XLIV
Vorhersage
They looked at Bando's handiwork, true enough his shots had been dead on. The first shot had wrecked the engine, a second had torn of one of the wheels while the third had splintered the windshield. "Well you certainly did a sound job at trashing that car. Nice work." Dai remarked as he stared at the damage inflicted upon it.
Bando just looked at him and shook his head with a mixture of irritation and disgust. "Just shut up or you will be next."
The car was a complte and utter mess, no way for it to drive any further in that kind of condition. Looking over at the driver's seat Dai did somehow not feel surprised when he noticed that Onishi had disappeared once again. "Guess that was too much to ask anyway."
"So what are you going to do now?" Bando growled as he inspected the damage himself. "A waste of two bullets, first one should have been enough."
"First not waste more of my time on you, second I am going to help that woman." Dai left telling himself that he should not waste any time on trying to argue with this man. Right now he needed to know where Mako was and more importantly he needed to know how she was doing, was she alright or was she wounded?
Going back to where he had been directed in the first place he finally arrived where whatever it was that this woman had conducted her obscene assignment. Not even having reached the corner he could already make out the heavy breathing, yes there was definitely somebody up ahead. Then he rounded the corner he could saw her lying there, rushing over he already recognized her face. "Takebe-san!? Takebe-san please answer me!?"
To say that he was surprised would have been an understatement, opening the front door he had not expected to see two extra pairs of shoes were lying there at the main entrance. Scratching the back of his head he wondered if Yuka had taken the girls for a quick shopping trip without bothering to tel him or had she gone out and invited some of her friends for a visit. Not likely as he saw another pair of more familiar shoes as well, he already knew to whom those belonged and he was under no illusion that Yuka would not let others come visit when they were here.
Bracing himself he stepped inside but not before dumping the groceries first in the kitchen just in case somebody was feeling a sudden urge to start throwing with stuff. Satisfied that it was all stored properly and not within easy reach he went to the living room and braced himself for what was to come.
"Yuka I'm back." He announced as he opened the door, he had expected visitors but certainly not the two pairs of eyes staring back at him. Then he noticed that one pair was casting him a really distrustful if not outright hostile look.
"Ah Kouta, please follow me." Yuka mentioned as she got up fast and dragged his ass all the way back to the kitchen even with him protesting.
"Y-Yuka… what is going on? Who are those girls? Did you see that look she gave me?"
Gesturing that he needed to calm down for a moment Yuka then went and explained what she had managed to gather so far on their newest guests, suffice to say Kouta was not happy about it. "He can't expect us to look after them, what comes next every single horned girl they have locked up on that island. I don't want to be mean but there is a limit to this house."
She kept smiling as he panicked. "I know but for the time being it shouldn't be a problem, besides I doubt he is planning on doing something that reckless. He knows better than any else that we don't have the means to support them all."
He sighed, she was right. "Can I ask then what is wrong with the one that gave me that look, really she scares me to be honest when she looks at me like that?"
"Ah well…" Yuka hesitated for a moment, would it be wise to inform Kouta on what had already happened between herself and Kyou or would it be best to let it slide for the time being. If she mentioned it then she knew that Kouta was likely going to have her expelled from the house.
"That is Kyou-chan, it seems that she has been through her own share of ordeals at that island but unlike Saeko-chan she seems to have become rather violent towards humans."
He looked at her. "Violent, what do you mean with that?"
"Just like I said. She doesn't trust humans at all and she really does not like it if you get too close to her, I'd advise against it."
Now he was confused, what was the worst that she could do to him but then he remember that she was a diclonius like the others and he had seen what Nyu's other half and Nana could do with their special arms. Yeah that was not going to be pleasant at all.
"Tell me is it actually safe then for us to have them here. What if they decided to lash out at us?" Yuka shared his concern as she had asked that very same question as well once she understood what these girls were.
"We should be safe, from what Saeko-chan told me those girls were given a serum or something that disables these vectors of theirs. For the next couple of days we should be fine."
"I trust that this serum is his kind of doing right, well at least he is thorough when it comes to these matters. Just remind me that when he shows up to have a little word with him."
