THE SOUL OF SILENCE |
Episode 9: "" It was a rather warm day on Myce; the midday sun shining brightly upon Iria's home, but every now and then a gentle breeze would blow across the land, cooling this hot scene down. The skies were sprinkled lightly with puffy clouds here and there, floating back and forth in front of the sun's view. It was an over all nice day, however... ...the stillness was broken as Iria carefully walked around one corner of her house, her eyes slowly scanning the area. The baggy pants and sleeves of her pajama outfit blew and lapped in the slight breeze as she continued to scale the perimeter of her home. She told Bob that she was going out to look for Kazon, and she was doing just that, but he was nowhere in sight. However, finally she heard a loud grunting sound from around the next corner, her body immediately snapping back and hugged the wall. She crept over and peeked around the corner. ...there was a large regeneration bandage and a blue t-shirt laying on dusty ground and a few feet from it, an empty sheath of a katana. There was also another katana stashed away, still intact in its sheath, that was propped up against the hull of Kazon’s gray, one-seater Kreeper. Iria looked past the vehicle and was forced to squint a bit as brightness of the sun intensified. As her vision adjusted she saw the silhouette of a familiar figure... It was Kazon, standing in an offensive position with one of his katanas at hand. His lower body was decked out in his usual silverish, metallic alloy armor over his black body suit while it only came up to his waist. He wore nothing above his belt except his pair of black gloves, which were designed to give the best grip possible, especially for a sword. Iria slowly moved in closer to get a better look at what the Hunter was doing. Kazon brought the katana over his head and then swung the blade downwards, shifting his body and leaping into an air with a roundhouse kick of sorts. As Iria watched him go into a series of cuts with his sword, she came to the obvious conclusion that he was practicing....or, with the huge circular scar that he now had in his midsection, rather testing his own, new limits. Kazon let out a loud cry as he swung down one last time, so far that the blade dug into the ground. His teeth were grinding together and he was breathing rather heavily, beads of sweat rolling down his face. He was trying to find a way for him to block out the pain of the wound, while still performing his actions the best he could. From the looks of it, he had been pushing himself a bit hard before Iria made it outside...too hard. Iria took one deep breath before finally stepping out from her hiding place... "You sure seem to be doing better..." she said, Kazon quickly snapping to attention and looking in her direction. Iria stalked even closer. "How ya feeling...?" Kazon slowly looked away and hesitated before answering anything, keeping his fixed position. "I'm fine..." and then said nothing else. Iria stopped where she was and placed her hands on her hips and grinned in a teasing manner. "What? 'I'm fine'...? Is that all you can say to the person that saved your life? Don't I even get a ‘thank you‘...?" "...whatever..." He thought, standing up straight, looking back over to her. "What do you want...?" "Pushy..." she responded with a grin, she had pretty much come to expect such quirks from him. She glanced over to the sword propped against the sleek, gray Kreeper before looking back into the young man's eyes. "Forgive a girl for caring and interfering with your personal quiet time..." "Tch..." Kazon thought...remaining quiet as he finally stood up straight. There was a long and awkward silence that followed. Iria thought for a moment, keeping her eyes closely on Kazon. Then she flashed a subtle grin as she got an idea. "It might push the wrong buttons," she thought, "but it's worth a shot..." Kazon's brow arched slightly as he watched Iria kick off her sandals and move over to Kazon’s Kreeper. When she got there, she grabbed the katana Kazon had left propped against the hull. A shocked expression came over the young Hunter's face. "What are you doing...?!" He asked her, his tone rising a great deal. "Hmm..." Iria grinned, playing around with him for the time being. She acted as if she was examining the sheath of the sword. "Oh, nothing..." "Put it down...!" Kazon commanded. “I’m just lookin’, yanno,” Iria flashed an innocent smile towards him as she yanked the sword from the sheath. “It’s not all that big of a deal.” But it appearetly was to Kazon. His teeth began to grind together, his grip tightening on the sword in his own hands. It would seem, to Iria, that there was a deeper meaning to Kazon's weapons than what she had originally thought. "I said put it down!" Kazon