54A/N: 04.09.2020
Glad I was able to keep my word and post this today. We're headed towards the end, folks. Get ready for it.
Session XXIII: Minuet Moments
"The hardest thing … for anybody to do is look themselves in the mirror and acknowledge … their own flaws and fears and imperfections and put them out there in the open for people to relate to it." ~ Kendrick Lamar, NPR, "A Visit From Kendrick Lamar - Best Day Of School Ever?", 2015
Over the next few days, the only thing dominating the news of the entire system was the war between the Red Dragons and the Europeans and the casualties on both sides. The casualties included not only the soldiers of both syndicates, but also the police and politicians on their payrolls. Vega, Hagen, and Kaito believed Liam and the others were the ones behind the attack at the meeting since they had, conveniently, gone missing since that attack. With the war becoming so deadly, creating casualties of good and bad cops alike, the ISSP began considering telling all officers to stay out of the conflict.
The Bebop crew was beginning to wonder if they should do the same.
Still on Io, the crew was sitting in the common room of the Bebop, having just heard the latest news report of a shootout in Alba City.
"Soooooooo," Faye said, "we just let them war it out?"
Spike kept his gaze focused on the floor.
"We could," Elektra shrugged. "Let them fight each other. Hopefully… hopefully… we won't have to worry about taking on the winner."
"Maybe," Jet agreed, tentatively. He looked at Spike. "Spike?"
Spike looked at them, scanning their faces. "Maybe."
"Oh my God," Jet groaned. "I can hear the 'or' coming from here."
Spike smiled a bit. "Or."
"Here we go…" Elektra whispered.
"Or we finish it for them."
"I really hate you right now," Faye said, immediately.
"I can understand that," Spike nodded.
"Spike, this is getting nuts!" Jet shouted. "Do you honestly think getting involved with this anymore than we already have is a good idea?!"
"Not at all. But… I do think we can hit them at the right time and end this. Like… whenever Vega goes after the Europeans."
All of them looked at each other then back at Spike.
Spike shrugged, "I know him. He's gonna go after them. He'll wanna hit them before they take him out." He stopped. "Honestly… I'd do the same thing."
Faye groaned. "So, best case scenario, they fight each other and damn near wipe each other out, even if they don't do it completely."
"Yeah. But…"
"But… we're still screwed if Vega happens to come out the winner on the other side of this or even living through it. And… with our luck…"
"Yup."
Jet sat in silence for a few minutes. He groaned. "I'll call Bob."
"I'll call Ed," Faye added.
"I'll call Jordan," Elektra shrugged.
"I'll call Dice and Juarez and tell them we're not done yet," Spike declared.
The next two weeks were spent by the Bebop crew chasing bounties, sparingly, and keeping up with all of the information about the Red Dragons and the Europeans. The war between the syndicates was even covered by the news; reports of ISSP officers who were in the pockets of both syndicates were caught in the crossfire.
Jet was on the bridge alone one night, sitting in one of the piloting pits and watching the news coverage. There was a report of one of his former superiors being gunned down by the Red Dragons.
Jet rubbed his forehead, "Unbelievable."
"Tell me about it," Elektra said as she walked onto the bridge.
Jet turned and looked at her, "Oh. Hey."
"Hey. I heard Europa had someone in Cherious, too. A Wanda Libbs. She was found with a knife in her back on her way to her car a few hours ago."
"Jeez."
Elektra walked over to the railing and leaned against it, staring at the night's sky through the window. "It's like… all of this is pulling the curtain of the world back even more than it already had been. Showing… how messed up things really are."
He looked out of the window, as well. "Can't argue with that.
She stood in silence for a few moments. "Do you get the feeling… this is almost over?"
"Yeah. You?"
"Mm-hmm." She sighed. "Back to a normal life, after that, huh?"
"Yeah," Jet said, absentmindedly. "Whatever that is." He crossed his arms and leaned back. "About what happened… with us… the other day…"
Elektra looked down then back up, "Jet, we… we can wait for this to be over."
He shook his head. "Don't want to."
She felt something when he said that. A strength to it.
He looked at her, "You know I'm not the romantic type."
"Which doesn't bother me," she replied.
"But… that doesn't mean I can't talk at all." He stood up, got out of the piloting pit, and stood on the deck with her, looking her in the eyes, "What we did… I could blame on Spike. And I do."
She smiled.
"But… it wasn't all his fault." He stared at her. "I wanted to."
She smirked, "I kinda got that feeling. All five times."
He chuckled, lowly, then sobered. "I'm damaged goods, Elektra."
