Wild ARMs: Off on a Tangent

By: Chibi-chan

Part 8: “Wild Wing Girl”

*

Boomerang looked out at the town. His town, at least in his mind. Now I gotta get home and get changed. Dad’s bound to have been worried about me…he thought as he headed toward his house…

*

Laine looked out at Court Seim. She hadn’t been in the town since she was a small child, but it was that last place she remembered being happy with her “grandfather”. Maybe they’ll know something about Gran’pa Zepet here… she thought.

*

“Argh! Cecil, you got us all lost again!” Elmina yelled at the prince.

Cecil tried to look as cute and sweet as possible to avoid getting smacked by the annoyed warrior woman. “I thought we were on the right path…” he said in a small, insufferably cute voice.

“Well, obviously we’re not!” she continued to berate the lad, “And stop with the cute act! It’s not working!”

Cecil sighed. “Yes, ma’am…”

*

Meanwhile, in a room in Boomerang’s house, the bounty hunter took off his visor, revealing his rather pretty face featuring some rather unusual orange eyes. He shook out his black hair that had too long been trapped in said visor. He looked in a mirror disapprovingly. “My hair’s a complete mess,” he muttered, “Maybe I should take off the visor more often.” A little dark gray puppy that was sting on his bed barked in agreement. “You think so too, Lucied?” he said, smiling a bit.

*

At the same time, Laine approached the largest house in town. So this is where that Mister Maxwell lives, she thought, Hopefully the information I’ve received is true and he knows about grandfather… She lightly knocked on the door. “Uh, hello? Is anyone home?” she asked. She knocked again. “Hello?” Still no response. Fortunately, she learned her lesson at the Naga’s house and didn’t lean on the door. Unfortunately, the door opened outward and ended up knocking her down.

A middle-aged man looked at the girl, a little startled. “Oh, I’m sorry, miss! I didn’t know you were standing so close to the door!” He then put his hand out to her, a clear offer to help her back up.

“I-it’s OK, I should learn to pay better attention, that’s all…” Laine said nervously, accepted hi offer to get her back on her feet. “Are you Nicholi Maxwell?” she asked.

The man nodded. “Yes, I am. What is it that you want of me?” he asked her in return.

“Well, I’m Laine Roughnight and I heard-“ she began.

Nicholi cut her off. “Roughnight?! As in the old man’s granddaughter?!” he exclaimed.

“Well, yes, I-“ Again, Laine was cut off.

“Well then, come on in! Any child of the old man’s welcome in here!” Nicholi said cheerfully. “Oh, what a day! First, my wandering son comes home and now you!”

Laine quickly found herself being dragged into the house. “Uh, sir, I can find my way inside on my own…” she said softly. She wasn’t loud enough for the overly happy Nicholi to hear her, tho’.

*

Boomerang had heard the downstairs door open. Probably the delivery girl from the store, he reckoned. Lucied, still in the form of a puppy, knew his answer was wrong.

*

“So, what’re you doing here? Where’s old man Zepet?” Nicholi asked the girl.

Laine looked down and fiddled with the hem of her vest. “Grandfather… he died a couple years ago. I’m here to see if I can find more information about him…” she said softly.

Nicholi wasn’t sure what to say. “… I’m sorry, I didn’t know.” He put a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “But if it’s information you want, you came to the right place. The old man had a tower nearby here where he and his disciples, myself included, studied lost technologies. You can check it out if you want.”

Laine raised her head. “You mean it?” She paused, then added, “You aren’t worried about me going off there on my own?”

Nicholi smiled. “Sure, I mean it,” he told her. He reached into his pocket and retrieved a small wind-up key. “This may look silly, but it’ll get you in. As for being worried about you, hey, you’re Zepet’s kid. You can probably take care of yourself.”

“Her? Take care of herself? HA!” a voice called out from a nearby hallway.

Laine’s face contorted in annoyance as she recognized the voice. “Dear Guardians, not him,” she muttered with feeling.

