A Darker Path
TheReaperCometh
Chapter 11
"The Glint"
POV Nagisa
.
.
.
Karasuma flings the conference door open so forcefully, that it slams into the adjacent wall with a jarring crash, engendering a deafening silence as 12 heads and 24 exasperated eyes fall on us.
"Well, look who decided to show up. Have trouble getting out of bed this morning, princess?" The director states sardonically. Karasuma bows his head apologetically.
"I was… held up."
Director Shinji snorts implacably. "Yeah, I received word from a detective… I forget his name... about 15 minutes ago. He says he bumped into you as a witness to a crime scene you and" he then motions to Karma and I with a flippant wave of his hand " these two - students of yours, I presume - were involved with. We can talk about that later, we have more pressing matters right now".
He gets up from the head of the table and and approaches us. Although not a particularly physically imposing man, I can feel a palpable sense of control and confidence coming off of him. I don't even know the man, but I already feel as though he could easily solve all my problems. I'd heard tales of how effective he is as a leader, and my first impression of him right now seems to validate the rumours. I can easily tell that just his presence alone would be enough to potentiate any man into taking action and following orders without a moment's hesitation.
He glares down at me, and I sheepishly lower my head under the weight of his gaze. I feel his gaze leave me, and with it the weight, allowing me to raise my head again. He glares at Karma analytically, and even Karma takes a few seconds before being able to muster the resolve to reciprocate the gaze. Bakama raises an eyebrow, out of either curiosity, or annoyance at Karma's obstinate defiance.
"So these two are students that participated in the incapacitation of all my soldiers? They don't look like much" He spits out judgmentally, though I can detect a hint of wounded pride in his statement.
Much to my chagrin, Karma interjects. I knew he would, as his ego would never allow someone to underestimate him.
"Good enough to take on your sorry excuses for soldiers. Honestly, if they're the ones defending our country, I don't know why we even bother investing tax dollars into the military at all."
I gape in horror as the director's jaw clenches and an alarming vein bulges from his neck. Before the director can lash out, Karasuma clears his throat to diffuse the situation.
"Ignore that comment sir, the boy barely understands how the tax system even works. Care to fill me in on what's being discussed right now?"
Director Shinji, responds, eyes still locked in a cold war with Karma.
"Hmph. We were just tossing out ideas on possible suspects. We've all concluded that the main perpetrator - the tentacle monster - is Akira Takaoka. That's indisputable."
My blood turns cold. What. I frantically look to Karasuma for an explanation. Did he know about this? Karasuma eyes don't look my way.
"Are you 100% sure it was him?" Karasuma asks. The Director sighs in hyperbolized exhaustion.
"Now this is why I hate it when people are late to meetings. Re-explaining something is one of the most time inefficient things… anyway, it can't be helped this time. You were late because of unavoidable circumstances. I'll give you the lowdown. At 8:27 p.m, Akira Takaoka was freed from Kunugigaoka's maximum security institute for the criminally insane. He was helped by an unknown inside man, presumably a security guard, whose identity has yet to be determined. His escapade wasn't noticed until 9:45 p.m, at which time all prison cells are inspected, and final roll call is taken. His cell was empty of course, alarms were raised, but obviously it was far too late. It was soon after discovered that the security camera feeds for his cell block had been tampered with to a static loop which had gone unnoticed by the security guards monitoring the screens. A cliche trick, I know, but last night was so… eventful, that it actually worked. 27 minutes later, at about 10:12 p.m, a sample of the tentacle serum was stolen from Kunugigaoka's experimental research lab, about 15 km away from the prison in which Takaoka was institutionalized. In hindsight, it wasn't the greatest idea to construct our maximum security prison so close to our lab chock-full of dangerous and experimental weaponry. Now these things can't possibly be coincidental. Coupled with the fact that he has, er, had, a strong connection and feeling of resentment for your class, in particular a boy in your class, Nagisa Shiota. So that gives Takaoka a valid motive, which only further supports the conjecture that he was the tentacle beast. It would also explain the horrible murder of that poor boy's m-"
"For a 'lowdown', that explanation sure was long winded. Karasuma, Nagisa and I get the gist of it, let's move one.' Karma exclaims in an ostensibly urgent voice. He used some unneeded inflection when saying my name. I look to Karma with a quizzical expression. With my superhuman sensory abilities I feel his heart rate spike as we make eye contact for a moment before he quickly averts his gaze back to the director. Shinji has an appalled expression on his face for having been interrupted, before suddenly softening as he glances sympathetically at… me? Why?
"Ah, so he's…" The Director trails off, glancing between Karma and Karasuma, both of whom nod nearly imperceptibly.
"I apologize for my inconsiderate verbalization, I had no idea. You have my condolences young man. Okay people let's get back to work." He struts back to his seat and motions towards an empty seat next to him.
