Author's notes and warnings: Hello minna-sama! I'm terribly sorry my chapters take so long. This seems to be the normal ritual for starting my chapter… an apology. (HANGS HEAD) Anyway, I hope you're not too mad? Or that you've given up on AFL entirely? (TEARY EYES)
(SNIFFLES) This chapter will have Omi and Manx as well. I thought you might wonder where they are… I also wanted to add a bit of Peregrine's past in this. He is the focal point of the entire Atlantis plot… I guess you're beginning to see that Chichiri is my favorite character, ne? But never fear, more Ran/Ken goodness coming right up. (SNUGGLES RAN AND KEN) Don't worry, guys… I love you, too!
Summary from A Fine Line FY – chapter 11: Shinji and Kouji found Ceilen and Tryffin and had contacted the rest of the group to meet them on the beach. I guess we could still call this Shirtless Edition since they are still… well, shirtless. (SWEATDROPS)
Boundless gratitude goes to my reviewers who were kind enough to take the time to let me know how they liked the story. I can only hope that the rest of the chapters meet your expectation.
Mashimaro-Byul - Hello! Thank you very much for the comment on the chapter! I'm glad you like it. Ran and Ken do make a very pretty picture, ne? Thanks again!
Nephilim Tear - (HUGGLES) Yes, FF(dot)net can be a pain…thank you for trying, though, sweetie! And twice too! It's the thought that counts, ne? I'm glad you like the story…not too sappy?
Sakata - Thank you! (BEAMS) Lemons are actually very hard for me to write…eeep! Glad the chapter works without it. Youji might explain a tiny bit about why Ran wasn't holding Ken's hands. (GRINS) And I did see a bit of Naruto - manga. I think I saw a little bit in Shonen Jump? I think that's what it's called. My son buys it once in a while. The ninja with the dark hair…Sasuke(?) looks quite gloomy…yum.
Jade Anime - Wai! Poor Kenken, no da! (SNUGGLES KEN) Thank you for the review, I'm happy you like the chapter. I have a bad habit of dragging out my stories... Glad it wasn't boring. Thanks again!
Krysana - Thank you, moto-chan! Glad you like all the silliness and mushiness. (BEAMS) Luv you!
Ravensta692003 – I want a Chiri too! (GLOMPS HIM) Anou…can you make him a twin? Then we can both have one. (GRINS) Thank you for the comments!
Whisper Reilman - (SQUEE) 101 use for racket and grip tape? O..o; I wanna know! I absolutely love you, you know that? (HUGS) Your reviews always manage to make my day…anyday. Thank you so much. As for the boys alone time… (SIGHS) they are such prudes, no da! But I did manage a tiny, tiny grope session in this chapter. Thanks again! (SNUGGLES)
HeatherR – Ack! Sorry! Shinji is an FY character, Chiriko. I think I mentioned that VERY briefly in earlier chapters. Chiriko had so little screen time and he was only 13 in FY…I thought I'll grow him a bit and give him a boyfriend. (LAUGHS) Thank you for reading and commenting on both versions. I'm very happy that you like the story.
Keimei – Anou…are you changing user name here too? (BLUSHES AND GLOMPS YOU) You're so sweet. I'm really glad you like my stuff. And vacation on the island sounds perfect! Only if we can have the boys too, ne? Thank you!
Sugar Goddess – Thank you! Glad you like! Shinji is Chiriko from FY. Kouji is also from FY, he is Tasuki's bandit friend. Sorry if I'd confused you.
Seph Lorraine – (GIGGLES) anxiousosity? (ROFL) Love it! Thank you very much for the comments. Alas! I wish I can draw or that near-naked-men-on-rocks scene would be hitting the web by now. I'm glad you like the chapter, though! Thanks again!
