The room was dark as the brown haired figure waited, eyes closed and seemingly at peace with the world. Black sheathed her from head to toe, black pants, shirt, boots and gloves, even a mask covering her face. Without moving she softly ordered, "Begin." Nancy Mukahari, or at least a very good copy, raced from the darkness, machine gun blazing, but the woman disappeared. The purple haired woman looked around wildly only to stiffen as the shuriken stabbed into her body without warning. She scrambled to pull free the blades but the poison was too powerful, her body going sluggish then finally still. Not waiting for a signal Gennai Hiraga raced forward, the energy blade glowing in his hands. Black hair tied back he moved gracefully, attacking without warning but the lady was too fast for him. Stepping forward unexpectedly she jabbed into his throat, blood spraying even as the warrior dropped to the ground, choking. A swift strike into his electrical backpack then leaping away and the room was lit up with an violent explosion. A crash and the grasshopper tore through the wall, the older man piloting it looking faintly amused. Insect pincers snapped shut where she had been standing but she rolled clear, tossing a wave of throwing blades and shedding green blood onto the floor. Fabre cried out angrily only to be cut off as a throwing star plunged right into his eye. His body split like a cocoon, a different form emerging but she was ready, striking him down again and again. Mr. Sinister emerged from the shadows, white skin almost glowing in the darkness as he clapped his hands softly. "Are you satisfied?" he asked curiously, eyes glowing a faint red. The woman pulled her mask off, her brown hair falling around her shoulders as the clone of Katherine Pryde smiled in unholy satisfaction. "This shell may very well do," the martial artist known as 'Ogun finally said. "I do wish you hadn't had to kill the three clones," Mr. Sinister frowned slightly, "it takes so long to grow new ones." "I needed a real test," 'Ogun replied, "to be sure what I could and couldn't do." She smiled coldly, "And I think I'm ready for the task ahead of me." Mr. Sinister smiled, but there was nothing at all pleasant in the expression. "To acquire the remaining genetic information the Library holds," he purred, "and to kill Gentleman." In another part of the city Kitty Pryde yawned tiredly, stretching out on the lumpy couch as the morning sun came in the windows of Yomiko Readman's book strewn apartment. Last night had been a busy one, shaking down informants from both Kitty and Drake's contacts, but they hadn't made much more progress on tracking the Ijin. "So you're still here?" the faintly amused voice asked. Looking over the back of the couch Kitty saw Nenene Sumerigawa quietly making her way through the piles of books that nearly littered the room. She set down a bag lunch with a post-it note on it reminding Yomiko to eat, then smiled at Kitty wryly. The younger girl had intelligence in those eyes, along with a bit of understandable wariness. "Good morning," Kitty answered quietly, aware that Yomiko was still sleeping. She got up, glad that the oversized T-shirt she had on as a nightie covered everything, and followed the girl out onto the roof. It was a cloudy day, but still comfortable enough for her to be partially undressed. "Morning," Nenene looked at her with a wry smile. "You're a morning person," she noted, "unlike Yomiko-sensei." Kitty chuckled to herself softly in agreement. Yomiko really didn't handle mornings very well, usually needing several minutes just to get her brain working properly, not to mention dealing with other people. Staying here the past few days Kitty had quickly learned just to leave Yomiko alone until she finished waking up. "I suppose so," Kitty conceded, "though it looks like you have that quality, too." Nenene shook her head, "Not exactly, I just make sure to finish waking up before I come over here to Yomiko's." "Yomiko's a lucky woman to have someone like you around to help take care of her," Kitty said honestly. Nenene actually blushed faintly, looking out over the city around them. "And what do you think of Yomiko?" she asked softly. Kitty felt her cheeks color faintly and had to fight to control her emotions. "I like her a lot," she conceded, "I think we could become good friends." "That's not what I meant," Nenene gave her a scolding look. 'I didn't think that would work,' Kitty thought wryly. "I'm not in love with her, if that's what you're asking," she said firmly. "Good," Nenene murmured. 'But I could get there,' Kitty added silently, 'very, very easily.' "Why do I seem to find you two out here all the time?" Yomiko asked. They turned around to see her blinking at them owlishly, still looking half asleep. She absent-mindedly clutched one of her many books in her hand, oddly reminding Kitty of someone holding a teddy bear. "Because we wanted to talk and were trying not to wake you," Kitty said with a fond smile, wondering if Yomiko realized how cute she looked in her rumpled dress, bits of her hair standing up from how she had slept. "Ah," Yomiko nodded, swaying slightly. Nenene took charge almost automatically, stepping forward to take Yomiko's arm. "Come on Sensei," she said as she led the older woman inside, "let's get you dressed." "Right," Yomiko said with sleepy good-naturedness. Kitty had to smile as she looked out over the rooftops, trying not to indicate that she knew they were being watched. The person was based on a rooftop quite a few buildings away, and as far as Kitty could tell they were professional, using the building's structures to stay out of direct line of sight. If there hadn't been a flash of light off glass, she didn't think she would have spotted them. 'So are they Ijin,' Kitty wondered, 'or from one of the intelligence agencies? Or even a representative of the Library, keeping an eye on Yomiko and I?' "Kitty-san," Nenene called out from inside a few moments later, "tea's on." "Coming," Kitty answered as she turned to walk inside, making a mental note to tell the Library about the surveillance, just in case. Nenene had sat Yomiko sitting down on the book cluttered bed, a cup of tea in front of her while a similar cup waited for Kitty by the couch. "Kitty-san," a much more wakeful Yomiko beamed, "did you want to get changed?" "Nah," Kitty sat on the couch, grabbing a pair of hastily discarded pants and swiftly pulling them on. "So what's on the schedule for today?" she asked. "I have a substitute teaching job scheduled," Yomiko answered her apologetically, "so I guess you're on your own." "Then I guess I'll check in with our friends," Kitty took a drink of her tea, "and see if I ca find something to read at the library." Nenene gave Yomiko a fond look as she wryly remarked, "I hope you're not into books as much as sensei is." Kitty had to smile, "I don't think anyone is into books as much as Yomiko is." "Hey!" Yomiko protested cutely. Out on the rooftops two figures watched the apartment, using the shadows and the fixtures on the roof to conceal their presence. Amelia frowned, brown hair falling into her matching eyes as she said, "I'm beginning to wonder if following them is a waste of time." Yukio-cat smiled, her black fur giving her a sleek kind of beauty, "Patience, I still think this is our best chance to find the Library." She looked over at Amelia thoughtfully, "You seem somewhat more skittish, today." Amelia's face was grim as she sighed, "You know what 'Ogun has done?" Something flickered in Yukio-cat's eyes, a flash of something like fear. "Yes," she said coldly. "I know that we're just clones," Amelia said to her seriously, "and that we're disposable, but still..." The tall woman shook her head, "Our fellows shouldn't have to been slaughtered merely for 'Ogun's practice." "We serve as needed," Yukio said seriously. She looked at Amelia curiously, "And what do you think you could do about it, anyway?" "I don't know," Amelia answered honestly, her pilot's gear flapping gently in the breeze, "but I'm beginning to think we should at least do something."
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