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Thunder Falling	By : Croik Category: +G through L > Guilty Gear Views: 2276 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Guilty Gear, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 11
- 12
- 13
Guilty Gear, its characters
and settings are property of Sammy Studios, and are being used in this fanfiction without permission. This fic is rated R
for violence and sexual content, and it contains yaoi
material.

OMG throw in some more
characters right now AHHHHH!!!

Thunder Falling
Chapter 11

��Paris authorities still
have no leads as to the whereabouts of the criminals,�� Axl
read aloud as he walked. In one hand he
was holding up the morning paper, in the other a mug of fresh coffee, and was
doing his best to keep both balanced.
��However, they would like to assure residents that it is very likely
they have already left the city, and there is no need for concern as to�� Heh. Hear that? We�ve already left.�

Axl stepped through the doorway at the hall�s end,
chuckling to himself. He had to admit,
despite being one crazy bastard that Dr. Faust sure knew what he was
doing. Even his secret passages had
secret passages. Just after hearing of
the raid on the Police Headquarters, he had hidden Venom and Axl in the deepest of his many chambers. And just in time�with the police out in the
streets at full force many unsavory guests showed up seeking refuge, none of
which would be glad to hear the head of the former Assassin�s Guild himself was
among them. Faust took them in
graciously. It may not have said much
for his morals, but it spoke volumes of his charity.

Venom glanced up. Though his color had greatly improved, Axl was still surprised to find him on his feet, calmly
buttoning up a pale blue shirt. �Hey�are
you all right?� Axl asked with some concern as he set
the paper aside. �Should you really be
up?�

�It�s been three days,� Venom
replied simply, running his hand over the gifted shirt. It was too large for him�he�d had to depend
on Faust�s wardrobe for it�but anything might have been better compared to the
hospital gown. �I�m not fully healed but
I can�t stay put any longer.�

Axl frowned.
Though he had noticed how restless Venom had been lately, he wasn�t
looking forward to what came next: his decision. For three days he had lain hidden beneath
Paris�s streets with Venom, Faust, and his patients�even helped out when he
could, in exchange for having a place to stay.
He often wondered if that fact alone likened him to the rest. He knew that Kiske
would likely skewer him if they met up again, but so far he hadn�t done
anything�terribly wrong, other than keep his mouth shut. But now, Venom was leaving.

�So�� Axl took a sip from
his coffee, stalling. �Where�ya going?�

Venom looked over the tie
Faust had left him, and after a moment�s consideration tugged it around his
neck. �I�m not sure. Out of Paris, for now. After that�.�

�It won�t be easy leaving the
city. The paper says they�ve put up
roadblocks and checkpoints and��

�I�ll find a way.�

�Oh.� Axl�s frown
deepened as he sat himself down in an old wooden chair by the wall. �Yeah��

Venom glanced at him, one
bright blue eye just barely visible through his long, pale hair. �Are you still thinking about it?� he asked
plainly. �About what you told me
before�that we met for a reason. You
haven�t figure out yet if that�s true or not.�

Axl smiled sheepishly.
�Well, not really,� he confessed, pausing for another long sip. �I mean, it�s probably nothing. I time slip all the time. And even if there was a reason, maybe I
fulfilled it already. I saved your life,
after all.�

Venom smoothed the wrinkles
from his shirt, his fingers pausing briefly where the baggy material hid his
bandages. �I�ll find a way to repay you
for that,� he murmured.

�Yeah?� Axl leaned back with a grin. �And here I thought you were gonna hold it
against me.�

The lines around Venom�s
mouth twitched, making Axl wonder, for a moment, if
he might have actually seen the man smile.
�I still might.�

Axl rolled his eyes in good humor, but before he could
comment Venom took a step closer, watching him closely. �If Kiske and his
officers spot you, you�ll be arrested,� he told him seriously. �And if he thinks you have anything to do
with me, his interrogation will be severe.
That�s the kind of man Kiske is.�

Axl made a face.
�That�s kind of funny, coming from a hired hit man,� he teased.