"Don't worry, I want to have a word with him as well as there is something I just have to know. After that you can talk with him about whatever you want to. Oh for that matter just don't try to steal his attention for too long otherwise you might also get into trouble with Saeko-chan."
He laughed at hearing that, that little girl was the one he wasn't afraid off. Besides she was as kindhearted as they could get but he did know that she was always looking for his attention.
"I will keep that in mind then, so what you say we get started on dinner. Guess we should also make some extra for our new guests."
Now it was her turn for a foul glance. "You haven't really paid all that much attention when you were putting away the groceries have you?" Already she was pointing at the dishes and pots behind him, it was only then that he noticed that dinner was basically finished.
"Guess I haven't. He apologized to her as he laughed nervously. amn he should have noticed that.
Her cheek was hurting a bit, almost as if somebody was slapping her. Mako had no idea why she was having that feeling but as she started to force her eyes open she was getting an idea.
The last thing she could remember was feeling sick and tired as she was being driven home by Onishi, after that it all started to become vague to her.
"…Takebe-san… you hear… are you… get you out… someplace safe." She could hear a voice, a voice that was familiar to her and yet the words weren't making any sense to her. She tried to say something but nothing came out of her mouth, she tried again but to no avail.
"How… doing?" There was another voice, much sharper but it definitely sounded like it belonged to a man. Thinking about it the other one had also sounded manly, it made her wonder where Onishi was then. Had she been abandoned by her or had they been caught in an accident.
Doing her best to open her mouth a few words managed to get past. "…Onishi-san… fine… am… I… tired?" Getting a reply she couldn't understand all of what they were saying but from the few bits she understood it seemed she was gone, her car had crashed. Her fears seemed to be confirmed, she felt so sorry to hear that as maybe the accident had been her fault.
"Come on… out of here." It was the last thing she heard before she fainted, her exhaustion getting the better of her, still at the very last moment she could feel how somebody was lifting her up. No doubt these people were paramedics if she had been involved in an accident, oh she was feeling sorry for not being able to go and visit Dai. Maybe with some luck she could contact him and meet have him visit her at the hospital.
"Damn she is heavier than she looks!" Bando sneered as they slowly helped the unconscious Mako get into the car. "Take my advice and don't go to any hospital, if that bitch is still after her you can bet your ass that she will be checking out those first."
"My idea exactly." Dai remarked as he inspected to make sure that she was secured. "I will take her to my apartment, then I can keep a watch on her until she wakes up. Anyway for what it is worth thank you for your help." Reaching out to show his gratitude his hand got swatted to the side by Bando.
"Don't think we are friends now all of a sudden! As far as I'm concerned we still have a little score to settle from before and this time there won't be any police or horned freaks to save your hide!"
"Get lost. I am in no mood to go into another fight, really I have no quarrel with you." No he was not going to let himself get tricked into another fight, really right now Mako was in more need of his help. "Besides I wouldn't want to get those girls into trouble by having them meeting you so you stay away from them!"
It immediately caught the attention of Bando. "You fucking know them!?"
"Yeah I know them, been to their house to have my eyes opened. What about that?"
Bando smiled as he heard that answer. "Well that is certainly interesting, you have just earned yourself a getaway pass for this time." Stepping aside he allowed for Dai to get into the car. As the car drove off he knew that things were going to become interesting now, maybe it would be time to do some research of his own into this man.
Nyu was like always curious when new people came to visit the Inn and these girls certainly caught her interest. Already it was becoming very lively with a lengthy discussion going on between these twin sisters and Nana and Saeko, each seemed to ask the other a question in turns. "Good evening, would it be okay for me to join you?"
"Nyu-san, I was hoping you would show up." She got a warm greeting as Saeko jump over to give her a big hug. "Can I introduce you to our sisters Kyou-chan and Ryou-chan."
Both girls nodded their heads as their names were mentioned, to Nyu they both seemed like nice people. "I'm Nyu, it is nice to meet the two of you."
Already Kyou was almost in her face. "Hmmm. You look like one of us and you have horns but why can't I feel you. Are you like my other sister Saeko-chan?"