"Karasuma, take your seat. I didn't know you'd be bringing guests. You two can pull up some of the extra chairs over along the wall."
Before I can voice my confusion pertaining to why the Director of national defense just expressed sympathy towards me, Karma and Karasuma walk over to their seats, leaving me to stand awkwardly at the entrance. Not that anyone is paying me any attention. Feeling alone and embarrassed, I quickly scurry after Karma and pull up a chair between Karasuma and him. I glance between them, hoping one of them will be willing to address my concerns. They don't. Their eyes stayed glued forward, as if intentionally ignoring my attempts to gain their attention. Feeling frustrated and dejected, I put my hands on my lap and look towards the director, waiting him to begin this stupid meeting. Why the hell am I even here?
"I have some bad news" the Director candidly states. All the whispers circulating between members of the table cease instantly. Bakama swivels in his chair and with a click of two buttons, the lights in the room turn off and a projector turns on, displaying a slideshow of images along the white wall.
He clicks fullscreen on the first image.
"At our international community science centre in Tokyo, an experimental sample of a…" He waves is hand in the air searching for the right word, "antidote, I supposed is the best word, to reverse the effects of the tentacle serum, was stolen."
Excited chatter irrupts around the table, but Bakama's booming voice drowns it out as quickly as it started.
"As I was saying! The antidote sample was stolen two weeks ago, by an unknown vigilante who has remained unknown since then. Which is why we had to use plan B,The Shield and The Spear to try and neutralize the creature responsible for destroying 70% of the moon."
The Spear and The Shield was the government's plan B? We had a potential, easy solution to this whole disaster? Last night could've been completely avoided if some asshole hadn't stolen this antidote two weeks ago. Anger swells up inside of me. I look around the table and see everyone has dumbfounded looks on their faces.
"Sir, if you don't mind my asking. If we had a remedial serum this whole time, why didn't we implement it sooner… before it could get stolen" a man pipes up from the back of the table. Everyone looks to Shinji with expectant gazes, eagerly awaiting his reasoning. Shinji looks annoyed.
"As I said, the sample was experimental. It was the only sample in existence, and was still believed to be in the developmental stages when it was stolen. At least that's what I was told. Mr. President and myself both agreed it would bee best to wait until the sample could be recreated and perfected before attempting to use it. With the deadline fast approaching we couldn't put all our eggs in one basket too early on."
"Then how come we didn't just recreate it again?" The man asks again.
"For christ's sake, Kimyo, save the questions until I address you, we've been over this."
"My apologies" Kimyo replies, though his tone reflects no sincerity.
'To answer your question however, before I continue," Shinji continues "The perpetrator also made off with the notes regarding the creation and constituents of the cure, then wiped all information regarding the project from the system's database. Which is not only infuriating, but also troubling as this would mean the thief had high level access to the facility and computer systems. This serum took months to create, and it was apparent that two weeks wouldn't be enough time to redevelop it."
I jump a little in my seat as Karasuma's orotund voice comes from right next to me,
"Sir, if you don't mind my asking, what was the point of telling us all this? How is telling us about the antidote pertinent in any way?"
The director stops swivelling idly in his chair, and narrows his eyes at everyone in the room. His gaze rests on me for a nearly imperceptible moment longer than on anyone else, sending an anxious shiver through my body.
"Well you see," he starts before clicking a button on his remote and moving onto the next slide. The screen displays two picture side by side of two piles of shattered glass. So what? I glance around the room to see if I'm missing something obvious, but everyone else seems just as underwhelmed and perplexed as me.
"We have reason to believe that Takaoka is still alive."
Huh. That… can't be true. It just can't be. The bastard responsible for Kayano and Korosensei's death can't possibly be alive and roaming the streets scot-free. I.. I feel slighted. My head starts throbbing, pulsing with anger and guilt. I should've killed that monster when I had the chance on the roof of the hotel. Why did I listen to everyone, telling me not to kill him? If I hadn't been weak, fixated on retaining my own innocence and following a moral compass - if I had JUST done what I knew needed to be done to that sick fuck, and bloodied my hands that night, all of this could have been prevented.
Before I can continue my self-castigation, the director continues
"These two pictures are of the broken vials containing the tentacle serum and the tentacle vaccine. One was found outside the gruesome crime scene -" He stops and motions to Karma and I, directing everyone's gaze towards us. I reactively shrink back in my seat. Shinji continues: "which in light of our current company, we won't go into the details of. The seconds pile of glass was found on the southern peak of the mountain - right on the inner edge of where the Shield has been erected. This was obviously the one containing the reverse serum. In other words, there had been a tentacle entity trapped within the Shield that self administered the vaccine, reverted back to human form, and exited the Shield unscathed before Spear was fired."
