Cowboy Bebop Fan Fiction / Trigun Fan Fiction ❯ Cowboy Bebop Meets Trigun ❯ The Transfer ( Chapter 15 )

Disclaimer: I wish...

 

A/N: Well, I am officially done with the hell known as Driver's Ed, except for the driving part. (Note: It IS hell.) Anyway, to celebrate this momentous occasion, I have decided to post Chapter 15, which is mostly kind of a filler chapter, but every great story needs fillers, right? On the other hand, I am VERY PO'd at Fanfiction.net for removing a story I wrote. Apparently, it broke the rules. Hmph!

 

 

Chapter 15: The Transfer

 

Spike was lying down on the couch, his eyes closed. It had been a few days since Nightingale had given the Bebop crew the options to stay or follow. Naturally, they had chosen follow. However, Spike wasn't thinking about how Nightingale had appeared out of nowhere, a long lost servant to a century-old organization. No, that wasn't what was preoccupying him. Spike was preoccupied by what she had said regarding “others” who were looking for the Bebop crew, one of them in particular.

When Spike had first heard that, he thought long and hard about what it could mean. His final conclusion was that Nightingale had been referring to the Red Dragon Syndicate. Spike had no proof of this, but he had a feeling that it was true. She had said that the “others” were searching for one of them in particular. Knowing Vicious, that one person would be Spike. Also, since the syndicate already knew about GENE, it would make sense that its leader, Vicious, would stop at nothing to control it, especially if GENE was able to mass-produce an army with attributes unique to Vash and Knives.

Spike frowned. Now there was something worth worrying about. He hoped things weren't going to get too out of hand. Of course, it wasn't like things hadn't already gotten out of hand. Spike, Faye, Jet, and Ed (though not Ed so much) had all set out on a simple mission to recover the largest bounty they had ever seen. Now, however, they were involved in some sort of ancient mess that they didn't have any clue about. That should qualify as pretty damn out of hand.

“Hey.” It was Wolfwood.

“Yo,” Spike mumbled as he opened his eyes and sat up. “Where is everyone?”

“Jet is checking the ship for damage (again). I don't know where Faye is. Meryl is in her room thinking about Vash. (She didn't tell me that, but I'm sure that's what she's doing.) And Millie and Ed are trying to see who is the better chess master.”

Spike chuckled. “I'd like to know if there's anyone who can beat Ed at chess.”

Wolfwood's eyes twinkled. “You be surprised at how good my big girl is at chess.”

Spike raised his eyebrows. “Your big girl?”

“Of course!”

Spike began to laugh. “Wolfwood, you are definitely no ordinary priest.”

“Why, thank you, kind sir,” Wolfwood bowed.

“No problem.”

“How about you, Spike?”

“Huh? What about me?”

Wolfwood grinned. “You don't know?”

“Know what?”

“Oh, nothing.”

“What do you mean, `nothing?'”

“Just what I said.”

“Wolfwood, what are you hiding?”

“I'm not hiding anything,” Wolfwood said innocently.

“Fine! Keep your secrets! I'll find out what they are later.”

“Of course, you will. But not from me.”

Spike looked at Wolfwood. “From who, then?”

Wolfwood winked. “You'll see.”

“Can we get off this subject (even though I have no idea what that subject is) since all you're going to be doing is telling riddles?”

“Ok.”

A few moments of silence passed, after which Spike asked, “So, what did you really come to talk to me about?”

Wolfwood sighed an sat down. “I was just wondering what you've been thinking about.”

“Things.”

Wolfwood raised his eyebrows. “`Things?' Anything else you want to add to that?”

“Things that I've tried to forget and leave behind. Things that I can't seem to escape from.”

“Ah.”

Spike looked at Wolfwood, his face introspective. “Now, I have a question.”

“What?”

“What have you been thinking about?”

A wry smile twisted the corners of Wolfwood's mouth. “The same thing as you. Things I did, good and bad. Things I'm proud of, and things I'm not proud of, at all.”

