"Where’s my father?" Jun demanded after they’d been on the road for over ten minutes.
Neither of the two men deigned to answer her question. Hiding behind mirrored glasses, she couldn't even be sure of their expressions.
The black car turned off the Old Canyon road, and after ten minutes, turned off into a barely discernable dirt road. As they traveled over the uneven terrain, Jun felt her guard’s eyes on her. Making her feel uncomfortable, she tried to pull her skirt further down, suddenly not too keen on Loraine’s choice of a high hem line. Keeping his eyes on her and the gun barrel still stuck to her side, the guard freed one of his hands to undo the buttons on his coat. As he shifted to get more comfortable and get a better look at her legs, Jun saw a flash of red glint from the sunlight. As he shifted again, she saw the pin clipped to his tie. It held a symbol she was only too familiar with. Dr. Rathbone's kidnappers were Galactor after all.
Jun itched to send a signal to the others, to let them know she was all right. She didn’t dare. Though the beeps were quiet, but she was too close and he was too attentive to get away with it. She'd have to wait.
The car continued along the dirt road for over an hour when suddenly the driver turned to where there was no road at all. Within minutes it became obvious that he was heading toward a giant protruding rock.
Though the huge stone soon loomed directly before them, the driver didn’t deviate in either his speed or target. Wondering if he’d gone mad, Jun watched as they came dangerously close to it. Abruptly, the entire bulk of the rock lifted as if it were made of nothing and slid rapidly to one side. The car never slowed as it plunged down into the dark mouth that had been revealed.
As the stone slid back into place, rows of bright lights kicked on all around them. The black car continued to thunder down the now visible tunnel. In moments, they drove out of the tunnel into a huge parking area.
The driver slowed the car and parked it against the flat wall before them. Behind her, a loud grinding noise filled the large room. Jun glanced back as a heavy, metal door cut off the way back to the tunnel. Joe definitely wouldn’t be following her here, even if he’d made it this far. She felt a rise in apprehension she quickly tried to ignore.
Two guards in the standard Galactor green and brown uniforms marched over from a doorway as the three of them got out of the car. They quickly relieved Jun of her purse and briefcase. Trapped now between the four of them, with a machine gun held to the small of her back, Jun was led across the almost empty lot to one of the many doors in the central area of the wall.
The door they chose turned out to be an elevator.
Jun watched carefully as the guard on her right pressed the last button on the far column. It was the only button in the car without a number. The elevator began to rise almost immediately. It rose upwards for an unusually long time.
When the elevator finally stopped, the guards didn’t allow Jun the luxury of orienting herself before they prodded her out to their destination.
The room Jun found herself in was both lavish and extensive. Thick white carpeting covered the floor from one end of the huge vaulted room to the other. A large mahogany desk lay centered close to the back wall, which showed a magnificent view of the open sky. Two huge candelabras hung from the still natural cavern ceiling fifteen feet on either side of the desk.
"Sir, she's been brought as requested."
The view disappeared as the wall abruptly turned opaque. The desk's high backed chair swiveled around to greet them. Nestled within it was a man totally dressed in white. A snowy mask flared out from both sides of his face distorting his true features. Only his bright piercing gray eyes, and his pleasantly shaped mouth, retained their true perspectives. The masked man's strong, yet almost sweet voice swept across the room as he stood.
"Miss Rathbone, how nice to see you," he said. "It's so good of you to honor me with your presence." He gave her a half bow. Jun didn’t even consider returning it, sure that he was somehow mocking her.
The four guards that had up to this point stood so close to Jun, moved away to the farthest corners of the room, leaving her totally exposed. Jun tried not to stare at the graceful figure that approached her, even as she tried to look as nervous as she felt.
"Please, sit down. I won’t hurt you." His tone was civil if not kind -- not exactly the type of behavior Jun had expected.
Her captor indicated one of the comfortable chairs that Jun had noticed set about the room. She started towards it and then stopped.
"Where is my father?"
The white cloaked man cocked his head in her direction, looking at her from an odd angle. He reminded her, for no specific reason, of a long necked bird.
"Your father is quite healthy, except for a small bruise." He turned to face her fully. "Don't worry, it's not serious. And those responsible have been attended to." His tone was light though the words themselves were serious. "Your father has been behaving most splendidly, except for the fact that he refuses to cooperate with us. Soon, however, that will also no longer be a problem." He turned away to stretch out on a chair close to the one he'd indicated for her. "Please, do sit. If you'll indulge me, I'll make sure that you get to see your father later."
Jun looked upon her captor with growing unease. The man was pleasant, not a usual trait in Galactor commanders. It made her wary. All the Galactor leaders she'd met up to this point had been rude and full of themselves, all basically the same. This one didn’t fit the mold, at least not yet. But it did make her think he might be more dangerous. Trying to give herself time to think, Jun approached the offered chair and sat down.
"Do you like my gilded cage?" he asked.
Jun's eyes snapped back to the Galactor leader. Her gaze had been wondering around the room when he had spoken. "Gilded cage?"
His hard, unreadable gaze studied her intently for a moment. Breaking the contact, the Galactor leader rose and moved towards one of the walls. With but a touch, a hidden bar folded neatly out from what had previously seemed a solid, unbroken wall. Silence reigned between them as he mixed them a couple of drinks.
The leader returned and handed her one of the drinks before moving to sit at the edge of his own chair. "Sometimes, Loraine, people are forced into situations they don’t particularly like. As I see it, you and your father are in an especially unpleasant situation. Because of this, both of you are being faced by choices that need to be resolved before circumstances themselves have them taken from you." His gaze locked with Jun's. "I'm hoping you can help your father towards the right choices, for both your sakes."