Zeto - Poor Youji-kun! He was only trying to help, no da! Thank you for the comments. Glad it works out for you. I was afraid I get a bit too mushy with Ran and Ken… SOOOO happy you don't think so. (HAPPY SIGH)
Sakusha - (LAUGHS) I CANNOT see Ken saying 'no da'! (GIGGLES) And I'll try to get Ran's pants off, okay? Don't know when, but don't worry…they're coming off! Thank you!
Chitoshiya no Tohma – Thank you very much! I'm glad you like it… FF(dot)net does have that problem of cutting reviews off, it seems. But I'm very glad to get this one. (GRINS)
Midori-chan - (HUGGLES) I've been thinking about you. I hope everything is alright with you? Thank you for taking the time to review. I'm so HAPPY to at least see you here. Thanks again. I'm glad you like it. Take care, okay?
Dragonloverryushi – Thank you! Er…(WHISTLES INNOCENTLY) …romance? This chapter? (RUNS AND HIDES)
Hana no Ceres - I'm glad you think the 'poof' thing was appropriate! We do have Chiri after all, ne? Ah…the smiles…Chiri does have the prettiest smiles…too bad that's going away soon. (SWEATDROPS) Thank you!
Hcbenitez - (NODS IN AGREEMENT) I want the picture too, no da! Any artists out there? (GRINS) Ah…sorry, the Swallow's Nest does not exist. There is a Swallow Reef farther south. Itu Aba, however, is a very real island. Descriptions of the island in this chapter is quite real as well. Thank you for your comments! I truly appreciate it!
Ambika-san - I'm so glad you like it! (HUGS) Thank you very much, sweetie!
Rei-kitty - (HANDS OVER MOP) My keyboard still hasn't recovered, no da! Meep! Sorry, no lemon still…but I WILL write something positively yummy for Youji and Omi. Promise. (GRINS) Thank you!
Bakachan and Wuffie – Thank you! (GROUP HUG) I'm glad you like the chapter, ne? As for the sadness…I won't make it last, okay? Thanks again!
Xellas - (LAUGHS) Hmmm…since you SO like the half-naked manflesh…here's some more, ne? They just won't put their clothes back on! Honest! (INNOCENT LOOK) Not working, huh?
Unofficial Schwarz – Thank you! I love chibi Chichiri too! He's DA best, no da!
Chibixholic – Thank you very much. I'm glad you like them! Anou…email…I remember! Sorry, the name got me a bit confused. I'm glad you're still reading, no da! As for getting them together…well…the boys are a bit difficult. I'm trying my best, really! (GRINS) Thank you again!
Kitsuna Ri – Thank you! Glad you like the chibi! I wasn't sure how that would go over since this is the WK version. Really happy that people recognized him. (HAPPY SIGH)
Medusa Davenport – Thank you for reviewing at all, never mind that it takes a while! (HAPPY SIGH) Anou…PDA? I'm totally clueless, no da! And I'm very happy that you like how the boys turned out. Thank you!
Leila - A Fine Chest? (GIGGLES) Too many fine chests, no da! (DROOLS) O.o Thank you very much for commenting here as well!
Kagemihari – (LAUGHS) I do love Shinji Ibu too… O.o; And that was totally unintentional. Sorry. Glad you're getting the hang of Ran/Ken, ne? Thank you so much! How is everything with you?
Sirrah - (GLOMPS) How are you? How is your contest entry coming along? Er…do I owe you an email? I've been getting so many returned mails lately I'm totally confused as to whom got what? Just nudge me if I take too long, okay? Thank you so very much for the exceptionally wonderful review. (BEAMS HAPPILY) And who is this person who is trying to kick Chiri off your ladder? Let me at 'em! Let me at 'em!
Enjoy!
Super duper gigantic hug for Hitari-chan for betaing the chapter!
A Fine Line – Chapter 12: Dead Men Tell No Tales
By Moonraven
(Day 7… sometime in the afternoon)
"Agh…" Manx moaned and slowly opened her eyes. She blinked several times to clear her vision of the haze and had to close them again when pain shot up the back of her head. She took several deep breaths and tried opening her eyes again, this time she made sure not to move her head.
