| Phase 5 I got up and headed down the hall to the Gear bay. It was a buzz of activity, full of crew members scurrying around and Gears resupplying the ship. Finding Bart was relatively easy. I mean, hey, he�s six-one and blond with a patch and an extremely big mouth. Is it really that easy to miss him? I dodged everyone and made my way to Brigandier. � Bart?� He looked up from the clipboard. � Oh, hey, Kris. Come to let off more steam on me?� � No~o.� I sidled over to him and glanced at his notes and checks. � I want to apologize. I was being a real bitch earlier.� � Apology accepted.� He looked up, then grabbed me and pulled me against him, out of the way of a Deurmod�s foot. � Do you wanna help? We need some Gear power and I�m busy here. The regular Gears are all out and it�s not enough.� � I�d love to, but I don�t have a Gear.� He looked around. � ? I thought Axyl was . . . Oh hell.� � I can call her, but it might take her a while to get here.� � Okay. Until then you can use Brig.� My mouth fell open. I reached up and placed the back of my hand against his forehead. � Do you have a fever?� � No.� � Then . . .� � Look, that may have sounded like the words of a madman coming from me, but I trust you, Kris.� I hugged his waist. � Hey, what�s this for?� � It�s been six years since I left--I could�ve done anything to Axyl in that time --and you�re still letting me pilot Brig . . .� He stroked my spine with the tips of his fingers of his mostly free right hand. � Well considering the surroundings, I didn�t think you�d be so flattered.� � But Bart, you�ve never let anyone even touch Brig�s panel . . .� � So I�m not jealous anymore. So what?� I knew that was a lie. I could hear it. � What�s the real reason?� He hesitated, not expecting me to figure him out so quickly, then sighed and said, � Brig�s been itching to do something, I can tell. And since I�m stuck here doing this, I figured you wouldn�t mind helping both of us out.� He paused. � Does that sound crazy?� � No. I told you Brig has a personality and that he can speak.� � It doesn�t sound right.� � Of course not. Gears are supposed to be big dumb machines. And then you get hit with the news that they aren�t . . .� Someone dropped something that was very large and it reverberated throughout the bay. We looked over that way to see what it was. Luckily, it was nothing serious; just an empty supply box. � Well---Kris . . . Your face . . .� He reached up and touched the left side of my face where a fair-sized bruise had formed. I flinched ever so slightly at the soft pressure on the place where my jaw connected to my skull. � Did I . . .?� � Surprised?� I asked somewhat bitterly, though it was my own fault for getting it. � Yes, you do hit that hard.� � How could I . . . I never noticed . . .� I shook my head. � It�s all right. It doesn�t hurt unless I touch it.� He hugged me tightly, tucking my head under his chin. � Kris, I�m sorry.� � It�s all right,� I repeated patiently, rubbing his back. I closed my eyes and let his heartbeat drown out everything else. For some reason, he made me feel safe. Like nothing could hurt me. Sig was the same way, but it wasn�t exactly the same. I nuzzled under Bart�s jacket and hid in the relative darkness. � Babe,� he whispered tenderly, stroking the side of my head, � I don�t want to do this, but I have work to do.� I reluctantly pulled away some. I tilted my head back and the tip of my nose brushed against the bottom of his jaw. Then I left the protective circle of his arms and went to Brigandier, settling in the Gear�s cockpit seat. � Brigandier, start up.� � Enter control code.� I slapped my forehead with the heel of my hand. I�d forgotten Bart�s ID code. Damn. Oh well. I decided to enter my own code, see if that worked. � Control code: 5-2-7-1, input.� � Control confirmed to Krista-Lyn Wong. Welcome aboard, Kris!� He knew my code? How? I never told him . . . [Did something happen to Bartholomew?] Brigandier asked worriedly. � No. He�s just busy and he said you�ve been looking for something to do.� [Have I ever!] � Okay. We�re doing supply exchange.� [Well, it�s something . . .] � Brig, Auto.� I let Brigandier go and leaned back in the chair. � So how have things been going recently?� He collected some boxes and headed to the storage rooms. [Awful, from my perspective. We haven�t been able to do many raids because the units are so big and Bartholomew isn�t allowed to go out with them around.] A pause. [And he has been rather depressed since you left.] � Really?� I asked, feeling my heart berate my head for the idea of leaving. [Yes. He couldn�t put any spirit into what he did. It was as though he had forgotten his purpose. He fought as usual, but it was almost suicidal in its intensity. I think he was hoping that he�d find you again like the first time, only not in such bad condition.] I looked back at the Yggdrasil and could see Bart outside now, still taking a few notes and checking off the supplies as they were placed in the ship. He didn�t seem any different. � Are you sure?� [When we returned from the cavern, Sigurd informed him that there was an important person waiting on the bridge. He left, then came back hardly ten minutes later with the news that you were back. You should�ve heard the way he went on and on for two whole hours describing you to me.] � That�s funny. He seemed the same to me.