yelled again, more urgent than before. Iria began to nonchalantly make her way closer to him, tossing the sheath aside in the process. "You seem so serious when it comes to these silly things. But hey, look on the bright side! At least I'm getting something out of you..." she giggled softly. "Your anger is kinda cute actually..." "What's she talking about...?! Just drop the damn sword!" Kazon thought to himself. "Tell you what, Kaz," Iria said as she stopped a few feet in front him, "how about you tell me everything I want to know in exchange for this 'precious' sword of yours...?" "Childish...I don't know if it's a compromise or blackmail..." he thought, then spoke aloud in an agitated, yet a softer tone than before. "How about I just take it from you...?" Iria chuckled softly. "You'd have to catch me first..." She grinned to herself, knowing her little setup she had planned was working to perfection. Kazon's eyes narrowed and darkened. "Trust me...that wouldn't be too hard..." "Really? You sound so sure of yourself." Iria said grinning, extending the katana towards him and pressing tip of the blade right under his chin. "...care to press your luck, Kaz?" Kazon lifted his head a little to escape the soft pressure of the blade, but kept a straight face and kept his eyes locked on hers. He was starting to figure out where this little game of hers was leading to... "C'mon, Kazon..." Iria said, "...no holding back. You win, you get your little sword back and I'll leave you alone. If I win, you tell me all I want to know," she smiled coyly. “You never did seem like the kind of guy that would back down from a fight, am I right...? Let's see how really good you are." She was playing her little game all right, but she did mean what she had just said. Kazon remain quiet, his eyes trained on hers. His gloved hand began to grip the scabbard of the katana tightly. They just stared at each other as a gust of wind came and brushed through the area. Kazon thought about the bullet wound he had received...this 'spar' that she had proposed would have him at a major disadvantage. As those deep green eyes dove into Iria's brownish orbs, Kazon came to one final conclusion.... ...and in the flash of an eye, Kazon lifted his sword quickly swatted Iria's away from his face, accepting her challenge. However, before Iria could congratulate herself for making him give in, Kaz was already on the attack. He twirled the katana in a circular motion in his gloved, right hand before taking it in both hands and slashing downward towards her. Iria, quick on her feet, sidestepped the attack and then swung her sword right towards Kazon's lower back. Kazon pivoted, turning and dodging just as blade was inches from his flesh, and then pouncing backwards away from her, landing in a posed position and ready to strike. Iria grinned a little as she settled her self into a position of her own. "I thought I told you not to hold back..." "...what about you?" Kazon responded. Iria laughed softly to herself, "...maybe I did just a little...but we're just getting started." Then after a brief pause, both Iria and Kaz charged each other again. Iria held her sword to her side with the point of the blade aiming right at Kaz. Kazon's eyes narrowed as he, to Iria's surprise, blatantly tossed his katana straight into the air and twirled out of the way before Iria could even touch him. Iria stopped dead in her tracks and looked around with a dumbfounded look on her face. "Wha--?!" She gave a quick glance around. "Where'd he--!?" She then looked up and saw that the sword Kazon had thrown in the air was coming down right over her head. She jumped back slightly as if to dodge it, but when she did, she jumped backright into the grasp of a muscular arm that grabbed and hooked on to Iria's left arm. It grasped so tightly that Iria let out a yelp in surprise and ended up dropping her sword. Then Iria caught a glance of another gloved hand reach out over her right shoulder, opposite to her entrapped arm, and it caught the katana that was falling from the sky with the blade in a fixed position, held right in front of Iria's throat. Iria couldn't help but to grin a little, despite her currently tangled situation. "Nice one, Kaz...Ouspi teach you that one?" Kazon's grip on her arm tightened a little more, Iria letting out a soft grunt. "What do you know about him....? Answer me...!" "Bob told us..." Iria went on. "You were his apprentice, right. We know more about you than you may think..." Kazon leaned his head closer; his tone still rather agitated. "I'd think by now you'd get the point! If you know so much then why the hell are you still trying to butt into my business when it's obvious I don't want you or anyone else in it....?! " Iria laughed softly as a bead of sweat