Flow of Darkness
Chapter 3- Sour Reunion
Yuu stood still in his place when the voice called out to him. He knew that the shadow was holding a gun and it wouldn't doubt to fire at any sudden moves. The mercenary held his hands up in the air and waited for the shadow to reach out to the switch that would bring the lights back to life. The circular pale white bulbs flickered and after a second's pause, burst alight, dissipating the shadows which once ruled over the small house.
The man with the gun's face turned from a serious one into total surprise as he saw the young mercenary standing with his hands held up, a tired expression in his face.
"Y-Yuu! When did you get it?"
"Hello, uncle." said the silver-haired young man. Next thing he knew, he was sitting at the table with his uncle, drinking a cup of black coffee in an old mug, a present from the elder man named Ryoutaro Dojima as a proof that he was a part of the family. Yuu hadn't had that much coffee in the past few days and he hadn't seen his uncle in quite some time, so it felt kind of nice coming back to a place he could actually call home.
"So, I think you were about to tell me when you got in here."
"It was about five minutes before you arrived, I used the spare key."
"Oh, right, I forgot for a while, sorry."
Yuu shook his head lightly, understanding that his uncle was a busy man. The two exchanged a tired but content gaze before turning their attention back to their mugs. Then, Dojima added:
"Is Nanako…?"
"She´s asleep, in her room." replied Yuu in a soft voice.
"I see."
"Actually, she's part of the reason I came here tonight." said the young man opening his bag and putting two neatly wrapped packages on the table. Dojima's eyes widened in surprise and then, his face changed to confusion.
"Ok, I know today isn't my birthday and Nanako's is still pretty far away, so, what are these for?"
"Yuu looked at his uncle with slightly cold eyes and said, as if praying that the elder could give a proper response:
"Have you forgotten what day tomorrow is?"
Dojima looked away from his nephew in thought when suddenly, the answer hit him. He was looking at a family photo when he realized what day tomorrow was.
"Ah, yes. It's Chisato´s anniversary. But… why would you…?"
"They're for Nanako; she usually gets pretty sad after she visits my aunt's grave, so I thought this might help cheer her up."
Dojima's eyes then brightened up, deeply touched by the gesture. He then went over by the table and examined the presents, paying attention to every detail, from the paper to the ribbons and the usage of colors. Yuu knew exactly what his little cousin might have been expecting, even better than him.
"My, my, you do think of everything, don't you?" said Dojima with a light chuckle.
"No, not everything."
Yuu's voice sounded as if it had turned into ice inside his mouth, distant and sharp, echoing in a bottomless pit. Dojima looked at his nephew and noticed where he was facing. There, in a certain space near the dining room, there was a photo framed in black wood. The picture showed a silver-haired young man in a military uniform. The soldier had a confident and serious expression on his face. The lettering engraved on the lower part of the frame read:
Lt. Akihiko Sanada
Dead in fulfillment of his duty
To serve and protect
1991-2019
Dojima then placed a gentle hand on his nephew's shoulder, also looking at the memorial portrait of the deceased Lieutenant. The elder man remembered with great sorrow the day in which a valiant soul was lost, giving his life so that hundreds others -his nephew's included- would be spared.
"You know he knew what he was doing. He was willing to give up his life if it was needed. More importantly, he gave his life for you two. Hadn't it been for him, me and Nanako would be putting flowers on your and that kid, Hanamura's graves. Besides, you were there when he died; you heard his last wish, which he entrusted to you and you alone."
Yuu's memories raced back to that fateful day, in the middle of a bullet storm. Lt. Akihiko was trapped in the crossfire, shooting small bursts with his assault rifle. he tried to reach his comrade, but was cut off by an explosion. When the smoke cleared, Akihiko ran towards Yuu, but the sound of flesh being torn by the bullet stops time and the mercenary is thrown back to reality.
His stomach began to burn, thousands of invisible needles sinking into his entrails and a rising stream of acid running through his throat. He winced, but tried to be as discrete as possible. He would need to calm the excruciating pain inside him.
"I know you feel guilty for what happened, but you have to keep on going. Do it for his sake."
The silver-haired young man nodded, struggling against the intense pain in his stomach, applying a little amount of pressure. Dojima noticed his nephew´s actions and asked if everything was ok. The mercenary felt the overwhelming need to dash out of the house, but then, a beep interrupted his thoughts. Dojima picked up his cellphone and nodded every few seconds, turning away from his young nephew. When the call ended, the police detective looked at the silver-haired young man as if looking for answers to a question deep in shadows.
"There was a shootout in a corporative building in the financial district. Do you know anything about it?"
Yuu felt the adrenaline pump through his veins like the rapids and for some reason, broke out in a cold sweat. Maybe it was because he didn´t expect news of his actions would reach his uncle so quickly. Of course, he knew he would find out, eventually. Trying to act natural and oblivious to the incident, he finished his coffee and said:
"No, nothing. What did your contact say?"