Venom snorted lightly. �You need to leave this city just as much as
I do,� he continued. �But you don�t know
it as well, do you? Not enough to get
through police blockades without being seen.�

�Are you saying,� Axl asked slowly, �that I should come with you?�

Venom leaned back, appearing
oddly guilty as if Axl had caught him in some
secret. �For both our
sakes. You need a safe path out
of Paris, and�I�m still not completely healed.�

�Ahh,
so you need me.�

�I didn�t say that.�

Axl smirked. He
wasn�t sure why, but he was starting to think that maybe Venom really wasn�t
such a bad guy. Whatever
his profession. �Well, putting it
that way, it does make sense.� He stood,
and gave Venom�s hand an enthusiastic shake.
�Looks like you�re stuck with me a while longer, chap. Don�t regret it!�

Venom stared down at their
clasped hands, and after a moment returned Axl�s friendly
squeeze. �Welcome to being a criminal
accomplice, Mr. Low,� he replied before turning away to look for a hair brush.

�Accomplice�?� Axl sighed. It seemed he�d gotten himself in pretty deep
this time. �Whatever you say��

--

This time, it was cheap
Chinese food.

Despite his many travels, Sol
had not been to this part of the world for several years or even decades. He was never very adept at keeping
track. However long it had been, this
particular �best food in the city� restaurant had not existed back then. He would have remembered a place built in
the hollowed out husk of a dragon. Dragons
were tricky creatures; you couldn�t really kill one like a normal animal, and
they didn�t exactly decay, either. As
one of the patrons had explained it to him, this particular dragon had a habit
of coming back to life every few weeks.
It made for quite a spectacle when the owner had to kill it again.

It didn�t seem that Sol was
going to have the pleasure of witnessing that event this time, which was fine
with him. He was perfectly content
eating his spicy beef without incident.
And it was good beef, too; though he had grown sick of people insisting
to him that it was the best diner in China, he had to admit they might not have
been wrong. He was already planning on
ordering seconds.

There were times when even
Sol thought about the past, things so far back in his memory he could barely
recall in so different a world. Every
once in a while some half-recalled sensation at the back of his brain would stir,
driving him to seek out an icon of nostalgic indulgence. This time, it had been cheap Chinese
food. Vaguely Sol remembered the musty
smell of an old apartment, the gentle scraping wooden chopsticks against a
paper carton, the taste of overcooked rice and too much MSG. People didn�t make food like that anymore,
and his meal now was nothing like the soggy, $3.99 half servings of his
youth. The beef was just too damn good.

Sol�s idle musing was
interrupted by the shrill laughter of a woman several tables away. It was the restaurant�s owner, Kuradoberi Jam.
Though normally an owner wouldn�t be out waiting tables in such a way,
in this case it was a clever business decision�the young woman was gaining as
much attention from her customers as her world-renowned food. The outfit did wonders for her body, all
smooth red silk with shimmering gold trim.
The style was reminiscent of a traditional Chinese formal dress, though
the skirt was cut up nearly to her butt, and the chest area was cut with slits
to reveal her rather impressive cleavage.

It was the tone of her body
that drew Sol�s attention more than anything.
Despite her slim build her thighs and calves were well muscled, like
those of an athlete. Her shoulders, too,
didn�t have the delicate slope of the local young woman her age. She was strong, and she carried herself with precise,
light-footed balance.

Sol was beginning to wonder
if he�d met her somewhere before when she leaned forward to collect the men�s
plates. Red silk climbed tauntingly up
the backs of her thighs. Had she bent a
few degrees more, Sol was sure he would have been seeing goods. His thoughts then shifted to whether or not
he could get her into bed without her opening her mouth.

Jam carried her load of
dishes off to the kitchen, not noticing Sol�s eyes on her. Once she was out of sight he glanced away,
and with his senses returned he was able to make out the sound of an airship
flying overhead.