A young man Laine didn’t recognize by appearance stepped into the room. However, she easily recognized his demeanor. Her guess at who he was was confirmed when he opened his mouth again and spoke. “You really think this little tomboy can go out to Epitaph of the Sea Wind by herself without getting herself into trouble?” he said in a tone Laine really didn’t like.

“You…” Laine growled.

“She made it this far from wherever she started off from in one piece, but if you really think she needs help…” Nicholi began.

It was Laine’s turn to cut him off. “No way! I am not going ANYWHERE with that… with that… words escape me to describe what he is!” she protested loudly.

Nicholi blinked. “I take you know my son already,” he said, stating the bleeding obvious.

Laine calmed herself down a little. “Yes, I do. I think I’ll be going now,” she said. She headed to the door, but didn’t leave. She turned around and gave Boomerang a dangerous look. “You had better not follow me, Jamie. Got it?” she said with an icy edge to her voice. She left after that.

Nicholi looked to his son. “James, what did you do to that girl to get her so upset with just your presence?” he asked bluntly.

Boomerang shrugged. “No idea, dad…”

*

“Here we are, ‘Mina! Court Seim!” Cecil proudly proclaimed as he stood at the edge of town.

“Yeah, and it only took three hours to find it,” Elmina replied dryly.

“Hey, we got here, didn’t we?” Cecil told her.

Zed crawled out of one of Elmina’s pockets. “Ah, that was a good nap! So, we there yet?” the wind mouse said chipperly, only to get shoved back in the pocket. “Hey! The abuse laws apply to Wind Mice too, you know!” he exclaimed after getting back out.

*

Meanwhile, at Epitaph of the Sea Wind, Laine wasn’t in the best of situations. The door had just slammed shut behind her and both means of exiting were locked tight. “Of course, nothing can be easy for me,” she muttered to herself.

A mysterious older man in semi-formal dress appeared before her. He gestured for Laine to follow him. Having no other options, she followed the strange man’s winding path around the many structures that practically littered the place. The man finally stopped at a door. My lady awaits, he seemed to say directly to Laine’s mind. With that, he turned into a white wolf and vanished. With his disappearance, the door before her opened.

What’s going on here…? Laine thought.

*

Puppy Lucied howled. Loudly, at that. Something was wrong at Epitaph of the Sea Wind and she knew it. She scratched at the door at an attempt to get Boomerang to let her out, for just vanishing would arouse suspicion in his father, which would never do for her plans for Boomerang. Come on, you twit, let me out!

*

Come on, you twit, let me out!

“Who said that?” Cecil asked, looking around. Elmina just shrugged it of as partial insanity on Cecil’s part. “Come on, that’s not funny! Show yourself!” he continued.

Innocent one! It’s me, Lucied! the voice called out.

“Lucied? Where are you? What’s wrong?” Cecil said, paying no mind to the people around him who already fancied him insane.

You must go to Epitaph of the Sea Wind and fast! There’s something wrong there and I can’t get out of this damn house!

“Wrong? What’s wrong at that place?” he asked.

I’m not sure, but I can say for sure the Tear Drop’s involved in the problem. Hurry, child!

Cecil nodded. “Right, Lucied, I understand.” He turned to Elmina and said, “We gotta get to Epitaph of the Sea Wind in a hurry! Lucied told me there’s trouble and Laine might be involved.”

“Lucied said the kid’s in trouble?” Elmina said, “I thought you were just going insane.”

Cecil opened his mouth to say a smart remark, but decided against it. “Let’s just go, OK?”

*

Laine gawked at one of the shelves. “I would never have guessed grandfather would collect stuff like this!” she exclaimed, picking up a Hello Kitty doll. “I mean, Hello Kitty? I would have expected maybe Gundams, dirty magazines, or at least something else, but Hello Kitty?! Weird…”

*

“C’mon, ‘Mina, we gotta catch up to her!” Cecil wailed at the tired warrior woman, who was sitting on the steps to catch her breath.

“She’ll survive,” Elmina said flatly. Sheesh, I must be getting too old for this stuff. I can remember when me and Garrett…

*

“No, no! More to the left!” the so-called Sword Princess chided the young man.