Jun felt a chill travel down her spine at the implied threat.
The Galactor leader sat back in his chair, sipping at his drink as he got more comfortable. Jun totally ignored her own.
"I myself am always faced with choices I must make. Very few have been actually pleasant."
Jun looked at him closely, his words confusing her, not at all sure what she expected to find. She could make nothing of him, his eyes veiled.
"I would prefer that this be one of those rare pleasant ones -- I have no real desire to hurt either of you, but your decisions can't help but influence mine." He sat up slowly his gray gaze trapping her own. "Talk to you father, point out to him the error in his stubbornness. Don’t allow him to force me into vile unpleasantness!" His gaze was hard, but it still wasn't what Jun had expected. There was no maliciousness to his threats, only inevitable truths. She tried hard to read him, to look for anything that might give her a clue to what he was about. His costume just concealed too much of him. What little was exposed, he was expert enough to neutralize.
"You don’t have to do this to us. Why don’t you just let us go free? We'd never tell anyone about what happened," she said.
The Galactor leader laughed. Yet the sound was so devoid of mirth, sounding almost sad in a way, that she had no idea what to make of it.
"I'm sorry," he said. "But I can't, even if I wanted to. To you, it may appear that I am lord of the manor, but in truth, I am only a small cog in a much larger machine." He waved at the room around him. "And, as all parts of a machine, I must diligently do my part or be replaced. No, my course is invariably set, though you can change how I go about it."
Jun thought she saw his eyes soften, but he'd turned away before she could make sure. What did it mean?
"I suppose that I've held things up enough. I know you're very eager to see your father. All I ask is that you remember and consider what I've asked of you." With one fluid movement, the Galactor leader rose to his feet. His numerous robes and capes wove about him as he signaled toward one of the guards.
The guard instantly moved from where he stood to a door five feet to the left. He disappeared inside and soon returned accompanied by a man in his late forties. Jun recognized him from the picture Loraine had shown her of him.
Dr. Rathbone's clothes were wrinkled and looked slept in. He walked into the room with the guard with eager, worried eyes, a large bruise darkening on his left cheek.
Rathbone's gaze swept the room, passing from the Galactor leader to Jun's rapidly rising form. One brow suddenly rose of its own volition. He looked about to speak, when Jun interrupted him.
"Dad!" She ran across the room and flung herself into the startled doctor's arms. "Play along, please!" Jun quickly whispered this in his ear as when didn’t react. The doctor quickly returned the embrace.
"I've brought her safe and sound as I promised you, doctor. Talk to her, enjoy her company for a while, and think about what we have discussed before. I will return in one hour to hear your decision."
Jun felt Rathbone stiffen at the leader's words. She disentangled herself from him and turned to look as the Galactor leader and his four guards moved to enter the elevator.
The masked man stared back at them at the entrance, one of the guards holding the door open. "You only have an hour. So please, don't waste precious time trying to find a way to escape from here." His face hardened against them even as Jun watched. "If you were caught, it would also force me into a radical change of your present accommodations." He snapped away from them, his white folds swirling crisply in the air. The elevator doors closed silently behind him.
Rathbone opened his mouth to speak once they had gone, but Jun silenced him with a gesture. Quickly, she searched what she could of the room for spying devices. Finding none, yet not really feeling reassured, she walked briskly toward the room Rathbone had vacated. Jun heard the doctor quietly follow after her.
The new room was as expansive and sparsely furnished as the first. In the middle of the deeply carpeted floor, stood a large four poster bed. A small chest of drawers and a couple of chairs were the only other things in the room.
Spotting a door on the left, Jun didn't hesitate and changed directions towards it. Inside, her gaze roamed over what was the largest bathroom she had ever seen. With a faint, pleased smile on her face, she moved to the white Jacuzzi bathtub. Leaning over it, she turned the water knobs, which were shaped as pheasants, all the way on. Even as the water rushed into the tiled tub, Jun moved to the separate shower stall and turned the water on there as well. Behind her, Rathbone moved to the dual sinks and turned them on catching on to what she was up to. As the sound of running water increased to a low roar, Jun, satisfied, turned to face the doctor.
"Who are you?" he asked.
Jun had to stand very close to hear his words over the rushing water. "I'm a friend. I'm with the ISO."
"Where is my daughter? Is she safe?"
Jun cupped her hand over her mouth to make herself easier to hear. "Yes, sir, she's fine. She's under Dr. Nambu's protection."
"Nambu? How did he --"
Jun swiftly cut him off. "I'm sorry, but we just don’t have a lot of time. Can you tell me why Galactor brought you here?"
The doctor looked a little put out but not for long. "Well, I don’t really understand it, but they're interested on some dead-end research that I abandoned years ago. I really don’t know what good it would do them. And I don’t really want to find out."
Jun nodded. "That explains a number of things." She thought for a moment and then leaned close. "Doctor, I'm going to try and contact my teammates. We'll try to get you out of here as soon as possible."
Removing the silver bracelet from her wrist and exposing her wrist activator, Jun sat down on the small vanity stool in the room and began taping out a message to her friends.
Relief swept through her as Jinpei almost immediately returned her signal. With a shaking hand, she typed out the one question that had been plaguing her mind for sometime. She waited with baited breath for his reply. When it came, she was so happy she could have wept. Ken had escaped; he was all right!
With that out of the way, Jun set a steady tapping signal so that the team could home in on their location. The minutes started to tick by.
