Episode XIV: Union
Matthew Dark amused himself by focusing all his energy on the wall, leaving Ichi to do something more constructive, like rock in her chair. The peace that she had known for a year now was gone, replaced by the black cloud of the Demon’s Twenty, come back from extinction and stronger than ever. Thirteen had returned as well, perhaps more powerful and cunning than before, and although his first visit back from “the dead” had been nonviolent, his second would doubtless mean an invasion.
Ichi was in such a numb state because she didn’t know what to do about it. The last time she fought off the Demon’s Twenty, their number had already been reduced to half its original size, and it was the “weaker” version of what was surely to come. This time, though, all twenty of them would be out in full force, stronger than the previous bunch and all of them armed solely for the purpose of capturing Ichi. Of course the pale woman was worried, even with a better understanding of her powers and a new (albeit quiet) ally alongside.
She didn’t like being the leader type. Ever since the Angel Resistance took her in, she had been the unwilling leader of the group, taking the front lines and defending them from all kinds of harm, be it the DT, pirates, scam artists, fraud, terrorists, larceny, extortion, interior discord, and unrest, among others. It took a toll on her, wearing her out even as she toned her body and tested her newfound powers. She ached every day--if not physically, then mentally for all the thinking she did, or emotionally from the cold bed she slept in by herself, or spiritually for the God that seemed deaf.
Matthew Dark had a faith that went beyond what many people would think it would be, judging from his angelic appearance. Ichi later learned, a few days after Thirteen’s reemergence, that Matthew was NOT a real angel, nor even close to being one. He was the apparent love-child of a Seraph (a creature that resembled an angel) and a Fury (a creature that resembled a devil), two creatures that rarely mentioned the other without adding in some spite, let alone who bore any semblance of love. Matthew’s parents, though, were quite tolerant and loving of each other, he a beautiful angel and she a beautiful devil. Thus, while he resembled the heavenly and hellish creatures, he was far from actually attaining their levels of spirituality.
He seemed to enjoy Ichi’s company, and Ichi liked his, because he always let her bask in her own silence. The pale woman was not a terribly talkative member of the Resistance, choosing to remain quiet and as active as possible. She spoke when spoken to, as did Matthew, but seemed hesitant to say the first word, lest it was necessary. Ichi was not strange or peculiar in any way, except perhaps for her unnatural powers: she felt just as inadequate, lonely, confused, angry, and anxious as any other human would in her circumstances. She just put on a good face and hoped that her skills would hold out for a few moments more.
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As usual, Gerrand came in unannounced and made a harmless pass at Ichi.
“What’s up, pretty lady? We just got some bad news for ya.”
“What’s that?” she wondered. Bad news could have meant anything, from spilled soda to a meltdown.
“Something’s wrong with the, uh, orbital whatchamacallit things--you know, the stuff that makes this heap move in space?”
“The orbital/spatial thruster components that convert sunlight and dark matter into energy?”
“I guess,” he shrugged. “That’s something what Xyphon said. Anyway, there isn’t a mechanic alive who could fix it, least of all in this place, and the guy who installed it has been dead and buried for decades. We’d have to look for one on a planet somewhere. Lucky for us, we were just entering the orbit of an inhabited world just before the thing broke down.”
“I see,” she said. “Thanks for telling me this. I’m glad I’m not the last to know. What do you plan on doing?”
“Uh, going surface-side and patrolling the planet for a good mechanic.”
“They’d have to be something else in order to fix that thing,” indicated Ichi with a nod. “You sure you can find a genius just by looking?”
“It’s worth a shot,” shrugged the half-human, half-bird. “Anyway, we figured that you’d want to come with us. Maybe you know a few people.”
“Not mechanics, no, but I’ll do my best. Which shuttle are we taking?”
“Sixth. We’re gonna need somebody to fix them as well; three of’em aren’t working.”
“Gotcha. I’ll meet you all there, then.” Gerrand saluted with his wings and hopped out of Ichi’s room, leaving her alone with Matthew. She only stayed in her room just long enough to sling a bag of supplies over her shoulders and pop the half-breed a question.
“You wouldn’t happen to know of any good mechanics, would you?”
“Sorry, but no. The best ones I know of are worlds away. I don’t even know what planet it is that we’re orbiting. Do you?”
“It has a vowel in its name; that’s all I know. You wanna come?”
“Thank you, but I shall stay.”
“Suit yourself. See ya in three hours, hopefully with some help.”
