Chapter 1
Syaoran reviewed his flight schedule for that night as he placed another neatly folded stack of shirts inside his suitcase, his earpiece glowing in his ear.
"Why do I have to go to Tokyo to clean up your mess?"
He fastened his clothes in place, checking for the third time that everything was in place. He rolled his eyes as his cousin's voice spoke into his ear.
"Now, cousin, don't be like that. It's an honor to have the head council personally request your transfer to the Tokyo. If anything, you should be curious about the case that is demanding your transfer from Hong Kong."
"Eriol, the flight is booked, I'll be there tonight. It's obvious that I'm taking up the case, so why haven't I received any information from the agency?"
"Syaoran, they want fresh eyes on this case. I haven't even been briefed nor have I heard anything about the case even though the last agent who worked on the case was in the cubicle next to mine. Something must have raised some flags if they are keeping this investigation from everyone."
Syaoran combed his hair with his fingers, an unconscious movement he did whenever he was frustrated.
"I know. I have a weird feeling about this case. I'll try to move up my flight, see you tonight."
He pressed the small button on the side of his earpiece and tossed the Bluetooth devise on his bed. He stared out his window, staring out into the garden in silence. Something about this job felt wrong. All he knew was that there had been a series of high value robberies all over Tokyo, but that was just common knowledge, all major newscasts had covered it at least once, but even their sources were vague.
If anything, this was a job for the Art Crime division, even White Collar, but the Council went as far as extracting him from his undercover job in Organized Crime. He eyed the shrine of his ancestors in the garden, wondering if he should pay it a visit like he used to when he was little and ask for guidance. But he wasn't a little kid anymore, and a bunch of ghosts would be of no help.
He had to solve this case, even though common sense told him to walk the other way. There was something spooking the agency, and he was going to find out what.
By the time Syaoran arrived in Tokyo it was well past midnight and all could be heard were the tired passengers on the plane shuffling their way toward customs. A pair of stilettos clacked against the tiled floor, echoing in the quiet halls. Syaoran felt the irritation from the other passengers like a thick smoke around him, the last thing anyone wanted was for that stupid metronome to follow them all the way to baggage claim.
After clearing customs and collecting his luggage, all Syaoran wanted to do was get to his hotel and sleep till the next morning. Although the woman with the annoying shoe preference was gone, a head ache formed at his temple, pulsing to the beat of the stilettos. He was about to call a taxi when he caught sight of his cousin standing by the curb in a driver's outfit, a small sign in his hands reading SYAORAN LI.
"Just what are you wearing?"
Eriol merely shrugged and pulled Syaoran into a man hug "It's not everyday that my darling cousin comes back to Japan. It's been, what, nine years since you were last here? That calls for the red carpet welcome."
"Whatever. Eriol, all I want is to get to my hotel, check in, and try to get some sleep before our meeting with the captain tomorrow."
Eriol placed the luggage in the trunk of his car, noticing how lightly Syaoran had packed for this 'visit'.
"Oh, I cancelled your reservation. No cousin of mine is staying at a hotel when there is plenty of room in my house."
"I have no energy to punch you right now, just take me to a bed," Syaoran pinched the bridge of his nose, wielding the worsening headache away.
They drove in silence for a couple moments, for a second Syaoran thought it was going to be a quiet ride home. He wasn't so lucky.
"I started seeing someone," Eriol said breaking the silence "She's a designer, owns a small boutique in the heart of Tokyo."
Syaoran barely managed a grunt.
"She's twenty-four, studied in Paris, speaks three languages."
"Why are you telling me all of this?"
"To brag, mostly. I want you to meet her, she's a sweet girl," Eriol shot him a glance from the corner of his eye "Maybe she has a cute friend."
Syaoran almost laughed at Eriol's failed attempt at subtlety.
"I came here to work, Eriol. I don't need to be set up with a doe eyed girl who loves to shop at her friend's store."
Eriol smiled to himself, a scheming one that Syaoran recognized from their teenage years. He wasn't going to let this go.
"Suit yourself, cousin."
Syaoran was grateful for the quiet ride home.
