Steel Heart

Ch 109 - How to Make a Family Connection

"AH! SOUND THE ALARM! MIZU NANA HAS ESCAPED AND SHE'S ARMED!"

"Call the king immediately!

"Ah! Why isn't my transponder snail working?!"

"Quick! Find Mizu Nana and keep trying to contact the royal family!"

"Why isn't the alarm going off?!"

"I'm sorry! That's not working either! KYA! WHERE DID THE LIGHTS GO?!"

Nana smiled to herself in the darkness of the Germa 66 castle with her hammer leaning across her shoulders and her two arms draped over the handle. She let her metal gloved hands dangle freely in the air, revelling in the familiar weight and texture. With them and her backpack slung over her back, she finally felt complete. She couldn't help but whistle as she and Pygmy strutted down the hallways as if without a care in the world.

The yelling from the Germa 66 soldiers were like music to her ears. They didn't know what hit them and Nana would be surprised if they ever put it together, even the scientists. She had given her own lab fair warning to take an early leave so she could only hope they took her advice and were away from harm as she set her plan into motion.

Sanji and the royal family had barely been gone for an hour andNana knew that from the whisperings among scientists and soldiers alike that the private engagement tea they were heading for would start in about another hour.

The backup lights turned on inside the castle and everything was bathed in a dim green light. Nana casted a glance down at her dog and then her eyes moved to the middle of his saddle. A small rectangular box with a red switch was strapped to his back.

"You good, Pyg?" Nana murmured.

The dog answered with a wag of his tail.

"Awesome," Nana said and then she made a hard right at the end of the hallway, "If I remember the blueprints correctly, the communication center should be right.....Ah! Here!"

They stopped at a white sterile door with "CC" marked on the front in golden letters. The mechanic didn't even bother to check if it was locked and kicked the door loose without hesitation. She grinned from the opening at the Germa 66 soldiers, who were all gaping at her over tables covered in sleeping transponder snails of all different sizes and color. Each snail had wires tapped to the sides of their shells and the wires extended to a row of machines in the back of the room with reels and small screens embedded in the front.

"Hello? Operator?" she asked, "I'd like to make a call...Two calls, actually."

The Germa 66 soldiers leapt into action. They jumped out of their chairs, over the tables, and rushed towards the mechanic, who took a few steps back from the hallway, to allow them to exit the room.

Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!

She smoothly took her hammer and swatted all of them every which way as if she was at a batting cage. When she had cleared the entire room, she calmly stepped in with Pygmy and shut the door behind them. She went over to the tables and made sure to put all the receivers back on the transponder snails. Then she flicked the switch on Pygmy's back and almost immediately, the snails' eyes opened and the machine started whirring and powering up. The lights flickered on and the mechanic had to squint to adjust to the sudden brightness.

"Alright," Nana sighed. She leaned her hammer against the closed door and she sat down in a wooden chair at the center table. She propped her feet up on the table, nudging over some snails to make some space. Her hand reached over to the biggest transponder snail, which was about two feet high. She held out a piece of paper towards the snail's eyes, "Connect me to this snail."