a quick bow. "When you get back here, just ask one of the
soldiers around, and they'll find me."
"Thanks again."
"Better not cop out, now," Okita added as he sauntered
out of the room. "A promise is a promise, remember?"
"A promise is a promise," Vance repeated hastily. "You'll
get your fight, don't worry."
"Good," Okita's voice drifted back. "I can't
wait."
At long last, Vance was alone. After quickly undressing, he hopped
into his own Regeneration Tank and finally fell into sweet uncon
*************
sciousness poured back into Vance's mind as the tank beeped,
releasing him from its rejuvenating fluids. Still feeling the urgency of the
situation, he hastily hopped out, then snatched a drab tan robe and undershorts
from a shelf next to the tank and clumsily slipped them on.
I'll have to get Averyl to make me a new cloa... Vance started to think, then suddenly stopped himself. A heavy
feeling weighed down his gut as he remembered that he still had no idea as to
where his uncle was, or what exactly had happened to him during the struggle.
Next, the face of Winslow emerged in Vance's mind. Not just of the
man's death after he'd tried to save Vance during the fight with Grayson, but
everything – their first meeting in Despair, their second battle in the streets
of Enmetropolis, their final battle during the tournament, and all the time
they'd spend together on Earth. Just thinking about it made Vance's blood boil and
fresh new psynergy course through his body.
Quickly, Vance peeked beyond the curtain to his tank and glanced
across the white-walled chamber. It was completely silent, and seemingly no one
had disturbed their recuperation.
Then, he heard the snap of another tank cover, followed by the
rustle of some clothes. Vance wandered through the curtains until he saw Frank,
who now looked as good as new. Frank's hair was a wet mess on his head, and he
didn't seem to quite fit the grey and green robe he'd chosen, but vitality had
returned to his eyes, and he seemed rejuvenated. As soon as he saw Vance, an expression
of relief washed over his face.
"Vance..." Frank shook his head. "I'm so sorry."
"No, Frank," Vance said, nearly bursting into tears
before he had the time to say anything. But he caught himself, and shakily
continued. "I'm the one who should be apologizing. Or, thanking you, or
something. You saved us all back there, numerous times."
"I just did what I could." Frank sighed. "I can't even
believe I'm still alive."
"I still can't believe you're here..." Vance said, shaking
his head. "Why do you have a psynergy ability? You're an
Earthling...right?"
"Where should I begin?" Frank thought back. "I'll
try not to bore you, but here goes."
And so, Frank relayed to Vance all that had happened to him since he
first crossed paths with Grayson Lee. For the first time, Vance heard the truth
of what had been happening in Bakersfield while he trained for the tournament,
how Frank and Edward wound up at the tournament, and finally, what happened
during their trip to Sasuke's tower.
"Averyl must have sent Naomi to Sasuke, then," Vance
muttered in disbelief. "I'd forgotten all about her. And the Seneschal. Cliff's
going to be heartbroken."
"It was horrible," Frank said. "But hey, Vance, you
got to explain something to me. What is psynergy? Tao unlocked my potential
just before he died...I want to know how I can get better at using it."
"Psynergy...isn't about physical strength," Vance tried
to explain. "I've slowly come to realize that over time. Strengthening your
body is necessary, but that's more like the foundation."
"What do you really need, then?"
"Imagination," Vance answered firmly. "Creativity, whatever
you want to call it. The more you think about how you can use your power,
the stronger it'll become. I think that's the only real way to improve, and it
might be the only real way to defeat people like Grayson."
"Vance, I just want to protect my wife and kids," Frank
said plainly, "and Edward, if that's even possible anymore. How are we
going to go back and save Earth? We can't just hide in this place forever."
Frank said the lines with such natural bravery that it made Vance
feel reflexively guilty for all the weakness he'd exuded in the past. Despite all
he had been through, Frank seemed to show no hesitation.
"Yeah," Vance said with a sigh. "Yeah, you're right.
According to Madeleine, this is Yamato, where the Greymatter factory is located.
If we can destroy it, then no more will be sent to Earth. Those machines are a
huge problem, and I think Grayson needs them to achieve what he's planning."
"I sensed your aura, so I think I know how strong you are,"
Frank said, "but I couldn't even fathom how strong Grayson is. Even with
creativity, how are we supposed to beat him? Not even your uncle could..."
Vance shook his head. "I don't know what happened – but Averyl
isn't dead. He can't be."
Frank thought for a moment. "I agree that the factory should
be top priority, Vance, but even with my power, I've got no stamina. I'd just
end up slowing you down. And besides, we can't leave your friends here alone while
they're still recuperating. I'll watch over them."
Stunned, Vance froze for a moment. "Frank, how can you be so calm?"
Frank let out a tired sigh. "After what I've been through in these
past months, I don’t think anything will shock me ever again."
Vance looked down at his feet. "Am I doing the right thing
here?"
"I trust you, Vance. And I know all your other friends do too.
They wouldn't have followed you to Houston if they didn't."
The words cut at Vance's heart, and he thought of Wendy.
"You're right."
Frank reached up and patted Vance on his shoulder. "And one
more thing, Vance. Your mother was a good person. She wasn't trying to make an
experiment out of you, or play with people's lives, or anything like that, that's
for sure. I may not know exactly what her plans were, but the Victoria I knew
was no villain."
Vance closed his eyes and worked hard to keep himself calm.
"Thank you."
"Now, go on," Frank said. "People are counting on you."
"Okay," Vance replied, as he turned to leave. "I'll
be back soon."
Next: Subjugators