"They'll have a fix on our exact location soon. It'll only be a matter of minutes before we get you out of here, doctor." Jun shouted over the rushing water, the doctor coming closer trying to hear.
Rathbone knelt down beside her. "Please, call me John. I don’t think the situation calls for such formality."
Jun smiled at his attempt at levity. She got the feeling that she could get to like Loraine’s father a lot.
The door was abruptly kicked inwards as several men burst into the room. One of them covered them with a machine gun while the other two quickly shut down all the water. Surprised, Jun hid her arm while with the other she hunted blindly for the bracelet so she could place it again over her wrist activator.
"So, this is where you've run off to." The Galactor leader's white cloaked form filled the bathroom's doorway.
Rathbone stood up an annoyed expression doing little to hide the fear in his eyes. "Frost, you promised me an hour with my daughter. How can I possibly give any credence to your words if you can't even keep a promise as simple as that?"
"Touché, doctor, but unfortunately this unlooked for interruption is very necessary." Frost glanced over at Jun. "If you'd come this way?"
Jun slipped the bracelet over her wrist activator behind her back even as she moved to comply. She quickly counted the number of guards inside and out as she got to the door. Seven to one odds weren't disastrous, but she didn't have enough room to maneuver in the bathroom without risking getting the doctor caught in the crossfire. She’d have to wait.
As she and Rathbone moved into the bedroom, the six guards surrounded them their weapons aimed square on them. They made sure not to be standing too close.
"Certain items have come to my attention which necessitated the breach of your promised reunion." Frost glanced back at them as they across the room. "In order that I may ensure your continued safety, I am going to be forced to put you both through a scanner and move you to more secure quarters."
That was bad. That was very bad. Jun knew he suspected. Why he hadn't just voiced his suspicions she wasn't sure, but she knew he did all the same. She couldn't afford to be scanned. If they somehow picked up the fact that she the wrist activator, she would quickly be deprived of it and their best means of effecting an escape. She'd have to make sure Frost never got the chance to take it from her.
As she neared the doorway, Jun tensed, her plan being to slam the door closed on the men behind her to buy herself a precious seconds with which to dispatch the guards in the larger room before dealing with them. She was just about to grab Rathbone and push him to the side and out of harms way, when a high, anguished scream cut through from the other room.
Taking a look, wondering if the team had somehow found them early, Jun gaped not understanding what she saw. Frost was on his knees, holding his head in his hands. The anguished scream had come from him.
As she watched, Frost doubled over, wracked in agony, even as an all too familiar voice issued loudly from his helmet.
"Frost! What is this I hear of your wasting prime opportunities for my greater glory?" Katse's tone was filled with annoyance.
Jun stood in shock with the others, none of them able to believe what they saw happening before them.
"As of now, I've given Donos complete authority to carry out my wishes. Spidra will be launched immediately and with it we will assure the destruction of the Science Ninja Team."
"N-no! The base -- not ready. Ka- katse! Arrggghh." Frost writhed with increased torment.
"Silence fool! Nothing will stand in the way of my conquest, nothing. Do you hear?" Katse's anger suddenly turned sweet. "I suggest that if you expect to continue to live under my sufferance, you'd better remember this little lesson well."
Frost's body convulsed one last time and then abruptly relaxed. They all just stood there struck dumb, as the Galactor leader slowly rose to his feet and staggered toward his desk. One of the guards finally moved to try and help him, but Frost waved him back. He walked shakily past the desk to the wall beyond on his own.
A hidden panel slid aside as Frost waved a hand over the wall. Jun watched, strangely fascinated, as he forced himself to straighten and regain his previous cool composure before pressing a button on the communications console that had appeared before him.
"To all personnel -- this is Commander Frost. A situation Red is now in effect. Repeat, a situation Red is now in effect. All personnel not directly connected to the Spidra Project are to evacuate this facility immediately. I repeat, evacuate this facility immediately."
He flicked a switch and then sagged a moment against the console. Before anyone could do anything, he turned around to face them. "I'm sorry, but due to things beyond my control, it would seem that our plans have changed yet again."
Frost closed the communications console and then waved for them to follow him towards the elevator. With their leader obviously back in control again, the guards snapped out of their stupor and herded the prisoners in his direction.
Jun mentally kicked herself. The spectacle had had everyone so enraptured it would have been the perfect time to have attempted her escape. The whole thing had been so startling though… She berated herself again. She'd have to look for another opportunity an soon. At least for now, the weird occurrence seemed to have made everyone forget about taking scanner readings. And since she had a feeling Frost was about to take them with him out of impending danger, she'd just have to tag along long enough to figure the way out herself and then escape. Still… "Why are you evacuating the base? Are you that afraid of Gatchaman?"
Frost veered away from the elevator doors to a stairwell hidden in the walls beside them.
"Afraid of Gatchaman?" He laughed. "Were it only that simple. No, I have a greater thing to fear. Something more terrifying than Gatchaman --- I fear the stupidity of genius." He rushed through the open door.
Frost led them down as fast as they could keep up with him. Jun stuck close to Rathbone, the guards still keeping them cordoned off as much as possible. Even as they rushed downwards, the stairs began to vibrate beneath their feet.
"Damn, they've already started!" Frost glanced back at those behind him. "Come on, we must hurry before it’s too late." The urgency in his voice got them all moving faster.
"What's happening?" Jun was forced to grab hold of a railing as the vibrations abruptly increased and the entire stairwell began to shake.
"This base was built from the inside out. The mecha recently became of a higher priority so it was finished before the base was. Because of that Spidra has no way to exit the base, so she's making her own way out." Frost never slowed as he gave them his explanation.
