Cyborg 009 Fan Fiction ❯ Ante Mortem ❯ Chapter Four ( Chapter 4 )

Ante-Mortem

By: Wildfire Sky

Whoot!! Whoot!! So you guys are still comin' back for more?? Ok, I can deal with that. BTW, if you guys find any mistakes that stick out like a fever blister, it would be appreciated if you tell me. I check my fics twice for errors, but sometimes I miss a few.

Again, thanks so much for the reviews; you encourage me to pursue my writing dreams!! I don't know how long this fic is going to be, but it'll definitely be at least 7-10 chapters long. Nice thing to read on those rainy days, right? No? Ok………

Ante-Mortem

By: Wildfire Sky

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Joe was finally up and walking around after being confined to the infirmary for nearly a week. The day he was released, the other cyborgs threw him a small party, 006 cooking a virtual feast and 007 entertaining the group with a few skits he learned in Britain. Even Dr. Gilmore participated in the festivities. Joe couldn't figure out why the team was so happy to see him out of bed again, but they hinted at the multiple social problems that surfaced during his bed rest. However, none of the cyborgs mentioned 002's accusation, nor did they mention the growing relationship between 002 and 003.

Joe didn't need them to tell him. He could see it himself. When Francoise had come to the party, she merely gave Joe a friendly hug before crossing over to where 002 stood. She avoided Joe's eyes the entire night, although Jet occasionally threw him a small smirk that set his blood boiling. The Dolphin had surfaced for the night, so Joe went topside, brewing over the relationship between Francoise and Jet.

"Mind if I join you?" Albert said, walking over to where Joe was leaning on the side rails, sipping a beer. The Japanese youth only shrugged in response, staring into the dark sea night. The moon was out on the clear sky, illuminating the ship and water.

"So how long has 002 and Fran…I mean, 003, been together?"

Albert sighed, "I dunno…not long I imagine," the silver haired man chuckled, "002 sure does know when to make a move, I'll give him that. As low as it was, 002 knew that 003 would be most venerable with you confined to bed. He knew she would need some comfort and figured he was the man for it."

"It makes me sick."

Albert laughed again, "Yea, well, that's life I suppose."

The two stood in silence, looking out over the sea, each thinking their own thoughts. Joe's unexplainably bitter and Albert's reflective over his past.

"I took Hilda from someone too," Albert said finally, "A good man by any measure, but I knew that I could be better than him and anything he had to offer."

Joe looked at him, "How did you get her to like you?"

"Well," Albert said, turning and leaning back against the rail, staring up at the night sky, "I'll admit, it wasn't easy…not by a long shot. I figured that in order to get Hilda to love me as much as I loved her, I would have to show her. Everyday, I would visit her house, leave flowers on her doorstep, and basically express in any way I could my growing love for her. Sure, she thought it was a little weird, but who wouldn't?"

Albert looked over at 009, "If you want 003 back, you're going to have to fight for it. Prove to her that you're the better man and that you have what she wants."

Joe sighed gloomily, "I don't know how."

"First off," Albert frowned, snatching the beer bottle from Joe's hands, "You can't drown yourself in misery. You need to have a sensible conversation with the girl…tomorrow night we'll be stopping for fuel off the coast of Rome. Take her on shore for a while and just talk…about anything and everything. Take her out to dinner maybe."

"Italian food?" Joe said, scrunching up his face, "I hate Italian."

Albert laughed, clapping his hand on the stiff boy's back, "I guess you'll like it tomorrow night, won't you?"

For Joe, the timing couldn't have been worse. Not only does he have to deal with his nightmares, but now he's lost the only support he knows. He sighed miserably.

"Ah, 009, there you are."

Albert turned with a smile, "Hey there, Dr. Gilmore. You want to talk to 009?"

Gilmore nodded solemnly, "Alone if you please."

Albert gave Joe another pat before walking down the deck stairs and back into the Dolphin. Gilmore walked up beside Joe staring out over the ocean. Joe's attention was no longer on the sea, but on the old man next to him.

"What do you need, Dr. Gilmore?"

Gilmore sighed, "009, there's a problem."

"Problem? With what?"