"Manx-san?"
Omi's worried face appeared to hover a few feet above hers and Manx blinked rapidly to make sure she wasn't hallucinating.
"Omi."
The young man smiled and gave a sigh of relief. "How are you feeling?"
"Like a hair-ball," Manx groaned and reached behind her neck. A small puncture wound. Great. At least she knew now what hit her.
"How long have I been here?" Manx asked Omi and struggled to get up. Omi sat down next to her on the cot and helped to support her. She paused when a wave of nausea washed over her and she closed her eyes again, breathing in deeply.
"I don't know. I just came to not too long ago."
Manx turned sharply to look and Omi and regretted it instantly. She groaned and slumped against the young man as she waited for the pain and nausea to pass.
"Location?"
"I think we're close to the ocean. I can smell the salt water from the draft under the door. I can't determine anything else."
"Guards?"
"I heard two voices outside the door but there could be more."
When she felt like she wouldn't turn inside out, Manx slowly opened her eyes and cautiously looked around. The room was dark except for one light bulb hanging from a very high ceiling. The walls looked to be made of concrete, which were cracking badly in some parts. No windows. A small stainless steel sink sat in one corner and next to that, a toilet. From where she sat, Manx thought the door was made of steel as well but it was hard to tell in the poor light. The young man next to her shifted and Manx asked softly, "How… how did they get you?"
"You know that Shinji-kun and I went to the old Kritiker warehouse searching for information on the Atlantis Project. We saw Nao-san enter the facility and went to check it out. The next thing I know, I woke up here."
Manx smiled at the irritation she heard in Omi's voice. He'd always though Nao was a third-rate agent and to be taken out by the likes of Nao couldn't have been good for the boy's ego.
"Hey… don't feel bad. I was just receiving a pizza delivery, okay?"
Omi giggled and Manx had to tell him to stop. He was shaking with laughter and it was making her dizzy again.
"I can't see you eating pizza," Omi said.
"Well, see if I'll ever eat one again after this. All week that Nanako from IT kept harping about this incredible pizza… wait till I get my hands around her treacherous neck!"
Omi laughed again. It was good that they could still keep their spirits up. They were going to need it if they were to get out of there… wherever 'there' happened to be.
"Do you know what's going on?" Omi asked, suddenly serious. "I don't think Shinji-kun is here. They would've put him with us, surely? Do you know if he's alright?"
"Mild concussion was the last I heard of him. That was right before the pizza from hell."
"So it's just the two of us. Why?"
Manx thought for a moment. There were several reasons why the two of them… Omi's family history alone could get him lots of tickets to a holding cell of anyone who was Persia's enemy. As for herself, her position and knowledge of the organization made her pretty high on the list as well…
But Manx felt that this had more to do with Ceilen than any of those reasons. The Faction was on the move, they still wanted Peregrine and they were hoping to flush him out by using her and Omi.
"Manx-san?"
"Mmm… how much do you remember about Peregrine?" She asked him.
Omi was quiet for a long while as if he were trying to recollect everything. "Not much. I remember… bits and pieces, nothing that really makes any sense. Like him telling me to aim carefully or I might take someone's eye out. I remember… a lake? And then I remember… ice cream." Manx could hear another smile in Omi's voice and she shifted slightly to look up and his face.
"French Vanilla," she said softly.
"Yes!" He looked down at her with a big smile.
"That's his favorite flavor," she recalled. "He used to say that anyone who thinks that French Vanilla is plain really didn't have any taste buds." She smiled remembering his haughty expression. Then she sighed and asked, "What else?"
"I… I don't know… just feelings, really. There's this big hole in my life especially during that time… I still can't remember most of it."
"What do you feel?"
Omi paused then said softly, "Safe."
Manx sighed. "Yes, he does have that effect on people."
"You think this has something to do with him?"