The stairwell gave a strong lurch as they finally reached a landing and a doorway. Frost was slammed hard against the closed door. Jun was rocked to her knees as she caught hold of the rail for support. Rathbone fell hard to the floor beside her.
The guards fell like pins around them as the lurch caught them all unawares. A loud cracking sound echoed in the passage as one of the guards fell wrong and broke his arm.
Jun struggled to help Rathbone to his feet even as Frost yanked the door open. Two of the guards grabbed their comrade with the broken arm and led him quickly through the door amidst his sharp screams of to slip away from their captors. Unfortunately, she had no idea where they should go if they got away. Though she didn’t like it, for the moment she was dependent on the enemy for their survival. She was sure that Joe would find the irony very amusing. Jun stared uneasily at the not too stable walls, hoping they’d get out of here soon so she’d have a chance to tell him about it.
Methodically working on the entire length of the door, the guards eventually were able to make an opening wide enough for one of the guards to attempt to squeeze through to the other side. As soon as he’d done it, he started pulling on the door from that side.
As the door bent even further, the rumbling sounds returned. The floor’s vibrations picked up in intensity gaining ever-greater strength.
A second guard shoved himself through the opening even as the ceiling above the doorway cracked. The sound blended in with the ear numbing vibrations all around them.
As a third guard was able to make his way through the opening in the doors, the crack over the doorway spreading out in both directions. Jun spotted Frost abruptly looking up even as she felt the room shift. He cried out a warning, and suddenly he was throwing himself against her and the doctor, forcing the two of them away from the doors. Crashing sounds fell all around them.
Jun couldn’t breathe, Frost sudden unexpected weight had knocked the breath out of her. She could see nothing, his costume’s folds of cloth covering her, but she could hear the place thundering down around them. Trying to shift enough to catch her breath, Jun froze as she heard a loud resounding crack just above her. Frost’s body went suddenly limp on hers.
When the rumblings and falling debris finally subsided, Jun struggled to shift Frost’s body so that she could get out from beneath him. As she pushed him to the side and disentangled herself from his robes and cloaks, she coughed hard as the heavy veil of settling dust made its way into her unprotected lungs.
Coughing while still trying not to inhale any more of the dust, Jun grabbed one of Frost’s cloaks and placed it over her nose and mouth. As her coughing fit finally subsided, her throat and lungs burning from the effort, Jun wiped away at the dust-induced tears in her eyes so she could get a better look at her surroundings.
Eerie, blood colored light covered everything, the emergency lights having taken over the job of lighting what was left of the passage. The doors that would have led to their eventual freedom were buried under tons of rock
Jun couldn’t see any of the guards that had at one point been gathered by the doors. As she looked down the hallway to where the unconscious one had been left, all she found was a pile of rubble, some of which was covered with an oozing substance.
Even as she realized what had happened to the man, she discovered his severed hand at the bottom of the stone grave. Feeling suddenly ill, Jun turned her face away.
With a hesitant breath, Jun forced herself to look at the last two members of her party.
Jun spotted Dr. Rathbone several feet away from her and she quickly made her way through the rubble to his side. Turning him gently over onto his back, she tried her best to wipe away the blood and dirt that half covered his face. Looking for wounds, she found the immediate source of the blood, a shallow gash towards the top of his forehead.
Examining the rest of him thoroughly, she found no other major wounds or obvious broken bones. The cut and a growing bump on the back of his head, were the only causes for concern at the moment.
Jun called the doctor’s name several times, trying to revive him. He didn’t respond to that or the soft patting to his cheeks, but at least his breathing was steady. Jun moved some of the debris away from the doctor so she could make him more comfortable.
As she tried to consider her options, Jun’s mind stubbornly reminded her that she’d still not checked on the Galactor leader. In truth, she didn’t want to look, only too clearly remembering the awful cracking sound she’d heard just before he’d gone limp. She was sure that he was dead, yet she found herself hesitating to verifying the fact.
Eventually, knowing that the longer she stayed there the less their chances for escape, she forced herself to take a look.
Jun shivered as she walked over to him, his white cloaks, from a trick of the light, looking like they were covered in blood. Gingerly, trying to clamp down on the dread inside her, even as she told herself she shouldn’t even care, Jun pulled away the folds of the cloaks and robes that had fallen to cover Frost’s head. Her eyes widened in surprise, when she didn’t find what she’d expected.
A soft moan escaped the Galactor leaders’s lips even as Jun saw that all that had been damaged during the cave in had been his helmet. Blond, almost white hair, peaked out from where the chunk of ceiling had cracked his helmet in two.
Still shocked, and for some reason even slightly relieved, Jun watched unmoving as his eyes blinked open and after a moment he slowly made an effort to raise himself to his hands and knees.
As she stared, Frost shook his head lightly and the helmet’s wound separated even more and slipped onto the littered floor. Jun reached for it, her gaze moving back and forth from the helmet to the face it now revealed.
He was young, that was immediately apparent. And he was fair. Smooth features covered a longish, pale face. Frost’s eyes were closed, as he tried to steady himself, but she remembered how they looked and was quite sure that they would be quite striking with these features.
After a moment, Jun forced herself to tear her eyes away from Frost and examine the helmet in her hands. Prying the wound to open wider, she looked at the contents and saw what amounted to an amazing amount of micronized equipment hidden throughout the thickness of the helmet.
"It was my invisible leash, my golden chain, keeping me forever within my gilded cage."