***

Johnny was still adjusting
his coat over his shoulders as he stepped briskly onto Mayship�s bridge, a few of the
younger crewmates following along behind.
He had been engaged in his usual afternoon practice above the ship when
a spot on the horizon caught his eye, cutting the exercise short. �What is it?� he asked as he came up behind
May. She was standing next to April at
the helm, both girls staring fixedly ahead through the viewing glass. �Some kind of merchant
ship?�

�Looks like it,� May replied,
arms folded, for a moment looking genuinely captainly. �Kinda puny,
though.�

�Its heading is due west,�
reported one of the bridge hands. �At
that size it�s got to be local�Korean, maybe?�

�Yeah, maybe.� May gave
an exaggerated sigh. �Local ships never
carry good cargo. Probably not even
worth it to board them.�

Johnny
shrugged behind her. �If it�s another
salvage ship, they might have some valuable artifacts. They could have stored them on a smaller ship
to throw off�us.�

�Maybe,
but we�re going to need to land soon to refuel�don�t wanna cause too much
trouble before then, or��

�Captain!� Feby leaned over
her station, pointing through the window.
�Something�s approaching the ship!�

�What?� May held out her hand, and was obediently
given April�s telescope. Something small
and dark was flying straight up from the city, a vertical smear against blue
sky as it rocketed toward the small merchant ship. �What is
that? It doesn�t look like a missile�.�

Johnny
took off his shades so he could squint through the glass. It wasn�t a missile�magic or otherwise, as
far as he could tell. But it was moving
awfully fast to be anything else. The
crew watched, puzzled and silent, until whatever it had been struck the bottom
of the airship hull with a spectacular impact.
There was no explosion, no fire, but as they stared the Korean ship
began to waver in its flight, and slowly began to dip to port.

�Whatever
it is, it�s bringing that ship down,� Johnny muttered gravely. �Right on top of Beijing.�

�April,
adjust course to intercept,� May instructed suddenly, jostling her crew back to
life. She pushed her telescope into
Johnny�s stomach, and he instinctually accepted. �Get word to Novere
to drop the tow lines.�

April
turned the ship as asked. �A rescue
mission, eh Captain?�

�Rescue?�
May scoffed. She grinned as she folded
her arms once more. �Sure, we�ll help�m down safely.
And then I�ll accept all the thanks they have to offer.�

The
girls cheered their enthusiastic approval and scurried about to do their part
of the new mission. Johnny, meanwhile,
was studying the hull of the merchant ship with May�s telescope. There were jagged tears in the metal exterior
from whatever had attacked them, unlike any anti-aircraft armament he�d ever
seen. As he continued to watch,
something crawled out of the metal craters and began to climb onto the wing.

�July,
I want you heading the boarding team,� May was saying, adjusting her great
orange hat. �Take Augst
with��

�No,�
Johnny quickly interrupted. He set the
telescope aside and replaced his glasses.
�May, leave this to me. There�s
something not right about this.�

May
glanced up, and the serious tone in his voice made her think twice about
complaining too seriously. �They won�t
stay airborne for long with that hole in them.�

�Don�t
worry�I�ll take care of it.� Johnny
turned, striding quickly from the bridge.
�Just keep her steady, April!�

�Aye, sir!�

Johnny
could feel May�s eyes on him as he left, but he didn�t pause or glance
back. He trusted his instincts, and what
he felt now was telling him he didn�t want any of his girls on that ship. There were only so many living things that
could shoot several hundred feet straight up into the sky.

He
turned a corner, and nearly ran straight into Dizzy. She jumped, her wings giving an anxious
flutter. �Johnny! What�s going on? I thought I heard a crash.�

�Dizzy, good. I might need your help.� Johnny took her gently by the arm, guiding
her down the hall with him. �It looks
like a Koran merchant ship is under attack, and we�re going to give them a
hand. I need you to help me connect the
tow lines.�

�Johnny,
I�ve never helped board a ship before,� Dizzy replied nervously.

�I
know. Don�t worry, you�ll do fine.� They came to the belly of the ship where Novere was already waiting for them, crouched in front of
the mechanical controls for Mayship�s wire tow lines.
�It�s just us,� Johnny told her.
�Keep an eye on us, okay?�

Novere
frowned, but nodded. �Aye,
sir.�

Johnny
twisted the hatch open, and Dizzy gave a gasp of surprise as harsh, cool air
whipped into the cabin and sent her hair fluttering. She quickly tightened her ribbons as Johnny
secured the metal door. Slowly, the top
of the unknown ship came into their small, circular view. The gash Johnny had witnessed from the bridge
had lengthened along the left side of the airship�s hull, but the engines were
still running evenly. At the moment he
could see no trace of whatever might have caused the clean edges of torn steel.