rolled down the side of her face,"...no clue...” she was manipulating him perfectly. He was opening up, bursting with emotion right then and there. “Besides, I’m the one that’s supposed to be asking the questions...!” Then she gave him a swift elbow to the gut, around the area were Kazon's scar was. Kazon froze immediately as the breath was knocked out of him and his grip around her loosed, giving Iria a chance to break free. She ducked under his grasp and then swiftly shifted her body and swept Kazon's legs out from under him with one of her own, send Kazon in the air for a moment before falling flat on his back and kicking up a cloud of dust. Hitting a guy were he was previously hurt, it was a low trick...but, hey, there was no holding back. Iria remained in a crouched position as she reached over and grabbed her sword, starting to breath a little heavier and she lift an arm to quickly swipe away some sweat from her brow. Kazon lay on the ground with his eyes closed, cringing in pain from the blow that was so close to his bullet wound. As he slowly opened his eyes, he saw the tip of a blade pointed right between his eyes and Iria standing above him, with cocky grin on her face and her other hand on her hip, looking down on him. "...but I guess I'm just curious," she said with a smirk, finishing her earlier sentence. She tilted her head to the side a bit. It was all working according to her plan and she knew it. Even though he hadn't realized it yet, Kazon was slowly opening up. He was at least showing some emotion, like this frustration that was in his eyes from her constant nagging, rather than that blank stare he usually dealt out. "You're pretty good, Kaz," Iria went on. "but you're not gonna be able to beat me in your condition. So, if you can’t beat little ol’ Iria, what makes you think you can go off on your own and take on Zeiram, huh?" Kazon's voice still had a hint of pain in it. "You’re just gonna lecture me now...? Tying to teach me a lesson or something...?" "I suppose so. I might as well while I'm at it, right?" Iria shrugged and grinned. "Well, sometimes you just have to swallow your pride, eh? For instance," she moved the blade down under his chin, teasingly pressed the blade upwards and lifting his head slightly, "now, you have to give in and accept defeat from me. I'd hate to have to give another one of those on your other cheek, you know..." she said while motioning to the scar he had received four days before on his left cheek. Kazon's brow arched slightly, the pain finally subsiding a bit. "Is that so...?" He then, in the blink of an eye, Kaz moved his face out of the way as he kicked one foot in the air, right at the hand holding Iria's sword. The eventual impact knocked it out of her hand sent it flying in the direction of the house, landing a few feet away from the wall. She watched in surprise as it flew throught the airaway from her, and before Iria could regroup, Kazon had tripped her up the same way she had done him, sweeping her legs out from under her. Iria didn't even have time to think before Kazon had flipped up from the ground and onto his feet, and aimed his blade in the same position as she had, right in her face. Iria's dark, brown eyes gazed up to Kazon and she saw that she was in the exact same position he was in just seconds ago. She couldn't help but to smile as she sighed softly. "You amaze me sometimes..." Kazon just kept her pinned down for a moment, not moving an inch and continually staring down on her coldly. "This is pointless..." he thought. "I'm not going to give in, she won't shut up...so I'm ending this now..." He moved the blade away from her face and turned away from her, walking slowly towards the house. Iria pushed her upper body up, propping herself back on her arms, "Wha--? Where are you going...?!" He bent over and picked up one of the sheathes and slid the curved blade into it, not saying a word. Iria watched him as he walked over and also took the sword she had been using and sheathed it as well, holding them both under his left arm, leaving the other gloved hand to carefully grasp the aching scar across his abdomen. "What the--!? What are you doing?!" Iria shouted furiously. "This isn't over yet! I never said I'd given up! Hell, I was about to beat you...!!" "No you weren't..." Kazon called back to her in a very nonchalant fashion but loud enough for her to hear him, not even glancing back to her. He just continued to make his way around the house and over to the elevator... Iria snarled at him as she made a fist and punched the dusty ground under her. "You jerk..!!!" ...a few floors above all the action, Fujikuro and Kei were watch the events unfold through the large window in the living room, clueless expression on their faces. Finally, eventually, they