Gilmore stared into his ruby eyes, "I must ask you something, 009…what are these nightmares of yours about?"

Joe frowned, turning away and looking out over the ocean, "Does everybody know about my nightmares? I never should have said anything to 004."

"It's not his fault," Gilmore said, defending the German, "I've known about them for sometime actually, but I thought it was because of Tokyoand the memories they brought back. I never expected them to develop as they have."

"Dr. Gilmore, what is wrong?"

Gilmore looked down at the hard deck, "I'm beginning to think that these are no ordinary dreams…I feel as though they may be more of a threat. Another attack by Black Ghost."

Joe swallowed, his eyes narrowing. That would explain why he saw Black Ghost in his dreams, but…how…

"How could he have gotten inside my head?" 009 whispered, "It's impossible."

"Hardly," Gilmore replied, "001 can do the same thing. The only difference is that 001 can't manipulate your dreams for his own purpose. 009, if you want to overcome this new threat, you mustn't let Black Ghost take over your mind."

Joe snorted, "And how the hell am I supposed to do that? Never go to sleep?"

"If it comes to that, yes, but I doubt very seriously it will." Gilmore pulled out a small capped vial filled with a smooth black liquid, holding it up to the deck lights, "I found a large amount of this substance in your body, 009."

009 took the vial, a shiver rolling down his back as he examined it, "What is it? How did it get inside my body?"

Gilmore shook his head grimly, "I'm not sure, 009…it baffles even me. I sent a sample to Dr. Kasumi; he might be able to tell us more about it than I can. All I know is that whatever this is, it wasn't supposed to be inside of you. It was almost like an acid…"

"An acid?"

Gilmore nodded, "Um hum, and a very interesting one at that. It only attacked certain parts of your anatomy, mainly the nervous system and your cerebrum, which might explain these nightmares of yours. If Black Ghost was able to create a weapon that could destroy you from the inside out…well, needless to say it would have a devastating effect on all of us."

Joe shivered again, "Were…were you able to remove all of it?"

Gilmore looked away again, "I got as much of it as I could…there was a small mass of it attached directly to your brain, almost like a parasite. Had I removed it, it most certainly would have killed you."

Joe closed his eyes, digesting the information, "So…when will it kill me?"

Gilmore frowned, staring at the solemn boy, "Now let's not jump to conclusions, 009. We hardly know anything about it! My guess is that the most damage it would do is effect your reactions to things, maybe even your acceleration power will be effected slightly."

"That's bad enough."

Gilmore sighed, "009…let's wait and see what Dr. Kasumi has to say before we make anything final, alright? I'm going back downstairs to help clean up. I suggest you come too, once everything is tidy again we're going to dive."

Joe looked at him, "What's the rush?"

"I have a bad feeling, that's all."

Joe watched the old man walk down the steps. Suddenly a cold chill hit him and he fell to his knees, clutching at his heart. He gasped in pain. The sensation spreading throughout his body.

"Time for a little fun…"

The cold wind stopped as abruptly as it began and Joe stood, glancing around at the deck. His eyes narrowed venomously as he looked down at the small vial in his hands, popping off the stop and walking over to the rail.

"Better get rid of this before that idiot Gilmore comes back for it."

Joe dumped the black liquid from the vial before throwing the glass container into the sea. A slow grin spread over his face as he turned to walk back into the safety of the Dolphin. With a small laugh, he slid down the stair rails, nearly toppling into the room. The cyborgs turned to look at him with questioning eyes. Joe blushed slightly and looked at the ground.

"Sorry."

GB laughed, "No! It's great to see that you're so active after being in that damn infirmary for an entire week. I tell you, I'd never want to sleep again!"

The others joined in 007's laughter, but Francoise stared at Joe from her seat next to Jet. Her heart skipped a beat as Joe turned towards her, a thin smile crossing his features, staring at her with hard, cold eyes. He winked slyly and 003 quickly turned away, gripping Jet's shirt.

"Hey! What's the problem?" Jet whispered in surprise.

Francoise looked up at Jet then back over at 009, who was sharing some joke with 007, "Uh…nothing, Jet…I'm just tired, that's all."
Jet wrapped an arm around her shoulders, "Want me to take you to your room?"

