Ghosts Always Come Back

Chapter 4: A Captain’s Faith

Kaname thought she had seen the entire ship before the small captain next to her opened up a panel along one of the hangar walls. Inside was a touch-type pad where she entered in the Danaan master key and typed in the numerical password. A chirp of the acceptance signal and pretty soon the whole wall on the left side of the hangar began to shift and open up to an extended storage area beyond what was already seen. Beyond the depths of steel, the Danaan opened herself up to reveal the offspring of Tessa’s most recent hidden project.

“It is the Toy Box prototype 3036. Otherwise known as the Keris,” she informed Kaname as the High School civilian gawked in confusion and surprise. The Arm Slave unit was the latest design that was obviously built to be either for reconnaissance or perhaps as a stealth surveillance entity instead. “The Keris’ prime purpose is to act as an offensive front line in the near future.”

“O-offensive?” Kaname managed to blurt out, “But it’s so sleek and not exactly big by any measure.”

“The Arbalest is equipped with all the necessary measures so that a well-trained specialist can operate the Lambda Driver in conjunction with the Slave unit itself. Gauron’s unit is made from the same level of technology. There’s a lot of potential that’s untapped with those machines due to the fact that the driver feeds off of emotions and the concentration levels of the pilot.” As Tess continued her informative briefing, she turned on the lights within the small storage chamber so that they could both have a better look. The Keris was brushed over with a sort of golden eggshell color of sorts that was fairly subtle but enough to differentiate between it and the Arbalest. Kaname marveled as she ran her fingers along the smooth surface and couldn’t help but feel some sort of strange attachment to it. Tessa paused and watched the girl take the time to absorb the new technology in its silent glory, “But after the last time Gauron attacked the Danaan, I realized that without control of this ship, I would have nothing left to stop anyone who infiltrated our base of operations. I finally decided to construct Keris in order to store it as a trump card in case this happened again.”

“You mean you built this for yourself?”

It felt a bit shameful to Tessa, and the captain blushed as she toyed with her hair at the ponytail’s tip, “Yes.”

Kaname wasn’t aware of the captain’s level of expertise on piloting any of the Arm Slaves, “Then you’re a specialist just like Sousuke when it comes to these things.”

There was a bit of hesitance in her response, but she finally confessed, “I can perform the very basic operations of a typical pilot, but I am in no way capable of doing what Sergeant Sagara and the others can do in their given machines.” Obviously this was going to confuse Kaname more so Tessa felt obligated to explain, “The Keris is special from the others. It possesses some of the similar piloting commands as the Danaan. It functions by the mental wavelengths of the pilot and their spiritual link with the Black Technology.”

“But Sousuke and the others don’t have that kind of link. How are they going to be able to pilot it if something happens to you?”

“They can’t,” she sighed, “The system will only operate under the command of another Whispered. This means if Gauron ever managed to obtain the Keris, he would not be able to control it.”

“But couldn’t he override it like the Danaan?”

“With the right override codes, he could shut it down and make it inoperable to us. But because he’s not a Whispered, the operating system will not acknowledge his authority because the system…” Tessa paused as she looked up at the metallic beast that she had created, “The operating system is powered only by the mental waves of the Black Technology hidden within us. It’s a check and balancing program that I created in order to prevent people like Gauron from truly being able to handle machinery that should not be in their possession.”

“Tessa…” the other girl stepped over next to the captain and also stared up at the Keris. The thing was beautiful and sleek, and effeminate just like the master that had built it, “Why did you bring me here?”

This was the moment Tessa had to divulge the reality of what was going on. “You’ve always been very brave, Kaname. Even for a civilian, you’ve gone above and beyond anything that has ever been asked of you. For that, everyone here at Mithril respects you, including myself. I know you’ve been through a lot.” An awkward silence came over the both of them and Kaname now suddenly remembered all of the painful moments in time that were permanently imprinted upon her. Her eyes fell to the ground but soon she felt the captain’s warm, loving hands upon her and was forced to make eye contact once again. “I won’t ask you to do anything. You should not be on the battlefield against Gauron. Sousuke will fight to protect you, as will all of us. For now, he is the only one that is equipped and capable of going up against that man. But I fear for his state of mental health, and I know that he’ll do the right thing in the end.” Tessa had to get to the point fast before she ended up losing her own grip on everything, “The Keris is yours, if you want it.”

