So, I have some bad news… first, school started meaning updates will be sporadic.  Second, this story is almost over.  There’s only about one or two chapters after this one…

Quote of the Chapter:

“I just want to get out of this ejection seat and into a hot tub.”

~Chopper

______________________________________________

The Superior

Blaze

I woke up with a jolt when someone hit my arm.

“Here’s your meal,” a grouchy voice announced.  I had a tray shoved roughly into my hands and then the door shut.

“Hello to you, too!” I shouted sarcastically.  Someone chuckled, making me jump. “Henry?”

“Hey Elizabeth,” he said with amusement.

“Did you get a meal?”

“Yep.  Another piece of bread, watered down soup, and water.  I’m getting really sick of this meal.  The least they could do is give us some butter or something!” Henry ranted.  I tasted the soup and I think it really was just chicken broth or something.  It was pretty much tasteless.  The bread was stale and I agreed with Henry, it needed butter.  The water… well, tasted like water.  At least it didn’t seem as if it was poisoned or anything.

“So, since I have a feeling we’re going to be stuck here for a while, who are you?  Why do the assbutts upstairs want with you?” he inquired.

“Assbutts?” I laughed.

“I don’t know where that came from,” he confessed sheepishly.

“I like it.  Well, I have top security clearance in Osea.  I have the same clearance as the President so that’s probably why.  Any big secret I most likely know.  Of course, there is so much damn information that it’s hard to keep up with and to remember it all.”

“What’s your area of expertise?”

“What do you mean?”

“What topic do you know the most about?  I can’t give you any examples because I don’t remember anything… at least not much.”

“What do you remember?” I purposely wanted to avoid any questions on what I knew.  I didn’t want those bloody Belkans getting any useful information out of me.

“I had a fiancée,” he admitted, sounding somewhat wistful.

“Do you remember what she was like or what she looked like?”

“Not really.  I think she had brown hair.  I keep thinking there was a kid but I don’t know if it’s mine or not.  I don’t know.  My mind is really jumbled up.  I can’t make sense of most of the things and thoughts whirling around in my head.  What about you?  Are you engaged?  Married? Taken?  Single?  Single and ready to mingle?  What?”

I gave a small laugh. “I’m single, not ready to mingle.”

“Why not?”

I hesitated, not wanting to go into Chopper’s death.  I hated talking about it.  Henry noticed my silence because he asked, “Elizabeth?”

“Sorry… I, uh, was just thinking.  I, um, I was engaged a few months ago,” I admitted.

“Was?”

“My fiancé died in a plane crash.  He was a fighter pilot… my third in command.  We were doing a flyby over November stadium.  We were armed just in case any enemies came but none of us thought that would happen.  We were so far inland and Osea’s air defense system is one of the top in the world.  I thought there was no way we could be attacked.”

“And you were?” It was more of a statement than a question.

“Yes.  Ambushed is a better way to put it,” I said bitterly. “I think there were at least forty planes total that attacked us.  We destroyed about seventy five percent before one of them finally hit my fiancé.  He didn’t go down immediately… he kept flying and when my second in command told him to bail out over the stadium so the plane would drop there and not on the houses, he stalled.  He wanted to make sure that there weren’t many people around when the plane fell.  His decision cost him his life.  His plane’s ejection system malfunctioned and he crashed into the stadium.  Last thing he said to me was ‘I love you.’  He laughed you know… he knew that he wasn’t going to make it and he laughed when our AWACS told him to keep trying and flying.  My fiancé was a hoot.  He was the only guy I knew who could insult the top brass without getting into too much trouble with them.”

“How long did y’all date?”

“Barely a month.  It was a whirlwind courtship.  We were at a party his family was hosting and he and I snuck out and went to the hammock.  He asked me while we were lying down on it and I freaked out so much that I tipped the hammock over and we fell onto the ground.  We both started laughing and of course, I said yes.  We had known each other for a long time though.  He was my brother’s best friend since they were fifteen years old or something.  I had always had a crush on him but I kept it to myself.” As I listened to myself talk, I could hear how wistful I sounded.  Apparently, so did Henry.