"No," Francoise replied, standing quickly, "I-I think I can manage on my own."

Jet stood, looking at her quizzically, "Are you sure you're ok? You look kind of pale…" He reached out a hand to feel her forehead, "It feels like you have a fever coming…maybe I should walk you to your room."

"No!" she hissed angrily, "I said I'll be fine."

A blush crossed her face when she noticed the others staring at them. Her cheeks flushed, 003 quickly brushed past Jet and down the corridor. Jet frowned and made a move to follow her.

"Jeeze, you just seem to piss off everybody, 002!"

Jet whirled around angrily, his eyes locking on Joe's smirking face, "I suggest you shut the hell up before I put you back in that infirmary bed of yours. I don't think you were there long enough last time."

Joe's smirk only grew and he took a step forward, "I would love to see you try…"

Jet lunged at the smiling Japanese boy, throwing him to the ground and pinning him with a hand, "I'm gonna wipe that smirk right off your face!" He drew his fist back to strike Joe, but another strong hand caught his own. Jet looked up and snarled viciously, "Let me go goddamn it! 005, you release me right now!" his eyes blazed with fury, "I'm gonna teach this little punk a lesson."

"You must calm down," 005 said slowly, "Even if this fight was justified you'd still lose. You're letting your anger take control of your senses."

"Oh I'm in control," 002 said evenly, "I'm in control enough to beat the shit out of this little Jap*!"

"That is enough!!"

Jet froze and turned to Dr. Gilmore. The old man stood with his arms crossed and glaring at the American angrily, 004 by his side, equally as furious. Gilmore stepped forward.

"002, I am appalled by your actions lately. First you accuse 009 of being a stalker and now you're calling him a…a Jap," Gilmore spat out the last word as if it tasted bad, "You will apologize to 009 this instant or I'll have you confined to your quarters until we return to Tokyo, so help me!"

Jet looked down, another wave of fury washing over him at the sly smirk on Joe's face. His pride was deeply wounded, but it would be even worse if he was grounded. Slowly he stood to his feet, staring down at Joe with utter contempt.

"Sorry 009," he snarled, looking away from the cyborg.

Joe nodded, "I'm sorry too, I shouldn't have said that."

Jet glared at him, "You're damn right you shouldn't have!"

Gilmore coughed, "002…"

Jet's head snapped over towards him, casting an unreadable glare at the Russian before turning on his heel and storming out of the room. 004 was watching Joe throughout the entire ordeal, a frown plastered on his face.

008 shook his head, "You really hurt his self-pride, Dr. Gilmore," he said, "I've never seen him look so hurt before."

"Well he needs to learn to control himself," Gilmore snapped, "I won't tolerate that kind of behavior on this ship…not even from you, 009!" Gilmore set Joe with a heavy stare, "Now I think it's time everyone went to bed. We'll clean up this mess tomorrow morning before we dock in Rome. Good night everyone."

The cyborgs all mumbled good night to one another before heading off to their separate rooms. Before 009 could leave, Albert called him over.

"What's up?" Joe asked a smile on his face.

Albert stared at him, "Just what were you thinking, 009?"

009's smile disappeared, "Huh?"

"Why were you purposely trying to piss off 002?"

Joe truly looked confused, "004, what are you talking about? I didn't do anything to 002!"

004 glared at the younger boy, "Stop messing around, 009."

"I swear," Joe exclaimed, "I didn't do anything to 002, I just came from up on deck and Dr. Gilmore told us all to head to our rooms. I never even touched 002."

Albert stared at him in disbelief, "Are you joking?"

"No!" Joe shook his head vigorously, "I swear to you I'm telling the truth!"

004 frowned angrily, "Get out of here, 009."

Joe stared back, "What? 004, what did I do?"

"I said get the hell out of here! Go to your room, 009!"

A hurt look crossed Joe's face before he turned; shoving his hands in his pockets and shuffling out of the room. Albert's cold blue eyes followed him before he sat down on the couch, staring down at the soft carpet. He put his head in his hands and sighed.

"004?" Dr. Gilmore said, walking back into the room, "I thought you'd gone to bed with all of the others."

Albert nodded, "I was just about to go. Good night, Dr. Gilmore."