Jun lifted her eyes in surprise, only to see her reddened image reflected in his gray ones. Even as she watched, Frost smiled silently to himself as he carefully, gingerly touched his own face. Jun couldn’t help but watch as he worked at rediscovering the contours of his previously locked away features. She couldn’t imagine what it’d be like not to be able to see or touch one’s face. How long had he been forced to wear this thing?
A far off explosion abruptly brought her mind back to the reality of their situation. "We still need to get out of here. Is there another way out? Frost?"
His eyes were staring off into the distance but came back at the mention of his name. "I – yes, I do believe there is another way to the escape craft hangar. We might make it if we hurry." He rose fluidly to his feet even as he quickly glanced around him.
"Don’t waste your time looking for your men, they’re all dead."
Jun saw Frost’s brow rise at the news even as he spotted Rathbone.
"How bad is he?" The concern was clear on his face.
Jun snapped at him for no reason she could name. "Why do you care?"
Frost’s only reaction was to smile and offer his hand to help her up. "Shall we go?"
Ignoring his offered hand, still puzzled by her unusually vehement reaction to his question, Jun got up on her own.
She started toward the doctor, intending to carry him on her back. As she moved, Frost sped nimbly past her and lifted the doctor in his own arms before she could protest. Holding onto his burden easily, he turned back to face her. "We’ll have to go back down the corridor. I believe there is a passage that connects to it before we reach the stairwell. We’ll want to follow it if we can."
Grudgingly nodding her understanding, Jun moved in front to lead the way. The two of them moved quickly but cautiously back the way they had come.
Even in the red tinted gloom, it didn’t take them long to find the side passage Frost had mentioned. Moving onwards, they turned to follow the passage that at the moment was their only hope for finding a means of escape.
They’d only gone down a few feet down the new passage when the entire area sjerked as another after shock of Spidra’s departure hit the area.
Frost fell back against the nearest wall, seeking support for himself and his burden. Leaping toward them, Jun pined the two of them to the wall with her body trying to keep Frost and the doctor from falling.
As the tremor finally subsided, Jun found Frost staring down at her. "Thank you."
Jun pushed herself away. She felt suddenly and uncomfortably warm. "I did it for the doctor." She dusted herself off. She could still feel his intense gray stare on her. Jun shrugged, trying not to let it bother her, already disturbed by her actions and his own. Knowing she had no time to deal with that now, she put her confusion aside for the time being.
She was just about to suggest they move on, when the corridor they’d been in but moments before, caved in on itself. Jun again instinctively threw herself before Frost and the doctor trying to shield them from any of the stray rubble.
"There are better ways to go about this, you know."
Jun’s head snapped up to stare at him, simultaneously backing away as she became only too aware of how close she’d been to him. Her mouth struggled to loosen a hot retort, but she made herself hold her tongue. There was no reason why she should give him the satisfaction of getting the best of her. It’d be better if she just ignored him. She wished she knew what kind of game he thought he was playing.
An almost inaudible beep resounded from her wrist.
Jun quickly glanced down at the silver bracelet on her arm and then at the now curious Frost. Hesitating only a moment longer, Jun removed the bracelet revealing the wrist communicator hidden underneath. She turned her back to Frost as she brought the communicator toward her lips. "This is G-3."
"Neechan, where have you been? We’ve been trying to contact you forever!" Jun frowned, not having heard the communicator’s beep before. Had something been interfering with it? Her brother rushed on. "There’s a huge mecha out here and Joe wants to –"
"Jinpei!" She realized too late that in her hurry, she’d called out to her brother by name. "G-5, please calm down. I need to speak with G-1."
As she waited, Jun glanced over at Frost who seemed to be intently listening to her conversation.
Aware that they had no time to just stand around and at the same time figuring that by keeping Frost busy, Jun started moving. He seemed just a little too interested in her business. Between carrying the doctor and watching his step over the littered terrain, he should have little attention to spare on her conversation.
"G-1 here, G-3. Where are you now?"
Though they’d told her that he was safe, Jun still felt relief wash through as she had heard Ken’s voice, for the first time truly reassured that he was all right.
"I’m still inside the base. The mecha destroyed a large part of it trying to get out to get to you. We’re trying to reach some escape vehicles. I’ve got Dr. Rathbone with me, but he’s been injured."
The comm was silent for several moments. "Are you going to be able to get yourself and the doctor to a vehicle? Should I try and send you some help?"
Jun almost glanced behind her at the question, but caught herself before she did it. "No, we’re all right. I’m not sure you could find me and, and I’ve got someone helping me already."
The intermittent silence was longer than before. "Jun?" It was almost a whisper. She heard Ken’s deep concern in the one word.
"I don’t have time to go into it now, okay?" Jun glanced behind her to see how much Frost might have already been able to overhear. "Please take care of yourselves. G-3, out."
"So, you’re one of the famous members of the Science Ninja Team," Frost said. "I’m impressed."
Jun walked faster.
"How did I happen to warrant such austere company? Is Rathbone that important?"
"Why don’t you save your breath and just concentrate on getting out of here?" Jun didn’t look back but just continued forging on ahead.
"I must commend you, your role as Loraine was superbly enacted. It’s only a pity that I had already figured you out for an impostor."
Jun stopped, suddenly annoyed, and snapped around to glare at him. "You did no such thing!"
He didn’t even have the decency to flinch. It made her even more angry.
His gaze held hers. "Didn’t I?"
His questioning look only served to infuriate her all the more. Suddenly though, she remembered his uncaring reaction to the state of the bathroom when he’d found them there. Almost as if he hadn’t been in the least surprised, as if he’d almost expected it. This only helped to stoke her anger. "Why are you wasting my time? Do you want to die here?" Not waiting for a response, Jun turned away and started forward once more.
