Suture (The Bleeding Worlds) (10 page)

She sat at the desk, tapping her finger against its surface, staring at the message on the screen. She switched to Jason's feed. This time, it ran through, all the way up to Hodur and Paltar's return. She ignored their words for a moment. Instead, she studied their faces. Both looked shaken, but in very different ways. Paltar adopted an even stronger air of
keep moving on,
while Hodur looked, what was it…horrified. She clicked and replayed those few moments. She looped it. The more she watched, the more she couldn't shake the feeling Paltar had braced himself for this exact outcome, whereas Hodur had been caught unaware. Did Paltar know the tear would be too much for Katsuro? She logged out and made her way to the elevator.
One last thing to try.

Down to the second floor, the central command. She just hoped
he
was on duty.

The elevator doors slid open.

She knew there would be armed guards on the other side, there always were. Yet it still unnerved her. Along with the armed guards, several automated weapons trained on any individual who left the elevator. A Prometheus Circle set into the perimeter walls negated the abilities of any Anunnaki. Being a member of Ansuz got her entry, but not without scrutiny. Or rather, she would've been scrutinized, if not for her father's credentials. She wasn't just Fuyuko of Ansuz team, she was Fuyuko Takeda, daughter of the head of Research and Development, Shinji Takeda.

A scan of her hand print, a separate one of her retinas, plus a swipe of her Suture ID card, finally granted her access to the command centre.

The central command lay on the second floor. Which was a bit of a misnomer, as the tiered formation of the floors made the command center four storeys high. The door she entered put her at the halfway point of the room. A lift to her right would take her up to the brain centre of command, a deck extending out over the other tiers. There the team movements were monitored, their orders decided, and a separate communications centre used exclusively for the active teams. General base and civilian communications were controlled from one of the lower tiers. It was one of the other stations located on the lower tier she needed to visit—monitoring.

One of the reasons for Suture's creation was to monitor, and respond to, energy fluctuations in the Veil. This way, Suture would be able to prevent any world killers or out of control Curses and Taints. It worked well, excepting the interference of murderous traitors.

She didn't need Monitoring itself, just one of the controllers. Ethan was an Anunnaki with too much power to be a mere human, but lacked the control for field work. As she understood it, he'd excelled at monitoring, displaying abilities described as a gift. Fluctuations most others missed, he picked up on. Ethan caught the anomalies in the system Hodur had planted. If it hadn't been for others doubting him, Suture might have arrived sooner. With the whole plot revealed, and Ethan's reports vindicated, he'd been promoted. As a longtime friend of Katsuro's, she'd known Ethan since her childhood. She hoped he'd be able to duck out and check the archives for her. At least she'd know if it was a general block, or just her user number. It would all be for nothing if he wasn't on shift. No way would she be able to drag him back here from town if he wasn't working.

When she got closer to the Monitoring unit, her fears subsided. Ethan was working.

"Hey, Ethan" She said.

His initial response was to look cranky at someone interrupting his work. But when he saw Fuyuko's face, his expression brightened. "Hey Fuyuko. What's up?"

Straight to the point—so typically Ethan.

"Can't I just come to visit a friend I don't see often?" She did her best to inject innocence into her voice.

"If you were dropping by my house, I might buy that. Not when you're coming in here."

Fuyuko sighed and dropped the act. "Yeah, yeah, I know. Sorry. I was looking into something and I wanted another pair of eyes."

"Another pair of eyes?"

Gawd, why'd he have to be so suspicious?

"Fine, another person with higher access than me."

"No, no way." He shook his head violently. "I am not getting messed up in some scheme. You're brother…" He caught himself and took a long breath. "Fine, I'll say maybe. But I'm not budging until you tell me what it is."

Fuyuko looked at the other three techs working in the Monitoring area. They all seemed oblivious to her and Ethan's conversation. She still came in closer and lowered her voice.

"I'm trying to watch video of Katsuro's last mission, and it locked me out."

Ethan stared at her a little too long—had she snapped his mind? She waved her hand in front of his eyes.

"Hello? Ethan?"

"Yeah. Uh, why in the Hell are you watching that?"

