AUTHOR'S NOTE: Well, "Four of a Kind" is supposed to be a prequel to my other story "All Just A Game," but it could stand on its own. Well, go ahead! Read and Enjoy!

Note: Italics in my stories are either thoughts or written documents.

CHAPTER 1: A Story Never Told

An eerie white glow from a single computer was the only source of light; the humming of the monitor the only sound. A figure sat, staring aimlessly at the blank screen.

She needed a story. She had all the ingredients and now she needed to bake the cake...but she was never that great of a cook.

All the information gathering...the spying...the undercover work...all would have been done in vain if I can't get a story by tomorrow.

Deadline was at 11:00 PM. Papers would start printing at midnight.

:Help me: she typed into the empty space.

With a sigh of frustration, she slowly stood up.

"I need some coffee..."

The smell of rich, dark bliss wafted to her nose and stirred her senses. She sipped. Hot liquid slithered down her throat and had burned her tongue, but she was accustomed to it.

"My story is due in a few hours. It's 9:00 PM and I have nothing..."

Flashbacks of the last eight months rushed through her head. She remembered what she had gone through in order to get the information she wanted; the life-threatening dangers and too many close calls to count. She had known from the beginning that she would be putting her life in jeopardy. She would be found out, she understood that fact, but she also knew how crucial it was to get this story out, before innocent lives were taken. The life of an undercover reporter was full of pitfalls. Hell, the life of an undercover anything was just one big deal with the devil.

But Risa Sakaki didn't care. This was important.

...God...Ahh!...I have to write something!...

She returned to the empty screen...and stared.

:tick:

9:10 PM – zero

:tick:

9:20 PM – zip

:tick:

9:30 PM – nothing

:tick:

"...Oh God! I'll just wing-it and see what happens!"

The room was filled with the rapid clicking of buttons and the previously unmarked screen was quickly being invaded by foreign black symbols.

This story has to be finished...

The Syndicate Wars: Internal Conflicts

by Misaki Somaki, Tokyo Times

The streets of Tokyo have ceased to be safe. People who look like any other person could be part of its underground life. With their shady dealings, violent silencers and deadly codes, the Japanese syndicates have slowly woven its threads into the very heart of Tokyo society.

With control of almost half of Japan's most prominent businesses, these syndicates vie for every single one of them. But, while competition between groups is fierce, there are other threats. Mutiny inside the groups; internal wars for the power of the head position.

The Zunoakuu syndicate, led by Boss T. Zuno, is one of Japan's most powerful and internally stable groups. With a strict code of silence and obligatory loyalty, this syndicate has made a name for itself in its twenty-plus years in existence. Members found to be conspiring against Boss T. disappear without a trace, only to be found months later, their bodies cut and slashed into an unrecognizable mass of bloody limbs. This group has the complete control of Japan's largest group of detectives and half the control of Tokyo's police force, along with contacts and operatives everywhere. Hajike Shikuno, Boss T's trusted right-hand man, is the epiphany of syndicate loyalty.

"For the good of the syndicate," Shikuno's trademark quote, uttered before silencing a traitor, is also one of Zunoakuu's important principles. His swift, merciless blade slices its victim, but leaves him to suffer the pain of death. But, is this man truly so truly devout to the syndicate that he would do anything for it? In a word: absolutely. His pious commitment to the syndicate has even led him to the murder of his own brother, who was discovered embezzling syndicate assets to his bank account.

Now, there has been some speculation on just how far this man will go for the Zunoakuu. Rumors of Shikuno's dislike of Boss T's methods of operation are spreading, and sources even inform of a plan to undermine Boss T's position as leader of the Zunoakuu.

She stopped. She had gotten to the part where the truth must be told, but...the consequences... Would she risk everything writing it? Writing the plan that she had spent the last year of her life trying to find out and the last five months trying to get details?

She had gone into the syndicate under the alias of Misaki Somaki, her pen name. She entered as a novice, and, as expected, was followed around for five months. After performing tasks that gained her some credibility, she was slowly accepted into Zunoakuu's inner circle. Here, after three more months, she had finally learned Shikuno's real plan. There would be a murder, "a massacre" he called it, at Mechiyo Park, a.k.a. Mercy Park. Boss T. would be there with his wife and that would be the time they would strike.

"Any civilian life lost would only add to the splendor of my ascendancy," he had said. "It will be a day to remember. A bloodbath at Mercy Park. No mercy at all. It will be a paradox in itself! People running and screaming, and I will be there to kill Boss T. and attain the title as the new leader of the Zunoakuu syndicate. My name will live on forever."

