(OOG: Some of this /might/ overlap our previous posts. We tried not to let that happen, but if it does, just chalk it up to the fact that this post is from a different point of view than the others. Oh, and... you all know my action scenes are pathetic. Sorry!)

//"What is this, Miss Myaru? I don't see why this is necessary."

The dark-haired woman smiled, her mannerisms confirming beyond a doubt that she was a bit on edge. But her hands were steady as they rolled Elanore's sleeve up to her shoulder.

"Tell me. Why the sudden call when I'm about to go on a mission? If I'm even a minute late, it will throw off the entire system." She waited, watching apprehensively as Myaru cleaned a spot on her skin and readied a syringe. "I thought it had been established that I cannot work under the influence of Drive."

"This isn't Drive," the lab assistent said softly, pricking her skin with the needle. "Mordon has ordered this treatment - personally, no less. I'm not sure why this is so important, but he didn't leave room for debate."

Elanore winced as the drug - or whatever it was - was pushed into her blood stream, and the needle removed. Why did these blasted serums have to be so harsh on a person's system?

Or better yet, why was she getting this treatment at /all/? What was so special about this mission? It wasn't like they were going into hostile territory; if anything, she would have the help of the Lambs residing in this particular facility.

"Wouldn't want you to get a cold during the mission, Captain." Myaru smiled, just a slight turn at the corner of her mouth this time, the expression more confident. "The sea air isn't good for one of your type..."//

Elanore stared through her hair at the wall on the other side of Kyoko's bed, her lips dry, and her mouth feeling as if the entire desert had been shoved into it. Movement was impossible; she had somehow twisted herself into a very odd position on the metal chair she had taken up residence in to be near Kyoko, and the trails of stinging pain along her neck, spine, and shoulders were enough to tell her in no uncertain terms that 'getting up' would not be pleasant.

But getting up was far down on her list of priorities.

Myaru hadn't been there before she went to Aquavy. She was sure of it. Sure, Elanore couldn't remember much... but she remembered that room, being called to that room, and the woman who had administered that shot. The only things she couldn't remember were... well, just about everything else.

Odd, that she would have a dream about that. And why replace the nurse with Myaru? She felt uncomfortable around the woman, certainly, but... they hadn't even met until just recently, in Aveh. Why did she get the feeling that they'd known each other much longer than that? That girl, too... the girl who could have been her twin...

Myaru had changed. Elanore didn't think she had known her at all, but the girl had been Mordon's assistant for a long time - since Jugend. When she had had black hair, instead of the twilight purple that seemed deeper than the night sky.

How had she managed to rip Lord Ariath away from Aishou? That must have been--

Elanore blinked and sat up, the agony of twinged muscles flaring to life immediately. She gritted her teeth, massaging her shoulders in a sad, stiff attempt to rub the feeling away. Now where had that come from...?

"Finally awake again, Elly? You take more naps than my cat." Kyoko opened her eyes and let her head loll to the side, to give her friend a once-over. "And you still look like hell. /I'm/ the one who's supposed to be sick here, remember? Don't take all the glory."

"Brat." Elanore shrugged, smiling for a split second to show she wasn't angry. "I can't help that I'm tired. I don't know /why/, but I learned to obey my body's impulses a long time ago."

"Oh, /that's/ why you spent so much time with Darius..." Elanore's swift kick to the bed set her laughing, and she covered her mouth with a look to the cubicle the nurse called her 'office' - they'd been warned before to stay quiet. "Come on - you left yourself open to that one."

Rolling eyes was her response. "I /mean/ that it's an unspoken rule to take sleep and food whenever you think you need it - you don't know when you won't have the opportunity. It's military, but it works." It worked especially, right now... she had a feeling she'd be grateful for all of the rest she'd gotten, although she didn't know why. The military had some useful rules... it was a shame she couldn't remember most of them.

"Feeling better, I hope?"

Elanore's head snapped up. But once she realized who it was, she relaxed - a tad. No matter how kind these people were to take them in, this one...

"A little." Kyoko shrugged the inquiry off with a grin, sitting up. "Nice to see you again. What's the occasion?" She peered at him in her usual manner with people she didn't know, eyes roaming Marien's face - but she stopped, her eyes widening as they settled on something blocked from Elanore's view by pale green hair - probably the scar.

Marien ducked his head abruptly, turning it a bit away from both of them with barely concealed discomfort. "I'm glad you're feeling better, Kyoko," he continued after a moment, his voice a bit softer. "You gave us quite a sc..."

The floor rocked violently, and the sound of an explosion shuddered through the walls, throwing Marien from his feet before he could complete his sentence.

"Holy Mother Sophia!" he spat out, helping Elly to her feet. Across the room, Kandi picked herself up amidst the shattered debris of the medicine cabinet.

"What the hell was that?"