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It was a city just like any other city: filthy to a degree, and clean only in the places where people cared. The buildings were tall and the sky was sparse; not as sparse as grass or trees, scattered occasionally across the concrete and steel. It smelled of light pollution and gravel, and felt like the perfect place to find a mediocre repairman in which to fix the deceptively broken-down car. Certainly nothing more advanced, though, could hope to be found in the city.
“So how do we want to do this?” wondered Ichi out loud. She wore her long gray coat as usual, with a gray hat and shades that concealed most of her unusual appearance.
“Split up?” suggested Xyphon. Most all of the gathered crew agreed, and branched off into individual units, leaving Ichi to look for things herself. With a sigh, she resigned herself to her fate and began to stroll, glancing left and right casually for a place, any place at all, that would offer her some hope. She never stumbled across any mechanic’s shops for the first few blocks, just ordinary buildings and ordinary people who didn’t give her a second glance.
However, when she turned a certain corner and looked up to see if anything was worth checking out, she saw a very familiar name posted up on a sign. Ichi crossed her white eyebrows and peered closer, but the name was still there despite her disbelief. Her mouth hung open as she read it to herself.
“Lazarus Mechanics…? No, can’t be…” Still harboring curiosity, Ichi jogged over to the building and rapped on its door. A pretty young lady, perhaps two years younger than the pale woman herself, greeted her at the door with a smile.
“Hello, may I help you?”
“Is this place Lazarus Mechanics?”
“That’s what the sign says.”
“Can I speak with the manager?”
“Umm, well, he’s a little busy right now, but--”
“Thanks.” Ichi shoved past the girl and strolled on into the building, leaving her to stare. One of the other workers who had watched the brief exchange merely shook her head as she joined her comrade.
“Jeez, what was that about, Meesh?”
“She just wanted to see the boss, I guess.”
Ichi quickly strolled through the small building in search of the manager, and found him in the garage, talking to a petite girl with blonde hair and a tall man who seemed just as foreboding as Ichi herself. Even though his back was turned, Ichi could still recognize the familiar form of the person she sought, and quietly whispered out his name in disbelief.
“J… Jack? Jack Lazarus?”
“Huh?” The man turned around to see who called him, and his face widened in surprise as he too recognized the woman before him. A broad smile came to his sunny face, and without any inhibitions at all, he dropped everything he was holding and walked towards Ichi, throwing his arms open and taking her into his big bearish hug.
“ICHI!! Ichi Toriyagama!!! What in all the cities in all the worlds in all galaxies are you doing HERE!!? I haven’t seen you in eons!!”
“Oh, Captain, it really is you!! I didn’t think it would be at first, but… Ahh, it’s so great to see you after all this time!!” Ichi returned his hug, smiling warmly for the first time in a very long while as she was at last reunited with one of her oldest and dearest friends.
…Leaving everyone else a bit confused.
Smiling warmly, Jack finally released his big squeeze and continued to hold the pale girl in his arms, smiling down on her like she was a daughter. She sighed warmly, allowing her face to finally experience happiness after so many months of worry and confusion and fear.
“You haven’t changed at all, Jackie.”
“But you have!” he exclaimed, lifting her hat off so he could see her milky hair. “Wow! You look totally different! I didn’t even recognize you at first, except for the voice! Man, Ichi! How in the world ARE you??!!”
“Perfect, now that you’re here!” she grinned. Ichi hopped up and gave the Captain a polite kiss on the cheek, which was returned with a hearty grin. He ruffled her hair like she was a child, laughing merrily at the mere sight of an old and dear friend.
“Hahaha! That’s great! But what are you doing here? Sion IV is way over on the other side of Earth! Isn’t this a bit far just to see an old friend!”
“No distance is too great, Jackie,” she replied warmly. “Oh, goodness! Are you telling me that this is Earth?! And Sion IV’s still up and running?!”
“Yeah… I was a bit concerned when I heard about that attack. I thought you and Tobi would be blasted to smithereens! Ha, but that shows how much I know! My little Ichi’s certainly tougher than that!”
“I’m not so little anymore,” she replied. He chuckled again and drew her in for another hug.
“Hahaha! I know, I know. I’m glad you’re safe--and if you’re okay, then Tobi’s bound to be okay, too. Where is the little squirt, anyway? The two of you are usually like glue, so it’s rare to see you here all by yourself!” Ichi’s smile slowly faded as the subject of her lost love arose, and she grew awfully quiet and somber after awhile. Jack didn’t need to hear her response in order to know what had happened.
“Oh. I see. You lost her, eh? Well, I’m sure she’s still alive; just somewhere we don’t know. But hey, what are you doing here, anyway? You never answered any of my questions, Ichi, not even back in the day!”