Spike nodded absently. “Two of a kind, huh?”

Wolfwood shrugged. “Seems that way.”

“So, what's your story? Seems kind of strange that you would have a dirty past, considering your chosen profession.”

“I'll tell you my story when you tell me yours.”

Spike smiled. “Fair enough.”

Without another word, Wolfwood got up and left the room. As Spike watched him leave, he wondered what it was that Wolfwood had done. He smiled ironically as it occurred to him that Wolfwood was probably thinking the exact same thing about Spike.

 

 

Meryl sat alone in her room, thinking about everything that had happened in the past few weeks. She and Millie had been kidnapped by Vash's twin brother Knives. Vahs and Knives had had a showdown, only to be captured by a strange woman named Nightingale who seemed to know so much about them all. And now, they were all following this woman. Meryl wanted to know why.

After Nightingale first spoke to them, Meryl had asked everyone to bring her up to speed on what had been happening in her absence. After going over it all in her mind, she felt slightly overwhelmed by it all. GENE, Project SEEDS, Vash and Knives's background, the Great Fall, the Red Dragon Syndicate, and now, Nightingale had appeared, apparently an agent of GENE. Not only that, but Nightingale had implied that there was another group out there that was after them. This whole thing was getting really complicated.

Still, what concerned her the most was Vash. Not that she liked that upside-down-haired, women-chasing lunatic who was nuts for donuts and gorged them like a starved hog in heat. Of course she didn't...did she?

Fine. There had been that one moment where she had embraced him briefly. (What had possessed her to do THAT?) But, other than that, Meryl and Vash were completely incompatible. Nothing in common whatsoever. Or at least, that's what Meryl kept telling herself.

Meryl growled with frustration. She couldn't keep thinking about this. So, she got up and left the room, in an attempt to find something else to do besides drive herself crazy.

She found Millie and Ed playing chess. Wolfwood was watching them, grinning. Millie and Ed both seemed to be deep in thought, pondering their next moves.

“Millie-person is really good at chess!” Ed remarked happily, her attention still focused on the game.

“Thank you! You're really good, too, Ed!”

Meryl walked over to Wolfwood, whispering, “How long have they been at it?”

Wolfwood barely glanced at her. “This game? Since we spoke to Nightingale.”

“Are you serious?”

“Yep!” Ed sang. “Millie-person and Ed have been playing chess for 3 days, 5 hours, 43 minutes, and 17 seconds!”

“Ed, how do you know that?” Meryl asked, somewhat taken aback by the answer.

“Ed counted!”

Meryl laughed. “Well, I'm glad you two are having fun!”

“Thanks, Meryl-person!”

“So, Wolfwood,” Meryl asked in a quiet voice, “what do you make of everything that's happened?”

Wolfwood looked at her, his blue eyes serious. “What do you mean?”

“I mean, do you think these bounty hunters and that woman, Nightingale, are trustworthy?”

Wolfwood was silent for a few minutes before answering. “Well, at first glance, I didn't trust these bounty hunters. However, Jet is a decent man, hardworking as well as sharp. He's quite the investigator, and I get the impression that he hold this place together. Very stable. Spike appears to have some issues with his past, but he seems like the type that keeps his word. Ed is...well, she's Ed. Happy and carefree. I doubt she's even capable of deceit. Faye, on the other hand,” Wolfwood continues, his tone of voice somewhat darker, “she's the bitchiest woman I've ever seen, BUT she seems to care about Spike (even though he doesn't realize it) so I think that will keep her normally untrustworthy self in line.”

“I see,” Meryl murmurred. “What about Nightingale?”

Wolfwood didn't answer her for a long time. “I really don't know. She doesn't seem like the type that would lie, but she does appear to know something we don't. Her demeanor was formal, kind of closed.” He frowned. “You do know what I mean, right?”

“Yeah, I guess.” Meryl paused. “But, do you think we can trust her?”

“You know what, I think we can. Call me crazy, but I think we can.”

“CHECKMATE!” Ed squealed.

