Xenosaga Fan Fiction ❯ 30 Kisses ❯ How Rubedo Got His Gun ( Chapter 13 )
[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
By: Niu Shiy-Ue 
#16 invincible, unrivaled
Non Anime: Xenosaga Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 11.01.2005 | Pages: 2 | Words: 1.6K | Visits: 373 | Status: Work In Progress
#16 invincible, unrivaled
Non Anime: Xenosaga Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 11.01.2005 | Pages: 2 | Words: 1.6K | Visits: 373 | Status: Work In Progress
Quick AN: Normal text is from Nigredo's POV, Italics from Rubedo's, Bold is Nigredo using telepathy, Underlined is Rubedo using telepathy.
Blue eyes fluttered open slowly. The first things Rubedo noticed was his pounding headache and the low level emergency lights that stabbed into his eyes. The next, was that he was lying on a dusty metal-grille floor with his hands and feet handcuffed behind his back. What had happened?
"-and any attempt to contact the police and we'll kill your son, understood?"
"Y-yes. May I speak to him?"
"No" But the vid output shook, then steadied on a small red-headed figure lying on the floor of some yet unknown location. "However, you can see that currently he is alive and unharmed. We will contact you again within twenty-four hours with our demands." The connection was cut off.
"Gaignun-sama? I'm sorry, he didn't stay on long enough for us to trace his whereabouts."
"Shelley, call the police immediately. I'll also call Helmer."
Rubedo?
N-nigredo?
Are you alright?
No
Where are you hurt?
Not like that. Some kind of drug. Knocked me out. Having trouble concentrating.
Don't worry, we're coming to get you. Do you know where you are? And who you're with?
No. I think I'm still on the station. I can't see the guys who've got me, but I can hear them talking.
Just stay still. Don't let them know you're awake.
Gaignun opened his eyes. "Shelley, make sure to tell the police that whoever did this, they were close enough to drug Jr. And keep the ports closed, they haven't left the Foundation yet."
A murmur went through the gathered 100-series. "Shall we initiated section lock-downs, sir?"
"Yes. When the police get here, they can start searching sections individually without having to worry about whoever it is escaping."
Mary turned toward him. "Gaignun-sama, Wilhelm of Vector is on the line."
Rubedo carefully squirmed around till he had managed to slip the handcuffs off his wrists. Through slit eyelids, he had noted the one-way mirror and door in front of him. A hurried glance had revealed no other cameras. If he kept his eyes shut and facing toward the mirror where his captors were watching, hopefully he could get the handcuffs off and his feet untied without them noticing. Of course, if they had noticed his slip-up earlier, they were due any moment now to come in, to tie him up more securely or knock him out again.
He could only hope . . .
Fortunately, the handcuffs were a little on the loose side. Just enough to allow him to slip his thin hands through them, without having to dislocate anything. After that is was quick work to untie his feet. He spent a few more minutes still, getting his breath back and waiting. When nothing happened he stood up.
"Did he have any enemies?"
"You've got to be kidding me officer." said Mary. "He's a twelve year old kid. The only enemies he has are the bullies down the lane."
"I'm sorry, mam, but we're trying to cover every aspect of this case." The police officer, another remnant of the Life Recycling act, with large, metallic prostheses appeared almost intimidated by the shorter woman. "Your sister is already drawing up a list of Kukai's and the Foundation's enemies, but we need as much information as possible."
"He didn't have any enemies!"
"Mary, please. I'm trying to stay calm here and you're not helping." pleaded Gaignun, rubbing his temple.
"-cking punk!" the man choked. Rubedo didn't allow himself to stop, stabbing him once more in the stomach then pulling up as hard as he could. He breathed a quick thanks to whatever deities existed that his captors had been too stupid to search him. The knife wasn't very big, but it did it's job. Rubedo wobbled for a second, then closed his eyes.
Nigredo
Rubedo! We've closed the docks, locked-down all the sectors and the police are searching each one inch by inch. We'll have you out of there in no time.
Little brother they already know. They sent someone in here to kill me.
How badly are you hurt? Do you know where you are now?
I'm no worse than I was before. The headache's still here. And no, I'm still have no idea where I am.
Just hang on. I'll make sure the teams all have medics with them. Don't move, you'll just make yourself sick.
Not an option, brother.
Rubedo! Rub-
"When they call, try to stall them for as long as possible." The female Vector employee had a very smooth, calming voice. In different circumstances, Gaignun was sure it was effective. Right now, however, he was far too worried over what trouble his older brother was getting into to be reassured. "And ask if you can talk to him again. We need to confirm that he's alive."
"What should I say about the lock down?"
"This is a similar procedure to your normal emergency drills?" Gaignun didn't answer so Mary took up the slack.
"Yes, in case of a Gnosis invasion we isolate the compromised sector until the Gnosis are defeated or until the Foundation needs to be evacuated."