Hearing this, Kaname pulled her hands away and looked at the other girl with an incredulous glare, “What?!” For a moment she thought this was a joke. Why would Tessa simply give her something of this nature to her? Kaname wasn’t capable of operating something like this no matter what the captain reassured her. “You’re expecting me to pilot this thing? I’m not trained to do something like this. I’ve never fought anyone before, I can’t-“

“You saved us with the Danaan. The Keris will operate under the same command structure as this ship.”

“But I’ll only be a burden to Sousuke at this point.”

“You’re the only one that can help him because everything he does now is for you. There is no one else that can snap him out of his mental state now. Gauron knows this and is using it to his advantage. I’ve seen how he acts with you, and I know that the Keris will help you save him.”

Again, the silence seemed to blanket the small storage cloister as they both pondered Sousuke’s fate and how they could help. By now Kaname was up and down an emotional roller-coaster. She didn’t want this for anyone, but her inner rage against Gauron had now clouded her better judgment, and for the first time in a while she looked up into Tessa’s gray eyes and replied in a determined tone, “I’ll pilot the Keris. I don’t know what I can do, but I’ll try something.”

Tessa was almost hoping the girl would refuse instead. One of them had to be the voice of reason in this crazy situation. However it seemed that neither one would recognize that this plan on the verge of utter insanity. The Mithril captain was desperate and determined to put an end to all of this, and by now Kaname’s emotions had been swirled into a mixture of hatred and vengeance. As they said: Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned. Or in this case, taken hostage and abused. “There is one last thing I need to tell you before you get into that thing, Kaname,” Tessa added as she tried again to make sure that she wasn’t completely mental for doing this, “I haven’t completed all of the testing on the Keris. There is a certain point where it will attempt to pull you under.”

“Pull me?”

“That sensation you feel when you sink into the depths of the Black Technology realm. The voices that want to drag you down and take over?”

Kaname knew this all too well, and for a moment a shiver ran down her spine as Tessa told her this, “Yeah?”

“The Keris is capable of doing the same thing, and multiple times I’ve had to abort further testing because of it. Use it only at the standard levels, and don’t push yourself further than that. Otherwise I can’t be certain what will happen past those points.” It was an awkward feeling the two shared as they exchanged glances again before looking onto the sleek metallic creature that was this new weapon of Tessa’s. What broke the silence was Gauron’s voice popping back up onto the transmission as he had something to say for everyone.

“Kashim, did the girl ever tell you what I did to her?” his husky tone echoed throughout the boat as he chuckled. Both girls felt the sensation of their hearts dropping to the pit of their stomachs. “He isn’t planning on-,“ Tessa began, but Kaname was already screaming up at the air, “NO! DON’T TELL HIM!” The Captain called to the girl and tried to get a hand on Kaname’s wrist, but she snapped it free from Tessa’s grasp and tried to run to the nearest screen she could find. “Kaname!” It was no use calling to the Whispered girl as the conversation continued over the intercom.

“Shut up, you bastard!” Sousuke’s voice was now coming through the frequency.

“Don’t you want to hear what happened to her? ...No?” a clanking rattled the sounds. Apparently battle was ensuing while Gauron was having his pleasant little chat with the sergeant, “Words were never much my style. I’m more of an action ma-,“ another pause was made with metal grinding against metal. The fight clanked and banged its way through for a couple of minutes. Sousuke was keeping the man busy since he didn’t have the time to continue his little chat. But when the movements died down the repetitive click of ‘tsk’ followed afterwards, “Kashim, so rude. I like your spunk but you didn’t let me finish.”

“I don’t need to hear what you have to say.”

“That’s the spirit, Kashim.”

“Stop talking to me like you know me, dammit!”

“But I love you, Kashim,” one didn’t have to see the man’s face to know that he was grinning, “Which is why I had to make you angry. I had to break your toy. That way you could fight me without distractions, without empathy. As I said before, I’m a man of action, Kashim. It would only be appropriate if I SHOWED you what I did to the girl to get you in the mood.”

The blood rushed to Kaname’s ears, almost drowning out the sound of her own footsteps as they made their way down the enclosed halls. As she rounded her way to the nearest break room, all of the energy drained from her body as the televisions reverted to a video clip of Gauron yanking down on her hair while he raped her unconditionally. The few soldiers that were getting ready to scramble from their quick break seemed speechless as they watched the video clip and then eventually looked behind them to see who had entered the room.

All eyes were on her while the screams of her defilement resonated in the background. Death was all she wished for at this point, because she had broken beyond the boundaries of embarrassment. As her eyes flushed with salty tears, Sousuke’s screaming over the transmission brought her to an emotional climax beyond her wildest imagination. Her world had ended. Mortified, overwhelmed, and scared to be around all these male soldiers, Kaname fought back the urge to faint and turned back around instead to run to any place that would hide her. Gauron’s laughing, and Sousuke’s intense anger eventually flared up to where the sounds of battle had reached a pinnacle within moments. The Lambda Drivers clashed into a stalemate unbeknownst to those who couldn’t witness the battle directly.