“That really was a whirlwind courtship… but by the way you talk about him, it’s really obvious how much you loved him and I’m sure he would sound the same talking about you.”

“I would like to think so,” I answered shyly. “I still wear the ring he gave me.  I can’t seem to bring myself to sell it.  It’s one of the few things he gave me.  Living on a military base, it’s hard to give gifts to people so I treasure anything he gave me.”

“That’s understandable.  I’m really sorry about that.  Neither you nor him deserved that fate, him losing his life and you losing the love of your life.”

“Fate’s a bitch… Pardon my language.  I don’t like to cuss but sometimes no other word will suffice.”

Henry laughed. “I completely understand.”

“Thank god,” I said.  I finished my stale, tasteless piece of bread and finished the soup (if you can even call it that).  My water was really helpful because I had been pretty thirsty.

“So what do you like to do?  I mean, hobbies and whatnot?” he queried, sounding genuinely interested it.  A thought flashed across my head that Henry might just be acting as a prisoner and anything I said he told the Belkans upstairs.  But just as quickly as the thought came, I denied the possibility.  There was something about Henry that told me that he was in the same boat I was.

“I like to read, I absolutely love to write.  Um, I like to hike and play football and soccer and go horseback riding.”

“What position in football would you want to play?”

“Halfback.  I love running.  I’m not the best at catching but I can do it.”

“What books do you like to read?  Any particular genre?”

“I like any book really, but I’m more into science fiction and mysteries.  I love a good mystery book.”

“And what do you like to write?”

“Fiction stories.  I have a whole book at my house comprised of nothing but short stories.  I’ve been planning on writing a book about these two friends that become pen pals in first grade and they keep in touch.  Finally, they meet one day on a vacation and then they leave and a spark starts between the two except they are both geographically undesirable for each other.  I don’t know; I’m still working out the details.”

“That actually sounds really interesting.  I’d read it,” Henry claimed.

“Thanks, so-” I was cut off when Henry gave a short shout. “Henry?!”

“I’m fine.  I’ll be back,” he answered, sounding resigned and I knew he was being led away to be interrogated.  I waited impatiently for him to get back.  I hated how the Belkans were using an innocent civilian.  And why him?  Why, of all the billions of people in the world, why did they choose Henry?  I shut off my mind and wondered if anyone had noticed I was gone?

… How long had I been gone?  There was no light whatsoever in my room, there was no clock, there was absolutely nothing to help me.  I hated this.  Again, I didn’t mind the silence and not knowing where I was and knowing that there was probably no escape, but I didn’t like not being able to see, and that meant anything.  Maybe I could convince one of the Belkans to tell me what time it is when I go up next.

“Go to hell,” Henry’s voice snapped suddenly.  I heard the door open and clang shut.

“Henry?”

“Hey Elizabeth,” he said tiredly.

“Did they hurt you?”

“A little.  Knocked me upside the head quite a bit but that’s because I kept insulting their mothers.  They get very irked when you do that,” he mused which made me chuckle.

That’s when my door opened.  Someone grabbed my arms and tied my hands behind my back.

“Hey, is that you Ginger?” I chirped.

“My name isn’t Ginger,” he retorted.

“Sorry but I don’t know your real name,” I pointed out, “so it’s going to stay Ginger until you decide to tell me otherwise.”

He didn’t reply as he tied led me up the stairs.  The bright light hurt my eyes and I squinted.  Ginger brought me to the room I had been in the last time and tied me in the chair.

“This is all very cliché, you know.  Tying someone in a chair and interrogating them,” I noted.  The Belkans looked at each with a “what the hell” expression which made me smirk slightly.