“Like that?” Garrett asked.

“Yes, better. Really, as much as you like swordplay, I’d think you wouldn’t slouch on practicing it!” she said.

*

“Hello?! ‘Mina, we have to go!” Cecil practically yelled in her ear.

“You don’t have to scream in my ear, you little… you little…” Elmina started.

“Two-bit Sailor Senshi wannabe?” Zed cheerfully suggested.

Elmina nodded. “Yeah, what the rat said!”

Zed glared at Elmina as best a Wind Mouse could. “That’s mouse. Rats are a different group altogether,” he corrected.

Elmina shrugged. “Fine, mouse, whatever…”

*

For the love of the Guardians, does this ladder go on forever?! Laine thought as she climbed a seemingly endless ladder that soon wasn’t quite endless after all*.

As she set foot on the top floor of the tower that is Epitaph of the Sea Wind, she got a bad feeling; a feeling that something not exactly pleasant was soon going to happen…

(* This message was paid for by the Department Tat Is Daravon. For more information, use the items used in battle that are items.)

*

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! HELLO KITTY!! RUN AWAY!!” Zed screeched before hiding in Elmina’s pocket after seeing a Hello Kitty doll.

“Rat thing?” Cecil asked.

Elmina nodded. “Rat thing.”

“That’s MOUSE!” Zed protested from the pocket.

*

Laine found herself in front of a structure with only an opening in front that had a chest within it. I wonder what’s in the chest… Some key item to Grandfather’s past? More Hello Kitty merchandise? she thought.

Before she could find the answer to her question, the mysterious man from before appeared before her. So, we meet again. My lady would like to meet you, he “said” to Laine’s mind.

“Who are you? Who is ‘your lady’?” Laine asked, feeling at great unease.

I am the male aspect of Lucied, Guardian of Desire, and my lady will gladly tell you her name on her own, the man answered. My lady! The bearer of the Tear Drop is here!

Shortly after the half-guardian called, a shadow materialized next to him. Said shadow soon turned into the form of what one would call “a cute little girlie”. From her long, wavy blonde hair to her pink dress, everything about this girl didn’t just say “cute”, it screamed it. Everything, that is, except the very large gun in her hand and the one strapped to her back. “Howdy! I’m Calamity, the prettiest Hiadan warrior of them all!” the girl said with a smile and a wink. “Now, if you’ll just be a good girl and hand over the Tear Drop, I’ll be on my way…”

Laine blinked. “Why should I give the Tear Drop to a child?” she said quite innocently.

Calamity, unlike Laine under normal circumstances (i.e. no Boomerang around), was very easy to piss off. “CHILD?! I’m older than you are!” she yelled.

Laine rolled her eyes and muttered, “Not bloody likely…”

“Listen, sister, just gimme the crystal and we can both be on our merry ways, OK?” Calamity demanded. She paused for a moment, then added with a smile, “Unless you’d like to fight…”

“No, you listen. I am not about to surrender the Tear Drop to a child, nor will I fight a child,” Laine said in a strict tone.

Calamity turned away from Laine and shrugged. “Well, if you’re not going to do either…” she said as she readied the gun in her hands, “Then I’ll just have some free TARGET PRACTICE!” She turned around quickly and fired a shot just to the left of Laine’s head.

This kid… is serious… Laine concluded, wide-eyed. Still, she’s a child… Another shot, this one grazing her arm, was fired. I can’t fight her… but I can’t let the Tear Drop fall into her hands…

My lady, perhaps you should show her your second form in order to get her to fight back… the aspect of Lucied suggested.

“But, Luc, then I’d crush her merciless… OH! Good idea, Luc!” Calamity cried. She struck a dramatic pose and declared, “Now here it is! The Super-Dee-Duper TRANSFORMATION!” As promised, the girl indeed started changing. She went from about four-foot-ten to 6-foot-even, she, erm, “filled out”, and generally gained a more wild and dangerous look. However, her dress did not change with her, probably for the sake of providing fan service or something related to her vanity.

Laine gawked. She didn’t know what else to do at the moment. Calamity… got bigger… was the only thought that seemed to pop into her head.

