Revenge of the Ninja, page 10
Anastasia had finally gained the confidences of Laird Destro.
Sort of.
Okay, he still didn’t trust her with actual leadership. Or plans. Or action of any kind, really. In fact, all he did was allow her to be in the room while he vented his frustration with certain high-ranking members of Cobra. Was that truly progress? Even Anastasia had to admit it was debatable.
She stood by the door, perfectly at attention in her crisp academy uniform. Destro sat behind his massive black metal desk, hands gripping the edges as he read the latest reports on his Lyre XR display. His face was hard, his lip was curled into a sneer. Barely suppressed anger combined with a Scottish accent made his speech as harsh and rapid as machine gun fire.
“I told him something like this would happen! I told him, leave the ninjas alone for now! We know where they are, we can deal with them at an opportune time of our choosing! But no!” Destro slammed his slab of a fist on the desk. “He went and blew up the ninjas! Did he really think that would do anything besides make them mad? And then, to cover for his foolish actions, he keeps sending poorly trained assassins to the hospital in a desperate attempt to finish the job. Surprise, surprise, not one of them has succeeded—or even come back alive!”
Anastasia wasn’t entirely certain who “he” was, but she suspected it might be the Commander. She always listened intently in case Destro directly criticized the leader of Cobra. Overhearing something like that would give her enormous leverage. Unfortunately, even in the midst of a tantrum, Destro didn’t slip up that badly.
Instead, he just groaned and rubbed his face vigorously with both hands, then slumped back in his chair. After a moment, he glanced at Anastasia.
“Look at this.”
He made a sweeping gesture with his hand that projected an image onto Anastasia’s Lyre. It was of a headless, handless robot duplicate of Springfield Academy’s Chemistry teacher.
“Do ye see?” grumbled Destro. “One of my robots has been beheaded with a sword of all things. The only person who could do that is a ninja. He stirred up their nest, and now they’re running amok in my school, disrupting my plans!”
Anastasia decided not to point out that there had been at least two ninjas in the school for several years now, because she knew such fussy criticism would not win her any points. Instead, she tried to problem solve.
“Perhaps, Laird, if you allowed me to—”
“I graciously allow you to remain in my presence.” Destro glowered at her. “You should be grateful.”
“I am most grateful, Laird. Of course. If you would only—”
“You should be grateful and silent.”
Their eyes locked in mutual, silent dislike. After a tense moment, Anastasia bowed her head. Right now, there was no question as to who had more power.
“My apologies for letting my enthusiasm get the better of me, Laird Destro. It won’t happen again.”
“See that it doesn’t. Now off with ye, wee bairn, while I sort out this mess.”
“As you wish, Laird.”
Anastasia bowed curtly, spun on her heel, and left the principal’s office.
Wee bairn? She wasn’t sure what that was, but it sounded patronizing. She hated Destro and his stupid robots. He had completely sidelined her, and no matter what she did, he wouldn’t let her have even an ounce of authority. Was it because she was young? Or because she was a girl? Either way, all the hard work she’d done to ingratiate herself to the Commander as Zartan’s subordinate seemed to be for naught. She couldn’t even speak to the head of Cobra directly now. Everything had to go through Destro. “Chain of command” he called it, like they were some sort of proper government military. It was absurd. Worse, it was demeaning. Her talents were being squandered, and that was something she could not abide.
Anastasia cheered up slightly when she saw Shana walking toward her down the hall. She’d finally bested that obnoxious redhead last week, and rubbing it in would make her feel a little better.
“Ah, Shana,” she smiled wolfishly. “So good to see you.”
But rather than give her the usual shifty, distrustful look, Scarlett smiled back.
“Annie! I’m so glad I ran into you!”
Annie? Who did this commoner think she was? But Anastasia refused to let this goody-goody rile her up so easily. Even though she was fuming on the inside, she maintained her composure, just as her father, rest his sweet soul, had taught her.
