Septima Pretorius

I leave the train car.

The window of the door to the next car is covered by a black curtain.

I can't see inside, but that means whoever's in there can't see me, either. I carefully climb the ladder to the roof.

The wind outside is so strong, and with the train's speed, I might be blown right off the roof if I'm not careful. In the howling wind, I start making my way across the roof. I have to use all the skills I've learned to head to the other side of the next car without making any careless noises. I somehow make it to the connector. It looks like I'll be able to take care of this before we reach the track switch. Right before I attach the device, a sudden curiosity makes me turn around.

There are no black curtains over the window on this side of the car, and I see into the interior. But there is nobody in the car we are supposed to disconnect.

Did Lupin get the car wrong?

There's no way...

At that moment, I feel something hard pressed against my temple. I slowly look up, and see a woman standing there.

"Cross your hands behind your head. Don't resist, and I won't shoot you."

I obey her, moving slowly.

She is a tall woman with long black hair and a scar across her left eye. She orders me to walk, and the two of us slowly enter another train car, not the one Lupin and I had planned to disconnect.

There are almost a dozen soldiers in here.

If I had to take on this number of guards by myself, there is no way I could win. "Don't give up. Look for an opportunity..."

That's how Lupin and taught me to think when caught in a situation like this.

Thanks to her lessons, I was able to calmly observe my surroundings without panicking.

"Take off your clothes." the woman orders.

I strip off everything and let it fall to the floor. I am now stood naked in front of almost dozen men pointing guns at me.

Nobody utters a word. The only sound is the rattle of the train along the tracks.

I wonder what happened to the others. Did my failure put them all in danger? As I'm thinking this...

"Hm. You certainly are a quiet one."

Several Progenitor soldiers stand around me as I sit in the narrow passage.

The woman who captured me is smiling at me in a calm matter that seems oddly out of place in this situation. "I was expecting a young boy such as yourself to cry, or scream, or make some sort of commotion. It would seem you have more self-control than you let on. Or are you merely mute from terror?"

"I'm scared... but it's in times like this that I most need to remain calm." I say.

"Haha, I see, I see. Wonderful. I'd like some of my men to follow your example of composure. I suppose you are a unique individual, after all. To us, and to her, and to the entire world..."

"'Her'? The world...?" I ask.

What is she talking about?

I open my mouth to ask, but I'm cut off by a voice echoing from behind the woman. "This conversation is unnecessary, Moran."

The woman referred to as Moran moves aside.

"We finally meet, brother." The speaker behind Moran is a young girl, sitting on an armrest of one of the train seats. Her skin is yellow. Her shoulder length hair a black colour. Her eyes are pure white. Her voice is as cold as ice, and she turns a thin smile towards me.

"'Brother'...? Who are you?" I ask.

"Oh...that's right. You wouldn't know who I am. You were always asleep... You only awoke a week or so ago. But you have knowledge, don't you, brother? You and I share the same mother. That would make it a simple matter to figure out why I call you my brother, yes?"

"Are you my sister?" I ask.

The girl nods, satisfied. "Yes, indeed, I am your older sister. My name is Evelyn. What's more..."

And old woman enters the car. She has an unusually large nose and pointed ears, looking like something from a 1930s gothic horror movie. "I am Septima Pretorius, the leader of Progenitor, and the person you have come here for. What's more, you have something you want to ask me, don't you? About why Progenitor wants you?"

"Hahaha, you're funny. You and your crew tried to trap my true mother... But you fell into our trap instead." Evelyn says.

"I leaked the information that I would be aboard this train, knowing it would reach your ears. With just the touch of a lie, regarding the amount of security that would be with me. I just wanted to meet you already, so I threw out some bait to lure you in. Oh, is all this new information confusing to you? Don't worry. We can go over all of it again... later. Moran. We've secured my son. Let's go." Pretorius says.

A dull explosion shakes me to the core, and the woman who had me at gunpoint earlier nods. "We've just...wrapped things up, as well."

I turn back, and see the train car behind us falling behind, getting farther away. This means I've been isolated from Lupin and the others...

"This probably isn't a very relaxing place for you, but I need you to do one last thing before we go. You see, your penis is usually large, but I never had the chance to see if could impregnate my other homunculus. It would be a shame if all this was for nothing, so I need you to cum right now." Pretorius says.

I am stood naked in front of many people, including what I guess would be my mother and sister.

The sound of the train has become really loud.

Guns are pointed at me, threatening to shoot me if I don't do as she says.

Despite the situation, I somehow get an erection. I hold my penis in one and began gently stroking it. I would not have minded doing this in front of Lupin, Nemo, Victoria, Van Helsing or Doreen, but the threat of being shot ruins it for me. I don't know how I got hard. I start pumping.

"He's taking too long." Pretorius says.

"Please. I can't do it with everyone pointing guns at me." I say.

Pretorius hands her cane to Moran. "Beat him until he cums."

"Understood." Moran says. She whacks my ass with the cane.

I cry out as I feel the cane smack my bare ass.

"If you want that to stop, you better cum." Pretorius.

Moran painfully whacks me again and again. It hurts far more than the spankings Victoria would give me.

I try to focus on the sensation of being naked in front of a beautiful clothed woman like Evelyn. I imagine Lupin, Nemo, Victoria, Van Helsing and Doreen watching me. It helps me.

Moran gives me another stroke.

Evelyn silently watches me intensely.

Pretorius is also watching, but her gaze is considerably less lustful.

Like I'm a subject for her to study. I'm about to cum.

Moran hits my ass with the cane again.

I cum. I look down to see cum drop to the floor.

Evelyn excitedly claps her hands.

"His cock works!" Pretorius says.

Evelyn gets up and touches my now flaccid cock. "We can make babies."