“No it isn't, Ed.” Millie pointed at the chessboard. “Look.”

Ed leaned over the board, eyes searching. “OH!”

“It's a double checkmate,” Millie said.

“Millie-person is the first to tie with Ed!”

“Thank you for the compliment, Ed.”

“Now, Ed must sing Ed's song of congratulations!”

Everyone burst out laughing as Ed began to sing very off-key. Meryl laughed with the rest of them.

No matter what comes our way, it looks like we'll all be supporting each other. But right now, laughing like this, is enough for me...

 

 

Jet wiped the sweat off his forehead. He was almost done fixing the Bebop. Jet paused as he heard laughter coming from somewhere in the ship, as well as the sound of Ed's singing.

I'm glad someone is having fun, he groused. I'm the only one working my ass off.

Jet sighed. It wasn't that the Bebop was in terrible condition. However, after that big explosion on Earth and the resulting shockwave, a few screws had been knocked lose on the old ship. So, Jet had had to go around and fix things. He knew that the ship was his responsibility, but it would be nice if someone helped out once and a while.

Jet wiped his hands on his pants as he finished what he was doing. Suddenly, he heard a beeping noise coming from the computer monitor. Jet walked over to the room. He pressed the button. He was somewhat surprised to see Nightingale's face appear on the screen.

“Am I interrupting anything?” she inquired, clearly able to hear the hysterical laughter on Jet's end of the communication.

“No. We just have some wackos on this ship.”

Nightingale's lips twitched slightly. “I see.”

“So, what can I help you with?”

“I would like for you, as well as the rest of your comrades, to transfer over to my ship.”

“What? Why?”

“It has become necessary,” she stated simply.

“Necessary for who?”

“Mr. Black,” Nightingale leaned forward in her chair, her expression serious, “I respect the fact that your ship means a great deal to you. It is, after all, your home. However, I am not permitted to allow you to come to GENE Headquarters on your own ship. I must be able to take you there.”

Jet frowned. “Meaning, this is the same thing as blindfolding.”

“If you want to look at it that way, then, yes.”

Jet scrutinized Nightingale carefully, but his attempts to read her were in vain. She kept her thoughts and feelings carefully hidden.

“Fine,” Jet consented, “but on one condition.”

“Which is?”

“We transfer over to your ship, but one of your helmsmen pilots the Bebop and follows you home. That way, we're blindfolded, but the Bebop still comes.”

Nightingale leaned back in her chair, a speculative look on her face. “Very well,” she agreed, finally. “I accept your terms. Be ready in an hour.”

The monitor shut off as the communication ended. Jet rubbed his temples. Then, he sighed and went off to tell the others.

 

 

Wolfwood and the girls were still laughing when Jet came in to tell them the news. Wolfwood listened intently to what Jet told them. He had to say that Jet had handled the situation well. He had given Nightingale what she was asking for on his own terms. Besides, Wolfwood was uncomfortable with the idea that, if worst came to worst, they would have to rely on GENE to get them out of a sticky situation, despite his inclination to trust Nightingale.

“Where are Spike and Faye?” Jet asked, after explaining everything to Wolfwood, Meryl, Millie, and Ed.

“I'm right here,” came Spike's voice. He was standing in the corner of the room. “I heard everything you said, Jet, so you don't have to repeat yourself.

“Since you're here, where's Faye?”

Spike shrugged.

“Go find her, Spike!” Jet told him.

Spike grumbled for a bit before leaving the room to find her. A few minutes later, there was the sound of a screech and several gunshots. Wolfwood snickered.

A few split seconds later, Spike ran into the room, followed closely by a raging Faye who was clutching a towel to her slight frame. Her normally straight, violet hair was wet and severely ruffled, and her emerald eyes were flaring dangerously. She had a gun in her hand.

“You damned pervert!” she yelled at Spike.

“I didn't know you were in the shower, you haughty bitch!” Spike shouted back. “And what the hell did you shoot at me for?”

“Because you're a perverted asshole! You tried to look in on me while I was taking a shower!”

