The first white-hot prickle of pain she had received had been nothing more than a slight warning. The second made her double over, clutching her head in pain. She shuddered, her breath coming out in ragged, uneven gasps. Sweat trickled down her forehead and dripped down to the carpet below. She whimpered softly, and then mercifully collapsed, her breathing still quick and erratic. ~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~ "Give me Dr. Tomoe, immediately." The voice was deadly calm, and the secretary fidgeted slightly under the gaze of the woman in front of her. "He...he’s in the gardens, ma’am, the young woman stammered. The woman in front of her nodded and walked off, her heels clicking against the floors. When the sound faded, the secretary slumped slightly, visibly relaxing. "That woman gets scarier every time I see her." ~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~ "Mitsuki? Wake up." Mitsuki groaned, holding her head and whimpering softly. Minako frowned a little. "Are you alright? I know Meiou-san grilled you yesterday, but the interview couldn’t have been that bad, right? "No...my head...hurts so much..." Minako gently pulled Mitsuki’s hands from her head and stared down at her. "You look a little green...you might be sick." Mitsuki opened her eyes slowly, wincing slightly when light invaded her pupils. "That’s impossible..." "How is it impossible?" Minako asked, cocking her head a little. Mitsuki closed her eyes again, taking in deep breaths, and Minako felt her forehead. "You’re clammy...yep, definitely sick. I hope I don’t have to fill in for Usagi again, because I have to stay here with you." She helped the girl up and cradled her, moving from the couch and gently leading her away from it. She noted that Mitsuki could hardly move her legs. "You....your job...I will be fine." "I’m practically carrying you, and you’re telling me to go to work? Besides, taking care of you is probably going to be more interesting than getting coffee for His Majesty. If Usagi decides to bail today, then it can’t be helped." "No...you don’t understand....you can’t stay here." The device...inside. They’ll find me... "And why not? It’s my house." Mitsuki sighed a little. "I suppose you’re right..." If anyone comes, I’ll fight them. ~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~ "Is the tracker working?" "How am I supposed to know? It’s in her head, you twit." Ririko gave Kazuki an evil look and crossed her arms. "No need to insult me!" Kazuki responded by narrowing her eyes and turning away from the smaller girl. "She should be close though. It seems to be responding." "What level is it on? And what exactly does it do?" Ririko asked curiously, looking over Kazuki’s shoulder to stare at the tiny device on her hand. "Level 3. What the device does is give the subject tiny shocks of pain. The other subjects, i.e., you and I, should be able to pick up on the pain and find the lost subject. However, even though I am sensing something very faint, it doesn’t seem to be enough to follow, so I’ll have to increase the level." Ririko looked concerned, and bit her lip. "Won’t that really hurt her?" Kazuki stared at her coolly. "That is the point." Ririko shuffled slightly, shaking her head. "...Can it kill her?" Kazuki shrugged her shoulders, and pushed a few buttons on the device. "Well, I doubt it will. But if it does, it’s not our fault." "Kage!" ~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~ Minako had just settled Mitsuki in her bed, frowning when she heard an occasional whimper of pain from the girl. However, when she had suggested a doctor, Mitsuki had refused so vehemently that Minako quickly dropped the subject. Now Minako sat on the edge of her bed, turning around to check whenever she heard a slight noise from Mitsuki. Poor thing...I wonder what’s wrong?, she thought, spinning around quickly when she heard a strangled cry from behind her. "Mitsuki?" Mitsuki stumbled out of the bed, clutching her head. "My...pain..." Minako cocked her head to one side, gazing curiously at the other girl. "What?" Mitsuki ignored her, and forced herself to stand, still gripping her head. Her eyes were wide and unfocused, and she wavered uneasily on her feet. Minako walked over to her slowly, looking a little worried. "You should get back into bed..." Mitsuki shook her head so hard that her teeth rattled, which caused her another excruciating amount of pain. "No!" she cried out, gripping her head so tightly that her knuckles turned white. Minako took a step back from the girl. "Whoa, ok. Um...I’ll leave you alone then..." "No...drive." "What?" "Drive...away from here." Mitsuki whispered. Her vision was beginning to double, and she doubted she could keep consciousness for much longer. "Alright..." Minako mumbled under her breath, walking over to Mitsuki and helping her move. ~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~ "Professor Tomoe." Tomoe glanced up and blanched slightly when he saw who was addressing him. "Ahh...Ms. Hino...you’ve come a little early." The young woman frowned, her violet eyes narrowing. "Have the subjects completed the tests? They should be ready by now, shouldn’t they?" There was a slight edge to her voice, and Tomoe scratched his head, looking and feeling like a small child being reprimanded by his mother. "I’m...afraid we’ve lost a subject, Ms. Hino." He saw a barely audible tic appear above the woman’s right eyelid. "Lost...?" she all but hissed, straightening up to her full height. Even though she was almost a head shorter than the Professor, and far younger, she still carried an air of authority that almost frightened Tomoe. "You lost one?" she continued, her voice rising. "and which one did you lose? That rogue...what was her product number again? Was it her?" Tomoe shook his head, standing up and shaking the dirt from his pants. "It wasn’t Kage. In fact, it was Hikari." "Hikari...? The white-haired one?" "Yes. Kage and Hi are searching for her. She couldn’t have gotten far, but just in case, I’ve given Kage permission to activate the tracker located within Hikari’s internal systems." "Hmm...well..." the young woman looked thoughtful for a moment, and then turned on her heel. "Tomoe, you have exactly one month to gather all of the prototypes....I trust you will be punctual." Tomoe sighed, looking down at his feet. "What exactly do you plan to do with them? They aren’t toys you know; they’re programmed to have emotions and thoughts." "I’m not sure myself...I’m only an agent, after all. I’m sure they’ll be returned to you in perfect condition. The company only gives me orders, and I’m not paid to ask questions." "Indeed..." Tomoe muttered, watching the woman walk away. ~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~ Minako had no idea how long she had been driving away from her apartment, but she noticed that Mitsuki’s breathing became easier the further they got away. Eventually, they made it to the outskirts of the city, and Minako stopped her car, helping Mitsuki climb up on the roof of the vehicle. She started a little when the girl snuggled closer to her, shivering a little. "I’m cold, Minako-comforter," she whispered quietly, sounding very much like a small child. Minako sighed and took off her jacket, putting it on Mitsuki’s shoulders. "You ok now?" Minako whispered, staring out into the distance. The sun had begun to set, and even from her location, she could see light glint off the towering metal skyscrapers of the city. "Yes...thank you for your concern," Mitsuki said, rubbing her temples. "Why’d you want me to drive away?" Minako asked, staring over at the white-haired girl. "Look to the sky." Minako blinked. "What does that have to do with anything?" "The sunset...it burns more brightly here, don’t you think?" "And...you brought me here just for that?" "I needed...I wanted to share the sunset with you." Minako, for once, was speechless. ~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~ Kazuki cursed under her breath and threw the tracking device on the ground, crushing it under her boot. "I lost the signal." "So you destroyed the tracker?" Ririko quipped, shrinking back a little when Kazuki glared at her. "It’s useless. He’ll have to make another." Ririko crossed her arms, looking annoyed. "We’re going to get in trouble..." she muttered. "What does it matter?" Kazuki growled, stalking off to the complex. Ririko scoffed and rolled her eyes. "Hmph. Moody fool."
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