"I don't know, but I'm gonna go find out. Stay here..." The warmth dropped from his voice and the veneer of a professional soldier reasserted itself. He met Elly's gaze for a moment, and she bit her lip, unsure just how far she should really trust him after all. Such a change... "Don't let anybody in."

She watched him leave the infirmary rather apprehensively, glancing back at Kyoko once he was out the door. Her friend shrugged, wincing. "Nothing we can really do about it, right? I'm sorry I'm such a pain - if I were better, we might be able to get to Nisan on our own instead of relying on people we don't know."

Elanore shook her head quickly, leaning over to help her friend get back to a more comfortable position on her cot. "Don't worry about it. We're here, so let's just make the best of it, okay?" She pulled her chair upright and took a seat, her eyes wandering to the door again. "Besides, I think he really is genuinely concerned for us, or at least for you. We might as well do as he says."

For now, anyway...

------------------------

//I know - this is a joke on me. God knows I hate Lambs, and now I'm wading through the worst kind.// Shaina's fist connected with the bottom of a hairy jaw, and her opponent fell to the floor with a thud. Gods, what was it about pirates? Did they /try/ to fit the stereotypes? These Lambs were just revolting. Worse than Darius.

"Oh to hell with it!" She summoned a ball of ether into her hand and tossed it to the center of the room, shoving past two more fools to reach the door. One... two... She slapped the door panel and it slid shut, just in time to contain the anticipated explosion.

"Tired of brute force?"

"Ether is more effective against these mundanes - take a look for yourself. I'm sure there's something left, but I think I'll forgo the effort of looking myself." Gods knew what the smell would be like - roasted pirate likely wasn't any better than what she'd encountered before.

Darius shrugged indifferently, and peered down the corridor. "I'll take your word for it, this time. Why don't we just hurry up and get to Elanore, instead?"

"You're so single-minded, Darius." Shaina smiled and took a quick look around the corner, beckoning for him to follow when nothing unusual presented itself. "You'd make a good soldier... if you could follow orders. Pity about that."

The corridor was indeed empty, although she detected a slight whirring that suggested machinery of some sort - probably a camera. /That/ wasn't a good thing. She dashed forward with a muttered curse, hardly caring if Darius got the message or not, and flattened herself against the wall at the next corner to wait. //Elanore had better be grateful for this. I -never- want to go through this again for a sap like her.//

"There is a difference between being single minded and a soldier... I'd rather have a one track mind any day..." Darius grumbled in reply, and turned on his heel to race down the corridor after her. "...than not being able to think at all, and only take orders."

The young martial artist moved around Shaina and glanced quickly around a corner, but not spotting any guards in the process. That was odd... he would have expected to see someone around here by now. //Where could they be hiding, or would they be setting up a trap for us?// he wondered for a moment. "What now?"

Head tilted toward the new corridor, Shaina gave a slight shrug. "... I don't know. I think we've definitely been seen, if what I heard was a camera... and that means that we /will/ have company - very, very soon." She pulled a thin, glittering dagger from her boot and stepped away from the wall, moving boldly into the next corridor.

Nothing happened.

Shaina grimaced and walked forward, raising her eyebrows at Darius. "Coming, Lamb?" Knife ready, she grinned. "On the up side, I think Elanore is right down this hallway. I can sense her ether very clearly now. Smart girl - she must have felt me coming."

THAT must be a handy trick, Darius thought after a moment as he tried to sort through the entirety of what Shaina had just told him. He stilled bristled at the thought of her calling him a Lamb again... but right now he just needed to get to Elanore and get her out of here. So all Darius did in reply was give the Element a single thumbs up, before clenching his armored fist and preparing for whatever would await them in the next corridor.

"Are all Solarian's as suicidal as you?" Darius added after a moment as his companion strided confidently into the corridor. "Not that it matters... lead the way, and you can deal with the guards while I get Elly out of here..."

Suicidal? Should that be taken as a compliment? She smirked, though he couldn't see it. "Most are worse. They're so wired they can't discern the difference between battle and reality... Ever wonder why Solarian troops are so relentless?"

They turned another corner - still, no one. And that suited her just fine. Elanore was close... "I really shouldn't reveal trade secrets, but I'll say this - no human would do what they do without augmentation. I like to call it brainwashing, but I don't think the higher-ups like that term very much. I like to avoid their policies altogether, as I'm sure you've noticed."

There - the door up ahead. She quickened her step, her first clutching the dagger with a white-knuckled grip. If they were going to find anything... it would be here, protecting their target. Despise Lambs as she might, she knew well that they weren't stupid. And as far as she knew, from various reports, Elanore would be the only remotely valuable thing on this ship.

It seemed that everyone on this ship was... elsewhere. Had their arrival done something else that required the crew's complete attention? It seemed so odd, but Darius wasn't in the least familiar with sandships... maybe this one didn't have much of a crew. That would also have been odd... but a little more believable?