“Oh?” Anastasia asked. “Did you need something from me, Shana?”
“Actually,” replied Shana, “I’ve come to offer you something.”
“What could you possibly have to offer me?”
“My solemn promise to protect your mother, Professor Katarina Cisarovna, from harm.”
It was rare that Anastasia was so taken by surprise that she lost control of herself. But at the mention of her mother’s name, she let out an audible gasp. It took her a beat to fully recover. And in that crucial moment, the horrible redheaded peasant pounced.
“Cards on the table, Annie,” said Scarlett. “You probably know what happened to the Arashikage Dojo.”
“Of course.” Not that she’d been told directly. She just happened to be in the room while Destro fumed about it out loud.
“And you might even suspect that the Hard Master, one of the greatest ninjutsu masters alive, seeks retribution on Cobra.”
“Yes, yes, ninjas and their archaic code of honor,” Anastasia said impatiently. “What does that have to do with my mother?”
“Hādo-sensei has found a way into DeCobray headquarters that goes right through the labs where Stan’s mom, Julien’s dad, and your mom all work.”
The downside of being terribly clever was that Anastasia had a very active imagination. Images of her mother being murdered by furious ninjas with blood-dripping swords flashed in her mind, sending a spike of dread through her chest. She had to take a breath and rein in her emotions before giving Shana a cool smile.
“Don’t be ridiculous. The ninja’s foolish code would not allow him to harm innocents.”
“Normally, I would agree with you,” said Shana. “But have you seen what Cobra did to the Soft Master? This is more than just retaliation. It is vengeance. Besides, he’ll have a bunch of other ninjas from his clan with him. Do you really want to take the chance that every single one of them will choose to spare a group of scientists who accidentally get in the way?”
Anastasia glared at her. “You are proposing we join forces to protect our parents?”
“If you can provide the JOES with a way into DeCobray headquarters that won’t draw attention, I can guarantee your mother will remain safe.”
The Baroness lived by a very simple rule. There were only a few things she valued, but she would do anything to protect them. She valued herself, her homeland, her standing within Cobra, and her mother. That was it. Nothing else. The only conflict that ever emerged from this minimalistic worldview was when one thing she valued was pitted against another. So, she had determined an order of priority. At the top, of course, was herself. After that was her homeland. Then her mother. And finally Cobra, which, truth be told, was really just a means of protecting herself, her homeland, and her mother.
Of course, there was more than one way to solve this issue. She could merely pretend to go along with Shana, feed her false information, and then report this intel to Cobra. They would be suitably prepared for the ninjas, her mother would remain safe, and perhaps the Commander would recognize her value. Although she couldn’t contact the Commander directly any longer. She had to go through Destro. Would he make sure to give her credit? More likely he would claim it for himself. Her mother would be protected, but she would be no better off. This was the safe choice.
The other option, of course, was to help Shana. If Anastasia played this right, she could use the JOES to embarrass Destro, perhaps even get him punished like Zartan. That would clear the way for her own ascension within the ranks of Cobra. Sure, there was more risk with this plan. If the Commander somehow found out she’d aided the JOES, he might decide to kill her on the spot. But when did the Baroness ever shy away from risk when the potential gain was so great?
Anastasia let out a weary sigh, as though she came to this decision reluctantly. “Very well, Shana. Listen carefully, because I’m only going to tell you this once.”
CHAPTER
19
LIFE IS LIKE A ROLLER COASTER
The following morning, Scarlett tried once more to convince her brother not to go on the field trip. He just laughed at her. By this point, his refusal was as much to tease her as it was to see his hero, the “real” Crimson Guard. The best she could do at this point was keep the danger so far away from him that meeting a man dressed in a red costume was the only thing he remembered that day.
Scarlett had never skipped school before. Mostly because she loved school. Now, as she walked through downtown Springfield during school hours, she kept expecting an adult to jump out from behind a bush and shout, “Aha! Truency!”