� [Because you�re here, he can act like he did before.] � Did I change his life that profoundly?� [Apparently so. He has never been so serious as he was during the time you were gone.] I shook my head. � It�s just because we�re about the same age and everyone else is older than him. He needs someone to play pranks on and I�m the only one who won�t get deathly angry at him.� [He needs someone to talk to,] Brigandier added. [You provided him with insight that no one else could have. You understand him when no one else does.] � Fei would.� [Males don�t confide in each other that easily.] � I know.� I sighed. Bart was just too temperamental, especially when he didn�t get his way. � Hey, Brig, could you send out a call signal to Axyl for me?� [Of course.] � Thanks.� I watched Bart a while longer, noticing that he never looked for Brigandier once. He really did trust me. We--well, Brigandier--worked for an hour before there was a hollow knocking sound. The Gear broke off from his work and went to the bay doors, pressing the �open� button. Axyl peered in, then entered. [Where is she?] � I�m right here,� I called to the COM, waving from behind Brigandier�s closed cockpit door. [Oh, good. Wait. Then where�s Bartholomew?] � He�s working on the ground over there.� There was a buzz as her cameras focused. [I see him.] � Axyl, we need your help with the supplies.� [All right.] � There probably isn�t much left, but your help is always appreciated.� The doors closed behind her, nearly touching her rounded wings. [You know I don�t mind helping.] She headed off in one direction and Brigandier took the other while I exited the cockpit and crawled up to the red Gear�s shoulder. � Hey Kris!� I surprised Bart by looking down from the shoulder. � Yeah?� He looked at Brigandier as the Gear set the boxes down and turned. I quickly ran to the other shoulder as he asked, � How�d you do that?� � It�s a secret command. I�ll tell you later. Did you want something?� � Yeah. Can I talk to you sometime?� � Sure.� [See?] Brigandier clicked. � Yes, I see.� � Kris, look out!� I lifted my head just as a crane hook that had fallen loose slammed hard into Brigandier�s shoulder. He stumbled backwards, but kept his feet. I still went flying and connected harshly with a wall. Dropping limply to the floor, I heard a clatter of metal on metal and noticed a crowd of crew members forming--watching me worriedly, afraid to do something for fear of hurting me further. Someone shoved through the group and then Bart was holding my face gently to keep both of us from panicking. � Kris, can you hear me?� I swallowed, then said, � Yeah.� � Good. Good. Is anything broken?� I did a brief check on myself. � Believe it or not, I think I�m still intact.� � Your neck�s okay?� � It�s fine.� He picked me up as though I were fragile porcelain and carried me from the bay. � I�m sorry, Kris.� � No, Bart. You couldn�t�ve know. Hell, I didn�t know. Not in time, at least. I�m not upset.� � I am!� I reached up and locked my arms around his neck, resting my forehead against his cheek. � Really, Bart. I�m okay. I don�t think any serious damage has been done. Nothing that I can�t bounce back from in a day or two.� He took me to the medical room and had the doctor look me over. � Well, I can�t find anything that�s broken. She�s either very lucky or she didn�t hit as hard as it seemed. But whatever happened, she probably shouldn�t do any work for the rest of the day.� Bart sighed heavily. � Okay. Thanks.� He picked me up again and took me to his room. He set me on his bed and then sat on the floor beside the bed so we were eye-to-eye. � Well, since we�re both here, you might as well tell me what you wanted to talk to me about.� He shook his head. � No, it�s stupid. Besides, it�ll just put more pressure on you and you need it as much as I do.� � Bart, it won�t do you any good to bottle it up.� He took off his patch and tugged nervously at its band. � Kris, I can�t be the King of Aveh.� � Why?� � Because I won�t be a good one.� � Oh, Bart. I thought we went over this already.� � We did, but this time is different.� � How?� He shook his head. � Nothing�s left. I just heard recently that the last of my father�s court died.� I reached out and put my hand in his soft blond hair. � You can make up your own court. In fact, I think it�s better that you do, that way you know everyone you appoint and you don�t have to worry about them turning on you. Old court members have been known to turn on a new king, even if he�s the son of the old king. If they don�t like the way you rule, they might hire a hitman.� � What�s wrong with the way I want to rule?� � Nothing. But some of the old court members may not agree with you. You may rule in such a way that everyone�s happy, but that may not happen and someone somewhere will hate you. Having spoken with regular people, you know what they would prefer and if you apply that, it would make your subjects happy, but it might bother the old court. I�m not saying that it�s good they�re all dead, but maybe it�s better that the situation turned out that way.� He rested his chin on the edge of the bed. � Maison had a fit.� � Why?� � He said that if the old court was gone, then their families were too and that meant there wasn�t anyone with the proper blood that I could marry.� I made a face. � You�re too young to have to worry about marriage.� � Kris, I�m eighteen. Most kids my age are already married.� <--Phase 4 Phase 6--> |