“Now will you fight, little girl?” Calamity said, not sparing any smugness in the words.

“I guess I have no choice now…” Laine said softly. With her sword in one hand and an ARM in the other, the battle was on…

*

Cecil had just finished climbing the seemingly-endless ladder Laine had climbed previously. It was from there he heard gunshots, screams, and other sounds associated with fighting. “Laine?! I hope I don’t get there too late!” he said, breaking into a sprint in order to get to the scene of the fight.

Elmina poked her head out of the entrance the ladder lead to. “Hey, Cecil!” She looked around. “Princey? Where’d you go?”

*

Calamity gloated over the fallen Laine. “Hmm, dead already? I must admit, you put up one hell of a fight.” She searched through the little travel bag at Laine’s side and took out the Tear Drop. She turned to the half-Guardian and started to walk toward him, but stopped and looked over her shoulder to Laine. “It was nothing personal, but I just really get into my work, you see.”

Laine, who Calamity had just presumed was dead because she wasn’t moving, twitched. The Tear Drop… I failed… I… I… A strange voice then invaded her thoughts, saying, I WILL NOT LOSE LIKE THIS!! Amazingly, she stood up. “For someone who ‘gets into her work’, you sure do a half-assed job of it,” she sneered. She wasn’t sure what was coming over her, but she had no choice in the matter.

Calamity turned around, looking on in astonishment. “So, what Emma said was true; you are one of ‘them’!”

“Indeed,” Laine replied with an icy edge. What… What’s happening to me? Is this why…? Laine’s thoughts were cut off by a transformation of her own. For the most part, it was an emotional transformation. The strange rage that was already taking over completely shut out any rational thought or any other emotions. Her face grew cold and severe, and the one major physical change of the transformation took place. A pair of solid black dragon-like wings sprang out from her back, ripping anything that got in their path.

It was Calamity’s turn to be too stunned to do anything. “Uh… Luc? What’s going on?!”

The Holmcrosses were noted for their ability to undergo transformations like you kind, Luc told her. He hesitated, then added, They were also known for their one-track minds. Once they want to achieve victory, the only way to stop them is to kill them.

“NOW you tell me?! Why didn’t you tell me this before I started a fight?!” Calamity yelled at him.

You didn’t ask, my lady, Luc told her plainly.

Laine’s transformation was complete. She glared at Calamity and said in a soulless voice, “Now it is time for you to die.”

*

“Cecil! Wait up!” Elmina shouted at the young and surprisingly fast prince.

Cecil paid her no heed. Laine, I’m on my way! Hold on!

*

Cecil and Elmina couldn’t believe the scene before their eyes. Laine, or at least they thought it was Laine, was standing over a badly-injured woman and was poised to strike with a deathblow. Cecil, without thinking first, cried out, “LAINE!”

A thought slipped through the barrier in Laine’s mind. Cecil? She turned to look at the prince, who seemed worried about her. She also saw Elmina, who wasn’t sure what to make of the scene. “Ce… cil? ‘Mi… na?”

Cecil slowly nodded. “It’s us, Laine,” he said softly.

“What happened to ya, kid?” Elmina asked.

Calamity took this as her chance to get away. She scrambled to her feet and latched onto Luc. “She who fights and runs away lives to fight another day! Sayonara, suckers!” she said as she and the half-guardian vanished from sight.

Laine turned her attention to the retreating demoness, but it was too late to catch her. “I failed again…” she whispered before passing out. The wings she had gained during the transformation suddenly vanished into thin air.

Cecil was the first by her side, followed by Elmina. “She’s hurt, but it’s nothing my magic can’t fix,” he muttered.

Elmina looked at the young woman. “Something tells me she’s going to need more than magic to recover from whatever happened to her…”

*

End

Chibi’s notes:

Well, I didn’t get as far in the story as I would have liked to, but the chapter was starting to run long and I needed a good stopping point. I should have more pretty soon, if the muse stays with me. *Rudy and Trowa walk away in the background carrying luggage* That’s not a good sign.