looked at each other and shrugged in confusion. "So whaddya think...?" Kei asked. "I dunno, kid..." Fujikuro said as he scratched his chin while he pondered on a few things. "If you ask me, I think she either has some kinda plan or she's just plain nuts..." "Yeah...well..." Kei thought for a moment. "Hey! I got it! If she does have a plan, why don't we make one too...!?" she said, drawing a weird look from Fujikuro. "What do you mean by that?" Bob asked curiously. "C'mon!" Kei said excitedly. "I'll fill ya in...!" ****** The sun began to slowly set as night approached. Kazon had bathed again and changed into his full black, form-fitting bodysuit, his legs incased with it's usual armaments. He didn't have any gloves or any armor whatsoever above his waist. He just had the sleeves rolled up to his biceps and his Hunter's necklace stung around his neck. For a guy as 'serious' as Kazon, it would assume that this form of attire was 'casual'. He had changed before the troop had eaten dinner a few minutes earlier. He didn't eat much however...just a bowl of rice and a two glasses of water. Fujikuro even decided to poke fun at his eating habits a few times, but usually was on the receiving end of an elbow to the side or a stomp on the foot from Iria. Nevertheless, he kept his cold exterior up the entire time and didn't say one word at the table. Now, he was sitting in a slouched fashion on the living room alone watching the news reports on the television about the Bachnia Center's current activities. That's all he could do, was watch and wait...no matter how much he didn't want to believe it, Iria and Fujikuro were right. He was in no condition to fight no matter how he longed to...and with the thought that maybe, just maybe, Kross Tsutomegi was responsible for the death of his instructor only amplified this urge for a fight. But while he was sitting there, staring idly at the screen, he began to think of what Fujikuro had said to him earlier that day. Perhaps...he did indeed owe something to Iria, for saving his life and giving him a place to stay for a while. However, he still had something that was holding him back....he just couldn’t trust anyone. Suddenly, the door to her room slid open, and Iria walked out into the living room, towel-drying her reddish-brown hair. She was wearing a similar, blue and white pajama outfit that she had worn before, although this one was freshly clean, as opposed to the one she had dirtied during her 'sparring sessions' with Kaz earlier. She glanced over to Kazon from the corner of her eye as she walked over to get bet look at the television. On it, were two people, both older men, one a Tedan Tippedai executive advisor and the other from Gounbak Security, arguing over whether or not armed soldiers should be sent into the Bachnia Center... Iria scoffed and shook her head as she glanced over to Kazon, who hadn't made a peep or even looked away from the television since she had walked in. She stood there for a few seconds before making her second bold move of the day: She walked over to the couch and plopped down right beside the silent Hunter. Sure enough, it got his attention. Those chilling eyes of his glanced over to her, but she just shrugged it off and acted normally. "Where is everyone...?" Iria asked casually. Kazon slowly looked away, back to the television before responding. "Fujikuro and Kei said they had to leave suddenly..." "Did they say why...?" "No..." Iria glanced over to the computer screen, not seeing it's usual twirling AI image. "What about Bob? What's he up to?" "...he said he had a few things to take care of and logged off." Kazon responded quietly. "Oh..." There was a long silence that followed. Iria kept her eyes on the young man while watched the television with the most uncertain look on her face. They were alone, probably the best way for them to be so that Iria could maybe get information out of him, but she didn't think she had the guts to confront him about it twice in the same day. Finally, she worked up the nerve and she positioned herself on the couch to where she faced Kaz. "...can I ask you something?" "What now...?" Kazon thought as he let out a soft sigh. He kept his gaze forward as he spoke aloud. "You know, you didn't win out there..." "So...?" Iria responded, her eyes casting a downward stare. "That's just your opinion...all I’m trying to do is just learn a little bit more about you, get a better understanding of you. It's called a 'friendly conversation', Kaz. It's what two people do when they’re alone with nothing else do..." "Tch...whatever...go find something to do then..." he muttered under his breath as he picked up the remote to the television and switched it off. He tossed the remote back onto the coffee table before he pushed himself up from