Author's Note:
SPOILER ALERT
If you haven't played the game and don't want any more of it spoiled, I really do suggest that you don't read from here on out.
I won't, however, be spoiling the identity of the killer. That may sound odd but it's mostly due to the nature of the mystery and how I reeeeeally don't want to spoil that part for my boyfriend!
Anyway, there'll be a few little notes at the end of this chapter to explain a few things and… yeah!
Please enjoy and please leave a review (even though this chapter is mostly canon anyway, obviously other than the presence of Kali)!
The bright static of the screen faded, forcing the room back into a harsh, cold darkness. The blue eyed girl stared at the screen; her single eye wide in total shock, her slowly rising breath was the only sound.
She couldn't move, couldn't speak. What had she just seen? Surely it was not who she thought…
The little girl on the screen… It wasn't her, it couldn't be her. Why would anyone target a child so young and so innocent? Why would anyone target a child at all?
She forced out the breath she had held, her head swimming with dizziness, "O-Oh God… Oh God!" She whispered, her fingers tangling in her hair.
She stared pacing, staring down at the ground in fear. What could she do? Should she call someone or would they already be on the phone? Would it be pointless? What could she do?
The helplessness was so intense that she felt eight years old once more, hanging from the ceiling, unable to save anyone, unable to stop anything.
She shook her head violently, running to the window and pushing it open. God, she needed to think! She needed to calm down and think about this logically, like Yu would do.
Despite the late hour, Kali could hear the sounds of… footsteps, like the sound of someone running from a distance. The sound was getting closer but was clearly outside. She leant her head out of the window, thankfully still dressed in her dress, and saw the maker of the sound. Naoto was sprinting down the street, her coat flowing behind her. Their eyes met and Naoto beckoned her with a violent movement of her arm but did not slow down.
Kali sprang into action, quickly escaping her room and ran downstairs. She didn't even think to put on her shoes, there wasn't time for that. Barefoot and filled with adrenaline, Kali sped out of the door and after Naoto.
Stones dug into her small feet every time they met with the harsh concrete of the road, but she didn't even feel them. She could have run over glass and not acknowledged it, at this point.
Finally, despite the damage to her legs and feet, she caught up to Naoto. In between breaths, she desperately asked, "It was her, wasn't it?"
Naoto looked at her, the same level of worry in her eyes, "It's likely. Her face was printed in the newspapers this morning, the killer had a face to match the-" Her phone started ringing, the sound strangely haunting in this situation. She pulled it out of her pocket and answered, "Yes. I'm on my way to Dojima-san's house."
Kali listened silently, her heart beating heavily in her chest as Naoto continued to speak to the person on the other end, "Yosuke-senpai is heading to the police station, he'll be bringing Teddie and Kanji with him." She paused, listening to the response, "Please do, Chie-senpai. Please take Yukiko-senpai and Rise too, Kali and I will join you later." She snapped the phone closed and took a deep breath, looking at Kali with another burst of urgency, "Come on, we may already be too late!"
Kali nodded solemnly, picking up the pace as both of them ran through the night filled streets, towards the scene of the most recent kidnapping.
When they did both arrive, they immediately knew it had happened. The door was wide open, something a girl as responsible as Nanako would never have done. Both girls ran inside and called out for the little girl but there was no response. Nanako was gone, and all of them could have done something to prevent it.
Naoto got on the phone, this time to Yosuke. She had the intention of speaking to Dojima and, after a few minutes, she began explaining the situation, "I'm at your house right now. The front door's open and there's no one inside." She paused, looking to Kali with a pained look,"…I'm afraid that Nanako-chan has been kidnapped by our serial killer."
Kali suddenly felt weak, leaning back against the nearest wall. Hearing it, knowing that they had failed to keep her out of this… It hurt her, once again bringing back that fear that eight year old child felt going to sleep that night, not knowing what was going to happen. Kali had failed to protect Nanako from that same fear and suffering.
Naoto's surprisingly angry response to something Dojima said surprised Kali out of her thoughts. It appeared that even Naoto couldn't get Dojima to believe them, but Naoto didn't look ready to give up any time soon and snapped slightly at Dojima, "Surely you must've known, Dojima-san!? The case isn't over yet!"