“Hey, since I have a feeling I’m going to be here for a while, can y’all at least tell me your names?  Then I don’t have to go Blondie One or Blondie Four and Brunette Two or Black-Haired Dude One.  So?” I prodded.

They hesitated.

“My name is Ludwig,” one of the blondes said with a cocky smile. “I’m only telling you this because you’re right, you will be here for a long time.”

The others followed.  The two other blondes were Manfred and Rudolph.  Heinrich, Viktor, Johann, and Oswald were the black-haired guys.  Ernst, Dieter, Kristof, and Otto were the brunettes.

“So, you’re Otto.  Contrary to what the others are saying, you knocked me out plenty good enough.  Believe me,” I told him.  I turned to the only one who hadn’t said his name. “So, Ginger, are you going to tell me what your name is?”

“Augustus,” he replied.  Wow, I wasn’t expecting it to be that easy…

“Really?  You’re just going to tell me?  No going all mimey on me?”

“Mimey?”

“You know, acting like a mime, saying nothing,” I explained.  He rolled his eyes. “So what exactly are we waiting for?  Aren’t you supposed to start interrogating me or something?”

Augustus gave me a wicked grin. “We’re letting the boss handle you.”

“Why?  Am I too much to handle for y’all?  Not very manly now is it.”

He didn’t reply.

“May I ask y’all something?” I questioned.

“You asking permission?  That’s a first,” Manfred muttered.

“Could you possibly upgrade the food?  I mean, it really is quite bland,” I requested.

“You want us to upgrade the food?  So what would you recommend?” Heinrich inquired in mock seriousness.

“Ever heard of In-N-Out?  It’s absolutely incredible.  Best burgers ever!”

“And where would we find this place?” Kristof asked.

“They’re all over Osea, mainly in Oured.  I suggest you go there.  You know, get a burger, get caught, tell the Osean military where I am, the whole shebang.”

“You talk too much,” Dieter told me.

“Surprisingly it’s only Belkans that have ever said that to me.  Believe it or not, I have nothing against the Belkans, it’s only certain people like yourselves that are trying to plan world domination or whatever.”

Viktor walked up to me; god he was tall.  He towered over me.  He had to be a least six foot eight, I swear!

“What’s up, Krum?” I gave him a head nod.

“Krum?”

“You know, Viktor Krum from the Harry Potter series.  Has anyone told you that you look like him?  Viktor I mean.  Funny you two have the same names.  What is your last name anyways?”

“Shut up,” he growled.

“But you enjoy it so much.  Why should I deprive you of my incessant babbling when it clearly delights you so much?”

Viktor grabbed a handful of my hair and painfully yanked my head back.  Leaning in close, he admonished, “When I tell you to shut up, you listen to me.”

I got ready to spit in his face but was interrupted when a man shouted, “Viktor!”

I couldn’t see the man but I didn’t recognize the voice.  Maybe he was the ‘Boss’ that Augustus had mentioned.

Viktor snarled before letting me go and stalking to the other side of the room.  He leaned against the wall and crossed his arms.  Me being me, I stuck my tongue out at him.  I know, it was childish but at the moment, I could care less.  I looked up and barely prevented my mouth from dropping open.

I collected myself quickly and raised an eyebrow. “Waldemar Rald?”

______________________________________________

Nagase

It had been three days since Blaze had disappeared.  We were all going out of our minds with worry.  None of us had slept save for the few moments we went without caffeine for five minutes.  That’s literally what we were living on, that and a few Subway sandwiches that we had delivered.  And even then, we forced ourselves to eat.  I could barely eat because I felt so sick to my stomach from worry.

None of us had been allowed to leave Versailles when President Harling had found out Blaze went missing.  We were pretty much on lockdown.  He was scared that someone had found out we were the Razgriz and was out to get us.

Genette was restless and the few times we weren’t talking about where Blaze was and trying to find out where she was, he would pace the halls aimlessly.  He once walked into a utility closet because he wasn’t paying attention.