"Now here's a photo of a trail of lone tracks of very large footprints going down the south side of the mountain, where no students or soldiers had been all night. They're also fresher than all the other ones, so they obviously-"
"Sir,pardon me sir, but how do we know that those two piles of glass were in fact the shattered vials that had contained the tentacle serums? Littering isn't exactly an unheard of practice, and that glass could belong to just about regular bottle or jar or-'"
The director cuts him off, though not angrily "You're lucky that's a half-decent question Kimyo, or I would be throttling you right now. The glass shards matched perfectly the type of glass the serum containing vials were made of - a very special silicate glass, designed to contain the highly reactive and volatile serums. I assure you that your average joe's mason jar or liquor bottle wouldn't be made of this glass."
A few snickers flicker around the table, before the ramifications of this knowledge sink in. Takaoka is alive. The bastard that killed Kayano is still-
" Now we dispatched 6 four man teams about 3 hours ago to thoroughly search the city for any signs of the man in question. They've been given a shoot to kill order, and by now they've already searched over 80% of the city." Bakama informs us, clicking a button and bringing us to a live feed of a bird's eye view of the entire city. Scatter over the map, there are 6 blinking red dots, presumably representing the location of each unit. Teachnology sure is remarkable these days. Under normal circumstances, being here in a top secret government meeting and seeing all of this would be enough to make me giddy with excitement at the prospect of being in a spy movie. But I'm in a shitty mood right now, and no amount of bewilderment can distract me from my contempt.
But my ears perk up a bit at hearing this. There's a chance he'll be brought to justice after all.
"And?" Karasuma asks dubiously.
"They've found jack shit, no sign of Takaoka at all."
My head slumps pessimistically. Of course. Heaven forbid something actually goes in our favor for once. That would be too easy. Fueled by frustration, I find my voice.
'So what's the plan now?" I say in an attempted polite voice, but it comes out cold and bitter. I almost wince at how disrespectful it sounded, and I pray the director won't be too offended by it
The director raises an eyebrow and regards e incredulously. All eyes, including Karma's and Karasuma look at me in surprise of my sudden outburst. Strangely enough, Shinji doesn't become angry or even annoyed. He sighs heavily and looks right in my eyes with a grim sadness. Something about it makes the bile in my gut boil and I just feel like punching something. Why does he keep looking at me like I'm the most irredeemably pitiable thing on the planet?
"I'm sorry, Nagisa, I know it's frustrating. I want to catch this bastard too, everyone does. He's a loose cannon: a dangerous psychopath on a good day, and an inconceivable monster on most. Aside from the fact that he's criminally insane and potentially armed, we have no idea what the after-effects of reverting back to human form from tentacle monster will be: he'll likely have heightened strength, speed and reflexes for a few days at the very least until the effects of his now dormant tentacle DNA wear off. It's of paramount importance that we capture him as quickly as possible, and you have my word as the director of national defense that he will be brought to justice and punished accordingly for his actions."
His sympathetic expression slowly converted to one of deep conviction and resolve as he spoke, his eyes never leaving mine while he spoke. Surprisingly enough, I find myself unable to tear my eyes away from his. His sincere speech was more than enough to quell my anger, and I come to the conclusion that I can trust his words wholeheartedly. I slink back in my seat, with a sense of numbing satisfaction.
"Now I won't keep you here much longer, Karasuma. I know you and your students have been through a lot and could use some much deserved R&R."
Karasuma nods appreciatively, and the director continues; "Your mission, Karasuma, is to do some digging of your own on the whereabouts of Takaoka. You know the man better than anyone. If you find anything, just let us know. You know how to contact me. Contact the bureau for any resources you may require that will help you in your search. Anything can be at your disposal, within reason, if you recite the high level access password inscribed on this card." Shinji says while handing Karasuma a small envelope.
"Hai!" Karasuma exclaimes. Karma snickers, reaches up and pats Karasuma on the head.
"Who's a good little lapdog?"
Karasuma shoots him a nasty look. A few quiet laughs resound around the table, and a faint smile threatens to tug at the director's mouth.
"You're dismissed, Karasuma. Go get some rest and then catch this bastard."
"Hai". Karasuma gets up robotically and beelines for the door, turning and bowing politely before opening the door and exiting. Karma and I scramble after him, bowing awkwardly before we race out the door.
.
.
.
POV Karasuma
"Get some rest and then catch this bastard". What a passively arm-twisting statement. He knows me well, and he knows there's no way I'm gonna sit on my ass and rest while Takaoka is still at large. While I can respect Shinji for being a strategic and decisive man of action, I really detest his craftiness sometimes. The building's hallways are mostly empty now, since everyone has hunkered down in their offices for a day of work. Times like this make me feel very fortunate to be a field agent, and not some pencil pusher cooped up in a stuffy cubicle all day.
But seriously, Takaoka is still alive? For fuck's sake, when it rains it pours.
I hear two sets of rapid footfalls catching up to me. I position myself in front of the more obnoxious sounding footsteps. The ones that just screamed Karma. I come to an abrupt stop suddenly, and a body barrels into my back.
