Lucian had decided that it was best he didnâ€™t know everything that had went on in the end. He has never really been one to get too involved with the organization anyway. Being kidnapped by some crazy organization after Elias had pissed them off had been enough for him. Slowly but surely things were piecing together for him but he knew he was just better off staying out of it. He usually has his own shit to deal with, he didnâ€™t need to know why Elias had pissed Sanctus Unum off or why the battle had happened, it really wasnâ€™t his business, all he wanted right now was to go get some sleep and pretend this was all just some crazy dream. Usually he was just the organizationâ€™s personal air taxi service most of the time, and whenever he did get involved with something he never liked it. Some days he wished he could have a normal job where he didnâ€™t need to get involved with crazy, underground organizations. Life would be so much easier that way.<br/><br/>Then again he knew that his life has never been normal, with Elias as a friend. Those two had gotten into so much trouble when they were kids. Lucian smiled as he remembered their childhood. What interesting times those had been, to think that they had been friends this long was pretty amazing and he knew they would probably be stuck with each other until they dropped dead. He was the only person who kept him sane in his crazy life. When he received what was probably the longest text in the world from Elias, scolding him for making him worry, he was not at all surprised he was also upset with him for getting into trouble. Well, Lucian really could not have helped that part, they were asking questions about Elias, when he got home he was going to have to give Elias a talking to about hacking into places that piss off the wrong people. Playfully of course, since he had a feeling the hacker had been asked to help out since he was a friend of Azraiâ€™s.<br/><br/>He would have shot a message back, had he not been too busy flying. At least he had informed him he was safe and he was looking forward to those drinks with him. He sure as hell was going to need a drink or two, or ten, now that this was all over. Well, over for now, at least.<br/><br/>There was still a lot that needed to get done once they got back to Toronto, though he trusted that Elias had everything set up already. Something told him the man was probably still trying to make sure everything was to his liking. He swore, not even his compulsiveness when it came to planes was as bad as Eliasâ€™s was occasionally. Sometimes he would even mess with his friend in interesting ways, though that fun had died out years ago and now he just busted his chops. Lucian has a very odd sense of humor that most people found rude or insensitive, obnoxious even, but somehow Elias puts up with him. He wondered why some days. They have gotten into fights before and their friendship has been threatened but he supposed that was what made them such good friends in the end after all. Maybe one day Shizu would find someone like that; maybe one day she would be able to contact Azrai. It seemed like everyone wanted her to move on, though, which was probably for the best.<br/><br/>They had met during a mission, even Lucian knew that getting attached to an objective was a no-no. He could see why they would have gotten attached. Shizu really seemed like a strong woman, any man would admire a strong woman would they not? He couldnâ€™t bring himself to tell her this though, surely she would not want to hear that they should not have gotten attached, it was best just to place the past behind her. Ivan had given her a hard enough time back at the base; she didnâ€™t need to hear it from him as well. He would at least be considerate. As time passed she seemed a lot more relaxed and had even taken to looking at the clouds but he knew that she probably still had a lot on her mind. He was not good at comforting people, aside from Elias. Lucian swore that man was weird for choosing to put up with him as long as he has sometimes.<br/><br/>â€œWeâ€™re headed for Toronto now, in Canada.â€ Lucian replied slowly as he thought of a way to explain how it was in Toronto. Canada was not like Israel or Japan at all. Assuming those were the only places she has been he really didnâ€™t have a comparison in mind. Explaining things was not something he was good at, without it sounding too condescending. â€œItâ€™s not as warm as it is in Israel, thankfully, not during this time of year. I hope you like snow.â€ He liked cooler weather, oddly enough, unlike Azrai who hates cold weather with the fire passion of a thousand suns. Thinking back, he recalled a time where the man had been bitching, in his own way as he does not usually whine or bitch about anything and tends to keep to himself, about the snow while he was visiting Elias. Lucian had been the one who had to put up with the manâ€™s foul mood and that had not been fun. That was probably expected from somebody who has lived in a warmer climate for all of his life.<br/><br/>He sank back against his seat and yawned, blinking a few times to fight the tiredness that continued to weigh him down. It was amazing that he has held out this long, then again being a pilot as long as he has he was use to this. The drone of the engine was enough to prevent him falling asleep, though at one point he thought they were losing altitude and had to check and make sure he had not drifted off. The thought of plummeting to their deaths was also enough to keep him awake. Wouldnâ€™t that be something? Nah, there was no way he would allow that to happen, not while he was the pilot of the plane. Besides, if something happened and he crashed he was sure Elias would have a mental break down if he didnâ€™t survive. He had been enough of a nervous wreck while those creeps held him hostage, Heaven forbid he gets a paper cut let alone crashes into the ground.