the couch and began to walk towards the door without another word. All the while Iria's face turned red with frustration, that same look she gave him when they first met. She had had it with this attitude of his. "Look here, Mr. Personality...." she said in a stern voice, thrusting herself up from the couch. "I've had enough of this, and you!" Kazon immediately stopped keeping his back turned to her. Iria took a deep breath before continuing. "We have done nothing to you. Nothing to piss you off and have nothing but help you. Fujikuro, Kei...me...we're all just trying to figure out something about you so we can understand you better. And that one thing we want to know is why you are the way you are; this cold, bitter asshole that won't listen to anyone other than himself....but no, that's too much for you now isn't it?!" Her eyes narrowed as she continued on. "So what if you've got problems, we all do, but you're just a coward that's running away from them...!" Kazon's eyes narrowed slightly, but kept them looking forward. He wanted her to shut up, but there was no way of that happening...but she was right. Those words ran through his head again... “Run away....it’s what you’re good at...” His silence was unnerving to Iria as he fist clenched together. "Tell me what happened, now! Four years ago, ten years ago, five minutes ago...it doesn't matter! Tell me what makes you this horrible person...! Forget about others! I want to know the side of you that you're keeping from everyone!" Kazon said nothing in return to Iria's pleading. He just stood there with his back turned, motionless. Iria let out the most agitated sigh as she gave up altogether. "You know what? You really are a jerk...if you can't do the slightest thing as to open up to somebody, then you're not worth it. Bob was wrong about you. Sure, you're a great Hunter...but you're a low-level person, Kazon..." She turned to make her way to the kitchen, her eyes narrowed and her teeth grinding together, literally fuming. She can't believe what she had just said, but, while it was a bit harsh, she felt it need to be said. However, as she turned to corner, something snapped suddenly in Kazon's mind and his soft voice called her back... "...Ouspi and I were assigned to a remote, dark planet outside of the Taowajan System..." he said quietly and abruptly, drawing a wide-eyed Iria back into the living room, surprised by this sudden, radical change. "The contract was straight from Tedan Tippedai, so Ouspi thought we could trust them. I was still an apprentice up for early licensing at the time, but while we were there, the original Zeiram attacked me while we were separated. I tried to fight it, but I ended up out cold. The rain finally woke me up the next morning...and I found Ouspi lying face down in the mud...dead..." Iria slowly began to make her way closer to him, this shift in his attitude might have been sudden, but she was going to take full advantage of it nonetheless. "H-how'd he die...Zeiram...?" "No..." Kazon said, his eyes closing tightly, remembering the painful memories, "he was shot...twice, but not by Zeiram." "Then who...?" There was a long pause before Kazon responded as visions of that dream he had replayed through his mind. "....Kross...." Iria’s eyes widened as she gasped softly. "The Vice-president?! Are you sure...!?" Kazon solemnly shook his head. "I'm not entirely sure, but it's a good possibility....but ever since then, on that rainy day...I've lost all trust in everyone. I thought we could trust Tedan Tippedai, but now I know that we were just pawns in the opening stages of the Zeiram Project...and pawns in life. Nothing means anything to me anymore because I’ve grown to trust no one..." "Is that why you shut yourself out from everyone...? Just a lack of trust?" Iria asked, only a few feet behind him. Kazon only nodded in return. "Oh...but is that all? Don't get me wrong...but just one thing like that, I'd understand your untrusting ways, but you should still be able to be social able, yanno? There has to be something else that you're not telling me....what about your parents? Bob said that you're father was 'missing'..." "'Missing'...?" Kazon scoffed in disgust, "if that's what you want to call it...it's too long of a story." Iria came even closer and reach around the front his body, taking one of his hands gently and reassuringly, "Well...I have the time. Please tell me Kaz..." Kazon's cold green eyes glanced down to his hand, which was embraced by hers, then he looked over his shoulder to her, turning slightly to face her. Iria looked him square in the face, seeing this soft, yet pained expression in his eyes, like he was still unsure of the situation. Iria smiled to herself and also to him as well...Kazon was showing emotion, emotion