Weiss Kreuz Fan Fiction ❯ The Hope Diamond ❯ Oligopolis - 7 ( Chapter 7 )

Chapter Seven

The rest of the day passes slowly. It is with an effort that I manage to push all thoughts of Aya to the back of my mind and concentrate on the mission at hand. I hope I have made him think about me some more and I hope to see him again soon under less dangerous circumstances.

I return to the front lawns and stay there. Takatori is a busy host, entertaining his guests one after another. I wait in the background, mingling among the guests, biding my time until I finally see an opportunity.

"Takatori-san, can I have a moment of your time?"

"Of course. I hope you are enjoying yourself."

"Very much," I smile genially. "This is a beautiful island you got here."

Takatori beams with pride. "Thank you. This island holds sentimental value for me. Now what is it you wish to talk about?"

"I'd much prefer to discuss it in private, if you don't mind. It's of a business nature."

"Of course. My study is this way."

I suppress my smirk as I follow him into the mansion. Walking a respectful step behind him, I study my surrounding discreetly as we head for his study. The moment I walk through the door, I can feel the wards buzzing in the back of my head.

"I've heard that you're a Class-D Techno-Mage. I hope the wards aren't bothering you that much," Takatori says casually.

"It's tolerable."

"That's good to know. Have a seat."

I slide into the chair opposite his desk, discreetly taking in the layout of his study and the computer on his desk. The computer on his desk is locked by magical means. A simple spell though, easy for me to unlock. With my mage sense, I can 'see' the network of wards protecting the study suite. At a quick scan, the network seems complete, impenetrable. But wait…there, in a corner, there's something strange about the network of wards in that tucked away corner.

"What is it that you wish to talk about, Shinichiro-san?" Takatori asks.

I pull my attention back to the conversation, though a part of my mind is still studying the peculiarity of that corner. "I understand that Takatori Incorporation is expanding its dealings in the silicon industry, especially in the micro-processor sector."

"Your point being?"

"Bluntly put, your aggressive expansion is a threat to my company. I do not want to be edged out of the market by you even before I can carve out a niche for myself."

"Business is a ruthless game, Shinichiro-san."

"Still, I would pretty much rather be a friend to you than a rival."

"Are you proposing a business alliance?"

"Yes."

"I can see the advantages you will gain by allying your fledgling company with mine. But what do you have offer?"

"My R&D labs are in the midst of developing the next generation of computer. By using your micro-processor technology, the new type of computer can be made more powerful and faster than ever."

Manx is *so* going to kill me for this. That R&D technology belongs to Kritiker and is a top-secret venture. I wouldn't know about it if it ain't for Omi's tendency to hack into Kritiker's network when he is bored. Since it is for the sake of this mission, she may just stop short of chopping me into tiny pieces. May, being the key word.

"Sounds interesting." Takatori paces thoughtfully behind his desk.

I seize the opportunity to 'examine' the corner more closely. What I see sends a thrill of triumph through me. It is a blind spot that will allow me to circumvent the network of wards without setting them off.

I quickly pull my attention back again when Takatori turns to smile broadly at me. "I do believe it is worth considering. I will get my people to look into your proposal."

"Wonderful. I will inform my people as well to prepare the written proposal." I rise to my feet. "I look forward to doing business with you, Takatori-san."

"Likewise."

It is with an encouraged spirit when I finally head back to my room to freshen up for the poolside dinner. When I step out of the shower, I find Omi waiting patiently for me.

Grinning, I drape an arm around his shoulders and croon into his ear, "It's a go."

"Wonderful." Omi blushes and pushes away my arm. "Then we strike tonight."

"When Takatori and the Three Elders are holed up in their secret meeting?"

"Hai. During dinner tonight, Ken will slip a special laxative into your food. It will make you feel extremely queasy and feverish, which will prompt you to suspect you have food poisoning. You will retire early and call for the doctor to prove that you are ill."

"Which will excuse me from the after-dinner orgy party," I sigh mournfully. "Will the effect of the laxative last long?"

Omi shakes his head. "No. Just spend an hour in the toilet and you should be fine."