<br/><br/>It might have sounded a little morbid, but these were the things he always thought of whenever he was this tired.<br/><br/>Just a few more hoursâ€¦ He repeated the words over several times in his mind as a way to keep motivated. Lucian let out a yawn and leaned forward slightly so he was not sinking back so heavily in his seat. He took a hand off the steering wheel and lightly rubbed his shoulder, both to help him relax and give him something else to focus on. Then he looked to Shizu again.<br/><br/>â€œHopefully this will be the last time we shuttle you aroundâ€¦ Iâ€™m sure youâ€™ll like the place, though if Elias was the one who set it up itâ€™ll probably be bland until you decorate it.â€ Maybe some conversation is what he needed to keep focused after all.  For a moment he wondered what she might like to put in her new place, now that she was free to do what she wanted. Which had also brought up the question, of if she has ever lived alone before, she certainly seemed like an independent woman, though something told him that she has not, and had to hold back from asking such a thing. She was excited though nervous about starting a new life where she would be free. Maybe she would even change her name as well, and her looks a bit, not that he was calling her unattractive, that might make fitting in easier. He knew the drill when it came to starting a new life, having seen it so many times before. It was not going to be easy but he got a sense from Shizu that she would be fine.<br/><br/>However, that all depended on what her definition of â€˜fineâ€™ was, did it not? He knew she was excited, and he was glad, it showed him she was willing to explore. But that did not change the fact that he was worried. To this day he was still amazed at how horrid society could be. If she was uncomfortable living on her own, if something happened to herâ€¦ Hell, even he would feel bad and knew that Azrai would probably shred him to ribbons. The thought of keeping her safe was still lingering in the back of his mind. More than it should, perhaps. Lucian was another one who didnâ€™t really get attached to people and had a hard time making friends.<br/><br/>------------------<br/><br/>It had been a good thing Maverick had left the room when he had otherwise violence would have broken out. Being here in this hospital bed was putting him in a bad mood as it was, if he could get out of here he would have done so by now. The fact that they had taken Shizu away from him was not helping things either. He took steady breaths in an attempt to calm down; he was starting to feel as if he was losing it, his anger was that bad. He stared at the ceiling, not wanting to look around the room and be reminded of the hospital setting. His heart was racing and he was beginning to feel nauseous from the combination of anger and discomfort. He was going to need some fresh air soon, but his body absolutely refused to respond to any command and could barely sit up without pain digging into him like hot knives. Out there on the battlefield, he really had pushed himself a little too hard and now he was paying the price.<br/><br/>Perhaps if he had not pushed himself, maybe they would not have taken Shizu away from him. But no, he had been too stubborn to listen to any of their warnings.<br/><br/>All he had wanted was for Shizu to be safe and that protective attitude was what had gotten him into trouble. He truly felt like he was being punished because of his attachment. Why? He hardly ever gets attached to people, especially people he has only known for a few days. Sometimes it took months, sometimes years, before he was completely open with someone. When he had first met the few people he dared to call his friend he had been reluctant to associate with them at first. Why would they shun the fact that he had gotten attached, that he could very well be on his way to making a friend? Were they protecting him because he had pushed himself, knowing Shizu was mostly the cause, or were they punishing him? He knew he lived a dangerous life and he sure as hell did not want Shizu go get dragged into it and get hurt. But that didnâ€™t mean he wasnâ€™t allowed to have friends, right? What was so wrong about him wanting to protect someone? He didnâ€™t understand.<br/><br/>The more he thought about, he just got angry with himself and everyone around him. It was a good thing that he was alone in the room right now otherwise someone would probably get hurt. He would have done the same for Ivan or Maverick, Zachariah or Elias, hell, even Lucian when it came down to it, if they had been in the same situation as Shizu. Hell he has and always will have Ivanâ€™s back especially. What made Shizu different that she had to be taken away? Was it because she was an Oni, what most people of society called a monster? That was it, wasnâ€™t it? Or was it because that had been the first time he was so close to death protecting someone he cared about, that seemed a bit more plausible now that he thought about it. He knew once Ivan got back, he was going to get an earful because of what had happened. In his mind he could already hear the man scolding him worse than he had before when he had first asked him why he took on this mission.