[writing] Project Epsilon - Chapter Three

[djtenku]

Title: the space between two worlds
Word Count: 2954
Summary: Briefing. Service. Disturb.

Kento opened a bleary eye as he felt the cargo plane slighly drop in altitude. The black crates budged a little from their spot but he knew they were well secured to the wall. There were no windows to look out of except a small portion of the floor that had doubled as a window. Occasionally, one of the crewmembers would stand directly on it for a few moments – mostly as a dare – before common sense kicked in, and they would wonder away. He simply didn’t bother with it.

He looked at his watch again, dismayed that he only caught about three hours of sleep. The time was already synced up to the island’s coordinates, displaying 7:49am. Kento ran a hand through his thick, but still wild cropped hair – he began to wonder if he would still be recognized. He sighed and settled his head against the headrest, thinking back to earlier.

“I’ve taken your words into consideration about the HSA,” Michael said with a grim look on his face. They were all back in the office. A bag sat by the desk itself, with Yukinko perched on it, content. Noelle sat on the edge of the desk as she did before, a distant look on her face. “This is no concidence,” he continued, “the warning signs were all there, but I have failed to take action against this, resulting in unfortunate deaths and the disappearances. On the somewhat positive side, is that we found information that serves of use of us, and does gives us justification should we be comphrended. Noelle?”

The blonde woman nodded, pushing a strand of hair behind her ear. “The head director of the HSA is Dr. Maximus Orion, a rather secretive man; so much that no one knows what he looks like or where he lives, but has something of a reputation. For years, there have been rumors that he creates ‘contracts’ with people in dire need – to what exact extent is relatively unknown, but the consequences seem to end the same. It’s also said that he he uses human beings and the like for experimentation and vivisection, which is a clear violation of the Hippocratic Oath on many levels, that it is considered treason.

“Through pinpointing the location of the frequencies, we have concluded that their all housed on the same coordinates, but no known map shows any type of land, but an archipelago in the Pacific, over international waters – which means that means he can do anything as he pleases with no stipulations, and no one can do anything about it.” She matched Kento’s stare, and said, “You must find undisputable evidence of his works and wrongdoings.”

“And,” Michael added, “the task at hand: to extract Rowan and Shina safely from this location with the limited amount of resources and equipment – only what’s in that bag,” he gestured. “Because of the position of this place, you’ll have to do a Halo jump and go from there.” He raised a single finger. “You only have one week to complete this, not counting today. It starts as soon as you land on solid ground. On the seventh day, there will be a carrier ship passing through the vicinity; it will make four rounds at six hour intervals, before leaving for good. If you miss that, that’s it. We can’t risk that much again.”

“Anything else I should know?” Kento asked, voice level. The fact that there hadn’t been an outburst from him concerned Michael. But, then again it showed how much he matured.

“There are no known communications and modern civilization for at least five hundred to a thousand miles. However this still remains as a stealth mission; do not engage in any situation unless you know you have an distinct advantage and do not make your presence known or else it would be detrimental to the mission.”

“The location is near the equator,” Noelle said, “so don’t expect the temperature to change drastically, quite possibly jungle-like. I believe there is a bandanna in your kit, but should there not be one, it’s better to cut your hair – better ventilation and one less thing to worry about.”

Kento instinctively ran his hand through his hair and nodded. He shooed Yukinko and picked up the duffle bag, surprised on how light it was.

“One more thing.” Kento looked up at Michael. His eye was steely, the same as always. “For your sake, keep your emotions out of this. You’ve paid many times for it, and the next time might be death itself. At least do that. Understand?”

“Yes,sir.”

The plane dipped again and he stirred, hearing the pilot’s loud apology, stating that the winds had picked up, causing turbulence. Still there was no light from the floor window and he glanced at his watch. 8:15am. Kento checked the duffle bag – it was full with another set of clothing sans the black boots he was already wearing, six packs of rations, a small medicine bag, compass, a monocular, a neatly packaged tent with a small pillow… It seemed odd, especially because most of it appeared outdated, especially the bag itself. It bore various holes and patches, even the initials of MLK, marked on the bottom with black stencils. It was the best Michael could find, even the clothes.

The olive drab flight suit was loose on him and had no pockets or anything, and he tried adjusting it to no avail. Kento was glad that he only had to wear it for the duration of the jump – whenever that’ll be – and discard it as soon as he land. Beneath the suit he wore a well pocketed pair of equally drab pair of pants; he had counted eight pockets in all, and a sleeveless solid black undershirt that was ‘compressed’ against his torso – he did not mind this fact at all simply because the fabric felt like his own skin, but a lot cooler and ventilated. At least he had something against the humidity.