And Elanore was right through that door, Darius could feel it now... and not just by what he saw when he watched Shaina move across the corridor. From all indications, the door was secured... the usual red light, the keypad off to the side... and how were they going to get inside?

And Lady Fate Pointed.

Darius suddenly yelped as he foot caught on an uneven seam in the floor, his eyes wide in surprise as the slight rise of metal snagged his boot. Unable to cancel any of his foward motion, the brown haired young man windmilled his arms desperately to keep his balance... and as a result crashed headlong into Shaina's back.

The force of that hit rocketed her foward and down, until her impromptu charge/flight ended with her crashing head long into the keypad that controlled the lock for the door.

The now rather stunned Element slid down the wall, her posture one that would usually not be comfortable for someone to remain in for very long proving that she was unconcious. But by some quirk, the broken keypad gave out a strangled beep, and the metal door slid open...

------

Elanore's head snapped up at the sound of the door, and she leapt to her feet, fully ready to defend Kyoko from whatever had just busted its way through the door - it certainly hadn't sounded like a /peaceful/ entrance. Kandi looked up from her care of Kyoko, biting her cheek apprehensively, with the bandages only half-changed.

"Elly--"

"Shh. Just stay here." She launched forward and swung around the cubicle curtain, ready to throw a ball of ether the size of Bledavik at whatever was coming through the door. Marien would forgive her for blowing a hole into the hallway, right? The aide had been complaining about the small door--

Her visitors came into view, and the ether died at her fingertips as he lifted his head. "Darius?!" She halted, blinking. Unsure. "Darius...?"

The joys of falling in a suit of plate armor are lost on most people... and even for Darius, they are not exactly common things. So it takes a moment as he shakes his head about, trying to stop the ringing and figure out what that faint musical sound is... it almost sounds like his name, when he thinks about it...

Of course, this only takes a few moments, and as soon as Darius glances up and sees exactly who is speaking, his entire face lights up. "E...Elanore?" he says after a moment, almost completely overjoyed. Overjoyed enough that he ignores the softly moaning Shaina as he leaps to his feet and into the room.

She smiled hesitantly, arms going limp at her sides. "You look like hell, Darius... I take it you were the one causing all of the ruckus?" A chill rose on her arms as her ether dissipated to a more dormant state, and she wished she had a sweater to go with the "cute little dress" that Kandi had dug out of her closet to replace the torn uniform.

Come to think of it... Elly tugged at the skirt, hoping to pull it just a little farther - maybe over her knees, at least. "I... I'm glad to see you. I didn't expect..." Heat suffused her cheeks, and she fell silent. She didn't know what to say - maybe it would be safer to just shut up and let him do the talking. Especially since she didn't know if he...

Well, that was not quite the answer that he was expecting, but Darius managed to give her a weak smile. "Yeah, it was something like that..." he said after a moment and turned around to look back out the hallway. "Ah... Elanore... I... well, I'm here to save you..."

//That has to be the most pathetic line I've ever given...// Darius decided a moment later, and turned around to walk into the room until he stood only a few feet away from Elanore. "I promised that I'd make it out..." he added after a moment, a faint flush on his face. //And I'm not... quite... sure why I wanted to come so badly...//

Elanore bit her lip, staring at him... and threw herself forward, entwining her arms around his neck. The plate armor wasn't very comfortable, but... who cared? So she'd look stupid... might as well act like it, too.

"You don't know how happy I am to see you, Darius..." She sqeezed her eyes shut and tightened her arms. That wasn't exactly the smartest thing she'd ever said, but... "I was afraid you'd..."

"Elly?" Darius asked quietly, a little startled at her sudden reaction. Plate armor was again, not the best item in which to give someone a hug, but Darius gave it his best effort as he wrapped an arm around Elanore. Why did it seem like a lifetime since that day back in the Bledavik fighting arena...? Or since she had kissed him on the cheek in the gear bay...

"I missed you too... I had to come find you, when I heard you were missing..." he added in a quiet voice, and touched her cheek lightly with the back of one of his armored fingers. "I didn't know what had happened, but..."

"Just my luck, I guess..." She looked up at him, willing herself not to get tearful. She'd feel /so/ ridiculous... And she'd HATE to end up like one of those squealy girls in Kyoko's "romance" books... "But all that matters is that we're both okay, right?"

Darius smiled slightly at her as she spoke, and shhhed her very quietly as she finished. "Yes, we're both fine. Elly, I... I'm so very glad you are safe..." he said quietly. A moment later he tossed his arm to the side and sent his gauntlet down to the ground with a loud clatter.

A moment later he reached up and tenderly cupped her face with his now bare hand, and leaned forward to gently press a kiss to her cheek. Then, almost as if drawn, Darius turned her head and pressed another kiss to her lips, a single action speaking more of how glad he was to see her than any words.