She was kept on surveillance, so she couldn't have told the authorities, and even if she did, they might have been under the power of Shikuno anyway. She was certain that nobody had followed her, but if they did, she had her own way of vanishing. While undercover, she had rented out an apartment two blocks away from her own. This would be used as a ruse to get the "spies" comfortable. They would think that she had gone to bed and what's done is done. She knew that they would probably fall asleep on the job, she had already met them. She would then sneak out and casually walk to her own apartment. That's what she had done tonight.

This was her only chance of getting her story out. All she had to do was type up the story, e-mail it to the newspaper staff and whoever worked the deadline shift would take care of the rest.

The clock read 10:30. Deadline was in thirty minutes. Would she risk it?

...Yes...The people have to know...

She continued.

Thanks to a secret correspondent, Shikuno's plan has been imparted to me, which I will now pass on to the public as a single act of defiance to all syndicates.

The plan was to tell Boss T. that his ex-wife, who shall not be named, was conspiring with the rival Yokashi syndicate. Shikuno planned to then inform Boss T. that this piece of information was legitimate and to suggest that he hold a meeting with his wife. Mercy Park would be suggested by one of Shikuno's supporters while others agreed. With the urging of his most loyal "friend," Boss T. would have no other choice than to proceed with the meeting.

This premeditated "sweep" is set to happen in –

"Two days."

The typing stopped. Risa froze.

...No...

"Why have you stopped Miss Somaki...or is it Miss Sakaki? Why don't you just finish your little report? We will kill Boss T. on March 12, two days from now."

Risa turned to the man behind her. Had he been in the room the whole time? Watching her?

He stood a mere two feet away from her, observing her horror-stricken face and smiled.

This can't be happening...Not now...My story...People have to know...or else...

Risa's heart sank as visions of a once happy green park changed into a sea of red leaves. The blood of innocent civilians, unknowingly caught in the shower of bullets of a syndicate insurrection. Her throat tightened.

"Now...Don't cry...I promise that I'll make your death a quick one. You were always one of my favorites, Misa, so I'll give you some mercy, but I can't have you publicizing my efforts just yet darling."

He touched her face.

"You are very beautiful...What a shame..."

The woman's thoughts were elsewhere. Her mind was spiraling downward into a dark void, regrets of her past flashing in her mind. A jumble of emotions ripped her heart. And finally, one last thought:

I could have stopped it...

Then all thoughts ceased. Her mind cleared.

A swift slash to the throat. Warm blood pooling on the cold, tiled floor. As her body went limp, the man walked towards the front door, a cell phone in hand.

"Kunei, I need a clean-up crew in here."

While lost in her the chaos of her mind, Risa Sakaki never heard the words of the man before he had ended her life.

"For the good of the syndicate..."

Two days later...

:RING-RING:

"Hello, this is—"

The person on the other line interrupted the woman.

"But..."

:pause:

"Right now?"

:pause:

"...All right...Bye..."

The woman placed the phone back on its stand.

"Mommy, who was that?" a little girl asked from the kitchen table.

"It was your father, dear."

"Daddy?"

The girl's eyes sparkled. She hadn't seen her father in years.

"What did he say?"

"Well, he wants to talk to me..."

"Here? Is he coming over here?"

"No, I'm going to go meet him at Mechiyo Park..."

"Can I come?"

"No...I mean, your father wanted to talk to me alone. Maybe next time, okay honey?"

"Oookaaay," the girl sighed sadly.

Her mother hugged her.

"Don't worry, it'll just be a matter of time when you see your daddy. He's just a very...busy man," the woman stated, grabbing her light jacket. "Hmm...It looks like its going to rain...I'll be home soon."

The woman walked towards the front door and heard her daughter running behind her.

"Promise?" she asked as her mother opened the door. It was a question the young girl always asked her before she went out.

Dr. Mizuno smiled.

"I promise."

AN: So, what'd you think? For all you AJaG readers out there, I know this story seems to wander off from my usual wacky happiness, but it's for the best. Without this story, I wouldn't be able to build a decent story-plot for AJaG (not that I didn't have one in mind), but this just adds intensity for future AJaG screwyness... Anyway, watch out for upcoming chapters! Please review! (flames welcome, I don't care!)

P.S. Oh yeah, did you like my acronym for "All Just a Game" (AJaG)? So I guess "Four of a Kind" will just have to be referred to FofaK, huh? (I know, not really an acronym, but isn't FofaK much better than FoaK?)-' ...heh...right...