"Oi, what's the big idea, teme!" Karma shrieks.
I smirk but force it back as I turn to face him sternly.
"Just because we're out of school doesn't mean I'm not your sensei. Don't call me teme, show a bit of respect. Or if you'd prefer me to not be your sensei anymore, I'd be just as happy to consider you as a normal punk and not my student. Then I'd be able to knock you flat on your ass for pulling shit like what you did back there."
I'm obviously referring to the lapdog comment in front of my coworkers.
"Hai, Hai, sen-sei." Karma quips dismissively.
That's about the best response I can hope for. I sigh as I turn around. But before I begin walking, I add:
"And don't touch my head ever again."
I start walking slowly, and shoot a quick glance over my shoulder at Nagisa. He's looking despondently down at the floor, with a look on his face that words can't describe. A facial expression that can't decide whether it wants to display disgust, apathy, or distraught. Nagisa has always been a bit difficult to read, unlike some redheads I know who wear their hearts on their sleeve unless purposefully hiding it for the sake of some immature prank. Looking forward again, I round the corner and the elevator comes into view, just 10 spaces away. Suddenly I can FEEL Karma grinning devilishly. WIthout even looking back, I reach over my shoulder and grab the wrist of Karma's outstretched arm, inches away from my head. I let out a long exhale.
"I knew you'd try to touch my head again after I told you not to. You're such a predictable little kid sometimes, Karma."
I hear him laugh. "Hoh? You're mistaken, sensei, I was just saluting to a soldier we just passed, that's all.
We haven't passed anyone in the halls for at least 30 seconds.
"Uh huh." I mutter. Suddenly my stomach leaps in my throat.
"Karma, where's Nagisa?"
Where the hell did he go? Karma looks around frantically, then he points behind me.
"He's right there, don't be so paranoid Karasuma."
I turn back around and see Nagisa is waiting in the elevator, leaning against the wall. Phew.
As Karma walks by me, I feel a hand tap the top of my head. I reach out to grab Karma but he ducks away and scurries into the elevator. I drop my guard for one second, and look what happens. I take a deep and exasperated breath before heading for the elevator again.
The ride down is quiet, and nobody says a word. I think Karma and I are too fixated on Nagisa to try to start a conversation.
The elevator doors slide open with a cheerful ding, clashing with the morose atmosphere emanating from Nagisa. We all step out into the damp and dimly lit underground parking lot. I parked fairly close to the elevator.
"Got any ideas on how to get Takaoka, Karasuma sensei?" Nagisa speaks up for the first time. Ah, that's what he's been brooding about the last five minutes.
"I'm not sure yet Nagisa. I'll have to make some calls and dig up some old files…" I trail off seeing the disappointed look present itself on Nagisa's soft feature. I've always had a bit of a soft spot for the blue haired boy. Maybe because of his small stature, his meek personality, or his delicate features considering his gender. I wish I could give him something more concrete. Knowing Takaoka is still alive must be eating him alive. But at the same time, I have the feeling that even if I did have an idea on how to find Takaoka, I wouldn't tell Nagisa a thing. For I recognize a suppressed glint of malevolence in his icy eyes. Though well masked by the young assassin, I've seen it too many times for it to slip by undetected. It's the glint of revenge. A glimmer that I've seen in the eyes of many talented agents and criminals alike when they envision themselves doing unthinkable things to someone else, reveling in the comfort that comes with imagining the infliction of pain on someone who has abused or oppressed you. Enemies I've captured and interrogated in the past would regard me with a look very similar to the one Nagisa has right now, though much more conspicuous.
I open the driver's side door and plop down into my seat. I hear the door right behind me open and Karma sits down with an exaggerated sigh. Surprisingly enough, the front passenger door opens up and Nagisa takes a seat next to me. He doesn't look at me, and instead opts to just gaze longingly out the window. I have no reason to object his seating choice, but I do find it a bit peculiar. I start the car and soon we're out of the underground parking lot. I flash George a quick salute out the window as we drive by and he beams happily.
"I'll see ya around then, ya rigid bastard!" He calls out. I've known him for years and we've gone on a handful of missions together. He always used to mock me in the beginning for being so by the book, and we actually weren't able to cooperate properly together. He thought I was too 'rigid', and I thought him to be too flippant and easy going. Our first mission together was to capture a chinese arms dealer, named Xiao Qing. He was the son of a Duke, and his pampered lifestyle as well as his access to an exuberant amount of money since he was born left him feeling bored and invincible.
But he wasn't just a snot nosed brat. He was an intelligent and cunning individual, who at the age of 20 in 2002 had become one of the most infamous arms dealers in japan, exporting thousands of illegal weaponry, military grade stuff, to Japan each year. Unfortunately, the fact that he himself usually remained in China and rarely actually came to Japan, coupled with his family's prestige made him practically untouchable and well beyond our government's jurisdiction. It was frustrating, to say the least, as gun violence crime was rising by 0.7% each year since he started dealing. Which may not seem like a lot, but that is an unbelievably large influence for one single man to have, especially since he wasn't even in our country.