�Just
a little more!� one of Novere�s helpers alerted the
bridge crew through the wall-mounted radio.
�A little more�all right! We�re on�em!�

Johnny
set a hand on his hat to keep it still as he peered through the open
hatch. Still no sign of any real
trouble, but there was still that uneasy hollow in his stomach, a prickle along
his spine that had never been wrong before.
He straightened so he could face Dizzy directly.

�I
need you to connect the tow lines,� he told her seriously. �You�ll see four come down from Mayship, each
with metal docking clamps. This is a UN
approved airship, so it should have thick handles along the hull�attach the
clamps to those. Got it?�

Dizzy
listened with wide eyes. �Y-Yes! You can count
on me, Johnny.�

Johnny�s lips quirked in a grin. �That�s my
girl. Leave everything else to me.�

Before
Dizzy could ask what else there might have been, Johnny leapt through the
circular opening. He had done this a
hundred times before, and he landed easily on the hull of the failing
ship. The scored soles of his shoes
helped to keep him from sliding along the polished metal surface. Dizzy�s landing was
not quite as graceful; her wings fluttered nervously as she dropped towards
him, catching the wind and nearly getting her thrown from the ship. Johnny was quick to grab her hand and draw
her in.

�Keep
those folded,� he advised, giving her a smile in hopes of calming her.

Dizzy
smiled, though she was still clearly nervous�her tail was twisting in little
circles behind her. �I�m all right.�

�Good.� Johnny looked up, and when he heard the metal
docking clamps clang against the ship�s hull, he signaled to Novere that enough wire had been lowered. He pointed them out to Dizzy. �Go ahead�you�ll do fine.�

Dizzy
nodded, assuring herself as much as Johnny, and he let
her go so she could start her task. He
watched, making sure she was able to move easily
enough across the ship. She was careful
this time to keep her wings tightly pressed against her back. Relieved, Johnny crouched down to investigate
the ship�s unusual injury.

Magic
had been involved. Johnny had never
experienced training in that particular discipline but it was clear no normal
living creature or weapon could have cut so cleanly through the thick layers of
metal alloy. There was even a strange
aura about the opening, if he were truly capable of detecting such things. The sheered edges were cool to the touch.

He
had been expecting an attack, but when it came it was not from the already
existing holes to the cabin. The metal
beneath him was suddenly shredded, ripped apart like so much crude paper. He rolled but there hadn�t been enough
warning, and he grimaced as something cold and sharp cut gashes along the back
of his thigh. His coat flapped about him
madly, deafening him, and then he was on his feet again.

�Johnny!� Dizzy stepped away from the cable she�d been
fastening, toward him.

�Stay
back!� Johnny called, shifting his weight off his injured leg. It felt as if the wind was clawing into the
wounds, flinging his blood out into open air.
He couldn�t tell how serious it was with the whole limb throbbing with
every beat of his heart. But he could
feel the leg of his trousers slowly becoming soaked, and a quick test showed
him he wouldn�t be able to bend his knee very well. He cursed.

Sticking
out of the ship�s hull was the afflicting weapon: a broad hand tipped with
long, dark talons. Johnny drew his sword
from the sheath at his back as the creature began to claw its way free. Its sharpened nails made easy work of the
steel, peeling it back like the lid of a can.
Gradually Johnny was granted more views of long, pale violet limbs with
thick musculature, and finally a head of long, silvery hair.

�Johnny�.�

�Keep
attaching the cables!� he told Dizzy firmly.
�Don�t worry about me!�

The
creature laughed, a low, unnatural sound that somehow
projected clearly over the wind. With a
hop the entity pulled itself out of the cabin fully, exposing its entire form
to the baffled pirates.

Johnny
had seen his share of Gears, but nothing like this; he stood at least seven
feet tall, all long limbs and toned muscle wrapped in what could have either
been leather-like violet fabric, or else merely layers of skin meant to look
the part. There were wraps around his
wrists and spikes protruding from his arms, shoulders, and an especially thick
pike seemed to have been thrust through his skull and out his forehead. His hair stretched out his full height behind
him, carried by the wind.