I give him a Look. I do not relish the idea of spending an hour being ill in the toilet.

"Tonight with everyone distracted, it's the best time to break into his study and gets the information." Omi flattens another hand-drawn map on a table. "His study is directly above this walled garden. At eleven, you and I will gather here. Siberian will follow Takatori to the secret meeting to try to eavesdrop on them while you and I break into his study."

"Are you sure you want Ken to follow them? They are powerful Techno-Mages, very difficult to sneak up upon."

"He's the best among us at stealth. I also gave him an ofuda spell of camouflage. They shouldn't be able to detect his presence as long as he stays at a reasonable distance away from them. And besides, you're the best at breaking an entry."

I give him an injured look. "I was never a thief, if that's what you're implying."

"No, but you were raised in the 'hood."

"Yare, yare."

"We have one hour of mission time."

"Right." I pause, debate a long while before deciding to ask, "Ne, Bombay, do you remember that redhead I was flirting with in that supermarkets a couple of weeks ago?"

"Yes. Why?"

"Have you seen him around on this island as one of Takatori's staff?"

"No."

"Sure?" I persist. "You've been inside for some days already. Surely you must have seen someone resembling him."

"I didn't see a single redhead working for Takatori." Omi looks at me suspiciously. "Why? Did you seen him on this island?"

"Sort of."

"Will he be a problem?"

I shake my head.

"Balinese -"

"He's not a problem, Bombay. But I would appreciate it if you can sniff around for me."

Omi sighs. "All right, but this time only."

"Thank, chibi."

Omi snorts but his frown does not go away. Omi frowning is as rare as an eclipse and I don't really like to see him so worried. To distract him and myself from my thoughts of Aya, I strike a pose.

"So how do I look?"

Omi's frown slides right into embarrassment, probably because I am posing rather provocatively. I know exactly how good I look in the dark green silk shirt, black narrow tie loose around my throat and black velvet pants. My dark hair is brushed and tied back with a silver hair tie. Understated flamboyance - if there's such a term, coupled with the sexy come-hither. It's an image that never fails to turn the heads of any woman and man, or brings a full-blown blush to Omi's face.

"Will you stop that?"

"Stop what?" I drawl, arching a sexy brow at him.

"Oh, never mind."

* * *

By the time I get down to the pool, which is a little distance away from the mansion, the sun has set and the stars are very bright tonight. Most of the guests have already arrived, all dressed in the same casual elegance theme as I. I notice several of the guests giving me the lingering once-over and I'm hard-pressed to remember not to preen at the attention.

A long table has been set up at the side of the pool with evenly spaced seating for everyone. Candles, carved in the shape of pink and yellow roses are placed at intervals on the table. Red and white paper lanterns decorated the perimeter of the pool and floating on the pool are several rose-shaped paper lamps. A jazz quartet is playing soft music and several waiters are busy serving us drinks.

The murmuring chatter dies when Takatori finally arrives. I barely give him a glance. I am more interested in his companion trailing silently behind him. Distantly, I am aware I'm not the only one staring openly at the enigmatic Gem.

The scarlet shirt and black pants suits the Blood Diamond completely, complimenting with his ruby-red hair that glisten like blood in the dim flickering candlelight. The collar of his shirt is undone, exposing a tiny part of his alabaster skin. His hands - finally I see them ungloved - are slim and delicate, the hands of an artist not a killer. His mask tonight is shiny ebony inlaid with silver to form the lines of his features. It covers the upper half of his face and but unlike the previous white mask, there are no eyepieces to hide his amethyst eyes from view.

All in all, he is a sight to behold - a dangerous mix of unearthly beauty and icy touch-me-not.

"Welcome, friends, to my island." Reiji speaks. "I thank each and everyone of you for attending this anniversary bash of the Blood Diamond's creation."

Murmurs of 'congratulation', 'best wishes' carry clearly over the night air as the guests all give their compliments to Takatori.

"I must confess that I have another reason for this anniversary bash. That is, I manage to get past another year without retribution."

Laughter greets Takatori's statement delivered with a wry charm. Hn, smooth talker. But sooner or later, what you sow, you will reap. And I have a feeling your harvest will be hellish.