The passage they followed became leaden with increasing piles of rubble and floating dust as the two of them continued to forge on ahead. Jun found it necessary to slow her pace as Frost lagged farther and farther behind. She watched him stumble even as his full concentration was set to crossing safely past the littered terrain.
"Are you sure this will take us where we want to go?"
Frost stopped moving, beads of perspiration on his brow, so he could look up at her. "No, I’m not, but there’s no other ways to try."
His serious expression and the red tinted lighting made his face look gaunt. Jun looked away from him, finding that she appreciated the candor and not liking that she did, she continued on without comment.
"Is Loraine as beautiful as you?"
"What?" Jun spun around too fast, totally startled by his question. Her foot caught against a piece of concrete and she went down.
"Are you all right?" He sounded genuinely concerned.
Jun heard Frost moving quickly towards her even as she started getting back to her feet. Her backside ached from the fall but not as much as her pride. The man had to be mad. He must have worn that helmet too long. Why else would he ask her a question like that -- here of all places. Was he purposely trying to keep her confused? What would he have to gain? "Frost, --"
"Please, I would prefer it if you called me Michael."
Jun glared at him. What was he trying to do? "Frost, how much farther before we get there?"
He didn’t reply for a moment. "It shouldn’t be much farther."
"Let’s get it over with then." She turned away from him and moved on.
They continued on their way in silence. Occasional vibrations swept through the passage, but none with the intensity of those before.
"Hey you."
Jun bristled but said nothing.
"You know my name, but I don’t know yours. I would like to know what to call you, unless you prefer 'hey you’ of course."
Jun continued walking forward, never once looking back. After a long debated argument with herself, she finally decided to give him an answer. "Swan, you can call me Swan. I can’t give you my real name. Someone like you should have no problems understanding why."
"A beautiful choice, and so apt." Frost’s tone was light. "Pity though, that it doesn’t do you true justice."
Jun forced herself not to falter in her steps, though she couldn’t stop herself from blushing. No one had ever complemented her on her looks before – especially the one she might want to hear them from – Ken. She was glad she wasn’t facing Frost. She doubted somehow that he would miss her reaction even in the red lighting. But still, why had he said it? Was he laughing at her even now? Why was he getting to her like this?
Jun was relieved when he made no further comments.
Minutes later, they reached the end of the passage. The set of doors they found there was partially hidden by rubble. Not having time to hesitate, Jun stepped carefully forward and started to clear the debris.
She’d barely begun, when Frost appeared at her side to help. Glancing back, she saw that he’d laid Rathbone carefully on the floor several feet back. Jun threw Frost an askew look, but said nothing.
An ominous rumbling rippled through the base and Jun and Frost quickly backed away from the door to go protect the doctor. Waiting tensely for the new wave to subside, the two of them looked about them uneasily even as they stood ready to drag the doctor away at the first sign of trouble.
Once the rumblings calmed, they quickly went back to work.
After long arduous minutes, they were able to clear away enough of the debris to see that the doors were already partially open. In silent agreement, Jun took hold of one of the doors while Frost took the other and then they used their feet to push against the opposite door, until the two groaned open enough for them to get through.
Jun moved through the opening to the other side, which was thankfully virtually free of debris. The room she found herself in was a small wide room. Three circles were painted on the floor, only one of them being presently occupied with a small odd shaped craft.
Jun turned her attentions back to the doorway as Frost slipped Rathbone through the opening between them. Holding on to him as best she could, Jun pulled Rathbone through to her side. Once she’d gotten him out of the doorway, Frost made his way through as well.
Before Jun could get the doctor lifted onto her shoulders, Frost lifted him from her and took charge of him again.
"There’s actually a ship left. Luck seems to be with us today." Smiling, Frost headed for the craft.
Far to the right, Jun caught a glimpse of the doors they’d tried to use in their first attempt to reach this room. Though the rubble was not as intense as it had been on the other side, a large broad crack ran from over the doors quite some distance through the hangar ceiling. Not liking the look of it, Jun fervently hoped there’d be no more tremors.
The door to the escape craft opened as they drew near. Seeing it open on its own, Jun ran past Frost and entered the craft with a flying kick. As she found no one inside, she returned to the doorway to find a gently grinning Frost there.
"All our escape craft are equipped with proximity sensors on all the doors. They can prove most useful when one is in a hurry." His grin grew.
Jun turned away feeling a little foolish.
After he followed her inside, she helped him with Rathbone and quickly strapped him into a seat in the back. As Frost moved to take the pilot seat up front, his robes brushed against Jun’s legs in a soft caress.
"It was a most impressive entrance though," he said. "I’m rather disappointed that it proved unnecessary. It could have been quite interesting."
Jun threw him a sharp glance, not quite sure if he was making fun of her or not.
Smoothly, as he sat, Frost’s hands flew over the controls bringing the craft to life. Jun came forward and strapped herself into the seat next to him.
As Frost worked, Jun glanced out the front view port. She frowned as she noticed that the exit gates only partially opened and then stopped. A low moaning sound came from the doors. Jun glanced over at Frost and saw him press the same button a number of times even as his gaze was locked on the doors not opening before them.
"The gates look to be stuck. That cancels out the easy way." He turned to look at her. "Do you know anything about weapon systems?"
Jun gave him a guarded look. "Yes."
"Great! We might get out of here yet." He grinned and pointed to the controls in front of her.