Jason Banks went absolutely nuts when he found out and went on a thirty minute rampage just asking how it happened.

Cassie and I were just sort of numb.  We were like robots, going through everything because it was routine.  We didn’t think of what we were doing, we just did it.

Snow and Grimm were almost as bad as Genette with the restlessness.  Whereas Genette would walk around, Grimm and Snow would tend to sit down and fidget unyieldingly.

Pixy, although outwardly he appeared calm, anyone who knew him could tell he was anxious because of the whole situation.  It was the little things that I noticed, him tapping his fingers on the desk, crossing and uncrossing his legs, rocking back and forth in his chair.

Pops, Andersen, Geller, Nastasya, and Bartlett were the only ones that were pretty much keeping a level head during this whole thing (besides Harling).  They were the ones forcing the rest of us to eat; they even had to force Pixy to eat.

Blaze’s parents had been in Emmeria visiting cousins.  When Genette had called them in near hysteria, her mom started crying and her father started asking what happened.  Miserably, Genette said he didn’t know.  They had packed and gotten on a flight that night; from what I heard, Mr. Banks nearly duked it out with one of the agents when they were trying to get a ticket home.  I wasn’t sure why but that’s what I had heard.

Who had kidnapped Blaze?  And why?  Of all people, why her?  Did they know who she was?  Did they know she was the leader of the Razgriz?  Did they know that she was the pretty much the one who had sent Ofnir and Grabacr to prison?  Why her?  She had already been through enough.  She didn’t need to be kidnapped too.

I walked into the Cabinet Room where all serious discussions were held.  It was only the Razgriz Squadron, Geller, Pops, Andersen, Genette, Bartlett, Pixy, and Jason.  We couldn’t get anyone else involved because we were still a top security secret that barely anyone knew.  And by anyone, I mean me and the ones in the Cabinet Room and Blaze of course.  This was going to be hard.  It had been decided earlier that Blaze needed to be tracked down first before we sent in a rescue team.  Geller had also adamantly insisted he be part of rescuing her.  He stated that if there were Belkans involved, he could be a translator if need be.  Harling finally consented after Geller refused to give up.

Today we would start trying ways to find her.  I didn’t know how we were going to do it, and to be honest, I wasn’t feeling very hopeful.

______________________________________________

Blaze 

Rald looked at me with a barely visible smile on his face.

“Looks like introductions aren’t necessary,” Rald said. 

My eyes shifted over to the guy standing next to him. “Henri Rald?”

The guy looked at me with blue eyes.  They reminded me of Chopper’s…

“How do you know me?”

“Who doesn’t?” I countered.  I looked back at Rald Senior and looked him over.  I don’t think he had missed a meal in his life… “Hey, Rald Senior, um, have you ever heard of a Bowflex?  I heard they’re very effective.”

Henri Rald grinned and I heard a few snickers from the guys in the room.  Rald looked at me furiously.

“How dare you insult me like that!” He growled.

“Well,” I said with a smirk, “at least your son finds me funny.”

Rald hit Henri on the back side of the head… hard.  I cringed slightly.  Henri instantly sobered up and obtained a stony expression.  I caught his eye though and gave him a sympathetic smile.  He looked away quickly.

“So, you’re Elizabeth.  You’re the one giving my men trouble,” Rald began, walking towards me.  I met his cocky expression with one of my own.

“I was told by them I wasn’t causing trouble.  They actually didn’t go into detail about what I was causing.  Yo, Augustus, was it true what Henry said that y’all nicknamed me Gator Girl because I death-rolled you guys?”

“I never said that,” Henri declared.

“I know you didn’t, the Henry downstairs said it.  Wow, I just realized there are two Henrys.  This could become very confusing,” I commented. “Anyways, back to my original question.  Is that true Augustus?”

As usual, he said nothing.

“How old are you?” Rald inquired.

