Episode 12: Disappear

**"Vanished Will -close-"** *Transcription:* "Shoui -close-" (Japanese: 消意 -close-) is the twelth episode of *Madlax*. It debuted on June 21, 2004 in Japan.

## Synopsis

After all the trouble last episode, Vanessa is frustrated to discover she still can’t unlock the data she and Bagis hacked from Bookwald Industries. A password is required, and Vanessa doesn’t know it. She wonders if Bagis would know. Then Madlax, apparently having stayed in the same apartment/hotel room with her overnight, remarks on how strange it is that Vanessa isn’t worried about her own safety. After all, Enfant tried to kill her for that data. Vanessa doesn’t seem to grasp the true terror of Enfant.

Back at Bookwald Industries in Nafrece, Charlie expresses his concern for Vanessa. He can’t seem to reach her, and whenever he tries to call company members in Gazth-Sonika, they all say she’s still just having a normal visit. Charlie tells the office chief that Vanessa could be in trouble, but the chief says he’s overthinking things, and convinces him to return to his work. At the Burton estate, Eleanor also worries about Vanessa. However, Margaret seems completely convinced that she will be alright.

Carossur Don tells Friday Monday that Madlax is a highly skilled agent with a 98% success rate in her missions. (Note: this time, Friday is seen in a castle-like building built on an outcropping of a cliff-side. Either the animators changed his abode from being a church-like building in the jungle, or he has more than one large building he calls home.) Madlax will not be an easy target, Don warns. Friday tells him he’s supposed to handle cases like this. Don agrees to handle it, and asks if Limelda Jorg wants the job of recovering the stolen data from Madlax. Of course, Jorg happily takes on the mission. She wants to beat Madlax this time, after being beaten by her twice already. As Jorg heads out, Carossur Don decides he needs to introduce himself to the owner of “The Secondary”: that is, Margaret Burton.

 Vanessa calls Bagis to ask for help in finding out the password, but Madlax cuts the phone line in the middle of their talk. She says asking for help will only get the helper killed by Enfant. Vanessa demands how much longer she has to stay, implying that she’s basically trapped in this tiny apartment with a dangerous mercenary. Madlax says they can move again when she figures out Enfant’s next move. Then she questions Vanessa about the situation and learns that the honest woman is trying to expose the fact that Bookwald and Enfant are supplying weapons to keep the civil war raging in Gazth-Sonika.

Of course, Madlax says it’s basically suicide to publicize the data. There are only two ways Vanessa can avoid being killed by Enfant: she can keep the data secret, or she can publicize it and keep Madlax around for the foreseeable future. That way, Vanessa will be protected. If the woman won’t hire her on a long term basis, Madlax says she will just go back to killing people, which is her usual job. While Vanessa considers what to do, Carossur Don travels by plane back to Nafrece to meet Margaret. Naharu, the girl we met briefly in episode 8, is still following Don and watching him. Also, Jorg starts looking for Madlax, and is seen shooting a man for unknown reasons.

Charlie goes to Vanessa’s apartment to see if she’s back, but of course she isn’t there. Margaret lives in the apartment next door to Vanessa, and happens to see Charlie, who recognizes her as the girl Vanessa brought to the office in episode 2.

Madlax returns to the tiny apartment after asking around for information on Enfant’s movements. She’s appreciative when she sees that Vanessa made her a sandwich, though she says it tastes awful. Getting even friendlier, Vanessa suggests they share the bed rather than let Madlax sleep on the cramped sofa. They are shown in the same bed, much to the delight of yuri fans. When asked about her age, Madlax reveals she’s only seventeen. In addition, she discloses that she started mercenary work three years ago because she felt it was the only thing she could do. Vanessa says that she knows someone who’s the same age, probably referring to Margaret.

Speaking of Margaret, she tells Eleanor the next day that, according to a colleague (probably Charlie), Vanessa is going to be staying in Gazth-Sonika for quite some time. Eleanor sounds very disappointed, and Margaret looks sad, lying dejectedly on the couch. However, the spacey girl says she feels as if Vanessa is still right next to her. Eleanor says that’s because they are close friends.

In the middle of the night, Madlax leaves the bed and goes out to find Limelda Jorg, who she knows is after her. She thinks to herself that Vanessa is like a Princess and Madlax is like her Prince. In order to protect the Princess, she has to take down her enemies. Madlax finds Jorg at a small restaurant, and rather than shooting her right away, she talks to her for a little while. Inevitably, though, it comes down to both women drawing their hand-guns. Madlax knocks the gun from her enemy’s hand and kicks her down. Then she hides. Jorg recovers, draws another gun, and spots Madlax. The shot she fires grazes the side of Madlax’s right arm. The mercenary moves to another hiding place but Jorg once again is able to sense where she is. This might be Madlax’s hardest fight so far.

The mercenary finally manages to sneak out of sight and climbs to the top of a two-story building. From there she shoots downward, but the bullets don’t even come close to Jorg. At that moment, the sniper realizes Madlax had been aiming at her jeep. It explodes with enough heat and sound to give Madlax sufficient time to run away. Meanwhile, Jorg managed to not be too close to the explosion, and is unhurt. For now, it’s a draw, but Jorg swears she will kill Madlax before the end.

Madlax returns to the apartment wounded. From her brief talk with Jorg, Madlax figured out that Enfant thinks she stole the data. They probably don’t know the real culprit is Vanessa, and aren’t after her life. When Madlax tells Vanessa to go back to Nafrece, Vanessa says she won’t. Rather, she will stay and try to publicize the data. Madlax calls her an idiot, but says she doesn’t really mind idiots, as we have seen many times in the past. For now, the two women will stay together. Vanessa has no idea that, back in Nafrece, Carossur Don is introducing himself to Margaret.

In their world, Leticia and her companion are as mysterious as ever. The little yellow-haired boy acts as if something is wrong, and Leticia addresses him by name for the first time, calling him “Poupee.” As usual, the ghostly boy stays silent.

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Episode 13

*"I'm missing something. Constantly searching for something. Even if I hurt people along the way, I'll continue to search for myself."* – Carrossea Doon