It wasn't until 3 and a half years later, when he was 23, that we finally caught him. We caught wind of an extraordinary opportunity when one of our spies that had been posted to monitor the activities of one of Tokyo's most prominent crime syndicates, the Yakuza. It had been common knowledge that they dealt regularly with Xiao Qing, but they're dealings were extremely discrete and nearly impossible to catch them red handed. The few times we did, it was too late. So when Bakama Shinji uncovered the time and place of an upcoming deal, and that Qing was going to actually physically be there, he had no choice but to act. We couldn't launch a full scale attack, or kill Xiao, that would just raise diplomatic tension between China and Japan, and would certainly upset the higher ups of Yakuza: who still hold a lot of power to this day.
We ourselves had to be discrete. So Bakama decided to send in just two people: a gallant duo. Myself, a fairly new agent with promising skills and indomitable resolve, and George, a talented agents with a lot of missions under his belt. Long story short, after silently taking out a few of Xiao's guards and Yakuza henchmen, bickering about tactics the whole way through, George and I finally captured Qing and got out unscathed. Or so we thought. As we were making our escape, a whimpering arms dealer in tow, we were surrounded by a handful of Yakuza mobsters, all bearing illegal sub machine guns. To my horror, George held a knife to Xiao's throat and threatened to slit his jugular if anyone tried to stop them. The Yakuza nearly held firm on blocking our escape, but when George pressed the knife even harder against the young man's throat, he immediately ordered the men to stand down which allowed us leave freely. As we were walking away, a gutsy gunman actually fired at us, and to my surprise, George swung Xiao in front of him as a meat shield, allowing a bullet to bore itself deep into the dealer's upper shoulder. He screamed in pain and that immediately made the gunmen unnerved and they didn't dare try to stop us again.
When we were free and clear of it all, I tried giving George an earful for his unorthodox and poor choices and tactics. If Xia had died from that bullet there would've been hell to pay, that using him as a meatshield was not only a horrible idea, but cowardly as well. Well I learned a lot that day. George would have none of what I had to say. He shut me down and yelled back with an even louder voice, which at the time, given my own inexperience and his seniority, shut me down real quick. And I learned some important lessons from him. You can't always go by the books. No code of conduct or regulations book could account for every circumstance that could arise on a mission.
"Are the effin' government pencil pushers that wrote this damned code of conduct out 'ere, shooting, killing, and getting' shot at? Hell no, lad! It's nice and easy to sit in a stuffy cubicle all day, nice and safe and out of harm's way and tell others how to act in life or death situations. They aren't 'ere! So fuck 'em, and fuck your prideful code of conduct! Get yer head outta the clouds! The ability to improvise and adapt to a situation that's going down the shitter is the most important skill an agent can have, and if you can't look past yer own god damn selfish pride of having to be a perfect and upstanding agent, you'll be dead by the end of this year!"
His words hit me hard, and it made me realize that I had a lot to improve on before I could consider myself a 'good' field agent. I began to respect George from that point on. Eventually, after a few drunken endeavours at bars together after a couple more successful shared missions, we had a mutual trust and admiration for each other's skill and we became good friends. In a sense, the old saying stands true, that opposites attract. He helped me become less uptight and, well, unorthodox, and I was there to remind him that regulations were still needed and he couldn't just ignore their existence. Rules still needed to be followed.
Before I know it, I'm parked in my driveway. I had just driven back home completely on autopilot, which is a dangerous thing to. It made me wonder why I had so irresponsibly reminisced like that to begin with. I looked to Nagisa as he climbed out of the car and then I remembered, after seeing his face.
I'll never forget the look Xiao was giving George and I as we interrogated him and forced a confession out of him. It was the first time someone had looked at me with such hate filled eyes, and at the time it actually scared me because it was so genuine. It shocked me that someone who I had just met, who knew nothing about me, could hate me so much. I knew immediately, even at the time, that he was picturing my death in as many ways as possible.
I get out of the car and Nagisa asks me, disturbing my thoughts. When I look to him, the shimmer of vengeance is gone from his eyes.
"Sensei, can we please go visit the hospital now?"
I look at my watch. It's barely 8:00 a.m
"Nagisa, the hospital isn't open to visitors until 9:00. I want to see everyone too, but we'll have to wait a bit longer. Besides, I'm pretty hungry."
"I'm pretty… famished myself" Karma adds, yawning halfway through his sentence.
Nagisa looks as if he's about to protest, but as if comically on cue, is stomach growls which would've certainly countered whatever he was about to say. He looks away with a rosy blush on his cheeks. I smile knowingly and unlock the front door.