"Yes. I don't know exactly what since you were supposed to be coming back with that information, but if the Faction is moving, I think Peregrine is involved." Manx tugged on her earrings and they came off easily. She fidgeted with the stones for a while then frowned. "My communicator is sending signals…" She looked over to Omi. "How about yours?"
Omi nodded. "Outgoing signals only, no audio, no visual. I don't like it. I tried to stop it but I couldn't and you know that destroying it would only set off a bigger alarm so…" Omi shrugged helplessly.
"Damn it, it's a trap. We can call them here but we can't give them any more information or warn them."
"They'll know it's a trap. They'll be careful."
Manx turned and gave Omi a curious look. She thought of the world of the boys too and knew that they were capable of things unimaginable… but the Faction wasn't just another dark creature that they were used to hunting. These people were part of their elite organization whose expertise ran along the same line. Underestimating them wouldn't be wise.
"Omi…"
Omi tuned and gave her a smile. "Trust them, Manx-san. They know what they're up against. And you can bet that Peregrine is neck deep in this now too. If you're going to worry about anyone, worry about the faction."
"Worry about the faction…" Manx gave him an odd look. "Like that's going to happen anytime soon." She sighed and looked around again. "Anything in mind?"
Omi gave her a predatory smile and Manx had to suppress a shiver. It wasn't often she got to see this side of Omi but it was definitely reassuring.
"Let's hear it then, Bombay."
"You're awfully quiet."
Ken nearly choked on his tongue; that was how much Ran had startled him. He turned his gaze from the lagoon to look at the redhead and swallowed. Ran stood a couple of paces behind him. His head cocked slightly to the side as he watched Ken with some amusement. He looked… yummy. Ken was sure he blushed… not from the scrutiny but from the sheer NC-17 rating of his thoughts.
He was quiet? His mind certainly wasn't quiet. Lots of voices were arguing and holding conferences in his head that he had forgotten exactly where they were and what they were doing. Needless to say, the meetings only HE could hear were all about the man facing him now.
They were still on the beach but had moved to check out the cliff wall closely, hoping that there might be a hidden doorway somewhere. They didn't want to put it past Ceilen to have something like that seeing that the man did have one on his boat. Ken laughed nervously and rubbed the back of his neck. How long had he spaced out?
Ran shook his head, smiling slightly as he stepped forward and pulled Ken into his arms. "Do I want to know what you were thinking about?" He asked softly as he trailed kisses along Ken's neck and shoulder.
Ken snorted. "Mmmm… I don't think you'd be sane if you find out. I'm having my head checked by a non-Kritiker shrink as soon as I get back home." Ken's breath hitched when Ran's tongue flicked across the shell of his ear and he shivered. "Er… feel free to check the rest of me out, though…"
"I intend to," came the reply and Ken suddenly found his back pressed against the rocky cliff. It wasn't the most comfortable of places but who could complain when the sex god in front of him was doing delirious things to his senses?
But complain he did when their communicators went off. Of all the stupid, lousy, fucked-up, shitty timing! Ken growled and ignored his since Ran had returned to his 'I'm a cold murdering bastard' mode and was already talking to Shinji.
Ken sighed and moved away from the cliff, wiggling his shoulders as he tried to get the tiny rocks and dirt off his back, grumbling all the while. Damn it, if he was going to get holes in his back, he should at least have gotten something in return.
"They found Peregrine and Tryffin and are coming back here," Ran said quietly behind him and Ken nodded silently. Great!
Ken turned and looked Ran up and down critically, earning him a raised eyebrow. He shrugged. "I'm looking for a switch."
Ran blinked. "A switch."
"Yeah. How the hell do you keep changing moods like that?"
Ran's eyes narrowed. "When you find it, let me know. It might help me to find yours."
"Hey!"
"Geeze! Can't leave you guys alone for a minute, can I?" Youji's drawled as he came down the beach towards them. "And here I thought I was giving you plenty of time to smooch. All you guys do is waste time."
"Shut up, Kudou!" Ran and Ken said at the same time though the volume was different.