"To celebrate ten years of good living, this will be a weekend of merry-making. So enjoy yourself to the fullest."

Scattered calls of 'hear, hear' rise among the guests.

Takatori turns to the Blood Diamond who has remained quiet all the while. "Do you want to say something to the guests?"

The Blood Diamond shakes his head, a silent 'no'. I'm not surprised. No one has ever heard the Blood Diamond speaks in public.

We all take our seats at the table, chatting and settling down to enjoy the Mediterranean cuisine. I don't know if it's deliberate or coincident, but I find myself seated next to Manx. She is extremely cool about the whole thing, betraying not the slightest hint that she knows me. And I, in keeping with my cover, begin to flirt with her, drawing her into an idle conversation.

Though I am paying her most of my attention, I never fail to casually scan my dinner companions from time to time. To nobody's surprise, the Three Elders sit on Takatori's left at the head of the table, deep in conversation with him. The Blood Diamond, seated on Takatori's right, therefore putting him across from me, is quiet and detached from the merry-making. He is pointedly ignoring the lovely blond lady trying to catch his attention beside him. And I notice that he does not touch any of the Mediterranean dishes, preferring instead to linger over a plate of fresh fruits and a glass of water. I would consider his preference an insult if I didn't know why. Gems have no need to eat; they are sustained by the wild magic from the Nether Plane and the bond they have with their creators.

Schwartz is seated near the Three Elders, between the Blood Diamond and I. As the night progresses, I catch Schuldich looking at me on occasions. The mocking, taunting glint in his eyes set my nerves on the edge. I am beginning to hate him and I deliberately show him that sentiment. His smirk simply widens.

"More pie, sir?" Ken asks politely.

"Sure." I lean aside as he serves me a generous slice of the pie. "Thanks."

"You're welcomed."

I make sure to eat every bit of that slice of pie. Calmly waiting for the laxative to kick in, I continue to chat with Manx. I do not have to wait too long. Soon my stomach is starting to feel queasy. I break out in a cold sweat and I begin to pray earnestly I wouldn't throw up all over Manx's nice dress.

"Are you all right?" Manx asks with a concerned frown. "You look terrible."

"I think I ate something that doesn't agree with me."

Her eyebrows rise in genuine alarm. She gets up and goes over to Takatori, whispering into his ear. Takatori looks in my direction, concerned as well.

"Daijoubu desu ka, Shinichiro-san?"

"Iya." Slowly, carefully, I get up. "Gomen nasai, Takatori-san. I think I better retire for the night before I embarrass myself and you."

"Very well. I will send the doctor to your room at once. You there," Takatori points to Ken, "escort him to his room."

"Arigato." As quickly as I can, I head back to my room with Ken's assistance. I shut myself in the bathroom and promptly throws up into the trashcan while emptying my bowels at the same time. Do you know how vomiting and having diarrhea at the same time feels like? It's awful, like my gut is being forcibly vacuumed-suctioned inside out at both ends.

"You all right?" Ken asks from outside.

"No," I manage to croak, throat raw from throwing up my dinner - and lunch. And breakfast. "I'm dead."

"Don't be a wuss."

"I feel like shit," I moan.

"It can't be that bad."

"Why don't you try it, smartass?" I puke again, dry retching spasms that really hurt my abdomen. I rest my feverish forehead against the cool porcelain of the sink. "I am going. To. Kill. Him."

"Oh, be a sport, will ya?"

"He hates me, I swear." I can't help but whine, glaring at the closed bathroom door. There isn't a single shred of sympathy in Ken's voice. How could he? I'm suffering valiantly for the sake of the mission and he's getting a kick out of it. Must be payback for all the times I tease him about his new blond look.

"Where the hell did he get this damned laxative anyway?"

"I think he concocts it," Ken answers.

Great, I'm a guinea pig for a kid alchemist.

"The doctor's here, Shinichiro-san."

"Right," I murmur. I put away the trashcan and get ready to leave the bathroom.