"Come on, I'll cook some eggs and toast for breakfast then we'll head out to the hospital."
With a hopeful look in his eyes Nagisa bolts inside and practically flings his shoes off, racing off to the kitchen, anxious to get breakfast over with. His energetic vim perplexes me, as it completely betrays his mood up until right now. Karma passes by me lazily and mutters,
"Only you would consider making toast 'cooking' Karasuma-sensei…"
I grumble under my breath, "yeah, well I'll make sure to burn yours".
"Just the way I like it." He smirks ironically.
I suppose this is how our relationship is now. Just a perpetual cycle of playful and sarcastic banter. I don't mind it in small doses, but being around Karma for prolonged periods of times just makes me want to rip my hair out. I wonder how Nagisa can handle it. Maybe with Nagisa, Karma is less insulting? No, I doubt it. Nagisa is frequently the target of his pranks. I suppose Nagisa just puts up with it, and maybe even enjoys it.
I have a newfound respect for the blue haired boy.
As I make my way to the kitchen, I see Karma has already made himself at home on my couch and has already acquainted himself with the tv remote. Nagisa on the other hand, is impatiently fidgeting, seated at the kitchen table. He's already laid out the cutlery at three spots on the table.
I put 3 pieces of bread down the toaster and idly scramble some eggs in a frying pan over the stove.
Karma finally decides on a channel to stick on. A show that I myself watch sometimes on rare occasions, called American Ninja Warrior. As the name suggests, it's a show originating from the United states, but we get a subtitled rebroadcast here in Japan. It's a show in which competitors, all in great physical shape, attempt to clear very challenging obstacle courses as quickly as possible.
I personally enjoy watching the show to admire the competitors and watch fruits of their training come true - it's interesting to watch as well, because although there are indeed professional athletes and body builders that compete in the competition, there are a ton of other people who have completely unexpected careers that participate as well: I've seen hair stylists and engineers come on this show who ironically and inspiringly perform better than the athletes and weightlifters.
Karma cackles as a man attempts to hop across a precarious spinning platform butt falls into the pool below.
But I suspect he watches it for another reason, no doubt he enjoys watching everyone fail and tumble ungraciously into the water below.
The toast pops and Nagisa startles at the sound, his ears perking up as he starts tapping his foot rapidly. He really can't wait to visit everyone.
I scrape each egg out of the pan individually with a spatula and place one on each plate. I call Karma over to the table.
"Itadakimasu!" Nagisa and Karma politely say with a clap of their hands before they start eating. Nagisa ravenously attacks his food, wolfing everything down as quickly as possible. Karma takes a few bites and I try my best to hold back a smile as he starts to gasp and his eyes begin to water.
I had snuck some very spicy peppers in his eggs.
He looks around frantically for a drink, mouth agape and tongue hanging out. He flutters a hand in front of his tongue futilely as he rushes over to the sink and starts drinking directly from the tap. Nagisa glances at him, concerned and confused.
"Karma kun?"
Karma can't afford to respond for another 30 seconds as he greedily gulps down mouthful after mouthful of water.
I continue eating as if nothing has happened, playing the innocent role in an obvious attempt to reveal my guilt. I hear the tap turn off and Karma whirls around and points at me.
"You bastard!" he cries. I look up, surprised, for his voice did not sound betrayed or angry. It sounded cheerful and congratulatory.
"So you do have a fun side to you after all, sensei! And here I thought you just permanently had a stick up your ass!" He claps his hands. Nagisa glances between us incredulously.
'Am I missing something?" Nagisa inquires.
I smile. What a weird kid, that redhead.
"You just missed the devilish handiwork of our sensei, Nagisa san. It seems we overestimated his boyscout-ness. Steve Rogers would be ashamed of you, Karasuma!" He jokes, but I can tell he's genuinely excited. If I had a 100 yen for every time someone compared me to that 'Captain America' I'd be able to quit my job and live a comfortable life.
I'm beginning to wonder if putting peppers in his omelette was worth it now.
"Oh man, I'll get you back good for that one day Karasuma sensei!"
Yep, it was definitely a mistake putting peppers in his eggs.
Nagisa gives up on trying to figure out what happened, and focuses on finishing his last bit of toast.
Now we're all done eating, and after washing up I look at the clock and see that it's 8:22 a.m.
"Oiiiiii, Karasuma sensei! Hayaku kite!" I hear Nagisa call up the stairs urgently. I suppose it's time we head out, or Nagisa might explode.
.
.
.
POV Nagisa
With a turn of the key, the car engine flicks off. I gaze out the window at the looming hospital before us. Looking at the large red illuminated H sign, I feel anxiety well up inside of me. It's a similar sensation to the one I get right before I give a presentation in class. I'm no longer excited to see everyone. There's a pit in my stomach.
I don't want to see everyone injured.
And I sure as hell can't handle finding out if someone else has died.