"You say that like I'm some kind of… prime example of stability."
"It's different from me."
"No, it's not. Pain is pain, Jet. Yeah, it comes in varying degrees and for different reasons. And yeah, the reasons why we're in pain are different. But… we're not making it a contest. And we're not trying to compare who's life is more screwed up. All the time."
He scoffed.
"It'd be different if we were looking at this through… rose-tinted glasses, but we're not. We're seeing it for what it is. A relationship between old soldiers, who've got a lot of baggage."
He looked down, "And how."
"The difference is…" she continued, "I'm not doing this to 'fix' you and you're not trying to fix me. This… isn't something I'm expecting to make all my pain go away. Sad to say, some pain just doesn't leave. But this feels… and is… something that makes me believe there's more to this life than just living from day to day. There's someone… worth seeing at the end of the day. Coming home to. This, between us… it's something… I want."
"I want it, too," he admitted. "I'm just nervous. Some… words and feelings I told myself to never feel again." He smiled a bit, "Then you came along and that plan didn't work out so well."
She laughed. "Trust me. I didn't expect this either."
He stared into her eyes, "You sure wanna take this chance?"
"Only if you are."
He thought about for a minute. This was a lot to admit to. And Spike and Faye would never let him live it down. Still, the rewards far outweighed the consequences. He nodded. "Yeah. I am."
"Then so am I."
They shared a kiss. A deep, passioned one, even wrapping their arms around one another. When they broke the kiss, they stared at each other for a while, their fear and apprehension still on the surface. But those emotions weren't as strong, and there was relief as well. Even love, when they were able to admit it. They had their worries, but this made it worth it and quieted those worries for a moment.
"I should've said this before we went on that damn mission," he said.
"Glad you said it before the next damn mission," she smiled.
He grinned a bit, "Better late than never."
"Agreed."
"Holy shit," Faye said.
They looked to see Faye staring at them with a look of total shock. Jet immediately rolled his eyes while Elektra laughed to herself.
Jet growled, "What do you want?!"
Faye blinked. "Uh… uh…" She snapped her fingers and looked off, "Why did I come here?" She looked up suddenly, "SPIKE!" She looked back them, "Spike… he… found something. Or heard something. He's got something. It's… it-it's something."
Jet moved his arms from around Elektra and headed for the common room, leaving Faye and Elektra alone.
Faye smirked a bit, "Soooooo…"
"I actually got a full-on conversation out of him," Elektra smiled as she walked up to Faye. "And I like where this is going." She shrugged. "Maybe not something you'd put in a romance novel, but I've got no complaints, believe me."
"Woman, you're preaching to the choir."
Elektra laughed and they headed to the common room.
Jet walked into the common room, sitting down in a huff.
Much to Spike's confusion. "What's up with you?"
Jet stared at Spike and said, "This is all your fault."
"What the hell did I do now?!"
Elektra and Faye came in and, with a blush, Elektra walked over and sat down, right next to Jet. Their proximity told Spike everything he needed to know.
Spike smiled. "Okay. That… I'll take the blame for."
"Faye said you found something," Jet said, irritably.
"Clearly getting laid does nothing for your mood," Faye whispered.
"I dare you to say that again!"
Faye just smiled.
"What'd you find out, Spike?" Elektra asked.
"Vega's getting ready to make his final push," Spike answered. "When this started, Vega sent a message to all Red Dragons to watch their backs and takeout anyone they even thought was coming for them. Now… the message changed to prepare for war. They want everyone to be ready to go to Europa tomorrow."
"Tomorrow?" Faye asked.
"He wants to end this."
"Putting all his chips on the table," Jet mused.
"It's a pride thing, too," Spike explained. "Hanan declared open war on the Red Dragons. That hasn't happened in a long time."
"Even if the syndicate isn't at full strength?"
"I'm sorry, did you just try to inject logic into this?"
Jet paused. "Okay, yeah, good point."
"So, what?" Elektra asked. "Vega's gonna run in, guns blazing? How does he plan to win that way?"
"Who expects a blitzkrieg anymore?" Spike shrugged.
"Anyone who expects you to come after them," Faye answered.
"Damn. Am I that predictable?"
"Yep," Faye and Jet said, simultaneously.
Spike looked at them both. "Ouch. That hurts my feelings."
"Normally, I'd say you don't have feelings but that doesn't really track anymore," Jet admitted.
Spike just smiled.
"So, same plan as last time?" Elektra asked.
"More or less, yeah."
Faye exhaled. "Alright. Let's do it."
