She tried asking if she should make some tea, and the response was an indifferent, “Hmm, if you want.” She asked if they’d like chamomile, and the response was an indifferent, “Whatever you like.” She felt like an absolute nuisance.
With a stinging sense of loneliness running through her, Tessa slumped over and headed for the crew kitchen on the same floor. It was a few minutes’ walk away, and turned out to be completely bare bones. She looked around for a tea set, but all she could find were coffee mugs.
Tessa sighed in resignation as she pulled out the small tin of herbal tea she’d brought with her. She took off her sunglasses and rubbed her eyes. She wasn’t going to cry, of course, but she did feel miserable. Come on, she told herself, We’re on a mission right now. She was the one acting unreasonably, here. She needed to stop acting like they were on a picnic, and appreciate her subordinates’ focus.
Still... I just feel so invisible. Today is supposed to be my special day, yet even Sousuke... He just ran off with that girl. And then in the elevator hall, they—
As she was gloomily filling the kettle with water, she got a call through her small earpiece radio. “Uruz-1 to all units. We have a situation.” It was from Lieutenant Clouseau on the bridge. “Uruz-9 and Kaun-28 were attacked near B19. Injuries were light for both, but the captain they were escorting was kidnapped. Be on your guard. Uruz-3’s team has the area surrounded, but he may have already escaped—”
Someone had attacked Corporal Yang and taken Captain Harris. Tessa cringed as she heard the announcement. Trouble had arrived. She had to cast aside her childish woes and get a grip.
Clouseau’s announcement continued. “—The attacker appears to be a passenger. Maybe he thinks he’s being a hero. Don’t kill him, or them. I repeat: do not kill the rogue element. The man who took Captain Harris is Caucasian, six feet tall, wearing a suit, with short black hair and a muscular physique. He stole a firearm, but it only contains nonlethal rubber rounds. I repeat. The attacker is Caucasian, six feet tall, wearing a suit—”
Tessa’s attention was snatched away from Clouseau’s communication. A man had just leaped into the kitchen. He was six feet tall, wearing a suit, Caucasian, with a muscular physique, and short black hair. On top of that, she had to say, he looked a bit like Arnold Schwartzenegger when he acted in comedies.
In other words, he looked just like the man from Clouseau’s report.
The man pointed a submachine gun (probably Yang’s) at her, and barked at the top of his voice, “Okay! Don’t you move, filthy terrorist!” Then he stopped and narrowed his eyes suspiciously at Tessa: a young girl, standing frozen in front of the stove, holding a large kettle and two mugs, and dressed as a maid.
“...Ah,” she said tactfully.
“Aren’t you part of the crew? What the hell are you doing here?” he asked, whipping his gun in various directions, with strangely exaggerated sweeps.
“Er... who are you?” Tessa tried again.
“It’s okay! I’m a friend,” Commander Sailor told her reassuringly. “Just a brave passenger who happened to be aboard. I just got done finishing off two of the terrorists!”
“What?”
“I also saved the captain, but he ran off on his own,” Sailor continued. “I’m a little worried... but eh, I’m sure he’ll make it out fine.”
He’d let Captain Harris—the Amalgam collaborator—run free? “Wh-What were you thinking?” Tessa demanded to know.
“Oh, don’t be a buzzkill. I’ve got the situation under control.”
“No, I don’t mean that—”
“Anyway, it stinks that my leading lady has to be a damned kid, but I guess beggars can’t be choosers,” Sailor grumbled to himself. “It’s dangerous here. Follow me.”
“Er... I don’t understand what you’re talking abo— ow, that hurts!” Tessa exclaimed in surprise. “Let me go! Wh-Where are we—”
Sailor began to march them along swiftly. “We’re getting out of here!” he exclaimed enthusiastically. “The terrorists are nearby! Good thing I found you first, or things would’ve gotten X-rated fast!”
“I don’t think that’s true. Um, please— ow, don’t yank my arm!” Tessa begged. “Stop this! Are you listening to me? Ow, ow...”
“Toughen up! This is life or death, okay? Pain comes with the territory! Get running, sailor! Show some balls!”
“I don’t have any balls!”
Tessa didn’t even have time to grab the submachine gun or sunglasses she’d left in the back of the kitchen. Dragged unwillingly by the hand and tripping over her unfamiliar high heels, she stumbled along behind him. All she could do as they went along was continue to protest, with tears in her eyes.
Same TimeframeObservation Deck, Pacific Chrysalis
Kaname had been hoping for a romantic atmosphere, but the observation deck turned out to be dark, cold, and desolate. The bayside lights were no longer visible, the wind was biting cold, and the sound of the waves was more haunting than enchanting. This was the Sea of Japan sung about in enka ballads.
Feels more like the setup to a lovers’ suicide... The thrill she’d felt in the elevator was long gone. The scene, which was as far away from Christmas as you could imagine, had left Kaname completely numb.
“It’s a fine night,” Sousuke said, in complete defiance of her feelings. “I find climates like this very relaxing. Moonless nights are your ally, when it comes to running night raids. What do you think, Chidori?”
“What do I think?” Kaname parroted back. Still, it was unusual for Sousuke to be the one to speak first. She wondered if he was trying to cheer her up. “Well, it’s pretty cold, right?”
“Afghani winters are colder,” Sousuke shrugged.
“And windy.”
“Strong winds are frequently our ally.