"That a major CEO and his personal pilot had been found tied up inside his helicopter after two armed men killed several guards and almost killed him."
Yuu pretended to be amazed by the information and tried to sound as natural as possible, but Dojima's detective intuition was starting to weaken the mercenary's resilience. On top of that, Yuu's stomachache was becoming worse.
"Hey, are you ok? You seem… nervous."
"It's nothing. Oh! Look at the time, I gotta go."
The silver-haired young man closed his bag and hung it over his shoulder, walking fast to the doorway. Just before exiting the house, he added in a serious tone:
"Make sure Nanako gets the presents right after visiting my aunt's grave."
"What, you're not coming with us? Nanako would be pleased if you…"
"I can't." said Yuu cutting his uncle off. Dojima's face turned serious and somewhat disappointed, but replied with a heavy sigh:
"I understand, but promise me you'll come back so we can talk more, ok?"
Yuu couldn't help but to be frightened by elder Dojima's words. Behind them he could read a very ominous threat that could seriously damage his already fragile relationship with his relatives if he failed to comply with his uncle´s expectations. The truth was that Dojima suspected –if he didn't already know- that he was in very dangerous and illegal business. "Sailing the dark waters" he would say.
"I'll come back some other day. Thanks for the coffee and… the company."
Yuu walked away as his uncle's gaze followed him as if it was another part of his shadow. It took several block´s distance to make him forget the feeling. Regrettably, as soon as his thoughts left Dojima, the pain in his stomach came back intensified.
Yuu hurried back to his apartment and as soon as he crossed the threshold, dropped his bag and desperately dug inside one of his drawers, producing a little plastic tube which contained his prescription, pills to disperse the pain caused by a severe case of gastritis; a sour reminder of that day´s events and his superior´s death. The mercenary put one pill between his teeth and after praying in silence for relief, clutched them as tightly as he could. A loud crack resounded in his mouth, followed by a heavy swallowing sound.
The mercenary hardly managed to push himself up to his sleeping chair, breathing heavily, but relieved that the pain was starting to fade. Taking deep breaths, he left his mind take over the slow process of bringing himself back together. He could hear every thought in his head rewind itself at vertigo-like speed; every muscle of his body was taking note of every single move made throughout the day and fatigue washed over him, charging him for his actions.
Soon, there was a rather peaceful silence and his body's rhythm returned to normal. With one final deep breath, Yuu Narukami was back to his old collected self. Then, as soon as he opened his eyes, he headed for his computer. He was starting up the system when, suddenly, an image crossed his mind; that pair of intense sapphire eyes he saw on his way to the target´s building. He had never seen eyes as mysterious or alluring as those and he couldn't help but wonder who that person was. The thought continued to circle his mind for a while until he decided to go back to work. He needed to verify the fruits of his and his partner's work. However, the message waiting in his mailbox was far from what he had been expecting. When he tried to contact Yosuke, he was greeted by his answering machine. After the beep, he left the message and then headed back to sleep in his chair, first, thinking back on the sour reunion his uncle and then, back to those haunting blue orbs.
The alleyways of Okina city were a dangerous and unwelcoming place. One could end up lost, robbed, dead and even a mix of the three if one wasn't careful. Deep in shadows, a silhouette was waiting, lying back against the wall while trying to keep its hands warm. Suddenly, his cellphone vibrated.
"It's me." the shadow said. On the other side of the line, a soft and melodious voice replied.
"It appears that we will need to put our plan into action soon. Today's actions have put us in great peril, not to mention that you were almost discovered."
"Yes, I understand, but I can´t do this on my own."
"Not to worry. Your assistance has already arrived to Okina. She will join you soon."
"She… Wait, don´t tell me…"
"It was her choice; we couldn't do anything about it."
"But…"
"Not to worry, she's excellent doing her job. As long as you two work together, you´ll be safe. However, you must stay low until she contacts you."
There was a tense silence. The shadow felt cold sweat run down his face, but he needed to trust those he was talking to.
"When?" the shadow asked with shaky voice.
"Tomorrow night. Just make sure you have everything ready for the operation. No need for violence; just get inside, get the data and run. We´ll handle the rest."
"I… I understand." said the shadow as firmly as he could. The female speaker bid the shadow farewell and ended the call. The shadow then disappeared back into the depths of Okina city, a few hours before sunrise.
AN: Thank you so much for reading this!
I hope this story is to your liking. Don´t forget to review and notify me for any mistakes I might have made. What surprises will await Yuu and his companion? Who are these mysterious shadows moving deep inside the city and what are they up to? Stay tuned, for things will soon get complicated!
Be seeing you!
Shin-Izanagi