“Young enough to know better, but old enough to do it anyway.”

“That’s an old comeback.”

“Yeah, but I’m young enough to know that I shouldn’t be sarcastic to y’all but I’m old enough to do it anyways.”

“What’s your job?”

“You would love to know, wouldn’t you?”

“That’s why I’m asking.”

“Let’s just say that my job pretty much guarantees my saving.  Y’all are really stupid kidnapping me, just FYI,” I pointed out.

“And why is that?”

“Nice try.  I’m not saying.”

“You say ‘y’all’ a lot.  You’re from southern Osea, aren’t you?”  Man, Rald was good…

“Just because I say ‘y’all’ doesn’t mean I’m from there.  I know a lot of people that hang around southerners and they pick up the lingo.”

“Okay, but I hear the lilt of your southern accent.”

“It’s hard to lose.  Believe me.”

“So you are from there?”

“I’ll say I lived there but I won’t say I’m from there.  I could be from there, I could not be.  Your choice.  So clarify something for me, please.”

“Yes?”

“I have to know because Ludwig and I had an argument the last time I was interrogated and I must know…”

“Well?” Rald prodded.

“Is this floor oak or mahogany?” I asked with as serious of a face as I could muster.  Rald looked at me with a confused expression.

Regaining his composure, he ordered, “Put her away.”

“Aw, so soon?  But I enjoyed my time up here!” I whined.

“Henri!  Put her away, now!” Rald barked.  I saw Henri’s jaw clench before he walked over to me.  Unlike Mr. Ginger Augustus, he was surprisingly gentle.  He led me out of the room.

“Sorry you had to see me like that.  I swear I’m not that psychotic in person,” I told him with a small smile.  To my surprise, he returned it.

“I found you very funny actually,” he admitted as he opened the door.

“Is your head okay?  I didn’t mean for you to get slapped.”

“It’s fine.  He’s hit harder.”

“Harder?  He’s hit you harder?” I demanded incredulously.

“Yes, but it’s no big deal.  I’m fine,” he said nonchalantly.

“That doesn’t make it right.”

Henri said nothing else as he led me to the stairwell, down the stairs, and to my cell.  He unbound my hands.  I rubbed my wrists where the handcuffs had chafed maliciously; it wouldn’t surprise me if there were blisters forming.

“Thank you for not manhandling me,” I said.

“You’re welcome.  Good bye, Elizabeth,” Henri said.

“Bye, Henri,” I replied before he shut my door.

“Elizabeth?”

“Hi, Henry… other Henry.  God, two Henrys.  This is going to make me really confused,” I grumbled as I tumbled onto my bed.  I stretched out on my back, placing my left arm under my head and resting my right arm on my stomach.

“Who is he?”

“He’s Henri Rald, Waldemar Rald’s son.”

“Rald… that name sounds familiar.”

“If you’re from Osea or Sapin or Ustio or any countries in that area, and even Yuktobania, then you’ll know who Rald is.  He led the Rald Party nineteen years ago after an economic panic in Belka.  He turned it into a military dictatorship pretty much.  Then, four years later, Belka attempted to gain more land and it led a mass offensive, taking over countries within a couple days.  Ustio was the only one holding on so this fighter that was later nicknamed the Demon Lord, he and his buddy, callsign Pixy, were mercenaries for Ustio and they fought the Belkans.  Slowly, Ustio regained its territory back and then the rest of the countries fought back with the new morale and defeated Belka.  That was the end of the Rald party.  There was a group within the Rald party called the Gray Men.  They’re still around.  They used to own North Osea Gründer Industries but they were captured at the end of the Circum-Pacific War.  They were part of the reason why a squadron in the war was accused of treason.”

I waited for Henry to say something back but he was silent.  I wondered if I had unintentionally put him to sleep.

“Henry?” I said hesitantly.

“I’m here, I was just thinking.  Has anyone told you that you’re a great story teller?”