Tucked away was his own dog tags and the chain itself. Kento rummaged through the bag and found the desired items – each had their own chain loop attached so he could snap them onto the chain easily – a small blue and white snowflake pendant, and the grey, dull metallic arrowhead. The final item was another dog tag, old and weathered from old age but it still bore the owner’s name, his eldest brother’s. Kento wore it out of comfort than a charm, but in a way it was asking him for an watchful eye.

He tucked the tags where they belonged, and noticed a small card next to his boot. He glanced at and and his eye widened at the message.

“Fear is the mind killer. It is the one emotion that makes even the strongest man weak.

Exorcise it, and you will become unstoppable.”

* * *

The sunlight filtered through the heavy cloth that served as curtains, eventually rousing Shin from a dreamless sleep. She stifled a yawn as her vision cleared, and reached over. She lifted her head up slightly, uttering a question when she embraced a small pillow. In fact, pillows surrounded her in all different angles. “Oh, right,” she said to herself, slowly turning over and pushing aside the curtains, and took in the light as she glanced about her room. The blue and white room was more of a extravagant suite – the bed at on top of a raised platform, along with twin cherrywood nightstands and a lone ottoman at the end of the bed.

The room itself was open, with clear distinctions of the lowered sunroom, the quaint office that only contained an old desk, littered with paper and pens, and a half-full bookshelf.  There was also the overbearing chifforobe placed near the bathroom, which the door was shut – Shin tried to find proper clothing should she find anyone, but sighed in defeat and decided to tie the silk robe up. “Oh, I know you’re hungry,” she said as left the room, rubbing her belly. She added, “I hope something’s being served.”

Shin followed the same path as before, seperated from the rest of the mansion by it being outside, but covered. She felt the cold, smooth stone beneath her feet as she crossed it, also taking in the scenery; far off were the green mountains that seemed to encase the mansion and its forestry. However, she noted the delicate landscape nearby; the grass was neatly trimmed, some patches of pedicured patches of flowers she’d never seen before, and from what she could tell, a large ceramic fountain stood at the front of the mansion. She was disappointed that she could not find a point of entry or exit from her view, and continued on, passing through closed doors and windows that lined the long hall and down the stairs.

As she descended, she noticed a chrome door partially obscured by a grandfather clock – out of place didn’t begin to describe that sight, and she vaguely wondered what was behind it, making a note to get to it later in the night. The dining hall was well lit by the sun, setting off the earthtones of the hall, and the furniture. As before, most of the chairs were tilted forward on their legs – this time the chair facing her wasn’t pulled out, but to the left was. This time, the plates weren’t there, but a wicker basket full of baguettes, rolls, and croissants, all gently buttered, and next to it was a stout ceramic bowl filled with what appeared to be tea, and a small cup of milk next to it.

Disappointed, Shin sat herself down and sipped on the tea - before adding the milk – and sighed. It appeared that once again, there was no one around. Again, she rubbed on her left hand –

“Good afternoon, Ms. Shina,” a voice boomed, causing Shin to spill some of the tea. She faced the dining hall’s open door, lowering her gaze slightly to see a thin-lipped smiling man waving a gloved hand as he approached. He wore a simple shirt and khaki pants with loafers, but they hung loose against his small frame. “I trust that dinner last night was to your needs?” He sat down across from her, kneading his gloved hands together and resting his chin on it.

It took a moment for Shin to register the question as she looked at him. “Oh, of course,” she answered, surprised at how perky she sounded. “I’ve never had such a exquisite meal. Compliments to the… chef.” She shifted under his distant stare, noticing his square rimless glasses and beady brown eyes.

“A creature such as yourself should know the pleasures of fine dining,” the man said, still smiling. Shin raised an eyebrow, but shrugged, taking it as a compliment. If she was going to get answers, she’d have to play the cards exactly. “I do apologize that dinner will not be ready for another three hours or so,” he said, motioning to the basket. “Do you have any allergies that we should know of?”

“Not that I know of,” she said, sipping on the tea. “This is good, Mr…”

“Oh, excuse myself for not introducing myself earlier; Maximus Orion, and you don’t have to use such formality. It makes me feel quite old.”

That doesn’t explain why you know mine, Shin thought as she smiled. “…Orion.”

“Ah, you maybe inquiring as to why you have been, oh, summoned here to this fine abode. To put in layman’s, we are in low supply of subects – I mean clients to partake in a study that is perhaps detrimental to society as a whole. I don’t want to bore you with the exact details though.”

“What a load of…” Shin trailed off, glad that Orion didn’t pick up on her words. Wait, subjects?