After much needed sleep and morning workout, Syaoran stepped inside the JBI* office, noting how the stale smell of coffee and stark decoration was standard for all investigation agencies in the world. He placed the hand grip he was using in the car ride over in his briefcase, already spotting the captain on the second floor through the glass wall. Following Eriol through the small maze of cubicles, he soon found himself in Kikyo Mashimoto's office.
The woman couldn't have been older than forty, an impressive age to reach such a high rank in the bureau. She rose from her desk and gave Syaoran a practiced smile, extending her perfectly manicured hand in his direction.
"Special Agent Syaoran Li, it is a pleasure to have you on our team. I am Captain Kikyo Mashimoto, director of the Tokyo White Collar Crimes division."
"Thank you, Captain Mashimoto. I'll try to solve this case to the best of my abilities," he said shaking her hand.
She nodded in greeting to Eriol and motioned them both to sit. Reaching around her desk, she pressed a small button on the side, turning all the glass in the room white. Kikyo pressed a small remote control, dimming the lights in the room as an image projected on the white privacy glass.
"If you turn your chairs to the projection, you'll see the six items which have been removed from Tokyo's renowned museums and galleries. All of these artifacts from the Reconstruction Era of the Second Awakening," she switched the slide and showed each artifact respectively "The Wind Bearer, The Arrow of Artemis, The Fairy Crystal Glow, The Jump from Gods, The Wings of Shin, and the sword Izanami that was said to have been held by Clow Reed during the Reconstruction Era. All these items have been stolen in the last two months from institutions with top of the line security."
Kikyo handed them both the dossiers on the robberies, continuing her briefing as the scanned the files.
"This burglar somehow managed to remove all six items without even triggering a single alarm. We are talking motion sensors, pressure sensors at the bottom of the bullet proof glass which encased said items. That is but one tenth of the security precautions taken to protect these artifacts, yet this world class thief managed to avoid every single one. As the files show, further investigation of the security system like the pressure sensors revealed that the glass was not moved at all in order to remove the artifacts. This leads us to believe we are dealing with a crew heist that must include at least a hacker or someone with vast knowledge of computers and security systems, a foot man, and a suspected third member to help extract the artifacts."
She switched the slide again, this time displaying vague footage of the burglar near the artifact. Moments before the camera short circuited, a strange circle appeared beneath the burglar's feet. A bright light soon blinded all cameras. The image changed again, this time a close up on the circle. Then switching again to a card inside an evidence bag.
"This was recovered from the scenes of the crime wherever it was that the artifact was stolen from. All six cards seem to depict a different image on one side, each relating to the respective artifact: The Windy, The Arrow, The Glow, The Jump, The Fly, and The Sword. Meaning our robber not only went through the trouble of stealing the artifacts but leaving these behind. What you saw earlier was the only footage the agency managed to salvage from the third museum. Some sort of technology was used to short circuit all the cameras in each crime scene. That is why this case is of upmost priority, not only are six priceless artifacts missing, but there is a device out there which can potentially damage technology. This could be weaponized and would put at risk innocent people."
Syaoran and Eriol stared down at their dossiers in silence, the weight of the case hanging around them in thick clouds of pressure. Eriol withdrew a page from the dossier and placed it on the captain's desk.
"And what is this supposed to be?"
"That is a picture taken at the first crime scene. It was scribbled on the walls, luckily we were able to photograph it before the paint disappeared, leaving no chemical trace behind."
Syaoran felt a chill run down his spine as he read the message, he suddenly wanted to take the paper and tear it into a million pieces.
When the time comes, my friends will return to me. –The Card Mistress
*Japanese Bureau of Investigation
Author's Note: So here is my new story, if anyone was reading my other story The Essence of Magic I sincerely apologize for leaving it as I did. One of these days I will either take it down, or rewrite it from scratch. Anyway, Sakura will be introduced next chapter and answers to the who Second Awakening will come as the story progresses. I have a clear idea of where I want to go with this story so I expect to see it through. I'll try to update as soon as I can. I apologize if there are grammar and spelling mistakes, I will go back and fix them one of these days, I just needed to get the story out there.
If you read this and care to leave a review, please do. Input is greatly appreciated.