“Sorry,” she sighed, “it’s just that… well… I’m real happy to see you again. I didn’t know if you would be safe, after that attack.”
“What, you kiddin’ me?” he beamed proudly, shoving his thumb in his chest. “Captain Jack Lazarus is made out of tougher stuff than that! A little thing like the end of the world won’t stop me, and neither will a little explosion on Sion IV! But by God, Ichi, you’re always changing the subject!”
“I came here looking for a mechanic, okay?!” she blurted happily. “A mechanic! There, ya happy?!”
“A mechanic, huh? Well, you definitely came to the right place! I’ve got two really good ones working for me, and one that’ll knock your socks off! …Oh, jeez, I’ve been talking to you like this forever, and here they are just standing there like stuffed birds! Kit, Max, c’mon over here and introduce yourselves! Jeez, I’m sorry!!” Smiling shyly and holding back a chuckle, Kit Hero walked over to where the pale woman was and performed a curtsey. Max more or less nodded his head and performed a little wave, keeping to himself as always.
“So who’s the ace, this guy?”
“No, this cute little wonder,” said Jack, placing his hand on Kit’s shoulder. “Kit Hiro, one of the best repairwomen--or mechanics in general--I’ve ever come across. She’s half the reason my whole business stayed afloat as long as it did!” Ichi smiled politely and extended her hand, but Kit merely looked at it. Confused, Ichi looked back at her friend, who needed only give her a single look to tell the story.
“…It’s a pleasure to meet you, Ms. Hiro. I hope that you’ll be willing to help us.”
“M… m… m-maybe…” she muttered quietly. Ichi smiled as warmly as she could, and assured the timid girl that there was nothing to fear. Just then, the girl that had greeted Ichi at the door came into the garage, with two more following her.
“Sir, do you know this girl here? She just barged in here asking for you, and--oh, well, I see that you do! Never mind!”
“Oh, hey! C’mon in, Miichi! Silvara, Eien, you too! I want you all to meet a very good friend of mine, Miss Ichi Toriyagama! Ichi, these are the other people who work for me: Miichi Zuroi, Eien Kinu, and Silvara.” The four women exchanged waves and helloes quietly. Ichi turned her crystal focus back onto her friend, a sly smile creasing her mouth.
“Well, Jackie, I see you’re still surrounding yourself with beautiful women! This Max guy you have here seems to be a fish out of water, though!”
“Hey, I can’t control who wants to be employed by me!” he stated playfully. “I mean, I guess I could, but… these girls are really something else.”
“Mm-hmm, yeah, I’m sure.”
“They are!” Both Ichi and Jack chuckled warmly, their eyes glittering as they recalled all the fond moments they had shared together, way back when everything was more innocent, simple, and pure. But unfortunately, business had to be done, and Ichi’s people were still sorely needing a mechanic to repair their difficult converter system.
“Listen, Jackie… I’m glad that we got to meet each other, but I have to get down to business now. We need a mechanic, a really good one, and I’d be honored if we could borrow the services of Ms. Hiro here.”
“Sure, that’s no problem!” he exclaimed. “In fact, why don’t I close shop early so we can all come? That way, you and I can catch up on old times, and we can trade a few stories here and there! Whaddya say, huh?” Ichi sighed and smiled warmly at the good man beaming before her. She had not felt such happiness in a long time, and would be glad to be rid of all the inner turmoil that had accumulated over the months since the attack on Sion IV and Tobi’s disappearance. There was no way she would ever be able to be convinced otherwise.
“Jackie, I was hoping you would say that. Follow me, and I’ll take you to our place.”
“Where is it?”
“Actually, it’s orbiting the Earth right now. It’s the Angel Resistance Foundation, and wouldn’t you know it, but I’m its leader.”
“Get outta town!”
“That, Captain Lazarus, is why I’m here in the first place.”
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It took at least the rest of the day for the employers of Lazarus Mechanics to pack their belongings, get on the shuttle, board the Foundation, and unpack. Everybody wanted to know what the story was between Jack and Ichi, but first they needed to settle down. Ichi wanted her old friend to stay on for awhile, so he and everyone else were given rooms and provisions for a week’s stay. The whole team took roughly fifteen minutes to settle in, and once they were ready, Ichi led them and a few of her closest comrades into a private room.
It was covered with chairs and tables, crowned off with a dark counter at the far end. Shelves of old alcoholic beverages were covered with dust and webs, and the poor light in the room indicated that few had used the place. Ichi coughed and activated the emergency lights, which illuminated the whole room in an earthy brownish glow.
“Sit,” indicated Ichi, and everyone did. “Xyphos, would you take care of drinks?”