The detective pulled the phone away from her ear, Kali assumed that that conversation was over and that Dojima had probably hung up. Naoto closed her eyes and sighed, "We have to get to the police station, Dojima-san has to know the truth." Looking to Kali, she reached out her hand, "Can you walk?"
Kali blinked in confusion, taking Naoto's hand and pushing herself up onto her feet. She felt pain but somehow it didn't really register with her, "Of course, we have to go now!"
Naoto frowned, wanting to insist that Kali stayed behind or went to the hospital but they just didn't have time. Biting her tongue, she took Kali outside and both set off in the direction of the police station. The beginning of the most desperate mission they would ever undergo.
…The next day…
So much had happened in one day that none of them had quite wrapped their heads around it yet. They had deduced who was throwing people inside the televisions, they had finally persuaded Dojima into believing their story and then he got in an accident when trying to save his daughter. Now, with Dojima in hospital, they were the only ones who could do anything.
They all stood in their normal meeting place, no one casually sitting down or eating. This was serious and it had become intensely personal. Whoever was truly behind everything was not going to get away with any of this.
Naoto crossed her arms, "The police are attempting to locate the killer, so let's focus our efforts on saving Nanako-chan."
"Yeah, we're the only ones who can." Chie agreed, her lips pressed into a tight line. She looked ready to fight, like the rest.
Rise chimed in, nodding in understanding, "We'll save her no matter what."
Kali was leaning slightly against Rise, her face not showing any pain but the bandages around her feet said it all, "Come on, we're so close to sorting this all out!" Kali declared, courage glinting in her eye, "We have to save Nanako-chan and get that killer behind bars."
Kanji watched her and, despite the situation, he felt warmth blooming in his chest at that, "Yeah… This is it! Let's go all-out and get it done!"
They were all of the same mind. All of them loved and cared for Nanako and none of them would let anyone hurt her. They insisted that if they needed to, they'd take a few days… But all of them knew that wasn't true. They'd fight through this dungeon as quickly as possible, preferably in a single day. There had never been as much urgency as there was now.
They would save her, no matter what.
…
And they did. But were they, even then, too late?
There, in Yu's arms, lay the weak and sick Nanako. They had all felt a little sick after leaving but this was so much worse than anything they had gone through. Nanako was dying and all they could do was get her out of that horrible world.
The hospital was the obvious destination and they were taken there faster than ever before. The doctors took Nanako straight through and into a private room, fairly close to Dojima's.
The group were all waiting outside, each looking more concerned than the next.
Kali was sitting on one of the chairs next to Teddie. He was fidgeting nervously, staring down at the floor, "Kali-chan?"
She looked at him, forcing a little smile, "What's the matter, Teddie?"
"I… Nanako will be okay, right?"
Always with the hard questions. She kept the smile up and said the most optimistic answer she could muster, "I think so, she's a strong girl."
Teddie nodded slowly. It seemed like he was trying to make himself smile again, like he had forgotten how to, "It's just… What if… Um…"
Kali could tell what he meant, her brain was wired to be pessimistic and she knew the chances as greatly as he did, probably more. The poor guy looked like he needed a hug, and so she gave it to him. Disregarding her reservations about personal space, she reached over and gave him a warm and friendly hug, "We did all we could; now it's up to Nanako-chan. She won't give up easily,"
The bear-turned-boy accepted her hug and, instead of being the flirtatious little bastard he often was, he seemed to really need that hug and support. The hallway seemed to be a mess of hugs, everyone trying to console eachother and keep the mood high. It was true what Kali said though, they had done their part. All they could do now… was wait.
Author's Note:
Just wanted to clear something up! The… abrupt time change in this chapter is mainly due to:
As mentioned previously, I don't want to spoil who the culprit is
I want to keep the story focused on Kali
I really didn't want to just rewrite huge sections of the game, you might as well read the game's synopsis.
Just wanted to clear that up so that people don't think I'm entirely lazy!
Again, please leave a review and please take those points into account!