speaking itself through his eyes. Her eyes even told a different story to Kazon when gazed into them, it was if they had this soothing effect on him, a kind of reassurance... "It might not mean much to you..." Iria said quietly, "but you can trust me..." Without another word she gently tugged on his arm and pulled him back to the couch. She sat down first, while Kazon hesitated at first, but also sat down while Iria spoke again. "Now, what happened to you?" Kazon took a deep breath before going on with his story. "...My mother died when I was very young, nearly immediately after I was born. I never even knew her name. As for my father, Bob was right in a sense, but not in the sense of what you might be taking it. My father wasn't the world's greatest man...in fact, he was a low-life. He blamed me for the death of his wife and, for the most part, took out that physical aggression on me....so he wasn't much to look up too. Finally, I guess he finally broke, and decided that I wasn't his 'obligation' anymore. I was still young, I had no idea of what was going on...but he left me...." "From the sounds of the guy, it as if it would be a blessing..." Iria said quietly. "Far from it..." Kaz went on. "I roamed the streets for what seemed like the longest time until I was finally picked up by the orphanage, and that's all I was at the time...a dirty little orphan with no place to call home. I hated it there...but I stayed there for a few years...then I met--" he stopped himself for a moment. "...'someone' who introduced me to Ouspi...who took me in as his apprentice." "'Someone...?" Iria's brow arched slightly while her lips curled into a small smirk. "It was my brother wasn't it...?" Kazon glanced over to her from the corner of his eye. "How'd you know...?" "Because you're a terrible liar..." Kazon looked away from her again. "In any case...after the incident four years ago, I was blacklisted and I haven't been back here on Myce since then until lately. Tedan Tippedai acted as if the whole thing never happened..." "Trust me, I know what it's like..." she said, remembering the events of the Karma scandal just one year ago. "But.. that still doesn't answer my question. All this you're telling me doesn't completely answer as to why you don’t trust people, which is what I really want to know. It seems like you're trying to avoid answering it, or you're leaving something out--..." He cut her off as he snapped that icy stare of his right in her direction... "You have no idea what it's like...!" "Wha--?!" Iria gasped again at yet another sudden change. Kazon was like a loose cannon it seemed... "You don't know what's like to live from day to day wandering the streets with nowhere to go and the people around you won't even look twice at you!" Kazon said in a rather furious tone, as if talking about it all seemed to anger him even more. "You don't know what it's like to have to sit there and take a beating from the only person that you have to look up to, then watch him walk away in the end as if you were nothing to him!" Iria watched on in suppressed fear as he stood up from the couch and looked down to her with his eyes narrowed, but she still tried to keep a straight face. "You want to know why I'm like this?!" Kazon yelled, "What I hate more than anything else in the world is my own past. I trust no one because I know I'll get screwed in the end! I push myself away from you and everyone else because things like 'friendship' and 'loyalty' mean nothing to me anymore." Iria just looked him in the eye...but was then startled to see a few droplets of clear liquid slowly roll down his cheek...she looked into his eyes and then realized it: it was his tears...and she was speechless at the sight of them. He turned and made his way over to the console of the supercomputer. "Everything was taken from me! Ouspi, my parents, everything!" He was beginning to lose it, those few tears had turned into streams. His voice even began to grow shaky. "Now look at me! I'm nothing more than a lost soul hell-bent on revenge for everything that has gone on in my past....and once I thought I could run from it, once I thought I was away from it all for good, my past comes back to haunt me!" Iria knew that he was referring to Zeiram and Kross... Kazon turned to look Iria right in the eyes from across the room "And now, I'm nothing...! I don't want to share my past and thoughts with anyone, I just want to forget about them myself!" and as a way to accent the 'myself', one of his clenched fist quickly snapped back and slammed into one of the control panels, causing a startled Iria to jump a little. ...by now, he had lost it. He stood there with his fist pressed against the console, trying to fight back the tears. But he couldn't help but to give in, and be