"No more interruptions. Now we just--" Pretorius says. Suddenly, the window shatters as someone leaps through the glass to stand between Pretorius and me. The Progenitor soldiers react quickly, but faster still are a fusillade of gunshots that takes them down one after another. "It seems you spoke too soon. We have an unwanted visitor, Moran. It looks like you didn't quite finish your job."

"Don't be too hard on me. Most plans go awry when you're up against Van Helsing." Moran says.

"Th-Thank you... Van--" Van Helsing doesn't let me finish.

She holds a hand stop me, and keeps her distance, staring at Pretorius. "Nobody move! If anyone so much as lifts a finger, I will shoot this woman. I'll shoot Pretorius!" Van Helsing points a gun at Pretorius. She is completely calm, and seems to have firmly set her mind on a course of action.

Sensing her tense, murderous intent, the few conscious soldiers around us show no signs of taking action.

"Now who do we have here... The infamous Abigail Van Helsing herself. It's been a while, hasn't it? When did we last speak?" Pretorius asks.

"Quiet..." Van Helsing says.

"You've always been nothing but empty threats. Why don't you just pull that trigger instead of wasting our time?" Pretorius asks.

"Shut up!" Van Helsing says.

"Aim well. The head, or the heart... Strike out at any part you like." Pretorius says.

"I said shut up!" Van Helsing roars in agitation and her gun roars along with her. Part of the metal seat beside Pretorius is twisted out of shape in an instant. "Try to joke around with me again...and I will kill you without hesitation."

"Kill me?" Pretorius asks. "Hahaha...Ahahaha! Hahahahahah! You can't kill me. It's impossible."

"Would you like me to try?" Van Helsing asks. She cocks her gun.

Taking this for a sign, the Progenitor soldiers move in unison, take fighting stances with their slender blades.

The woman standing next to Pretorius, Moran, takes a step forward. "Abigail, put the gun down, won't you? For old times' sake."

"...I can't do that, Moran." Van Helsing responds without hesitation. Do these two know each other? I remember that Van Helsing had said she was a member of Progenitor in the past... I have only a moment to collect my own thoughts. "Pretorius. I'm going to kill you, here and now."

"But Van Helsing, this whole mission--!" I say.

"If I can kill Pretorius with my own hand, that becomes my top priority!" Van Helsing says.

"Van Helsing...!" I say.

"You can't make up your mind..." Evelyn says.

"What?" Van Helsing asks.

"Again, you're wasting an opportunity with unnecessary talk. You won't pull the trigger because you can't make a decision." Evelyn says.

"Do you fear dying? Or, perhaps, you fear him dying... Or no, maybe... Are you afraid that I won't die?" Pretorius asks.

Van Helsing says nothing, and just glares at Pretorius. Her gun trembles slightly, but I can't tell if it's from rage or fear.

I can't move. The strange atmosphere permeating the room has completely swallowed us. At this rate, we'll...

Van Helsing shoots Pretorius in the head.

The woman who is supposed to be my mother falls dead.

Van Helsing shoots Evelyn in the heart.

Evelyn staggers back, but she otherwise seems to be fine.

Suddenly, a loud crash breaks the silence's a cannonball the size of my fist mashes through the window.

I've seen these many times during training. "Van Helsing! Duck!"

Van Helsing reacts quickly.

Red, blue, green, yellow... The fireworks go off, shrieking furiously. The car is filled with sound and light.

The soldiers quickly take cover behind the seats or step forward to protect Evelyn.

Intimidation through fire. An escape tool that suits Lupin's style. It doesn't hurt anyone, but surprises them. It's especially effective against trained enemies who try to anticipate what's next.

Enemies who don't know about the trick are taken aback, and those who know about it can use the surprise as an opportunity.

"Caleb!" Lupin's voice comes in through the window. She's hanging from a rope ladder, and she reaches her hand out to me. It seems that she's somehow hanging from the side of the Ornihopter. "Over here! Run!" Lupin's shouts can be heard over the bursts of the fireworks.

"I won't let you escape, brother!" Evelyn says. She pushes her guards aside and tries to grab me. "Huh-?!"

"Next time, I will aim for your head, Evelyn!" Right before Van Helsing leaps from the train, she helps me by firing her gun.

Lupin catches her.

The train is still going full-speed.

Just as Evelyn's fingers brush against me, I get a short running start and jump with all of my might out the open window. I can't control my body as I tumble in the thrashing wind. The ground rushes up...

Van Helsing's arms catch me before I hit. "You jumped! Good job!" As soon as Lupin has a hold of me, the Ornithopter turns away from the train. In an instant, we've gained a distance from the train. As it gets smaller and smaller, I see Evelyn look out the window at us.

And for some strange reason, she is smiling. As if she's enjoying that we resisted. It is an expression of glee, like that of a small child discovering a fun toy.

Lupin tightens her grip on me, as if she got the same impression from Evelyn's face. "We fell right into her trap..." She says this in a low voice tinged with frustration.

"Yes..." I say. We failed the mission, but she is probably concerned that letting Evelyn escape will prove to be an even greater threat later.

Evelyn, a member of Progenitor, and someone who would be considered my sister.

It should be impossible to believe, yet I feel as if I've felt her cold gaze somewhere before.

A long, long time ago... Somewhere...

"Hey, you two! We're running low of fuel! I'm going to speed up, so it'll get a little shakey, so hang on!" Nemo's shout brings me back to my sense.

For now, what matters most is that we've escaped from Progenitor's clutches.

"Right! Don't worry about us! We're counting on you to get us back to the rendezvous point, Nemo!" Lupin says.

"What about Victoria?!" I ask.

"Don't worry about her! I've already picked her up!" Nemo says.

"So that's that. We're done here, so let's get the hell out of here." Lupin asks.