Episode X: Deception.
Aegis
And that's when the Seoul Special Police took me in, Taeyeon added in her head. It's been so long since she ever recalled her childhood memories. Thinking about it now, she wondered how she survived when she had lost so much at such an early time. She raised her head and looked at Tiffany. The other girl, who had been listening intently, was crying. Taeyeon stood up from her seat and crouched in front of the other girl.
"Yah, Fany-ah. I told you, no crying, didn't I.", she said as she wiped the other girl's tears dry.
Tiffany wiped her cheeks with the back of her hand. "I'm sorry, Tae. It must've been so-- so hard for you. I'm sorry for bringing up such painful memories.", she said, looking at Taeyeon with tears in her eyes.
The other girl caressed Tiffany's cheeks with her thumb and kissed her eyes softly. "It's okay, Fany-ah. That's all in the past. And they're what made me who I am now, don't you think so?" It took a while before Tiffany stopped crying. "I know. Why don't we go somewhere. Like, take a walk or something."
Tiffany gave her a small smile. "Are you asking me out, Tae-Tae?"
The other girl laughed. "If you see it as something like that." She said with a wink.
***
Taeyeon was changing into her Guardian uniform when her phone rang.
"UNNIE!" It was Yoona. "Incoming man-launched missile, north side! Contact in 50 seconds!"
Her eyes widened with the rush of adrenaline. North side...Tiffany! She bolted from her room and ran towards Tiffany's. She opened the door and, without a word, took the girl by the hand and ran. Barely making it out of the room, the missile made contact with a loud explosion, leaving a gaping hole to where Tiffany's room was supposed to be. Taeyeon covered Tiffany with her body as they crashed to the floor. "Are you okay?" The other girl nodded.
They quickly ran into Taeyeon's room. The agent got a pair of sneakers and handed it to Tiffany. "Wear these. We're definitely going out now.", she said.
***
The pair walked amidst the crowded streets of Seoul with Taeyeon leading Tiffany by the hand. The other girl followed her tail quietly. Those Jailbirds will be thinking twice in making such a mess in a crowded area. Quickly, she replaced her ear piece and dialled the Genie's number. The answer was immediate.
"Were you slacking off, Im Yoona?" There was an edge in Taeyeon's voice. I need to calm down. Immediately, she switched to prana breathing, allowing air to enter every single cell in her body.
"No, Unnie! The shooter didn't register in the SSP Seeker at all! I was keeping watch at the monitor when the missile appeared out of nowhere! That's why I called you right away.", Yoona defended herself, her fingers flying over the keyboard.
Stealth suits. How did they even get access to that? "Alright. Report."
"I'm on it, Unnie." A pause. The pair turned a corner and headed for the stairs leading to the subway. For a moment, Taeyeon faced Tiffany. "Fany-ah. I'm sorry for dragging you around like this. I didn't imagine our first date to be...as unromantic as this one.", she said with an embarrassed smile as they descended the stairs. The platform was crowded with people coming and going, as if they had no particular destination in mind.
Tiffany laughed. "It's okay, Taeyeon-ah. This is as good enough as any date for me."
Taeyeon smiled. Her ear piece cackled with Yoona's voice.
"Unnie, I've tracked down the Subjects' whereabouts. Yuri and Jessica just left St. Clare's. Seohyun-ah's still at the university and Sunny-ssi's...meandering about in the city. I've alerted Sooyoung-unnie but I don't know how long it'll take for them to mobilize."
Taeyeon took a look around the station, taking note of any suspicious looking individual that might attack them in the train. She tried sensing for any sinister Presence but she felt none. The pair stepped into the train car. "Which location are you closest to right now?", throwing the question at the other end of the line.
"Seohyun-ah's.", the other girl answered.
"Alright. I want you to get to her as soon as possible. I want someone I can trust. Keep me posted."
"Of course, Unnie." The call ended. Taeyeon let out a long breath and sat next to Tiffany who had been watching her all this time. After a while, the other girl spoke.
"Taeyeon-ah, what's happening?"
The agent looked at her face. Tiffany had began to sweat from all the walking; her hair was plastered to her forehead, breathing a bit heavily. Taeyeon chose her words carefully before answering. "Some people are after you and your sisters."
Tiffany gave her a baffled look. "But why?" The other girl inhaled deeply. I guess she deserves to know.
"Your father owns the biggest biomedical research lab in the country, right? For the longest time, they've been experimenting on one of the most taboo fields in science. If you think about it, it's not biomedical research anymore. And it's not even science, per se -- he's crossed the border. We're talking about something akin to alchemy already.", Taeyeon glanced outside the window, taking note of their location. "Your father wants to re-create things that have already been destroyed using a specific energy source he discovered years ago. He hopes that if he successfully uses it to re-create inanimate objects, he can use it to resurrect humans. However, for some reason, he's unable to utilize this source. And so...", she began to hesitate. "That's why he...gathered all of you."
Tiffany's face stiffened. "What... What do you mean...'gathered'?"
The other girl continued. "Your father thought that he could awaken the energy source somehow if he used the proper triggers. I don't know the exact details and what he did to you and your sisters exactly but, all I know is that once all of the triggers are gathered together with this energy source, it was supposed to activate." Taeyeon stood up as the train slowed down. The other girl did not speak.
"So if... the bad people take us away, Father wouldn't be able to use the energy source at all."
"Exactly." The train halted to a stop. And they could use you and your sisters for their own means.
There was silence. "Taeyeon-ah. How... How do you know all these?"
She lowered her gaze. "You'll find out soon enough.", she took Tiffany's hand, gave it a gentle squeeze, and walked out onto the platform.
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After that looong time travel, I decided to make a shorter chapter 'cause one, my brain needs rest and two, to provide some leeway for another grueling action chapter. Well, hopefully. Anyhow, the pieces are starting to fall together. So what do you think? Comment with your thoughts below. ^^
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