<br/><br/>He let out a quiet breath and closed his eyes, hoping that he could get some rest and escape reality for awhile. Maybe, if he was lucky, he would be able to skip out on Ivan giving him hell.<br/><br/>Not only that but between the long trip to and from Japan and that battle with Sanctus Unum he was completely worn out. There was no doubt that his enemies lurking in the shadows would take advantage of this and prepare a strike against him while he was wounded. Should something happen and they all started showing up out of the blue, he wanted to have at least some of his strength regained. He didnâ€™t need a mirror to know that his injuries were pretty bad. Compared to the wounds he had suffered prior to the battle, these new ones would most likely take several weeks to heal, maybe even months. Resting was the only thing he could do for now. Once he was up and moving again he would figure out what to do. The base would need rebuilding as well, he was going to need to be able to participate in that process, and who knows just how long it would take before they were on their feet again.<br/><br/>------------------<br/><br/>Maverick was busy setting things up in the base while Ivan was on his way back. The people he had contacted were pretty reliable, and some had been close to the area, they had arrived several minutes after he made the call. The last hour was spent getting ready to set up electronics and cleaning out space to expand the base. Medical supplies had been brought in, which was distributed accordingly, as well as some food so people wouldnâ€™t complain about starving. He didnâ€™t trust the water here but he had been informed that it was alright to drink so that was that out of the way as well. Water would always be the most essential thing, without it they might as well find another base or find some way to get a clean supply. Weapons had also been brought in which was something he had not expected but he took it anyway. It wouldnâ€™t hurt to be armed, especially since they were in the process of rebuilding, and he was sure Zachariah would not mind the extra weapons either.<br/><br/>With that all said and done he took a five minute break to grab a drink of water. He hadnâ€™t fully recovered from his injuries and needed to take it easy, but didnâ€™t want to waste to much time resting when there was still so much to be done. After that he began to help set up some offices and clear out a room big enough to be a decent conference room for the time being. This place was seriously filthy; it was going to take ages to clean everything up. It made him wonder just how long it has been here like this, it was pretty neglected and would definitely need some renovations. It was bad enough that some placed needed rewiring. How the hell did they all expect this to be their base? Would they be able to find another base, or would this be their permanent base? He at least wanted to have some things done before the man got back, and there was still the matter of waking up Zachariah and making sure everything met his approval.<br/><br/>As Maverick walked to the room where Zachariah was resting he felt a little nervous. He was sure that their leader would appreciate this; if he didnâ€™t the surprise would have been a huge waste of time. It was mostly a surprise, since he wanted to take a load off of everyoneâ€™s back. Having something to do was better than just sitting around in some hospital bed waiting for his wounds to heal. There was never any time for resting around here. What if he had not done enough for everyone? Leave it to Maverick to be the one who worried about everyone and everything and took it upon himself to make sure things were on the right track. It might not always work out the way he wanted it to, but he at least made and effort and that was all that mattered to him. He, at times, could be a bit of a people pleaser in that sense, he would make sure that this place was suitable for a base; sometimes it drove people crazy whenever he got into one of his moods.<br/><br/>He almost didnâ€™t want to wake Zachariah from his nap but it had to be done. Taking in a deep breath he knocked on the door to get his attention. To his surprise he didnâ€™t seem angry with him at all, and gave a bit of a smile. Maverick returned the smile, â€œIvan is on his way back and Azrai has woken up. Iâ€™ve spent some time to make the baseâ€¦ decent, it isnâ€™t perfect but it will give us something to work with.â€<br/><br/>Zachariah yawned and stretched as he sat up on the bed, feeling almost completely rejuvenated after some rest. â€œGood, good.â€ There was a slight pause. His brow furrowed and his tone was soft yet solicitous. â€œHow is Azrai? Iâ€™m assuming he hasnâ€™t taken the news well?â€ He was more concerned about whatever changed may have occurred from the transfusion than anything. Rebuilding their base wouldnâ€™t do any good if Azrai lost his mind murdered a few peopleâ€¦<br/><br/>â€œYeah, he seemed fine for the most part. Heâ€™s pissed off, but I think we all had expected that.â€<br/><br/>â€œIâ€™ll deal with him when Ivan gets back. It is for the best that we leave him to rest for now; he has been through a lot worse than we have. Right now I just want to settle into this place and get the organization back on its feet before I do anything else.â€<br/><br/>â€œDo you have a game plan?