My vision swims a little as I walk unsteadily to my bed. I knew what is the doctor's diagnosis before he even pronounces it. Food poisoning. He prescribes a series of medicine, order me to rest and drink lots of water, neither of which I intent to follow. I'm holding Omi to that one-hour limit. If by nine I'm still not well, he's doing double shift for the whole of next week.

I lay in bed, feeling extremely useless as I endure the agony. Ken leaves, returning once to leave a plate of sandwiches, before returning to the poolside dinner. It is the longest hour in my life but slowly the churning in my gut dissipates, leaving me feeling as wrung out as a rag. It is another hour before I feel like myself again. I take a quick shower and devour the plate of sandwiches, trying to regain some of my strength before our mission tonight.

With fifteen minutes to go, I quickly make a convincing human shape with the pillows and bolster under the blanket on my bed and cast glamour on it so it will look like me in the event that some nosy servant decides to have a closer look. I quickly change into a black skin-tight outfit I hide in the false bottom of my luggage. Gloves, utility belt and watch go on next. To minimize the risk of detection, I take off my glamour spell and tuck my blond hair under the hood of my outfit.

Finally, I am ready.

Switching off the lights in my room, I slip out onto the balcony and lower myself to the ground via a rope.

The mansion grounds are dark and quiet. All around me, I hear the sounds of night insects - crickets and whatnots, but no sounds of patrolling security. I thumb on the night-vision in my shades and carefully keeping close to the shadows, quietly head for the walled garden where I met Aya in the afternoon.

A nightingale's warble greets me when I finally sneak into the walled garden. I answer back with a soft owl's hoot. Minutes later, a small dark-clad figure creep quietly up to me.

"You feeling all right?" Bombay whispers.

"Yeah."

"Siberian is already on his mission. Let's go."

Keeping close to the shadows at the foot of the mansion, we cautiously creep as close to the garden doors as we dare. I take a quick peek inside; it is all dark and empty. Nodding to Bombay, I gesture upward to the protruding ledge of the study window above the garden doors.

Bombay kneels down; I hear the muffled thunk of his crossbow unfolding. He aims and fires. The rope arrow flies upwards, thudding solidly into the ledge. Tugging on the rope to make sure it is firm, I climb up to the ledge and peer into the suite. Just like the room below, it is also dark and empty.

Good for me.

Crouched precariously on the ledge, I pick the lock on the window and slip in. Bombay follows moments later. I barely notice his movements; all my attention is fixed on the network of wards buzzing insidiously at the back of my mind. Very carefully, I creep over to the blind corner, taking off my watch as I go.

Timing for this part is crucial.

Placing two fingers on the frame of the watch face, I lower it to the ground in the blind corner.

Carefully now…one, two, three.

The watch rests on the ground the same instance I turn the watch frame, activating the attract-and-reflect spell I have placed inside it. At once, I 'see' the power flaring briefly in the wards as they home in to my watch, only to settle down again. My watch glows a steady yellow as the spell fools the wards into believing that it is another ward within the network. The beauty though, is how the spell takes control of the ward network to ignore any magic-casting going on within the room.

It's at times like this that I'm really smug about my ingenuity.

Leaving my watch on the floor, I go over to the computer and easily unlock the spell, leaving it vulnerable to Bombay's hacking.

The boy immediately set to work. I watch for a moment his fingers flying over the keyboard before stationing myself next to the window, keeping guard. Briefly I wonder how Siberian is doing. We are operating incommunicado. If anything goes wrong, we have no way of knowing. All Bombay and I can do is to trust Siberian's skills and pray that Lady Luck smiles in his favor.

"Done," Bombay whispers.

He quickly shut down the computer and I cover our tracks. The magical lock on the computer is reestablished. Then I carefully release the ward network from my control, strapping my watch back on. Soundlessly, we slip out of the study suite through the window, rappelling back to the ground. A quick tug and a whispered word releases the rope arrow; there's nothing we can do however about the resulting hole in the window ledge.

As quietly as we came, we head back to the wall, ready to retreat for the night. Abruptly, the hairs on the back of my neck rise. Beside me, Bombay pauses as well, sensing the danger as well. We glance at each other and then behind us.