Youji grinned and walked past them toward the large boulders by the water, waving his hand. "I'm gonna catch some sun so don't mind me."
Ken scowled at Youji's bare back and crossed his arms. Beside him, Ken heard Ran bark into the communicator, "ETA."
Ken groaned. The mood was completely destroyed. He had no idea what the hell happened… now Ran was totally in the asshole mode…
"I'm joining Yotan," Ken muttered without looking at Ran and went to sit next to the blond, sulking.
"Ken, Ken, Ken," Youji said quietly. The blond was lying on his back, one arm draped casually over his face to shield the sun.
"Shut up, Youji," Ken muttered as he stared out into the lagoon.
"Want my advice?"
"No!"
"Okay."
Ken looked sideways at the blond suspiciously. That was way too easy. He turned and looked over his shoulder at Ran and found that he had moved far away from them to stand with his back against the cliff wall, his arms crossed over his chest and his eyes appeared closed.
"He's… confusing as hell," Ken said softly to no one in particular. "I don't understand him at all."
"I wonder… are you trying to?"
"What do you mean?"
Youji sighed. "Aya is not going to turn mushy on you just because you guys are screwing, you know-'
"We are NOT screwing!" Ken nearly shouted but remembered where they were just in time. He turned quickly around to see if anyone could have heard. The beach was still empty except for the redhead who couldn't have heard anything; he was too far. "…yet," he added lamely.
"Really." Youji sounded amused. "Ken." This time Youji lowered his arm and turned to look at Ken, his gaze steady as he watched the brunet over the rim of his glasses. "Aya and I had sex for months, nobody knew anything because we wanted it that way."
Ken scowled. "I don't want to hear it, Youji!"
"Aya is a very private-"
"I don't care!"
"Then why are you all pissy?"
"I am… not." Ken sighed and drew his legs up against his chest. "I wish none of this happened. He's so… GODS, he's driving me nuts!"
"You love him?"
"None of your business," Ken grumbled but couldn't hide the heat rushing to his face.
After a moment of silence, Youji said, "I see. I wasn't sure about the two of you before." Youji paused and then turned back to his previous pose. "I guess I have nothing to worry about now."
Ken scowled. "What's that supposed to mean?" Was Youji saying that Ken and Ran had no chance? That Youji isn't worried because Ran would surely run back to him?
"Hold the claws, Kenken. Man! You go off on anything, don't you?" Youji sounded exasperated as he continued, "I knew Aya loves you, I just wasn't sure how you feel about him. I guess now that I know you love him too, I have nothing to worry about." Youji turned and peered at him over the rim of his glasses again. "Damn, you and your misunderstandings. I told you that you were going to be the death of him, didn't I?"
Ken scowled and was about to retort when memories of the past few days came rushing back. It wasn't in the same context as what Youji was saying but he HAD nearly killed Ran several times…
And then something else Youji said sank in; Ran loved… him?
Ken blinked and blinked. Then, "how did you know?"
"C'mon, Kenken. It's written all over your face. Sure I knew you wanted his ass…"
"No, I mean… how did you know he loves me."
"Oh, that." Youji snorted. "I just do."
"That's it? 'I just do'?" Ken stared at the nonchalant blond incredulously. "You can't just blurt something like that out without… without proof!"
"Proof. Kenken… we're talking about intangible things here. You want proof?" Now it was Youji's turn to look incredulous.
"No… I mean… did he tell you something?" Ken looked away suddenly. Man, this was beyond embarrassing. "Forget it."
Youji sighed as he pushed himself up. He turned to face Ken, propping himself lazily on one elbow. He regarded Ken silently from behind the dark glasses and then suddenly he reached up and cup Ken's cheek. The brunet was so stunned he froze in place.
"I know him. I've seen the way he looks at you; the way he talks to you… the way he says your name. The man has it bad."
"KUDOU!" Ran's voice pierced the air, making Ken jump and scoot away guiltily. Wait a minute! He wasn't doing anything wrong, damn it!