"Tell them it's a routine drill, planned months in advanced. We don't want to back them into a corner, but it's too late to take back the order now."
He crawled slowly through the air vents. He had to stop every so often because the dizziness overwhelmed him, but kept moving as much as possible. Yuriev had enhanced the physical abilities of the URTVs, but even fast regeneration couldn't keep Rubedo from suffering some of the side effects of whatever his captors had dosed him with.
He reached another open section and came to a halt. From the angle he was at, he could see the Durandal from out the window. He could also see the guard just below him.
Rubedo took a deep breath then slammed down on the grate, dropping down on top of the guard. He hoped that with the advantage of surprise, he could incapacitate the guard, but luck wasn't with him. The fall knocked Rubedo breathless, but didn't knock the guard out. The also fell away from each other, rendering Rubedo's knife useless. He threw it at the man, but it only drew a thin line of blood from his cheek. 'If I get out of this alive, I'm never going anywhere without a gun. And ammo. Lots and lots of ammo.' he thought, scrambling for something else to throw.
Unfortunately, while Rubedo was a URTV, with the increased strength and reflexes built into the design, he was also stuck in the smaller, weaker body of a twelve year old, not to mention still fighting off the grogginess and headache from the drugs. A twist and suddenly there was the sharp crack of bone. A few more good punches and he was staring up at a gun barrel.
"Checkmate, punk." Thick fingers tightened on a trigger.
And then the door fell in on top of him.
"Police! No one move!"
"Chibi-sama! You're alright!" The two Godwin sisters showered the little red-head with kisses, being careful not to jar his just-casted arm.
"Yup. Within a few days I'll be right as rain." he said, fending away some overly concerned 100-series. "But right now, all I want to do is sleep."
"Oh, we're sorry. Okay everybody, Chibi-sama's had a tough day. We can all congratulate him and give him his gifts tomorrow." Mary quickly herded everyone off the floor. Just before she left, she turned and winked at him. "But we really are glad you're back, Chibi-sama. Don't go running off like that again, okay?"
"Yes Mary, I'll try not to let myself get kidnapped again." He smiled back at her.
He barely made it to his room, too tired to walk and too tired to call for help. He just wanted the day to be over. When he got there, he saw his younger, taller brother standing there. "Hey, you gonna chew me out too?"
Gaignun didn't say anything for a while, just helped him out of his clothes and into his pjs. The darker URTV was usually a stickler about procedure, he even had a strict routine that he adhered to for washing up. But for tonight, at least, he was willing to forgo his usual rituals. When he finally did speak, his voice was very soft. "I was worried about you."
"I know and I'm sorry. But you don't have too." Tired blue eyes smiled, although Rubedo was too exhausted to move the expression to his face. "After all, I'm invincible."
Blue eyes fluttered open slowly. The first things Rubedo noticed was his pounding headache and the low level emergency lights that stabbed into his eyes. The next, was that he was lying on a dusty metal-grille floor with his hands and feet handcuffed behind his back. What had happened?
"-and any attempt to contact the police and we'll kill your son, understood?"
"Y-yes. May I speak to him?"
"No" But the vid output shook, then steadied on a small red-headed figure lying on the floor of some yet unknown location. "However, you can see that currently he is alive and unharmed. We will contact you again within twenty-four hours with our demands." The connection was cut off.
"Gaignun-sama? I'm sorry, he didn't stay on long enough for us to trace his whereabouts."
"Shelley, call the police immediately. I'll also call Helmer."
Rubedo?
N-nigredo?
Are you alright?
No
Where are you hurt?
Not like that. Some kind of drug. Knocked me out. Having trouble concentrating.
Don't worry, we're coming to get you. Do you know where you are? And who you're with?
No. I think I'm still on the station. I can't see the guys who've got me, but I can hear them talking.
Just stay still. Don't let them know you're awake.
Gaignun opened his eyes. "Shelley, make sure to tell the police that whoever did this, they were close enough to drug Jr. And keep the ports closed, they haven't left the Foundation yet."
A murmur went through the gathered 100-series. "Shall we initiated section lock-downs, sir?"
"Yes. When the police get here, they can start searching sections individually without having to worry about whoever it is escaping."
Mary turned toward him. "Gaignun-sama, Wilhelm of Vector is on the line."
Rubedo carefully squirmed around till he had managed to slip the handcuffs off his wrists. Through slit eyelids, he had noted the one-way mirror and door in front of him. A hurried glance had revealed no other cameras. If he kept his eyes shut and facing toward the mirror where his captors were watching, hopefully he could get the handcuffs off and his feet untied without them noticing. Of course, if they had noticed his slip-up earlier, they were due any moment now to come in, to tie him up more securely or knock him out again.
He could only hope . . .