â€ When Zachariah didnâ€™t respond, Maverick straightened, cleared his throat, and continued, â€œI contacted a few people and Iâ€™m sure Ivan has as well. We have some supplies, some food, essentially the basics to get us started. The place is still a mess but itâ€™s better than nothing.â€ He was hoping that the man would reveal something, it would certainly ease his mind a bit more, or tell him that he was satisfied, but Zachariah was always keeping to himself about things. Much like when he had not revealed everything he was going to do during the battle, he always had something up his sleeve to make sure they got through the day alright. Zachariahâ€™s ability to formulate plans and ten pull things out of his ass was something that Maverick had always admired. As much as he does to do the same, he never had that ability and he sometimes envied it whenever he watched it set into motion. Other times it worried him much like right now.<br/><br/>Finally getting off the bed, Zachariah rubbed his chin while he thought. There really was a lot that needed to get done and knowing that Maverick had been working hard while he slept did take a load off his shoulders. Maybe things would work out alright in the end after all. The fact that they were determined to rebuild after losing nearly everything was very relieving. You know those days where you want to say â€˜Iâ€™m starting to get too old for this?â€™ Well, Zachariah was having one of those days right about now, he was glad he had so many supporters to his cause. â€œExcellent, thatâ€™s one less thing to worry about. How much longer until Ivan returns?â€ He did have a plan himself, of course, but now that most of it has been covered he didnâ€™t have as much to do and might have to form another plan.<br/><br/>â€œHe should be back soonâ€¦ in a few minutes Iâ€™d say,â€ Maverick replied after taking a look at his watch. The face had gotten scratched during that battle but was still readable, much to his relief. â€œI hate to cut this conversation short but I think we should get a few more things done.â€ But he had spoken a bit too late. Word of Ivan returning had already spread to them when someone had informed the two of his arrival. He felt a nervous chill crawl up his spine, knowing that the man was going to have to face Azrai sooner or later. It would be a lie if Maverick said he was not feeling like they had betrayed their best friend, what they did had been wrong. It might have been for the best but he was feeling guilty agreeing to get Shizu out of here as quickly as possible. Maybe they should have said good-bye to each other before she departedâ€¦ He felt like shit and he knew Azrai was probably going to be bitter for awhile, which was not something he was looking forward to.<br/><br/>After a moment or so they had met up with Ivan. Maverick noticed that he didnâ€™t seem like he was in a good mood, which was not really helping the current atmosphere that seemed to fall over the area. Gone was the calm, now everything seemed to be tense to the point where he felt like it was choking him. He rolled his shoulders and let out a soft exhale to relax a bit more before he actually greeted him. â€œNice to see you made it back safely.â€ He said, trying to keep the conversation away from Azrai for the time being. Surely Ivan was not looking forward to facing him, being the one who was a little more sensitive, as well as supportive, he wanted to help ease his mood before those two got into it with each other. Maverick never did like seeing Ivan and Azrai argue. Whenever they got into an argument or a debate over something he always tried to play the neutral party. In this situation, it was difficult since he had actually agreed to this plan.<br/><br/>Zachariah smiled at both Ivan and Maverick. It was the liveliest Maverick had seen the man since he had arrived a few hours ago. The nap had done him some good though he still looked a bit tired, and he wondered if he should have taken a nap as well. Once this was over he was sure everyone was going to need some sleep.<br/><br/>â€œExcuse me if I seem tired, I had just woken up from a nap.â€ Zachariah began, looking mostly at Ivan. â€œBefore you arrived, Maverick just got done telling me he has taken care of quite a few things while you were away.â€ He also wanted to keep the conversation away from Azrai for the time being, feeling it was better that they let him recover for now. As much as he hated leaving him out of their plans he did not want him hurting himself or anybody else for that matter. There were still some whispers about Shizu, which he would be sure to silence before Azrai heard what was being said, hearing them made him feel extremely uncomfortable, he knew for a fact Azrai would smash some skulls if he heard what was being said about someone he cared about. There had been a time where he had to calm the man down after someone had threatened him. He briefly recalled, in his mind, how difficult it had been to keep him from murdering the guy, though he would have deserved it.