"See?" Youji laughed and settled on his back again. "The man has it bad."
Ken swallowed and tried to keep the heat in his face from blowing his head off completely.
"He could be jealous of you."
Youji continued to laugh. "You don't really believe that, Ken."
No… he didn't really believe that. He had never seen Ran pay any attention to Youji when the blond went out on dates. And once he'd found out that they were having sex, Ken was completely baffled by Ran's lack of emotion when Youji went out on dates.
Could it be true? Could Ran love him as well? Ken risked a glance over his shoulder and found the redhead staring back at him. Even from that distance, Ken could feel the heat in the gaze… the possessiveness… Ken turned back quickly and swore when his face heated up again. Damn! Aside from the non-Kritiker shrink; he was going to have to look for a cardiologist as well. Something was seriously wrong with his blood pressure.
"How on earth did you get our gear?" Ken stared at their belongings that Ceilen had piled up on the beach. Not all the stuff was theirs, some looked to be complex electronic stuff that he didn't think would survive five seconds in the water. Ken looked out into the lagoon to where he knew the Blackhawk was moored… he didn't think Ceilen had gone back into the boat. And even if he had, he couldn't have carried all this with him… where had the stuff come from?
"You really don't want to know," Ceilen said as he continued to organize things. "Just get the things that are absolutely necessary. We have to travel light."
Ceilen pulled out their air tanks and Shinji shook his head. "Our SCBA are not for underwater operation." (Note – SCBA: Self Contained Breathing Apparatus. SCUBA would be Self Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus. )
"We're going to have to convert them. I don't have enough for all of us," Ceilen didn't pause as he continued to sort equipment.
"You can do that?" Youji asked what was on everyone's mind.
"Yes."
Shinji was already booting up his computer, making sure nothing had been tampered with. Ran and Youji looked at Ceilen silently for a few seconds then they were pulling out things as well. Ken scowled at them unhappily. They were all taking these 'poof' things way too lightly.
While Ceilen fiddled with their SCBA, the rest of them divided the gear among themselves. It wasn't hard since they were used to carrying all their equipment with them anyway but making sure that everything was waterproof took some time. Packing Kouji and Tryffin's things took the bulk of that time. By the time they were done, Ken was in complete agreement with Ceilen that these two should definitely remain behind. Nothing about bringing them along made any sense. They were not in the business, damn it. They would only get killed or get everyone else killed.
But even with those thoughts, Ken understood their need to be there. He sighed and shook his head. He was definitely getting soft if he allowed feelings to come before mission success. He glanced surreptitiously at Ran, the anal leader. He couldn't understand why Ran was agreeing to this… was he thinking about Tryffin's parents as well as his own? Was it because Ran understood Tryffin's motivation – revenge?
Youji finished with his pack and climbed on the rocks to sit next to Shinji, who had packed at a remarkable speed and was now back on his computer. "Well? Figured out where they're holding Manx and Omi?"
The younger assassin shook his head and looked over at Ceilen but the rogue agent was a good distance away and busily reassembling the SCBA.
"No, Peregrine didn't give me much information on the island. From what I can find out surfing around, the island has a few buildings, at least two good size radio towers and a small landing field. It's surrounded by dry reefs and we know that we can't dock there directly. Besides, we really don't know what the Faction has built on the island after they took over… and that's eight years ago." Shinji shook his head. "All the information I found – what little of it - is at least that old. I doubt that they're useful at all."
"What about satellite images?"
Shinji shook his head again. "The images show the island to be exactly the same but somehow I don't trust that."
Youji peered over at the screen and raised his brows. "THAT doesn't look like Itu Aba to me."
Shinji gave him a little smile and lowered his voice. "A few days ago I hacked into some of the older archives and got through to some of Persia's files that were supposedly purged. Apparently he had encrypted some files and who ever it was that tried to delete them, missed them completely. I stumbled on it by accident, actually. The codes were so old at first I thought they were just junk files. Once I found out they were his files, I relocated them to a safe place and I was just checking them out. I thought maybe he had some idea about what was going on."