Fortunately, the handcuffs were a little on the loose side. Just enough to allow him to slip his thin hands through them, without having to dislocate anything. After that is was quick work to untie his feet. He spent a few more minutes still, getting his breath back and waiting. When nothing happened he stood up.
"Did he have any enemies?"
"You've got to be kidding me officer." said Mary. "He's a twelve year old kid. The only enemies he has are the bullies down the lane."
"I'm sorry, mam, but we're trying to cover every aspect of this case." The police officer, another remnant of the Life Recycling act, with large, metallic prostheses appeared almost intimidated by the shorter woman. "Your sister is already drawing up a list of Kukai's and the Foundation's enemies, but we need as much information as possible."
"He didn't have any enemies!"
"Mary, please. I'm trying to stay calm here and you're not helping." pleaded Gaignun, rubbing his temple.
"-cking punk!" the man choked. Rubedo didn't allow himself to stop, stabbing him once more in the stomach then pulling up as hard as he could. He breathed a quick thanks to whatever deities existed that his captors had been too stupid to search him. The knife wasn't very big, but it did it's job. Rubedo wobbled for a second, then closed his eyes.
Nigredo
Rubedo! We've closed the docks, locked-down all the sectors and the police are searching each one inch by inch. We'll have you out of there in no time.
Little brother they already know. They sent someone in here to kill me.
How badly are you hurt? Do you know where you are now?
I'm no worse than I was before. The headache's still here. And no, I'm still have no idea where I am.
Just hang on. I'll make sure the teams all have medics with them. Don't move, you'll just make yourself sick.
Not an option, brother.
Rubedo! Rub-
"When they call, try to stall them for as long as possible." The female Vector employee had a very smooth, calming voice. In different circumstances, Gaignun was sure it was effective. Right now, however, he was far too worried over what trouble his older brother was getting into to be reassured. "And ask if you can talk to him again. We need to confirm that he's alive."
"What should I say about the lock down?"
"This is a similar procedure to your normal emergency drills?" Gaignun didn't answer so Mary took up the slack.
"Yes, in case of a Gnosis invasion we isolate the compromised sector until the Gnosis are defeated or until the Foundation needs to be evacuated."
"Tell them it's a routine drill, planned months in advanced. We don't want to back them into a corner, but it's too late to take back the order now."
He crawled slowly through the air vents. He had to stop every so often because the dizziness overwhelmed him, but kept moving as much as possible. Yuriev had enhanced the physical abilities of the URTVs, but even fast regeneration couldn't keep Rubedo from suffering some of the side effects of whatever his captors had dosed him with.
He reached another open section and came to a halt. From the angle he was at, he could see the Durandal from out the window. He could also see the guard just below him.
Rubedo took a deep breath then slammed down on the grate, dropping down on top of the guard. He hoped that with the advantage of surprise, he could incapacitate the guard, but luck wasn't with him. The fall knocked Rubedo breathless, but didn't knock the guard out. The also fell away from each other, rendering Rubedo's knife useless. He threw it at the man, but it only drew a thin line of blood from his cheek. 'If I get out of this alive, I'm never going anywhere without a gun. And ammo. Lots and lots of ammo.' he thought, scrambling for something else to throw.
Unfortunately, while Rubedo was a URTV, with the increased strength and reflexes built into the design, he was also stuck in the smaller, weaker body of a twelve year old, not to mention still fighting off the grogginess and headache from the drugs. A twist and suddenly there was the sharp crack of bone. A few more good punches and he was staring up at a gun barrel.
"Checkmate, punk." Thick fingers tightened on a trigger.
And then the door fell in on top of him.
"Police! No one move!"
"Chibi-sama! You're alright!" The two Godwin sisters showered the little red-head with kisses, being careful not to jar his just-casted arm.
"Yup. Within a few days I'll be right as rain." he said, fending away some overly concerned 100-series. "But right now, all I want to do is sleep."
"Oh, we're sorry. Okay everybody, Chibi-sama's had a tough day. We can all congratulate him and give him his gifts tomorrow." Mary quickly herded everyone off the floor. Just before she left, she turned and winked at him. "But we really are glad you're back, Chibi-sama. Don't go running off like that again, okay?"
"Yes Mary, I'll try not to let myself get kidnapped again." He smiled back at her.
He barely made it to his room, too tired to walk and too tired to call for help. He just wanted the day to be over. When he got there, he saw his younger, taller brother standing there. "Hey, you gonna chew me out too?"
Gaignun didn't say anything for a while, just helped him out of his clothes and into his pjs. The darker URTV was usually a stickler about procedure, he even had a strict routine that he adhered to for washing up. But for tonight, at least, he was willing to forgo his usual rituals. When he finally did speak, his voice was very soft. "I was worried about you."
"I know and I'm sorry. But you don't have too." Tired blue eyes smiled, although Rubedo was too exhausted to move the expression to his face. "After all, I'm invincible."