When she ran to the point where her feet could no longer carry her, Kaname’s ankles gave out and she stumbled violently against the metal piping along the walls. Slamming to the floor, her skin making rubber squeaks as it rubbed against the cold material sobbing uncontrollably. The soft clinking of shoes came along and Tessa crouched down to the ground to hold the girl. Instead of fighting it, Kaname reached up and wrapped her arms firmly around the young captain. The crying continued its echoes which eventually elicited more boots running down the halls. A few shouts to the captain caused Kaname to scream out in fear. She didn’t want to be seen like this. Tessa waved a hand to the soldiers, “Tell Mardukas and Kalinin to take full command of the operation until my return. I will take care of Kaname.”

“But Cap-“

“Go!” she screamed at them, a stone cold glare in her eyes as she scowled up at the group of them, “And don’t ever question my authority!”

“Yes Ma’am!” they all responded with a salute before scrambling to the bridge to prepare for further combat. After the coast was clear her features softened as she hugged Kaname tightly again. All she could do was be here for the girl now. Perhaps this wasn’t the time to have a moment of comfort. But as a captain, as a woman, she could not let this happen. She would not neglect Kaname like this, “This is not over, Kaname,” she whispered into the dark, silky hair of the other girl. Her lips pressed against the top of Kaname’s head and soon the sobs quieted down to more manageable bouts of hyperventilating to regain her composure after one had a good cry, “I will make sure that Gauron pays for his crimes against you and against Sousuke.”

It was shock that the words were spoken so soon, but Tessa was halted with a ‘no’ for a response. Looking down, she saw that Kaname’s flushed face was overwhelmed with anger, “…I’ll do it. I will pilot Keris.”

“Kaname, I don’t think-,” again Tessa was surprised as she found herself grabbed by the wrist and pulled to her feet in seconds. Before either one of them could figure out how they got there, they were both now staring face to face with the prototype 3036. “Tessa, I will pilot this thing. I’ve made up my mind.”

There was no use in taking Kaname out of it now. The girl had obviously made up her mind despite what had just now happened. Tessa couldn’t blame her really. She would have wanted the same revenge. By now the transmission had cut out completely. Gauron got what he wanted out of the both of them. The two girls were unaware that Sousuke had lost control of the Lamda Driver along with his mind. He had become a sheep to the slaughterhouse as the knowledge that he had failed to protect Kaname destroyed the link he had to the Arbalest’s greatest weapon and forced him to the ground. The weather was kicking up and droplets of rain warned the two battling pilots of a short storm up ahead.

“Tessa,” she replied in earnest, “What do I need to know to pilot the Keris.”

Steady in her resolve, Tessa looked up to the mechanical beast and commenced her set of orders, “Keris, activate main operational units of the 3036 Toy Box system.”

A wave of light filtered through the unit as the eyes came to life and it stood to better attention, “Operational controls for prototype Toy Box 3036 codename Keris activated and fully functioning. Please state your name.”

“Captain Teletha Testarossa.”

The Keris chirped to signify that it was ready to receive orders, “Identification complete. Please state your orders, Captain.”

“Register secondary pilot.”

“Secondary pilot input acknowledged. Please identify yourself.”

Tessa turned to Kaname and nodded in approval. There was a slight hesitance from the foreign interaction, but she eventually mustered up her courage and shouted out, “Kaname Chidori!”

“Declare your level of authorization.”

“Private specialist,” Tessa suddenly declared over the stumped girl. Another round of chirps sounded off before it finally released the hatch to the cockpit, “Private Specialist Kaname Chidori confirmed. Please enter for personalized data registry into the operating system.”

As Kaname prepared herself for battle, Tessa instructed her through the piloting system. The cockpit to the Keris wasn’t like the other ARM Slaves at all. It was very small, the same size as the Danaan’s chamber which held her when she took command of the ship. The captain was correct; this was exactly like what she had piloted before. It almost felt like there was no explanation needed as the Keris read her biometric data and began to automatically register the information.

“Move Keris to the launch pad. I will have the Danaan send you to shore immediately,” were the final orders, “Please be safe, Kaname. Bring Sousuke back to us.”

“Don’t worry Tessa, I will.”

The two exchanged reassuring smiles before Keris locked the cockpit chamber up and commenced its decent down to the designated area.