The pattering of paws are so light, we barely hear them. A black creature pushes noiselessly through the bushes at the far end and stops, growling low in its throat. Through my night-vision, the creature is in the shape of a dog - a huge powerful dog, with really sharp teeth and glowing red eyes. But that is all I can make out of the dog; the rest of its features remains sinisterly vague, as though it absorbs all light and reflect none.

I hear Bombay swallows audibly. "Yikes…"

"Wraith-hound," I murmur somewhat unnecessarily. Dogs that were sacrificed to the darkness and resurrected as shadow spirits, bound to its master's will.

"What now?" Bombay hisses.

"On the count of three, you run. I'll distract that thing."

"What about you?"

"Don't worry about me. The mission comes before Weiss." I take a deep breath and brace myself for the anticipated attack.

Wraith-hounds are tenacious and tireless predators. Even the Hunters respect these magical creatures and avoid them when possible. And Techno-Mages usually keep them in a pack, never as lone predators. Hopefully we can get out of this mess before the rest of the pack arrives.

"One," I begin to count, "two…three!"

Bombay promptly dashes for the wall at the same instant the wraith-hound launches at us, snarling and growling.

"Contega!"

The wraith-hound bounces off my shield, tumbling back to the ground and landing on all fours. It lets out a ghastly howl that makes goose bumps raise on my skin and in the distance, the rest of the pack returns its howl, alerting the security. By now Bombay is over the wall and hopefully out of danger.

I swiftly cast a freeze spell on the wraith-dog, icing its limbs to the ground. Hopefully that will incapacitate it for a few hours. I hear the sounds of guard running towards me from behind the wall and escape the garden via the garden doors. I hardly see where I'm going as I run for my life.

Several times I change direction, tipped off by the sounds of voices before I can see them. Thank God they can't conduct a search quietly. Somehow I manage to make my way up to the third floor of the mansion, but I am still stuck in Takatori's private wing. When I finally pause to get my bearing, I find myself in a completely unfamiliar corridor, faced with both ends that I do not know where they lead.

"Shit. Which way now?"

From one far end, I hear voices and that decides my mind. At random, I choose a door and slip into the room, closing it quietly behind me.

I blink when I turn around to search the room for a hiding place.

The way the room is decorated, it can be straight out of an Arabian harem. The entire room is draped with blue and lavender curtains - silk and translucent gauze - partitioning the room into a mini labyrinth. Under my feet are thick plushy rugs and lamps give off a comfortable glow. The scents of lavender and bergamot suffuse my nose, threatening to ease the tension in me.

Gingerly, I move forward, warily looking around as I try to find my way through this bewildering maze of curtains. I have no idea how big the room and which direction I am going. Several times I nearly trip over piles of silk-covered cushions hidden by the curtains.

What kind of place is this?

Who in his right mind will turn a room into an…an exotic maze?

I stop suddenly as I feel a cold sharp presence at my throat.

"Put your hands where I can see them," comes the coldly delivered order from behind me.

I slowly do as he says but despite my tension, I can't help but notice the strangeness of the voice. It is odd, possessing of double timbres that make the speaker sounds as though there are two persons speaking in tandem. There is a reverberating quality to it that emphasizes the strange double timbres. I have never heard such a voice before and it is with a sinking heart, I realize there is only one candidate who fits the profile of my captor.

"You must the intruder security are looking for," the voice continues.

"So I am, Blood Diamond." I subtly shift my position and wince as the blade presses ever so slightly into my throat.

"Don't move," he hisses.

"What are you going to do with me?"

"Turn you over to the guards, what else? Now turn around. Slowly."

I do as I'm ordered and he turns with me, carefully staying behind my back all the while. Seizing the chance, I spin round and close in, grabbing the hilt of the katana to yank him towards me. Caught unaware, he stumbles forward. Instinctively I break his fall and my gaze falls upon the unmasked face of the Blood Diamond for the first time.

I stare shocked. For an incredulous moment, I feel the world being pulled out from underneath my feet as I mentally scramble to make sense of this sudden revelation. There is a dull roaring in my ears as I look and try to deny the vision before me.

"A-Aya…?"

"Yohji?"