Youji waited expectantly and when Shinji didn't continue, prompted, "And…?"
Shinji studied his keyboard with interest for a few seconds then said, "Most of them are classified and have nothing to do with this."
"WHAT?"
"But I did find out more about Peregrine," Shinji continued as if Youji hadn't exploded.
"What about him?" Ken asked, suddenly interested. Any information that may save his brain was definitely welcomed. "Give."
"Well," Shinji started as he gave Ceilen another careful look. When he saw that the other man was still engrossed in his task and was too far away to hear, he continued, "You knew that most of Peregrine's files were either destroyed or Manx-san took them somewhere -" Ken nodded, remembering the boxes in their mission room. "Most of us younger members don't know him at all, only bits and pieces that one or two agents slipped out now and then. One of the things that kept 'slipping' – and here Birman-san had a guess that it was dropped by the Faction – was that Peregrine had caught his girlfriend with Kappa and killed them both in a fit of rage."
A fit of rage? Ken tried to think of Ceilen in any kind of a fit, let alone rage, but he couldn't.
"Who's Kappa?" Kouji asked. They were all converged around Shinji's rock by this time and were listening to the young assassin attentively.
"He was an agent, this happened about four or five years ago." Shinji thought for a moment. "I believe his name was Hikou… I could be wrong. Anyway, the Faction's plan was probably for us to think badly of Peregrine. I mean if we all thought that he'd killed a fellow agent and his own girlfriend out of jealousy, we wouldn't hesitate to eliminate him when the time comes."
"You don't think it's true then?" Ken could hardly believe the new twists that kept getting thrown into their problem. Wasn't there anymore simple missions where they just off the target?
Shinji shrugged. "Kappa and Kouran did die but the circumstances surrounding their deaths were inconclusive. The hideout looked like a small army had fought there – blood and gore everywhere – but the only identifiable bodies found were of Kappa and Kouran. We still don't know WHO the other party was. DNA testing had been fouled up and results contaminated. To this day, no one really knew what had happened… and the only one who really knows and is still alive… well, I don't think he's going to tell us."
"Who else had the motive?" Kouji asked.
He shrugged again. "Well, lots of people. We do have enemies."
Kouji blinked. "So how could they hope to pin it on this guy if there's no proof?"
"While we couldn't identify any body, we did have surveillance tape showing Peregrine going into the hideout…"
"That doesn't mean he killed them," Tryffin interjected harshly.
"No, it doesn't," Youji agreed. "It just placed him at the scene of the crime and when the only witness ran off and hid, well… I can see why they thought they could blame him."
"So the Faction went to all that – killed off a Kritiker agent AND Peregrine's girlfriend just… to blame him? I don't get it." Ken shook his head dazedly. "Why? Just to set him up and have one of us eliminate him? That's a bit much, don't you think? He killed Syria. That should have been plenty to have him hunted. I don't see why they had to involve Kappa and this girl."
"It wasn't the Faction who killed them..."
Surprisingly, it was Tryffin who spoke up. The redhead was staring at his hands, frowning slightly.
"How do YOU know this?"
Tryffin shook his head and remained silent.
"Well… if it wasn't the faction, then who killed them?"
Tryffin looked uncomfortable but remained silent – something Ken had NEVER thought he would see from the redhead.
"I did."
Ceilen's chilled voice broke the silence and they all spun around to see him standing right behind them, the straps of their SCBA units clutched tightly in his hands. His visible eye was colder than anything Ken had ever seen and it made the brunette take a tentative step back, away from the deadly aura that was pouring out of the man.
Oh crap! And they were all getting along so well…
TBC…
Thank you!
If you're interested in Ceilen's past concerning Kouran and haven't read the FY version, a little more can be found in Chapter 7: Of Breakfast Congees and Killer Tomatoes. Well…more mystery can be found there…I don't think you'll find any answers though. Sorry…