“Yes, ma’am.” A tall, dark, handsome man with four arms crawled over the bar and began pouring things into glasses, leaving Ichi the chance to speak.
“First of all, welcome to the mobile institution, Angel Resistance Foundation. My name is Ichi, that’s Xyphos, and over there is Gerrand. Our sole purpose, since the original founder’s creation of the place, is to fight off the mercenary group known as the Demon’s Twenty. Up until my arrival about a year or so ago, the people here have met with minimal success, but things changed once I came here. I united them together and single-handedly destroyed all but one of the remaining Twenty, thus keeping their peace for awhile.
“Now, though, I’ve received information that the Demon’s Twenty have been resurrected again, with stronger members than before, and their goal is to once again rain terror across the galaxy--and to capture me.”
“Why you?” asked Silvara. Ichi shrugged.
“I’m not certain. I already told you that I once was your neighbor, on Sion IV, but an unknown enemy attacked the colony a few months before I joined the Angels. I don’t know what happened to Tobi or myself--Tobi was my best friend on Sion--but when I was finally aware of things, I discovered that I was in the Foundation, and I looked like this.” She indicated her pale, ghostly body by dropping her overcoat, revealing a thin feminine frame almost completely ivory in color. A few of Jack’s employees gasped.
“You’re very pretty,” complimented Silvara. Ichi smiled.
“Thank you. Anyway, I figured out that I had gotten these really inhuman powers during my… let’s say, my transfer, so I’ve been these people’s hope ever since I came on. Now, while the Foundation was orbiting around the planets, trying to look for a chink in the DT’s armor, our orbital/spatial thruster components that convert sunlight and dark matter into energy were damaged. We have replacements, but we’re not sure how to install them, or even if we need them to fix the damage. Basically, that’s all we need your mechanic for--and maybe a few other jobs here and there.”
“It’s a perfectly acceptable story,” concluded Jack. “Even the best pieces of machinery can end up being junk. Kit, you think you could handle a whatever-she-said-it-was?” Everyone looked at the shy Kit Hiro, who was trying very unsuccessfully to remain hidden. Eien’s smile and supporting hand helped her at least respond.
“Well… um, I mean… uhh… I’ve had experience… doing… uh, that sort of stuff… I mean, it’s very, umm… v-very hard work… But… I guess…”
“If you think you can even point us in the right direction, you’ll be doing us a favor,” said Gerrand. Kit glanced over at him briefly, quietly nodding her head. At that time, Xyphos came back with their drinks, serving soda for those under the legal age (which was almost everybody in the group). He quietly joined the others, sipping his cognac quietly while everyone else spoke.
“M-maybe… I could… Uh… I hope I can.”
“You’ll do fine,” assured Ichi. “If you’re even half as good as Jackie here says you are, then we’ll be up and running in no time. Our emergency converters won’t give out for awhile, so take your time.”
“Hey!” shouted Silvara suddenly. “I have a question! How do you know our boss?!”
“Yeah, you never told us!”
“Yeah, sir, we never knew you knew the leader of some resistance!”
“It’s not really a big deal!” he replied humbly. “I was a friend of the family, and Ichi and her friend Tobi kinda got to knowing me whenever I made runs to and from Sion IV. Oh, and don’t any of you romance-hogs get the wrong impression: I’m more of a big brother or uncle to her, and she’s spoken for.”
“Too bad!” chuckled Silvara as she jabbed Miichi in the ribs. “I was hoping that the boss had finally found a nice honey!” Jack let out a conspicuous cough, barking out Ahem to quickly change the subject.
“Yes, well, I’d better go and make sure all our supplies are ready. Consider our stay here a vacation, but don’t go and insult our hostess or anything. Hey Ichi, why don’t you show Kit to where this converter thing is? Uhh, Gerrand and Xyphos, you take Miichi and Max to anywhere else that needs repairs; they’ll know what to do. The rest of you try and find something to occupy yourselves with.” The girls waved farewell at their beloved boss; Max merely flapped his hand in the air, perhaps a hundred thoughts running through his head, or in fact nothing at all.
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Matthew Dark was sitting directly outside, pressing his ear to the door and listening in on the entire conversation. He was not an eavesdropper normally, but he was definitely curious about Ichi’s friend, and slightly insulted that she had not asked him to attend the “meeting”. He quickly scrambled backwards, however, as he heard Captain Lazarus announce his leave, and pretended to be doing something more useful as the dark-haired man passed.
“Hmm? Gee, I didn’t know there were angels among us!” stated he as he passed Matthew. The angelic man merely smiled and waved, his gentle voice somewhat different than his appearance would suggest.