“I told you, you stupid ass woman, that I didn't know you were in there! Besides, why would I want to look in on you? Nothing worth looking at, is there?”

“You're gonna pay for that, you bastard!” Faye snarled, as she prepared to pounce on Spike.

Wolfwood watched with amusement as Meryl and Millie rushed to intercept Faye, reminding her that her current “covering” was not suitable to beat the shit out of Spike. However, Meryl said she would let Faye beat the shit out of Spike (and gladly) once she changed into some clothes. Faye muttered a curse under her breath before storming out of the room to change.

Wolfwood grinned at Spike. When Spike saw the expression on Wolfwood's face, he smirked. The look on Spike's face plainly said: “Yes, I did walk in on her on purpose just to tick her off.” Both of them burst out laughing, under the disapproving eyes of Meryl Stryfe and Jet Black. Ed and Millie meerly looked from one to the other, unsure of what was transpiring.

When Faye finally came back, dressed in her usual clothes, Wolfwood and Spike were still chuckling, although most of the volume had died down. She glared at them and looked as is she was seriously considering skinning them both alive. However, she meerly shifted her burning eyes away from them and sniffed.

“So, what's this all about, Jet?” she inquired, her voice barely under control.

Jet explained the situation to Faye who, after grumbling some more, agreed without too much of a fuss. After that, everyone went to get their own things to prepare for the transfer. Wolfwood didn't have much with him except for a few extra changes of clothes and his Cross Punisher. After putting his few items in a sack, Wolfwood walked out of the room.

Everyone seemed ready to go. Meryl and Millie didn't really have anything with them, but Jet, Ed, and Faye did. Jet had brought essentials, as had Ed, although she also had her laptop Tomato with her. Faye, on the other hand, seemed to have tried to bring her entire wardrobe with her.

“Faye,” Spike said exasperatedly, “why are you bringing all that shit with you? It's not like you're going to a beauty pagent.”

Faye glowered at him. “I'll bring what I want to, asshole.”

“Fine. But don't blame me if the ship crashes because of all the weight you're bringing with you.”

“That's it!” Faye tackled Spike, knocking him to the floor.

Wolfwood watched with some amusement as the two wrestled around on the floor for several minutes. Suddenly, they were interrupted by a voice.

“I don't suppose I called at a bad time?”

It was Nightingale. At the sound of her voice, Spike and Faye both leapt up, looking extremely ruffled, panting and with their faces flushed. They both tried to compose themselves quickly.

“No, we're good,” Jet replied.

“Good. However, I should mention that there is a limit to how much you may bring.”

“What?” Faye shouted.

Nightingale looked at Faye, an indifferent look on her face. “Either you bring a specified amount of belongings, or we drop you off on Mars.”

“Told her so,” Spike whispered to Wolfwood, as loudly as possible.

Faye whirled on the two of them, a predatory look in her eyes. Then, suddenly, she marched out of the room. A few minutes later, she came back with a considerably diminished pack of belongings.

“Is everyone ready?” Nightingale inquired.

“Can Ein come, Jet-person?”

“Well,” Jet hesitated.

“Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeease?” Ed begged, with Ein whining along with her.

Jet glanced at Nightingale, who meerly shrugged, her mouth twitching again. “It is up to you,” she stated.

“Ok,” Jet gave in.

“Yay! Road trip!” Ed shouted joyfully, as Ed ran around her legs, barking happily.

“Road trip,” Faye grumbled to herself.

“All right, then. Let's get going,” Jet said.

As the ships prepared to rendevous on Mars, Wolfwood wondered what lay ahead of them.

Probably a lot more trouble, but that's only to be expected. After all, trouble always seems to follow Vash the Stampede.

 

 

Chapter 15 is over. I hope you enjoyed it. I must admit, humor at Faye's expense is REALLY fun to write. Hehe... Anyway, `till next week, my friends!

Love and Peace!

 

 

Next time: The “others” Nightingale mentioned...who are they and what do they have to do with GENE?