"Nagisa? What are you waiting for, baka?" Karma calls out to me. I blink twice and look around me and see I'm the only one left in the car. Karasuma and Karma are looking in at me through their open doors with analytical eyes. Feeling embarrassed I clammer out of the car muttering an apology.
Karma just laughs at my awkwardness and Karasuma begins leading the way into the hospital. We get inside and Karasuma tells me to wait while he goes and speaks to the receptionist. I look around at the depressing environment. I don't understand how anyone could make a career working in a place like this. I watch Karasuma talking to the woman. She obviously didn't want to tell him where the students were being kept, because I see him flash his badge and then point back to the two of us. The woman looks over Karasuma's shoulder any sadly looks at me. I feel my cheeks flare up and I look to the ground, unable to reciprocate such a condoling stare. Karma is completely oblivious, fiddling with a plastic fern we happen to be next to. The lady looks back to Karasuma and then starts pointing down the east win hallway, offering directions. Karasuma nods his head a few times, then bows politely before beginning to head towards the east wing. He glances over rat us and beckons us over with a curl of his finger.
For some reason, I take Karma's hand and pull him along, nervously speed walking after Karasuma. I don't look back at him, because I don't want to make grabbing his hand any more awkward. He doesn't pull away from my grip, surprisingly. I finally look back fleetingly and Karma looks into my eyes with a lofty expression. He smiles weakly. Through his hand I feel his heartbeat - erratic and rapid. He's just as anxious as I am.
We turn a corner and see Karasuma standing outside a room, waiting for us.
I give Karma's hand one last squeeze before letting go. I don't want Karasuma to see us doing something so embarrassing. We finally reach the closed door and Karasuma glances between the two of us.
"A doctor is with them right now. This is the girls' room, the boy's room is a few doors down. The receptionist told me they were all originally in separate rooms, but they kept adamantly insisting they be together. Normally this request would be declined of course, but since they are just students and they went through an abnormally traumatic experience, the doctors thought maybe it would be best to keep them together - close proximity with one another might even offer some therapeutic value - so they were all moved to the same rooms… aside from a couple students that are in the ER in critical condition." He adds with a low voice. My heart starts beating faster. Before I can fully regain my composure, Karasuma knocks on the door quietly. A few moments later a bald man with thin rimmed glasses in a white coat open the door halfway.
"I just got the call saying you were coming. I presume you're Karasuma, these students'... teacher?" He asks in a confirming voice. Karasuma nods politely.
"Hi, I'm doctor Yasugo, pleasure to meet you" he offers his hand which Karasuma takes and they shake with one quick motion. "er, actually, not really, given the unfortunate circumstances" He adds. He steps to the side to allow us to enter.
"Hoooh? Bitch-sensei? What are you doing here!" Karma exclaims happily.
Karasuma's eyes widen.
"Ohayou, I-Irina" he stammers. I shoot him a questioning glance. Was that a stutter? I don't think I've ever heard him stutter before.
Irina giggles and opens her mouth to say something but she gets cut off.
"Nagisa!" My head snaps back from looking at Karasuma to the source of the exclaim.
My eyes light up instinctively as my eyes fall on Kurahashi's cheerful face, as she along with Okuda and Nakamura ebulliently wave their arms at me. Thankfully, they aren't even sitting on stretchers, and don't appear to be injured.
I find it in myself to smile and start walking over to them.
Suddenly a flash of green in the corner of the room captivates my attention.
My eyes dart up in shock. My legs stop functioning. The world around me fades away and I almost begin to cry.
For sitting upright in a stretcher, smiling at me,
Is Kayano.
H-How? I don't even care how. I'm overwhelmed with relief and joy, the likes of which I've never experienced before.
I force my legs to take a step towards her stretcher.
"K-Kayano?"
She tilts her head to the side warmly and opens her mouth to say something. I can't believe she's alive! This is the happiest moment of my life!
Before she can say something however, I blink from a buildup of tears blurring my vision.
And the mirage disperses.
I stare blankly at the empty stretcher before me. I begin to panic a bit. Kayano, where did she go? What the hell! She was just there!
And then reality sets back in and the real world envelops me like a cold blanket.
That's right. She died. She's gone forever. I'll never be able to study with her, or plan assassinations with her, or hear her energetic and contagious laughter. I'll never be able to tell her that I-
"Nagisa? What's wrong? Why are you crying? Daijobu...desuka?" Kurahashi asks in soothing tone.
I'm crying? I bring a hand slowly up to my face and touch my left cheek, feeling a wetness from a freshly shed trail of tears. I laugh emptily at my own ridiculousness, hallucinating Kayano like that. I feel like the spear that had lanced my heart upon seeing Kayano's head through the air had just been violently ripped out, leaving a gaping and vulnerable hole in my chest.
"N-nothing. I'm just… so happy to see you guys safe and sound!" The worry on the girls' faces disappears immediately.