"Ah... 'scuse me you two, but shouldn't you save that for later?" A hand slapped the door pad, and it slid closed with a hiss.

Elanore jumped, face as red as a desert sunset, and pulled back just slightly, opening her eyes to look past Darius's shoulder rather reluctantly. Shaina's peeked around Darius's head before backing up against the door, and Elly jumped again, clutching at him more tightly. "Sh-shaina...?"

A slight growl was the only response Dairus gave the Element for a moment, before he turned around with one arm still around Elly. "Couldn't you have stayed unconcious just a *little* longer...?" he asked, a sacrastic note in his voice. "I had the luck to have you knocked out in the first place..."

Now that wasn't very nice, but Darius shook his head at the sight of Shaina. Now that he'd found Elanore, he wasn't going to let this... Solarian walk off with her. And it might have been more convient to knock her out again... but then he realized with a lurch that he might need her to carry Kyoko...

The Element rolled her eyes, giving him a look fit for a five-year-old child. "Grow up, Lamb. Don't you understand our situation yet? There are troops back there /right now/, coming down the hallway to break this door down." A slam against the metal sounded to emphasize her point - Elanore figured she must have rigged the door lock to hold a little longer. "This isn't the time to get sappy." Her eyes flickered past them for a moment, as she moved away from the door.

Elly reluctantly slid out of Darius's arms, wincing at another crack from the door. If they brought a steel cutter or something... "Kyoko is right over here with the nurse... but I don't know how we're going to get her out of here. She's hurt pretty badly..."

"I'll live..." Her friend's voice rose above the din, but it was weak. "As long as we get where we're going..."

"It doesn't look like you'll be going anywhere, honestly," Kandi commented dryly, backing up against the wall. "But, not my job to stop you, I gue--"

The door exploded inward with a crash, and the feeling of ether again tingled on Elanore's skin, though this time it emanated from something other than herself. And as the smoke cleared, a tall figure stepped through the doorway, stride confident and still resonating wtih ether.

"Elly. Kyoko. Leaving so soon?" Marien stood in the doorway, a look of disappointment - unwanted but expected on his scarred face. "Your friends made quite a mess." His voice was soft, but his blue gaze was cold as he made eye contact with Shaina.

"[Your kind isn't welcome here, little girl. Go home.]" He said, then, the Solarian words crisply enunciated, as he gathered Ether around him.

Elanore moved to stand between Kyoko and the rest of the room, hoping both her friend and Kandi would be out of the line of fire. She wasn't sure what she was going to do here, but she had the distinct feeling that if she didn't throw up an ether sheild, this battle might fry all of them. What an escape attempt /that/ would be.

"This is going to be fun," Darius muttered under his breath, backing up with Elanore. "What is this, some kind of private feud she forgot to tell me about? What are they saying?"

"[And who are you to tell me what to do, Lamb?]" Shaina's voice was as icy as her power. "[I don't need a welcome - I've only come to reclaim my companions. If you won't allow us to leave peacably, I'll tear your ship apart plate by plate until I find another way. Please, step aside.]"

Elanore cringed, backing away another step as the residue of their combined power became thick enough to cut with a knife. Not good. Not good at ALL. "He told her to go home, and she threatened him. This is... this is crazy. We're never going to get out of here like this--"

"[Not likely.]" Marien matched pitch, his eyes never leaving the Element. "[I'll ask you again to leave...]"

A flash of icy light was Shaina's answer to his request. No need to waste breath with pointless words, was there? She focused her will into the sphere in her hands, watching it grow brighter until it rivaled the desert sun.

But there was something interfering... a burr, or a shivering in her connection to whatever nebulous source that produced this power, making it vibrate until she was sure she'd lose control. Through the haze of concentration she saw the pirate ready to throw something of his own her way, and she released her power quickly, hoping to catch him before his own spell.

The icy power flowed out smoothly and Shaina directed it toward the pirate who had spoken Solarian, hoping to block whatever it was he was throwing at her... But...

Elanore shivered, a dark, dark feeling settling on her shoulders. Something wasn't right with this. She reached out to grab Shaina's shoulder, and cried out as the ether current shocked her like a bolt of lightning. "Shaina!"

Elanore's sudden touch, combined with the discharge that resulted, proved to be a greater disruption than Shaina could handle. The flowing ice that she had tossed towards the pirate suddenly seem to recoil and whip back at her like the cut end of a rubber band.

The feedback tore back through her mind, a knife of pain running across her temples as the ether sought to return to its place origin. She managed to gasp out a single short cry before the pain reached up and seized her like a rag doll, tossing her into darkness.

(Summary: Shaina and Darius infilterate the Yggdrasil to rescue Elly, only to find that Marien has trapped them in the infirmary. When Shaina tries to fight, her power backfires and "puts her out".)