This time, the other techs took a look to see what was happening.

"Keep your voice down." She even motioned with her hand to lower his level, as if a visual aid might reinforce the point. "I was talking to Jason about it, and he said something that just didn't fit with me. I had to check it out. It's sort of…part of my therapy."

Ethan's eyes softened. Everyone knew about Fuyuko's "affliction." She hated the pity in their eyes. Still, if pity got what she wanted, she'd endure it from Ethan.

"It's just the archive footage?" he asked.

"That's all. I just want someone else to look and see if it's just me who's locked out, or if it's a general lock down."

"I don't like where this is going." He hunched down and held his chin in his hand—a pose the Thinker would've been proud of. "Fine, I'll see if it'll let me see it. Only on the condition you stay outside of the room while I do."

"That's not fair." Now it was her turn to draw the increasingly angry attention of the other techs.

Ethan crossed his arms and set his jaw. "Fair or not, that's the only way it happens. I am not letting you watch that video before I know what you're going to see. I'd be a lousy friend if I did."

"Fine," she sighed. When the hell did she become so easy to defeat?

"I have a break in thirty minutes. I'll meet you at the archives then. Deal?"

Fuyuko nodded. "Ok. Thanks."

As it turned out, thirty minutes lasted twenty-nine too long. Ethan arrived at the archives only one minute before Fuyuko would've lost her mind and dragged him kicking and screaming out of the control room."

"Are you sure about this?" he asked.

Sure? No, sure was the wrong word. She felt desperate.

She nodded. "Please."

"Remember the deal, you open this door even a little before I come out, I'm done."

"Fine." It was an ordeal to keep from screaming it. Did people always speak to her in such a pandering manner? If so, how had she missed it? Was it possible while she was so determined to be the strongest Fragment ever, she missed the fact people saw her more as a pat-her-on-the-head and tolerate kind of girl, rather than one to respect? She bit her lip, trying to make sure her voice would remain steady. When she felt under control, she told Ethan the time and date stamp of the video in question. He went into the archives and left her waiting outside. She slid down the wall and sat on the floor.

He couldn't have been inside for longer than the thirty minutes she'd waited for him to arrive. Still, it felt far longer and her arms ached from where she'd locked them between her knees to keep from barging into the room. The sound of the door opening launched her to her feet,

"Did you find anything?"

Ethan looked grim. Worse than grim. The only time she'd seen a worse expression on his face was the day they told him he didn't have what it took for field work.

"I can't help you with this any further." He kept his voice low. Something undulated beneath his words. She couldn't decided if it was sadness or fear.

"Why? What did you see?"

Ethan shook his head. "The same screen you did—Zeta clearance needed."

"So what's the problem? Why are you all freaked out?"

"I saw something else." He averted his eyes. For a moment she thought she'd need to beat it out of him. "After the screen demanding Zeta clearance, it said any further attempts to view the video with lower clearance would result in disciplinary action."

"I don't understand." How could she understand? For as long as she'd known, the archives were unrestricted. "Why would they do something like that?"

"I have no idea. I'm staying away from this. You should do the same."

He started to walk away.

"Wait, Ethan. How am I supposed to let it go? It's about my brother. He was your friend."

Ethan turned back. His eyes were glassy with tears he fought back. "I know. He was my friend. That's why I'm telling you to drop it. Because my friend would want me to keep his sister safe."

He turned back and disappeared into the elevator.

Only two options now existed; she forgot the whole thing, or she found someone with Zeta clearance to help her. Was stopping an option? What started as a passing curiosity had tail-spun into a full on need. There were only three people she could think of with Zeta clearance. Woten was one. Honestly, he probably had some clearance so high it didn't even have a name. Paltar would've had Zeta. She supposed the new Ansuz team leader, Njord, would have it, but he hardly knew her. That left only one other. The thought of it shook her to the core.
No, no, no.
She'd rather face Woten's wrath than ask
him.
But were there any other options? She tried to slow her breathing and glanced at her watch to confirm the time. Yes, she knew where to find him this time of day. Shinji Takeda, head of research and development, was a steady and predictable man. How would he react to her request?