Johnny
whistled. �What a unique little
snowflake we have here.�

Raven
smirked, for the moment making no move against him. �My my,
the Jellyfish Pirates. I hadn�t
expected this.�

�We�re
full of surprises,� Johnny replied, adjusting his grip on his katana. His gaze flickered to the other side of the
ship, where Dizzy had finished with the second clamp. But in order to get to the final two she
would have to pass the�whatever it was he was staring down now. �I wouldn�t recommend making my captain
angry.�

�Your captain?� Raven grinned, showing off
pointed fangs. �Ahh, May-chan. How is the little firestarter?�

Johnny
paled. �What did you just say?�

The
creature attacked without warning, crossing the distance between him and Johnny
in a matter of seconds. The sharpened
claws that had torn his thigh came rushing forward in a blur that he managed to
fend off with a swing of his katana. As
Raven bore down on him he was forced to step back. Even the small step, the shift of weight,
caused his leg to burn as he fought to keep his balance. His blade cut a deep incision across Raven�s
palm when he reached for him again but that didn�t stop the creature; he was
being driven toward the end of the ship.

�What
are you?� Johnny braced himself, and
when Raven lunged again he dodged to the side and rolled. From there he stayed on one knee, sword
sheathed and ready for when the next attack came. �Why are you here�how do you know May?� he
demanded.

�I
told you�I didn�t expect to find competition here.� Raven tapped his foot against the ship, then started forward again.
�I came for them. But if I can
take both your ships down while I�m here, I won�t complain.�

�You�ll
have to get through me, first,� Johnny threatened, glaring at the creature from
under the brim of his hat. �I won�t make
it easy for you, Gear.�

�Gear?� Raven laughed again, harder than before. �You have no idea what you�re dealing with.�

He
took another step closer, and Johnny sprung at him. Forcing all his strength into his uninjured
right leg he propelled himself up off his knee, his katana leaping from its
sheath faster than even he could have followed with his naked eye. The blade caught in the soft tissue of
Raven�s unguarded side. Johnny dropped
his sheath to add a second hand to the back of the sword, forcing it up through
Raven�s insides, just below the curve of his ribs. He didn�t stop until he felt the sword catch
between Raven�s spine and sternum; no amount of force could sever his bone. Hot, black blood flowed back over his
fingers.

****

It
was the commotion on the street that finally drove Sol outside, joining several
other customers and the restaurant�s curious owner. It was two airships now, flying piggyback
high over the city. When he squinted
against the sun he was able to make out an insignia on the larger ship that was
all too familiar.

�Damn
pirates,� Jam muttered next to him. He
had to strain a little to understand her through her accent�he hadn�t been in
China for a long time, and his language skills were rusty. �That ship is half their size! Can�t be anything worth
stealing on the poor thing.�

Sol
snorted. He didn�t really care either way,
but watching the pair of ships he suddenly couldn�t shake an odd
premonition. �They�re losing altitude,�
he observed. �That�s strange. The Jellyfish should have gutted it by now.�

�They�re
coming down? Great.� Jam whistled, and
Sol winced at how close it was to his ear.
One of her workers came trotting up only to get her serving tray shoved
into his stomach. �Take care of the
customers,� she instructed. �I�m goin� after them.�

Sol
glared at her doubtfully. �They�re in
the air,� he reminded, indicating with his finger.

�You
just said they were comin� down, din�t
ya?� Jam retorted, already beginning to stretch. When she noticed Sol watching her
preparations with a little too much interest she made a face at him and snapped
upright. �Go back inside and pay for
your beef, stranger. But the last time
we had strange folk in this town, I nearly lost my restaurant! No more robots, pirates, or
whatever the hell else!�

Jam
stuck out her tongue at him, and then turned to start running in the direction
the pair of ships was slowly descending towards. Sol rolled his eyes. He really didn�t need this kind of drama,
just when he was starting to feel better.
But he couldn�t help that uneasy feeling in his stomach, and he had to
admit, anyone who could serve food that good didn�t deserve to get ripped to
ribbons by whatever the hell was taking those ships down.

�Minding
my own business,� Sol muttered as he started after her. �Always when I�m minding my own goddamn
business�.�
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Thunder Falling