"Uh…good night, 004."

******************************************************* < p class="MsoNormal">Joe sat on the edge of his bed, pondering much like 004 was. What had happened exactly? All he did was walk down the stairs and suddenly 004 was yelling at him. He couldn't remember anything else. He sighed and dropped his head. What was going on? He needed to talk to somebody.

Joe stood up and opened his door, looking down the empty hallway before stepping out and quickly walking down the corridor. He paused at the last door, bringing up his hand to knock.

"Come in, 009."

Joe's fist froze in mid-air and he stood rooted to the spot for a moment before he gathered his thoughts and pulled down the handle. He walked into the room, firmly shutting the door behind him and turning towards 003. She sat up in her bed, looking at him strangely. Joe felt a lump rise in his throat as he crossed over to the yellow haired cyborg and sat down on the edge of her bed. He remained silent for a moment, trying to gather his thoughts.

"Err…Francoise…"

Francoise looked down, "Yes, 009?" she replied quietly.

Joe stiffened, the lump in his throat growing bigger at the sound of his cyborg name coming from between her lips. He sighed with inward pain before continuing. "Have…have I been acting a little strange lately?"

Francoise paused, "No…why?"

Joe scratched the back of his head, "Did Dr. Gilmore mention anything to you about some sort of liquid?"

003 looked down at the ground, "I saw some sort of black gooze being drained from your body the day you…you woke up."

Joe could hear the hesitation in her voice as she said these last words, "Do you love him?"

"Who?" Francoise asked in surprise, not at all expecting the question.

"002. Do you love him?"

Francoise sighed, "I really don't know, 009…I suppose there might be something there…"

Joe frowned, "Does he love you in return?"

"Yes," 003 said, tears threatening to spill from her eyes, "I know he loves me…like you do…"

Joe looked back at her, eyes filled with compassion, "I…just want you to be happy, Francoise, and if that means I lose you to 002, well then…so be it."

Joe began to stand, but Francoise jumped forward, grabbing his hand, "Joe I…" she stared into his deep red eyes before smiling softly, "We're going to be in Rome all day tomorrow, would you like to go on shore with me and see the city?"

Joe was taken aback. According to 004, he was supposed to ask 003 out, not the other way around. But he wouldn't complain, perhaps it would be better this way. He smiled and nodded, "I would love to."

Francoise beamed, "Great! And Joe, don't worry about Jet…he'll understand. It's just a tour after all, nothing serious."

A knot tightened inside of Joe's stomach and he nodded numbly, "Yea…yea, Francoise…it's nothing serious at all…"

Francoise smiled and lay back in her bed, "Good night, 009."

Joe stood and crossed over to the door. He nodded back at Francoise before leaving the room and going out into the hallway. He closed the girl's door behind him and went back to his bedroom, lying down on his mattress and throwing an arm over his eyes. Tears streamed down his face as he cried quietly.

It was nothing serious…nothing serious at all…

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Poor Joe!! And he thought he was in there too!! About that whole 'Jap' thing, I'm sure that some one will get offended by it, especially if that person is Japanese. I AM NOT A RACIST, just to clear that up right now. But that's why this fic is rated PG-13. Trust me on this, don't take offense to it. I personally plan to move to Japan…but I'm kinda nervous because I don't know if they like foreigners too much. Oh well.

And if you've figured out how I'm going to use Black Ghost and Joe, bravo!! Cuz I haven't even figured it out yet!! Just kidding.

BTW, the review server has been going haywire for me, so I haven't been able to see the reviews for chapter 3 so I can respond to them. Hopefully by the time I finish chapter 5, it'll be up and running again. I was able to view GoldAngel2's because she emailed me, until further notice, I guess that's what you'll have to do!! Thanks ^_^ U

Anyways, that's all there really is to this now…crap, I wish I hadn't written this so soon, I can feel a major writer's block on the verge of surfacing so don't be surprised if I take a while to update. Besides that, IT'S ALL GOOD!!

GoldAngel2: I totally agree with you and the love triangle thing. But like I said before, it's very important for the fic. Read my email for more, good buddy!!

Thanks to everyone who reviewed!! I LOVE YA!!

Look out for my next chapter!!