“I do apologize for the method to contact and bringing you here, Ms. Shina,” Orion said genially, reaching into his pocket, producing a hankerchief. In a fluid motion, he took off his glasses and began to knead the lenses. He watched Shin through blurred vision pouring more milk into the bowl. “Such finesse,” he murmured. Clearing his throat, he then said, “I’m sure you’ll want to explore of your surroundings if you already hadn’t, to get some fresh air and exercise? I do warn that the insects just love to feed – I mean, they tend to be bothersome around this time of year, and well, it’s the rainy season. Humidity and the like is absolutely dreadful.”

“May not seem like it, but I’ve dealt with a lot worse,” Shin said, wishing she could be somewhere else. “This won’t be a problem.”

“Excellent!” Orion set his glasses back on his face, which eventually sat at the bridge of this nose. “Well, I have other manners to attend to that are quite important, I’m afriad.”

That silver door…

“If you need anything, there are patrons around here somewhere; use them as you see fit.” Orion stood and turned to go, and then added, “One more thing, don’t pay attention to Audra… that’s just her little quirk of hers.”

Shin watched with caution as the short man left the room before stuffing three more of rolls into the robe’s pocket, and brought along the bowl of tea as she followed him. The silver door she saw earlier was now gone, hidden by the grandfather clock. I wonder what’s down there… maybe when he is sleeping. She shivered despite the warmth of the air. There was a vibe about Orion that repulsed her . With a resigned sigh, she walked past it and down the corridor.

She certainly admired the old paintings made by artists of old as she walked down the foyer. At the first chance, she entered into another short hall with double doors. Diligently, she opened it, balancing the half-empty bowl in the other hand, and entered into a large library two stories high. The dark wooded shelves lined the walls except the wall she faced, full of gently arced windows looking out into the mountained terrain, a small lake, and gardens.

To Shin’s surprise, the shelves were occupied with books, and she wondered if all had been even read once. Then again, Orion did look like he had all the time in the world. She pushed the very thought of him aside as she approached one of them and gingerly pulled one out. Perhaps there could be clues as to where this place is… To her chagrin though as she flipped through the pages, it contained some medical gibberish she didn’t wish to decipher at the moment.

She sipped on the now lukewarm tea and milk as she headed towards the wall of windows. Mild air and animal cries she never heard – except the zoo – greeted her as she opened the french doors; as she stepped outside and onto the soft grass, she noticed that the mountains were a natural barrier. Clever – an easy way to keep track of things – or people for that matter. The lake glinted in the sunlight as water from the mountain poured into it. One of the gardens were nearby, but she dared not to go near it. She did notice that heavy vines outside of what she assumed to be her room and the balcony. There’s got to be something more to this place.

Shin looked up in puzzlement as she heard a piano and turned to see another set of double doors wide open, curtains floating in the damp breeze. The room was plain compared to the dining hall and library, except some plants, and a lone painting of a cottage done in watercolor. Tiny legs swung to and fro to the cadence of the song, and some of the notes came out drunken and clumsy as Shin approached and sat on a nearby chase and tucked a small pillow between her side and the cushion.

The player – the little girl that somehow got into the loft after Shin bolted the doors and windows; and boarded them if she had the chance – paid no attention to her, odd eyes squinted to concentrate on the sheet music than anything else. “You’re spying, aren’t you?” Shin blinked. The girl’s mouth didn’t move at all.

“Oh, I’m just getting some air and exercise,” Shin said, looking idly into the bowl. The tea was almost gone.

“You know this isn’t right. But you’re very calm about this, Shina. That’s good, that’s such a rare quality. Is that natural or were you trained? Ah, it doesn’t matter,” Audra said. “Now your friend on the other hand, oh-what’s-his-name… so frantic and scattered. He wonders why… if that’s the question, why didn’t he off himself all those years ago – this never would’ve happened.”

What is she talking –

The girl smiled as Shin realized, and felt her stare hardening. “Oh, there’s another reason why you’re calm – you know your promised will search for the both of you. In fact - ” The girl tilted her head towards the ceiling, slowing the song’s tempo. “ – tonight.”

“Tonight?” Shin repeated, skeptical and hopeful.

“Oh, the reunion will be short lived. Ah, both will die in oh, three, four days.” The child shrugged and went back to reading the sheet music before ending on a discordant note and turning to Shin, reaching out to her; she jerked her hand back when Shin’s stare didn’t waver. “All of what I just said, will come true,” Audra said with a sour look on her pale face.

As Shin left hurriedly out of the room, Audra flipped through the music and started from the beginning, playing a jaunty tune.