“Oh, dear me, I’m no angel! Ah, you must be lady Ichi’s friend! What was your name, sir?”
“Jack Lazarus. You?”
“Matthew Dark, a name not quite as striking as your own. My parents were simple, it seems.”
“Not mine,” he grinned. “Anyway, I’ll see you around. I’ll be here all week.” He turned to leave, but Matthew still had one question.
“Sir, before you leave, may I ask how you know lady Ichi?”
“Let’s just say that I get around a lot,” he smiled. Matthew nodded his head, needing no more explanation, and let the older man go. More and more people filed out of the room as time passed, and Matthew greeted them each in the same polite manner. He saw a friendly, cheerful-looking creature that was a cross between a cat and a rabbit, and attached to her elbow was a shy, cute young lady, her green eyes and yellowy hair contrasting the tan fur of the cat-rabbit. A silent, stoic, sinewy older man came out later, his eyes lost in an eternal vortex of thought, and after him came Ichi herself, who was looking happy for the first time in ages.
Gerrand, who was already a good friend of Matthew’s, flapped out afterwards, and Xyphon emerged after him, giving the younger man two waves. A smallish, skinny girl with dark glasses came out, quickly followed by a curly-haired beauty with wings just as impressive as Matthew’s. For her, he just had to stop and socialize more.
“Wow, look Miichi! This guy has wings too, just like me!” The curly-haired girl hopped towards Matthew, smiling and pumping his hand like it was a common event. “Hi, I’m Silvara! I have wings just like you do--well, sort of!”
“Good evening to you, lady Silvara. Yes, your wings are quite impressive. My name is Matthew. Who is your comrade here?”
“My very good, very agreeable friend, Miichi Zuroi! I like her because she always agrees with me!”
“Not always,” murmured Miichi quietly as she gave Matthew’s hand a shake. “I just think her opinions are very thoughtful and precise. They’re better than mine, anyway. Are you a friend of Miss Ichi’s?”
“No, I am more or less an acquaintance. I will say that I am on her side, though a friendship may soon follow it.”
“So we’re gonna see more of you and your wings?” wondered Silvara with a big smile on her face. Matthew nodded his head and returned the smile.
“Yes, no doubt. I should return to my duties, though, unless you ladies would like to help me.”
“Naw, we got our own problems!” exclaimed Silvara happily, flapping her hand in a farewell gesture. “But it was really nice meeting you, Matthew! Hope we meet sooner before we meet later!”
“Ah…… yes…” Confused, Matthew watched the two pretty girls leave, admiring the lime-green wings on Silvara’s backside as they flapped slightly.
“…Just out of curiosity, why did you do that?”
“Do what?” wondered the winged one.
“You totally hit on him! You were flirting with that guy!”
“So?” she snorted. “I’ve got that right, don’t I? So I like people with wings. It’s just that he had something in common with me, and I thought that maybe he’d like to have a talk. It’s not like I have the hots for him or anything--why, you wanna snuggle up to him?”
“I………” Stuck on words, Miichi shook her head and tried to get out of Silvara’s grasp. “I have no idea what you’re talking about! Besides, I just met him! I’m not a floozy who’d go and cozy up to every man I ever met!”
“Are you saying that I am?!”
“No, no! You’re not a floozy, either! I’m sorry!” Silvara smiled and ended up laughing softly before putting her arm across Miichi’s shoulders.
“Aww, Meesh, you are no fun at all. How in the world can I get a rise outta you when you never argue with a word I say? Eien and the boss are more fun to tease!”
“So you don’t like me?” Silvara smiled warmly, and slowly took Miichi’s hands in her own. She penetrated through the other girl’s thick sunglasses, glowing with love and serenity, her eyes shimmering with beautiful emotions.
“Miichi… I… I love you…”
“GAAAAACCCKKK!!!!” Poor Miichi lurched away and nearly fell against the wall, her eyes bugging out wide. Silvara just laughed.
“I’m kidding, okay? I was just teasing you again! Gawd, do you take everything so seriously?”
“No… I think that, if you were really serious, I might’ve argued with you just then…” Silvara snorted out a laugh and returned her arm across Miichi’s shoulders.
“Hmph! Maybe I should start hitting on you, if that’s what it’ll take to get you to argue with me…”
“Noooo thanks!!!”
Closing comments: None. None at all. Make up your own. Preview of next chapter: Things don’t remain secure, as the entire Demon’s Twenty executes a full-scale attack! Villains galore will ruin the scene, and it’ll take a few heroes, both likely and unlikely, to fight them back! But does the Angel Resistance stand a chance against Asuka and Bloodstorm?
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