After a few moments of study, Jun found the system to be simple enough. Even someone without her skills could have rapidly learned how to use it.
"You do realize, don’t you, that firing those missiles at the gate might just make this whole place come down on top of us?" His gray eyes riveted to her own. "There’s still time to try to find another way."
His gaze sent a tingling ripple down Jun’s neck. "I don’t see that we really have a choice. There’s no guarantee that we’d be able to find anything better."
Frost nodded at her answer and then had the craft lift off the ground. Jun readied the missiles for firing. Frost sidled the craft to the center of the hangar and pointed the nose straight towards the gates.
Taking a deep breath, Jun started their countdown. Upon reaching zero, she fired the first two missiles at the gates.
The first set of explosions looked to have barely caused damage to the metal gates. As she fired again, however, cracks ran through them and pieces started to come off them. The crack in the hangar ceiling widened and spread as the shock waves of kinetic energy spread out from the gates into the already unstable structure around them. Large chunks of concrete disengaged from the ceiling and fell around the small escape craft.
Not saying a word, Jun continued firing at the gate even as death rained all around them. Frost angled the craft forward, ignoring the growing chaos.
The craft jerked suddenly as a large chunk of ceiling smashed into its side on the way down. Frost’s eyes flashed a glance at Jun for a moment, before he dumped all the acceleration he had available out of the craft’s engines. Gate or no gate, they would have no chance of survival if they remained where they were.
Riding blind through the clouds of growing dust and debris, the craft lunged forward.
Holding her breath, unable to see if there was a gate before them or not, Jun held on for dear life. Suddenly the clouds of dust parted before them showing a beautiful clear blue sky. They’d made it! Jun almost laughed in relief even as Frost’s sweet voice did.
Not knowing why she did it, she looked at him a smile on her face. She quickly looked away as she found him doing exactly the same.
Trying to distract herself from the strange feeling of warmth inside her, Jun looked out at the sky before them. With a gasp, she jerked back as a huge spider shaped craft suddenly cut the air in front of them. Frost jerked their craft hard to the right, hugging the mountain. "Damn!"
Jun stared all over looking for signs of her teammates ship, but saw none. Had something happened to them?
"I’m sure they’re around here somewhere. Spidra wouldn’t still be here if she’d finished them off."
Jun turned to stare at him. Had her worry been that obvious? And why should he care?
"Unfortunately for us, though they are still here. We’re not out of trouble yet."
Jun frowned, her worry set aside for the moment. "Why would you have anything to fear? You are Galactor."
Jun regretted her words as Frost glanced sharply at her his eyes hard. "Not everything was as at it seemed. I thought you’d realized that by now." His eyes softened. "I was a prisoner there. I never joined Galactor by choice. And yes, the men did follow me, but only because they didn’t know the truth. There are some, my keepers you could call them, who do know better. One look at me without my helmet, and they’d shoot me on sight."
A mischievous glint suddenly flashed in his eyes. "Though if somehow we are caught, I might be able to give a numbers of commands before Donos realized it. The ensuing mayhem might just be worth it."
Jun found herself tickled by the concept though she tried hard not to be. She could tell from the happy gleam in his eyes that it promised to be a merry chase.
"Fortunately though, I doubt that we’ll have to worry about it. I may have been Katze’s unwilling pawn, but even then I was far from helpless."
Jun studied him, not sure she understood.
"It’s standard operating procedure to place a self-destruct device into all Galactor mecha. While Spidra was under construction, I took the liberty of adding a few modifications to the device late one evening. I thought I might need something to hasten my end or perhaps help to divert it. It’s all quite simple really -- all I have to do is this." Frost turned on the radio controls and tuned them to a very high frequency. He turned on the speaker and spoke two words. "Freedom forever."
"What did you just do?" Jun thought she knew but didn’t quite believe it.
"I’ve activated the system alarms and set the self-destruct sequence of the ship. Even now, warnings will be blaring throughout Spidra letting everyone know that it’s been activated at a ten minute delay. They won’t be able to get to it to destroy it and once started the process is irreversible. If they hurry, there’s a good chance most of them can get out of there alive."
The escape craft continued to hug the mountain side, heading quickly for the plains below.
"If these people imprisoned you, why are you giving them a chance to escape? Why would you care if they live or die? They’re only Galactor." Jun had spoken quietly, honestly surprised by his gesture of mercy.
Frost jerked to stare at her as if she’d shouted at him at the top of her lungs. "Do you care so little for life?"
His shocked expression made her hesitate. "I – I care very much for life. It means everything to me. It’s one of the main reasons why I decided to dedicate my life to the ninja team. One of our main duties is to protect it."
Frost trapped her with his eyes. "And yet you, a champion for life and freedom, would prefer that I kill them all?"
"I – I didn’t mean –"
"Not everyone involved with Galactor is evil. You’d be surprised by the number of them that would like nothing better than to have never heard of the organization." His gaze pierced through her. "There’s no such thing as black and white where people are concerned."
Jun looked away. She felt ashamed, but she shouldn’t! In their world everything was black or white – them or us. There was no room for gray. There was no room for doubt – no room for inconsistencies.
Jun looked out the view port as the craft came around to the base of the mountain. She was trying to find something to say, when her eyes caught a flash of blue. Their previous discussion was immediately forgotten. "No!"
Before her, she could see the massive bulk of the Galactor mecha. Small ships were taking off from it, like falling fleas. This time though, Jun was able to see the front part of the mecha. It was almost eerie how closely it resembled a real black widow spider. And in its mandibles, caught like a fly, was the God Phoenix.