began to weep fully. His knees bagan to buckle, causing the young Hunter to sink down to the ground. He just sat there weeping on the floor with his knees pulled up to his chest and he kept his face buried in his arms, hidden from Iria's view. Twenty-one years of pain and frustration...coming to a stiff boil. Iria watched him with a saddened look in her eyes, she slowly stood up and carefully made her way over to his spot on the floor. She lowered herself down beside him, sitting in nearly the same position as he was, but afraid to do anything else....that he might react the wrong way. She just sat there watching him closely, worried, yet strangely relieved. In a matter of minutes, he went from the anti-social, duty-bearing Hunter that he was to this newer, emotional and passionate person that he chose to hide. She took every one of his words that he had just told her to heart, thinking, no...'knowing' that for him to tell her such things, he had to have trusted her, even if only a litte bit. It...just meant a lot to her for some reason... "...there have been times in my life when I've searched for meaning. The meaning of why I do what I do...the meaning of the paths I've chosen...even the meaning of my own existence..." Kazon finally said, his face still hidden. "But...every time...in the end, there's nothing for me to look back on or to look forward too. Only a nightmarish past that haunts my very soul every second of the day...and an even more hellish future that I've yet to see...that I'm afraid to see. In the end....there is nothing. Nothing but an insatiable rage that I can’t make myself show anyone, that I keep locked up inside, that pulls at my soul. It’s a lack of self control that confuses what is real...” As she listened to his words, Iria’s own tears began to gently roll down her cheeks. She couldn't believe what she was hearing... "Kaz..." She said finally in a soft voice to gain his attention as she moved in closer to him, her body nearly touching his. She slowly lifted one hand to the side of his head, lifting up gently as if trying to uncover his face from it's hidden position...to where she could see it. He let her do as she pleased, and went along with it as she tilted his head to where she could see his saddened, almost puppy dog-like eyes. His eyes told her that it was as if he really was lost in the world, and with even more tears swelling up in them, threatening to pour over as the others before them did... "I do know what it's like to lose someone you love..." she said very quietly, almost in a whisper, as another tear creeping down her own cheek. She gently wiped his tears away from his tanned skin as she leaned in even closer to him inches from his face. "...but you do have someone to help you through it..." Without even thinking, Iria’s eyes closely as she pressed her lips to his very gently. Almost instinctively, Kazon closed his eyes as well and tilted his head slightly to the side, even if he was blushing slightly. This only lasted for a few moments, as they both slowly parted from the kiss moments later. Iria and Kazon both opened their eyes, gazing right at each other. ****** Outside, hovering next to the large window and obviously out of the two’s view, Fujikuro sat at the helm of his Dempadan with a sly grin on his face. Kei was looking over his shoulder, beaming and giggling. Fujikuro patted the girl on the top of her head in a teasing manner, as Kei looked at him with a grin of her own. Fujikuro winked and signaled that it was time for them to break in on them, just as they had planned... Kei nodded and Fujikuro took the controls, lowering the umbrella-like flying machine as quietly as possible. ****** Iria saw this redness of his cheeks and couldn't help but to giggle softly as she wiped the tears from her face with her sleeve. Kazon...still... stared, although he did have a different look on his face, more of a confused, dumbfounded look. "Umm..." Iria said as she averting her eyes, trying to find the right words afterwards, her hands falling in her lap. But neither of them said anything, they just sat there in silence....that is, until they both heard an unseal rustling from the bottom of the elevator. They turned back and looked at it as they heard the sounds of voices yelling at each other... "Me first brat!" "No way...!" The elevator lifted the arguing Fujikuro and Kei into the living room. The two broke from their screaming and glanced over to the pair sitting on the floor and the both immediately froze with these huge, goofy grins on their faces. "Where have you two been...?" Iria asked, a little happy that they showed when they did, to break the tension of the moment, but she was also saddened that the moment was cut short... "Umm..." Fujikuro mumbled as he looked over to