"Aw, Nagisa-kun" Nakamura murmurs sweetly.
"Oi, what am I, chopped liver?" Karma says as he passes me to get to the 3 girls. He shoots me a knowing glance as he passes by, revealing that my feeble excuse for my tears didn't fool him.
Nakamura grins sadistically as Karma comes into view.
"Hey! Well, look who it is, the knight in shining armor!"
Karma and I exchange confused glances at his new title.
"I saw you run back to save Nagisa, and carry him off to safety, protecting him in your arms." she explains. The two other girls sigh dreamily, and I blush at the thought of what sort of scandalous imagery they could possibly be conjuring up of Karma and I.
Nakamura goes on and playfully punches Karma in the chest,
"You manly man, you!" She says sarcastically. "And here I thought you were just a bastard who only fended for himself!"
Karma, unfazed by her words, smirks back.
"Well you can bet that if it had been you left behind instead of Nagisa, I would've happily left your ass back there without a second thought!"
The two of them share a devilish laugh, which sends a shudder down my back, and the other two girls laugh nervously. I glance back and see that the doctor left, leaving Irina sensei and Karasuma sensei to talk alone. Karasuma scratches the back of his head as Irina giggles. I smile at Karasuma's awkwardness. I look around me at all the other girls in the room, either sleeping or unconscious on stretchers. I smile sadly at seeing that they're all at least alive, albeit in rough shape. Hayami and Kanzaki san are worrisomely connected to oxygen masks. I do a headcount. 2,4,6,8,10...? My heart skips a beat. I must've just counted incorrectly.
I count again. The total comes to 10 once more. Without Ritsu and… Kayano… there should be 11 students in here, excluding Karma and I. I then start counting each girl, one by one by name.
Yada, Okuda, Kanzaki, Fuwa, Hayami, Hazama, Okano, Kataoka, Nakamura, Kurahashi…
"Oi, Nakamura! Where's Hara-san!?"
The three girls look down with crestfallen eyes. It's Kurahashi that speaks up finally.
"The doctor said… she's in critical condition in the ER room as we speak… she… she got crushed by a tree trunk that the monster knocked over as we all tried to escape." She stops to catch her hitching breath and tears start to roll down her soft cheeks. Nakamura puts a comforting hand on her shoulder, which Kurahashi gladly takes as an invitation for her to turn and sob into Nakamura's chest. The hole in my chest widens.
"Ano…" Okuda interjects softly.
"Hara… she saw the tree falling towards Kurahashi and I. We didn't… even notice in the frenzy. So Hara… she pushed us out of the way of it's collapse but-"
"But she couldn't get out of the way herself!" Kurahashi cries out, whirling away from Nakamura's chest. "I-I-It's my fault she got hurt, I was so oblivious to everything! Hara…" She turns and buries her head into Nakamura's chest once more, her sobs now complete unrestrained weeping.
I'm about to offer her some comfort, and tell her it wasn't her fault at all. But the doctor comes in and interrupts us.
"Sorry, I'm going to have to ask you all to leave now. These patients need to take some medicine and get some more rest. And I don't mean to sound rude or insensitive, but youre getting quite loud in here it's disturbing other patients."
"Sumimasen, we'll be on our way to the male students' room now."
Karasuma and Irina usher Karma and I out of the classroom. I glance back one more time at the three girls before I leave the room.
"Sayonara, hope you all feel better soon. I… I'm sure I'll be visiting again soon."
"Sayonara" Okuda says on behalf of the three of them.
Karma offers a lofty wave goodbye, which I notice elicits a genuine smile from Nakamura.
As I walk outside, I'm suddenly embraced by two slender arms.
"I-Irina sensei?" I stammer in surprise. I feel her bosom squeeze tightly against my chest and my cheeks flush.
She pulls back a bit but doesn't let go completely. Her face is only a half foot away from mine, and I see her eyes are damp with the formation of tears. What's going on. I feel her warm breath against my face as she speaks, which makes my head spin. She strokes the side of my head lovingly as she speaks softly. It reminds me of how my mother used to talk to me when I was younger and she had just gotten me in a dress and done my makeup.
"As someone who grew up without parents, I can't even imagine the pain you're feeling right now, Nagisa kun. If you ever need someone to talk to, just know that I'm here for you okay? Whenever, wherever."
She pulls me in tightly again. I nod absently at her cryptic words. I'm not sure what she's referring to, but her words resuscitate an unusual pain deep within me. The pain is stale and sharp, as if I had forgotten about it and its source and it has be festering for a while. But why?
"Come on, I'll show you to the male students' room now" The doctor says as he starts walking down the hall. Everyone else follows him as Irina releases me,
Leaving me alone to mull over Irina's cryptic message.
A/N: Long chapter, I know! But I felt it needed to be done since I haven't updated in two weeks X_O. (ehehe… whoops.)