I laughed. “No, because I usually go off on a tangent about something in the story and I forget what I was talking about in the first place.”

“Then you did a fantastic job this time.  Any more stories?”

“About what?”

“I don’t know… funny things that have happened to you?”

“Well, one time I went to see the Rat Pack is Back and the guy that played Dean Martin, he flirted with me the whole time… it was creepy because I was only sixteen at the time.  He was thirty I think.  He had no idea how old I was but he aged me so much it was borderline offensive!  Apparently, when I wore a skirt, a spaghetti strap tank top, heels, and curled my hair, I looked way older than sixteen.”

Henry laughed.

“Another time, I was in front of a famous hotel called the Paris, and I was taking my picture with it in the background and this random guy came over and jumped into the picture and put his arm around me.  I was too shocked to do anything so I just started grinning.  Again, I was sixteen when this happened.  The guy was either really brave or really stupid.”

“Why?” Henry questioned drolly.

“He put his arm around me in front of my mom and my dad and my brother and his girlfriend.  She was pissed.  Of course, the picture didn’t take so he left and said have a good time.  I can’t say I minded he wanted to be in the picture.  He was pretty cute, I’ll admit to that.”

“You have some very interesting things happen to you, don’t you?”

“That’s an understatement.  When we get out of this hell hole, I’ll go into more detail.”

“I’m going to hold you to that,” he told me.

“I know.  So, is any of your memory coming back?”

“Not really.  Just flashes of random people but they happen so quickly that I don’t get a good look at them and I can’t remember what they look like.  I know there’s a brown-haired girl in my life, and I know she’s extremely important to me.  I’m guessing she’s my fiancée.”

“When we get out of here, I’ll help you find her.  I’m sure she’ll be ecstatic to see you again.”

“I think she thinks I’m dead; I don’t know how long I’ve been here but it’s been since December.  That I know.  I had just been released from the hospital and they were driving me through some battle zone.  The people were flipping out over this squadron called the Rabies or something.”

“The Razgriz you mean?”

“That’s it!  Anyways, I grabbed a hold of the mic and said ‘That’s one big tunnel.’  Then the guy knocked me out and I woke up here.”

“So that was you!  I heard you!” I exclaimed.  Suddenly, a revelation dawned on me. “Whoa, whoa, whoa.  Did you say you’ve been here since December?”

“Yes, ma’am.  Why?”

“You’ve been here for almost six months!”

“… I have?  Wow.  No wonder it feels like eternity.”

“I’m going to kill those Belkans…” I growled.

“They have let me get some sunshine.  They have to blindfold me because the light is too intense on my eyes since I’ve been in the dark for so long.  It’s not often but it has happened.  I’m sure I’m so white I look like a freaking snowman,” Henry joked. “I would love to see the outside again.”

“I bet… Henry?”

“Hmm?”

“I promise you, you’ll get out of here.”

“I know we will.  If you don’t mind, I’m going to go to sleep.  I’m having the hardest time keeping my eyes open but trust me, it’s not because of you.  When we’re both awake again, I want more stories; they’re very entertaining!”

“I’m having issues keeping my eyes open, too.  Talk to you soon Henry.”

I shut my eyes and was secretly glad he hadn’t caught on to the true meaning of my statement.  I knew without a doubt that Henry would be getting out of here alive.  As for me, my chances were slim… especially with my mouth.

Things were not looking good for me.  I needed to be found soon if I wanted to stay alive.

My mind traveled to Henri Rald.  There had been something in his eyes that had told me he would’ve chosen to be anywhere but in that room when I had been interrogated.  Maybe, just maybe, I could turn him into an ally.

I was certainly going to try.

______________________________________________

Hope y’all enjoyed the chapter!  Any guesses on who Henry is?  I know it’s confusing having two Henrys but too bad.  At least their names are spelled differently right?  Please review if you want Blaze to live!  Her life is in your hands ;)