Thankfully, that didn’t happen. She met Stan, Julien, Zoro-me, and Tommy in front of the Red Rocket, an ultra-modern diner with a real rocket fixed to the roof. They were each dressed in civilian garb but wearing backpacks that contained their tactical gear and weapons.
“Are you sure you want to come, Julien?” asked Scarlett. “Your remote technical support is always a huge help, so don’t feel like you have to.”
Julien shook his head. “I think I’ve figured out a way to deal with the robots, in case we run into any. But I’ll need to be in close range for it to work.”
She nodded. “Okay, then. Let’s go, boys.”
They trooped into the diner, which was all sleek white and chrome on the inside. There weren’t a lot of people, and Scarlett felt extremely self-conscious as they made their way through the restaurant to the subway entrance at the back. It wasn’t a secret entrance or anything. All regular DeCobray employees knew about it. In fact, Stan’s mom said it was one of the most popular stations because people could quickly grab breakfast on their way into work. But if Anastasia had told Scarlett the truth, Red Rocket Station did hold a secret after all.
The elevator down to the subway station required a DeCobray ID badge, which of course both Zoro-me and Tommy had obtained for their own Arashikage missions. The five of them crammed in with their bulky backpacks and rode it to the basement.
When the doors slid open, they met two very surprised Cobra guards dressed in blue uniforms with red Cobra insignias. They both had automatic rifles, but while they were still fumbling with them, Zoro-me and Tommy dashed forward and knocked them unconscious.
“This is so much easier with two ninjas,” observed Julien.
“Don’t get used to it, eighth grader,” said Tommy as he dragged one of the unconscious guards to an out-of-the-way corner.
“Can you please use my code name?” Julien begged.
“Nope,” said Tommy.
“He will when it’s tactically necessary, Glitch,” Scarlett assured Julien. Then she gave Tommy a hard look. “Right, Storm Shadow?”
Tommy gave a pained sigh. “I guess.”
“Great.” She smiled. “Now, let’s gear up.”
Zoro-me and Tommy quickly got into their ninja yoroi, while Scarlett, Stan, and Julien dressed in more generic tactical gear they’d ordered online. The black reinforced vests and helmets with retractable visors were designed for paintball, but they offered lightweight protection and a handy number of pockets. The padded fingerless gloves were designed for Rollerblading, but provided at least some protection without sacrificing dexterity.
As far as weapons, Zoro-me and Tommy had their katana swords, and Scarlett had her collapsible aluminum bo staff strapped to her thigh. Stan had only gotten far enough into his training to use a pair of short batons, and Julien had . . . his backpack?
“We can stow our stuff in those lockers.” Scarlett pointed to the rental lockers that lined one wall of the Red Rocket subway station.
Julien held his backpack to his chest and shook his head. “We might need this.”
She raised an eyebrow. “I take it you’re not going to tell me what it is?”
He gave her a pained smile. “Well, uh, I’m not totally sure it will work, so I don’t want to make any promises.”
Scarlett didn’t like the idea of additional unknown variables. But she respected her friend’s wishes and trusted his judgement.
“Let’s get going, then.”
Stan looked dubiously at the subway platform. “So . . . are we just catching a regular employee train into DeCobray headquarters?”
“No,” said Scarlett. “We wouldn’t make it through security without drawing more attention than we can handle. But remember how you and I noticed that there seem to be more trains and tunnels than the single line your mom knows about?”
“Yeah, of course,” said Stan.
“That’s because there are more trains and tunnels. A lot more.”
She walked down the platform to the very end. If a train were to pull into the station, she would be standing in front of the last door of the last car. She couldn’t go any further down the platform because there was a white tile wall blocking the way.
Or at least it seemed to block it.
Scarlett tapped six specific tiles on the wall in the order that Anastasia had instructed. Then, without so much as a sound, the wall slid open to reveal another section of platform.
Relief washed over Scarlett. “Whew, it wasn’t a trick after all.”
“You were worried it might be?” asked Julien.