Hi Dad, can I have your ultra high security password so I can watch a video of my brother, your beloved son, being killed?

No. Totally a stupid idea.

She waited by the elevator, allowing Ethan to flee from her growing madness. Would he betray her? No, not Ethan—even if just because of his devotion to Katsuro's memory.

The
ding
of the elevator returning jarred her from her thoughts. She entered, punched the floor for the dorms, and spent her time pacing.

How? How did she get the passcode from her father?

She passed the cafeteria and caught a glimpse of a familiar face. Could the universe be presenting her the answer?

Now if only I can convince her.

Angie sat at the cafeteria table with her head resting on her arms.

"You do have a bedroom if you need a nap," Fuyuko said with a smile.

"Uh, uh. I've had enough restless nights in that room to last a lifetime." She looked up at Fuyuko, who noticed for the first time how blood shot and exhausted her eyes looked.

"Well, the study lounge has a lot comfier chairs. I fell asleep there myself one time."

Angie waved the suggestion away. "Nah, you're right, I should just brave my bed and sleep for a week."

"Do you think that's how long they'll be gone?" Fuyuko asked. She wondered if her voice betrayed how anxious her heart felt. A week?

Angie shrugged. "I don't know. They didn't tell me anything cause I wasn't going." Frustration and anger filled her voice.

"You didn't want to stay?"

"No," Angie sighed. "Well, maybe. I'm not sure. I guess not having to worry about anything for a couple days is nice, but the fact I don't need to worry has me…"

"Worried?"

Angie laughed. "I suppose."

"What's been on your mind so much?"

Angie's shoulders rose and her eyes filled with a mix of fear and anger.

"Nothing. It's nothing you need to worry about."

Well, this is turning into a disaster.
Fuyuko thought.
So now what? Play it cool, or push right to the point?

"I should get going," Angie said.

"Angie, wait. I know you've been in Gwynn's dreams."
Right to the point it is.

Angie hesitated.

"What did you say?" Her voice fell in volume and trembled.

"Gwynn told me he had a dream about you."

Angie gave a nervous laugh. "Maybe he likes me. It isn't impossible, is it? I mean, I don't want to sound like I'm full of myself, but I
am
kind of cute."

"Sure. I know you are. If it was any other guy, I'd probably think the same thing. But first, it's Gwynn. I know he still hasn't moved on from the death of the girl he was in love with. Second, the fact he can't recall having had a single other dream since arriving here, well, that kind of tips me off someone has been playing around in his dreamy head."

Angie said nothing, her head low so her eyes didn't connect with Fuyuko's.

"I don't know why, but you've been keeping him from dreaming, haven't you?" Fuyuko asked. Still, Angie wouldn't respond. "But for some reason, the other night, you stepped a little bit out of your limits and decided to have a little dream date."

Angie turned her head away, reaching across her body to hold herself. "It's not like that."

"It's not? I wonder how Woten would respond if he knew the line you'd crossed?"

Angie was on her feet so quickly, Fuyuko had to lunge across the table to grab hold of her arm. There would be no contest between them. Angie had access to the Veil, and even without it, she'd been training with Ansuz. She was in better physical shape than Fuyuko. But she didn't immediately pull away.

"Angie, please, don't go."

"Why?" Tears welled in her eyes. "So I can sit here and have you threaten me?"

"No." Fuyuko tried to soften her voice.
Remember when you had to talk down Gwynn? This is probably just as dangerous.
"Stay so I can explain. And so I can apologize."

Have I ruined this?
Fuyuko wondered.

Angie lowered herself slowly back to the chair. Fuyuko released her arm.

Fuyuko drew in a slow breath. She needed to choose her next words carefully.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have spoken to you that way. It's just…something has happened and I feel desperate. I want…no, I
need
your help, and I was afraid you wouldn't do it unless I bullied you into it. I was wrong."

"You're damn right you were wrong." She sounded hurt, but not entirely angry. "I know you haven't been able to work with us for a while, but we're still close as sisters. What we do, the things we see, it means a hell of a lot more than threats. You just need to ask me, we all owe each other that."