"Ken!" Jun switched on her activator and kept talking not waiting for a response. "You’ve got to get yourselves out of there, now! The Galactor mecha has been set to self-destruct. It could go at any time!" She leaned forward her gaze pined to the ship, willing them to break free.
She watched as the ship struggled to escape, its engines at full power, to no avail. Hurry, hurry!
The God Phoenix’s form wavered, an envelope of flames flowing to surround it. Even as the Fiery Phoenix struggled to form, the Galactor mecha suddenly exploded.
Jun tried to cover her face, blinded as the sky around them was filled with red fire. Frost struggled with the craft’s controls as they were buffeted about by the explosions’ aftershocks.
"I’m going to have to set us down. I think we may have sustained some damage, I’ll need to check it out."
Jun only nodded, her spot filled eyes staring out the view port looking for any signs of her family. They had to have made it. They had to!
The landing was rough, but they made it in one piece.
Jun had still seen no sign of the others, and was afraid to try to contact them not ready to deal with things if she didn’t get a response.
"There should be a med kit and a small repair kit hidden in the back somewhere." Frost spoke without looking at her, partially shutting down the controls.
"I’ll look for them."
Glad for the distraction, Jun searched the back of the craft, and after a couple of minutes was able to locate the hidden panel with the kits. Pulling them out, she followed Frost as he unstrapped Rathbone and took him outside.
"How is he?" she asked.
Frost set the doctor down and checked him over. "About the same. You’ll need to get him to a doctor as soon as possible."
It took Jun a moment to realize what he’d said. "Don’t you mean we?"
Frost didn’t look back up at her but instead unclasped one of his many cloaks and spread it over Rathbone’s unconscious form.
"No, I don’t." He stood up slowly and then turned to face her. "Swan, I owe you for my freedom, but even for you I’m not willing to give it up so soon." He gave her a soft smile. "Though I know you’d mean well, if I stayed, you’d only end up putting me into a different kind of prison."
Jun stared at him uncomprehendingly for a moment and then realized what he meant. "It wouldn’t be like that! You’d be very important to the cause. There’s so much you could tell us that would serve to make our jobs easier. It would help save more lives. All you’d have to do is answer a few questions. It wouldn’t be imprisonment."
Calmly, his eyes never leaving hers, Frost moved closer to her. "Wouldn’t it? Do you really think they’d let me go wherever and whenever I pleased before they’d finished sucking me dry? Would they dare let such a lucky find out of their sight where I might be accidentally hurt or killed? And what if I didn’t want to cooperate, what if I didn’t know the answers to the questions they were asking, do you really think they’d just thank me and let me go with all that I might or might not know?"
They’d never do that to him, Jun knew Nambu would never do such a thing. But, but the ISO wasn’t Nambu. Would the others involved be as amiable? She looked up at him uncertain as to what to say. It was then she realized how truly close he was standing before her.
"I do greatly appreciate what you have done for me. I doubt that I will ever be able to truly repay you." His bright gray eyes looked deeply into her own.
Jun found it suddenly hard to breathe
"You are so beautiful."
The whispered words had barely left his lips, when Jun suddenly found herself in his embrace, his lips pressed onto her own. A bolt of pleasure unexpectedly cut through her as he held her in his arms.
After only a few moments Frost backed away. Jun could only stare, breathless, stunned by what he’d done. Before she could think of doing anything, he bowed and then ran to the escape craft.
He stopped in the doorway and looked at her once more, a bright smile on his face. "Goodbye my beautiful Swan, I will surely miss you!"
Too shocked for anything else, Jun only stared as he disappeared within the ship. Within moments it rose into the sky without her.
She was still staring in the direction the ship had gone, her fingers wonderingly touching her lips, before an insistent beeping at her wrist brought her out of her reverie.
Only minutes after she’d answered her team’s call had Jun and Rathbone been picked up from where Frost had left them. UN forces swept into the area looking for Galactor survivors and to do clean up, even as the God Phoenix returned to Crescent Coral.
Rathbone awakened not long after and was soon reunited with his daughter. The doctors kept him in the hospital for several days under observation.
At the debriefings that followed their return, Jun found herself saying as little about Frost as possible. Though she didn’t really know all that much about him, so there wasn’t much to tell, her heart told her it’d be best to downplay what little she know.
Over the next several days, Jun found herself thinking of the strange Galactor leader often, especially remembering the last few minutes they’d been together. Of what he’d done, she made no mention of at all to anyone. Though as the others had asked about him in curiosity, she’d felt herself reliving his kiss. She’d had to stutter through when they’d asked her why were her cheeks had turned such a red color.
Jun wiped the counter yet again, though it had been spotless all day, when the phone rang at the Snak J.
"This is the Snak J, can I help you?"
"Oh, Jun, it’s you! This is Loraine."
"How are you?" she asked. "How is your father?"
"He’s doing great thanks to you." Loraine sounded very happy.
"That’s wonderful," Jun added.
"I just wanted to call and thank you again for everything. We’re both so grateful for your help."
Jun blushed feeling a little embarrassed. It hadn’t been just her doing afterall. "I was glad to do it."
"I also wanted to thank you for the beautiful flowers you sent. I really think they did a lot to cheer up Dad once we got home. All those beautiful blooms and scents filling up the place. After all the antiseptic smells and the white walls of the hospital – it made all the difference."
Jun was confused. "Loraine, I don’t know what you’re talking about. What flowers?"
"Why the gorgeous arrangements you and Michael sent, of course."
Jun caught her breath.
"By the way," Loraine continued, unaware of the effect of her words. "Who is Michael?"
The End