Kei with a nervous look on his face. Meanwhile Kazon lowered his gaze and then quietly and quickly snuck away into Fujikuro's room, which he was let to use freely as his own, despite Bob having to agrue with Fujikuro himself over it, alone. His hand was rubbing away the drying tears from his face with his hand. "We were just out testing a few new parts on the Dempadan...."Kei waved it off like it was no big deal. "We were...?" Fujikuro asked, looking to Iria, before looking back to Kei. "OH! Yeah! We were! We were testing the new...anti-gravity... propulsion...err--thingy-mah-jigger...!" Kei's hand smacked her own face and let out a sigh, "You're hopeless..." Iria smiled a little as she watched their antics, "Oh, well me and--" she stopped herself as she began to motion towards Kazon...but he wasn't to where to be found. She looked around a bit. "Wha--...? Where he go...?!" Fujikuro muttered under his breath to where Iria couldn‘t hear him, "...after that lip-lock you put on him, I'm surprised he even--" but he was sharply cut off as Kei gave his foot one good stomp to shut him up. Iria's gaze dropped down to the floor with a somewhat distraught look upon her face, wondering if...maybe that wasn't the right thing to do. Fujikuro's brow arched slightly as she saw this expression she displayed... "She really does have something on this guy...." he thought to himself. The room fell into an unsettling silence...times were changing... ***** "Any new reports on the situation...?!" A commander said, wearing a uniform of Gounbak officer and barking a few orders into his radio transceiver. "Repeat: Bachnia ground troops, are there any new reports on the situation?!" The commander was standing behind a makeshift bunker, made up of sand-bags and Kajakunban leaves with his radio at hand, a few troops were stationed around him, a few surrounding a large automatic, machine gun-like weapon while others stood with binoculars, gazing across the open land before them. At the field's end, stood the Bachnia Center, teeming with new life created by the BETA-Zeiram Unit that surrounded the exterior... "Negative, HQ..." a staticy voice called back over the radio from within the center. "The halls of floors 1-3 are empty with no sign of any hostiles..." One young soldier looked over the commander with a blank expression. "Do you really think this is a good idea, sir? Administration sending those soldiers in without even knowing what's in there?" "That's exactly why they're going in there," the commander responded. "With the split in Tedan Tippedai imminent, this is Administration's last option. It may not be the best of ideas, but the only way we can figure out what's going on in there..." "Sir..." the soldier nodded, if not a bit distrait in his tone. The commander spoke into this radio once again. "Squads 3 and 4, send reports back immediately following your investigation of the basement floors. Squads 1 and 2, R.T.B. (Return To Base) once you've checked the top levels of the building." "Yes sir," the staticy voice called back. "Will report back as soon as--" suddenly, as loud banging sound was heard in the background. "Huh?! What the--?! Holy--" the frequency was then cut into a static daze. "Squad 1?!" the commander shouted. "Squad 1, respond! What happened!" Another transfer came in from a different frequency, gunfire could be heard in the background now, along with a haunting shrieking noise from many sources. "HQ, this is Squad 2! Squad 1 is taking fire! Repeat: Hostiles sighted, Zeiramoid-like creatures are in the building!!" there was a brief silence. "I don't believe it... its with them!!" "What?!" the commander yelled again. "It's Zei--!!" but the soldier cut away quickly and over the radio...the only thing was heard was a lone soldier, yelling 'it’s coming for us', amidst the gunfire and screaming, in such a fearful, terrible tone...then this frequency too was cut into static. The bewildered troops slowly shifted their gazes to the commander who lowered his radio from his face, dropping it on the ground once it reached his side. There was a long and eerie silence as he looked on the hellish building. before he spoke softly... "Not this...not again..." *********************** Author's Notes: BTW, I had to change the rating of this story from R to PG-13 because some genius at the FF.Net offices thought it would be a great idea to only show the G-PG-13 stories once you click on a link to a category, making it extremely easy to look over the more, shall we say, ‘colorful’ stories (Hell, I even looked over my own story once.) Don’t worry, PG-13 movies are just as bad content-wise as R rated movies and there are really no purpose for it, so nothing will change with that in mind.
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