The crew made their calls to their allies to be ready to meet on Europa tomorrow. After making their plans, Jet and Elektra went to bed and Spike and Faye sat outside, sitting on the deck of the Bebop and gazing up at the night sky. Faye was leaning her head on Spike's shoulder.
"So." Faye sighed. She smirked. "Jet and Elektra."
"Dammit," Spike shook his head as they both laughed. "World's changin'."
"Yeah."
He paused for moment, thinking things over. "They talked. We haven't, really. Not in a while."
"I know." She thought about it. "But we don't have to yet. It's okay."
"Faye…"
"I'm serious, Spike. You've shown me a lot. More than I ever expected to see when I met you. When this started… I saw… so much more." She kissed him. "Tell me everything when this is over."
He smiled. "I promise." He thought for a second. "You sure you're gonna like who I am… when all this is over? No more past for me."
"You'll always have a past, Spike," she retorted. "That's what you… Julia… Vicious… that's what you never got." She stopped, looking down. "Maybe that's what I didn't get, at first." She looked back at him, "Your past doesn't go away, even if you do. Sure, you're the one your own past affects the most. It's your past. But… it's always there. It still made you. For better or for worse, it did. And that's the person I ended up falling for." She smirked. "For better or for worse."
He scoffed but nodded. "I've never really viewed it that way. I mean… I never focused on it."
"Like I said… I don't think I did either. I get it. But I can see it now. Whether it was my life on Earth before the accident or my life since I defrosted, all of that made me who I am. And it all matters." She thought for a while. "It took me a while to realize that. And when I did… I knew I had to come back to the ship. Yes, I miss my home, my parents, all of it. But… I missed my new home, even more." She stared into his eyes, "I missed you."
He gazed at her. "When I went after Vicious… a part of me… a large part told me to let it go. And stay with you."
She giggled, softly, "I wanted to shoot you so bad."
"I thought you were going to," he admitted with a smile.
"The thought crossed my mind but… I guess that's the problem with loving you, even before I fully realized I did. I just… know you have to do… what you have to do."
"But this is it, Faye," he said, confidently. "I don't know what we'll do after this, but, I promise, we'll move on. Everything with the syndicate will be done. We can figure it out once this is all done."
She smiled, fighting back tears. "That works for me."
Vega, Kaito, Hagen, and Olivia took a small airship on Venus. After arriving, they were driving to a safe house that Kaito had established in secret.
"Why are you sending me here, Vega?" Olivia asked.
"Because this is gonna get bad," Vega answered. "This is gonna be a war that puts all of the syndicates on notice."
"Plus, they probably know we're coming," Kaito admitted. "The message we sent out went to all Red Dragons. We're planning on them expecting us."
"Liam…" Olivia realized.
"Exactly. In all likelihood, he's with Europa. Either he leaked the information or knows who did and now he's making a play to be their… stooge."
"If he's that lucky," Vega whispered.
"Either way, we've planned for him to be on their side with this."
"Which is fine," Hagen said. "Everyone who's against us dies, and all we lose are few soldiers in the process. Maybe it's time we start over, anyway. New soldiers for a new order."
"But until then…" Vega said, "until we know it's over…" He stared at Olivia, "you're staying where no one can reach you."
They arrived at the house. A sizeable house in one of the more affluent areas of Venus.
"Wow," Olivia said.
Vega looked at Kaito and Hagen, "Wait here." He looked at Olivia, "Come on in."
Vega led Olivia into the house, guiding her to the dining room. A single black book was on the table. He picked it up and presented to her.
"What's this?" Olivia asked.
"Accounts," Vega said. "Untraceable. Kaito set it up. And plenty of other information to make sure you stay free of all this. The money in the accounts… you'll be set for life."
"Why?"
"After everything that happened with Billix, I'm making sure there was no trace you were at that meeting or even remotely involved with any of this. A letter of resignation was sent to Kelvin, describing how you inherited money from a rich distant family member. The message was sent two months ago. Billix is probably going to collapse, no need for you to be in the rubble."
"Clever," Olivia said.
"You stay here. No matter what. The war's gonna get bloody. But I'll be back when it's over."
She nodded.
Vega smiled at her then started to walk for the door.
Olivia grabbed his wrist.
He looked back at her. She pulled him close and kissed him.
"Win," Olivia whispered.
Vega smiled. "I will."
See You Space Cowboy…
A/N: The war continues. Will it end?
Next Session:
Spike and the others head to Europa as the syndicates go to war. There will be blood...
Next Session ~ Violence Symphony