<br/><br/>Nodding to confirm what their leader had said, Maverick gave a brief rundown of everything he had done. They had some electronic equipment set up and several rooms had been cleaned out to use as offices. He mentioned the conference room, and how some of the wiring had to be redone and some wire replacements had been made. They had running water and the kitchen was stocked with food that would last them the rest of the month if they were conservative about it. He explained that there were three bathrooms that were presentable, at least, so that was out of the way. He finished everything off by saying that they had medical supplies that would also last them the rest of the month. They really did have a lot of allies willing to help out, some even came to the base to help renovate and organize what needed to be organized. Zachariah was quite impressed by all that he had accomplished in such short time, but he also knew how much of a slave driver the man could be.<br/><br/>When he finished he looked to Zachariah, â€œBefore we tackle whatever it is you have in mind, would you give us some time to rest up a bit? Now that Shizu is out of the way I donâ€™t see the need to rush around like madmen.â€<br/><br/>â€œI never intended to rush. Rebuilding wonâ€™t happen overnight, it will take some time getting use to the base so I think we should play around with what we have for the time being. Laying low for awhile might do us some good, too.â€ That answer seemed to ease Maverick someone, which was a bit of a relief. Zachariah was still pretty tired and didnâ€™t want to jump into doing things right away now that Maverick and Ivan had done so much between getting settled into the base and taking care of Shizu. He looked to Ivan, â€œIâ€™m sure you would like a bit of rest before we speak to Azrai.â€<br/><br/>------------------<br/><br/><br/>Something from a nightmare he was having caused him to wake with a jolt, in a cold sweat. He felt like a train had just run him over. He was breathing heavily, his heart pounding in his chest.<br/><br/>Azrai, as he expected, had not been able to get much more rest in spite of being so tired. It seems he was going to have a hard time sleeping even in the condition he was in. He was showing improvements, definitely, but he was not quite out of the woods and still needed some rest before he was able to leave. Traces of poison were still in his system. The worst of it had passed, he was starting to feel better, his wounds were still bothering him and the bandages were bothering him a little as well. He wondered if they were going to come back in and change them any time soon, half tempted to either do it himself to just take off the bandages and let the wounds get some air. He hoped that he would recover enough to move around soon because waking up once again in this environment was not sitting well and he felt a little nauseous. Perhaps part of the reason he was so restless was because he wasnâ€™t sure how much longer he could stand being in this damned room.<br/><br/>Then and there he had decided that he needed to get out of here before he lost it. Ivan and the others could bitch at him all they wanted later, he just could not stay in here any longer. He was trembling again, felt like he was going to vomit, and felt a slight headache coming on, though he was sure most of it was from that nightmare he had. On top of that there was still a lot on his mind and he simply needed some fresh air to clear his head. Maybe it would set him in a better mood, too. He took in a deep breath, closed his eyes, and forced himself to sit up holding back the urge to cry out in pain as his wounds protested. Slowly, he worked on getting the IV, which had been replaced some time while he had been asleep. Once he was free he slowly began the task of actually getting out of bed. Standing was proving to be a difficult task as his legs seemed to refuse to support him at first.<br/><br/>Eventually he had managed to block it out and take a few steps forward, using the wall as support. In the hallway, he avoided eye contact with anyone and just continued to head towards and focused on keeping moving. He was dressed in hospital garb but he would search for some clothes later. He licked his lips, noting they were dry; he would need something to drink as well, probably water since he doubted he would be able to get any alcohol around here. A bottle of wine really would hit the spot right about now in order to help him calm down. His craving began to act up when he thought about it, which was not helping his current situation at all, clawing at the back of his mind relentlessly until he would be able to satisfy it. Hopefully he could ask around and someone would be kind enough to provide. If he didnâ€™t get any alcohol in his system soon, he wouldnâ€™t be able to function, it was bad enough that everything felt jumbled, he just needed to relax.<br/><br/>He found a back room away from the commotion in the base that he decided was perfect for being alone.<br/><br/>Retreating somewhere was not something that was common for him to do, but since he didnâ€™t have alcohol he needed to be away from the noise plus the crowded hallway was starting to get to him. The room looked to be an old storage room, but the floor was a clean as a floor could get with people walking all over it. Several mattresses were sitting in the corner. One of them was not sitting on the small stack, and he decided to make that his resting place for the moment. He was not going to stay in here long, It would just be until he calmed down, he didnâ€™t want anyone to worry about him should they realize he was missing. Part of him had come here because he didnâ€™t want to deal with them anyway. He already knew what they were going to say. Exhaling quietly he sank into the mattress and leaned against the wall, rubbing the bridge of his nose, which was still a bit sore from the scuffle he had gotten into back in Japan, hoping to ease his headache.