She shrugged. “You never know what the Baroness will do. That’s part of what makes her so tricky to deal with. I guess this time it worked in our favor because she decided to help us instead of Cobra. But I’m not sure that means we’ll be able to count on her in the future. Now, everybody hurry and go through before the wall closes.”
They quickly moved on to the hidden section of the platform. Seconds later, the wall sealed back up.
Stan looked around the small section of enclosed platform. “So, uh, what now?”
“We wait for the train, of course,” said Scarlett.
It arrived about five minutes later, sliding into the station with a smooth hydraulic hiss.
“But this is only a regular DeCobray train,” said Stan.
“Just wait.”
The train slowed to a stop, and the true last car of the train stopped in front of the hidden platform.
“There’s a secret extra car at the back of the train?” asked Julien.
“Sort of,” said Scarlett. “Now hurry, everybody on.”
Fortunately, the car was completely empty. If a Cobra agent had been riding in it, that might have complicated things. Instead, they hustled on board without any problems, and the doors slid closed behind them.
“Is the extra car only accessible from this station?” asked Tommy as the train began to move.
Scarlett shook her head. “No, it’s accessible from a couple of other stations. Springfield Academy Station was one of them, until Cobra sealed it off when Zartan messed things up.”
“That would explain how Anastasia and Michel were always disappearing,” said Stan.
“Hey, whatever happened to that jerk Michel?” asked Julien. “He disappeared the same time as Zartan.”
“Nobody seems to know,” said Scarlett. “Not even Anastasia.”
Julien’s eyes widened. “That’s messed up. I mean, Zartan is one thing. He’s a grown-up. But Michel is still just a kid.”
“I get the feeling Cobra doesn’t really care if you’re just a kid,” Scarlett said gravely. “Otherwise, why would they involve Anastasia and Michel in their schemes in the first place? Anastasia wouldn’t admit anything, but I couldn’t help feeling like they have some kind of leverage over her.”
“It almost makes me feel bad for them,” admitted Stan.
“I know what you mean,” said Scarlett.
This train car looked identical to the others, with rows of front-facing plastic bucket seats down the sides and a narrow aisle in the middle. The only difference was that these seats all had seatbelts.
As the train picked up speed, Scarlett sat in one of the seats and secured her buckle. Everyone else was standing in the aisle and holding on to the bar at the top. They were probably all keyed up.
“You guys better take a seat and buckle up,” she advised.
“Really?” asked Stan.
“Trust me.”
They all did so, with varying looks of confusion.
“I told you this was sort of like an extra secret car,” Scarlett explained. “It’s also sort of like a one-car train.”
“What does that mean?” asked Tommy.
The train picked up more speed. Then there was a sharp KER-CHUNK and—just as Anastasia had warned—the secret car automatically disengaged from the back of the train and shunted hard to the right.
Stan yelled, “What the—AAAAAAAAAAH!”
The car plummeted forward and downward at stomach-lurching velocity. Everyone gripped their seats, eyes wide, as the car twisted and turned first one way, then the other. They could see the lit tunnel ahead, streaky blurs of luminous white speeding toward them at an alarming rate. When the lights suddenly dipped, rose, or veered, it gave them a moment’s warning before they once more left their stomachs behind.
Scarlett was amazed that Anastasia had even bothered to warn her about this. The Baroness could have just told her about the secret car and left it at that. But she had thoroughly explained everything they would encounter along the way that might interfere with getting into DeCobray headquarters and stopping Hādo. It was clear Anastasia cared about her mom’s safety even more deeply than Scarlett had anticipated. And Scarlett had to admit that this revelation made it a lot harder to dislike her rival.
Finally, the zooming train car slowed and came to a halt.
“Are we there yet?” groaned Julien, looking a tiny bit unwell as he cautiously unbuckled his seatbelt.
“Yep,” Scarlett said brightly. “Come on, we still have a long way to go before we intercept Hādo-sensei and his clansmen.”