"Ah… eh... ehm... I... I... " Nyu didn't know what she was talking about, she had never been able to feel Nana or Saeko, what was she talking about and why was she feeling so uneasy about her being this close.
"O-Onee-chan." The other one remarked as she noticed the odd stare in Nyu's eyes. "I don't think you should get that close to her, she might not like it."
Turning around Kyou now looked back at her. "Oh well if you say so." Quickly whispering something in Nyu's ear she got up and went back to her own seat.
Nyu was starting to turn red as the words that she had just told her were starting to get through to her, Kyou had just told her that she found her attractive.
"Nyu-san are you okay?" Nana noticed that her entire face was red and pretty bright at that as well. "You don't look so good either." She was starting to get a bit worried, had she gotten some kind of illness from Kyou.
"I-I-I'm f-f-fine." Nyu waved as she wasn't all that fond with the sudden interest of everybody, it was all a bit too much for her. "I-I am just a bit overwhelmed by how crowded it is becoming."
All of the girls started to giggle at hearing her say that, undaunted she joined them in it as well even if it was just a way for her to hide her nerves.
Seeing how Kyou turned her attention to somebody else Nyu felt relieved, she had not experienced being called attractive by anybody let alone another girl. It felt confusing to her and besides that she had feelings for Kouta, she couldn't just turn those off.
But then she had kissed other girls before and there had been the occasional slips when she was overcome with a sudden urge to grab certain parts of the body.
"Dinner is ready people." Yuka announced as she and Mayu both entered, already Kouta had been busy in cleaning up so that there would be enough room on the table. With the extra dishes needed for Saeko, Kyou and Ryou it sure was getting crowded inside and then to think they were still expecting at least Nozomi to come over after her session was finished.
The amount of effort she was putting for her entrance exam was astounding to him, what made it even more incredible was that she was doing it all without the approval of her family.
Watching at the girls he quickly noticed how impatient they seemed to get something to eat, already he was making a guess if they would be even bigger eaters than Nana or Saeko for that matter. Well given her poor attitude he figured that Kyou was the least likely to have good table manners, oh he could already imagine the mess she was going to make.
"Should we wait for Nozomi-chan to arrive?" Mayu chimed in as she set up the dishes, it was starting to become pretty normal for Nozomi to arrive late.
"We didn't have to, she promised that she would make it in time today."
Taken his answer Yuka was already serving the rice for today when they suddenly heard a knock on the door.
"What did I say Mayu-chan, I bet that is her right now." Getting up he made his way towards the door, not much point in leaving Nozomi waiting outside in the cold.
Opening the door Dai gently maneuvered so that Mako would not bump her head, it had one long climb since the elevator had to be broken on this day out of all the days it could have been broken. Well there hadn't much for him to do about it other than carry her up.
"Well we finally made it." He coughed as he dropped her on his bed, probably the only sensible thing to do now would be for him to let her get to her senses without scaring her.
Exhausted from both his fight and having to drag Mako all the way up here, he needed a drink right now and definitely something to eat.
Originally he had planned to go and visit the Inn but under these circumstances there was no way that he was going to let her be alone, not with that other woman still out there. Opening his fridge he took out several cans, just a fruit juice but it would do the trick. For dinner he did not seem to be so lucky, there was just a few leftovers from yesterday. Well with not much else to do he would settle on them for now.
He let out a little cheers as he raised the can in salute to her in the bedroom. "Here is to you Takebe-san, let's hope tomorrow won't be this much of an exercise."
Drinking down the can in one quick gulp he leaned back as he turned on the TV, how boring this night was going to be for him.
But tomorrow he really needed to go and see them, if at the very least to warn them about what was going to happen if Shimada were to get his ways. Still it was going to take some time before his proposal would be accepted, luckily the brass up top were not the fastest when it came at making critical decisions.
Gazing at his phone he wondered if perhaps he should call them, just to let them know something in case they had gotten worried.
Typing in the number he waited for them to pick up, much to his concern and annoyance they did not seem to pick up. Well they likely had a good reason or perhaps they were mad at him for not showing up, either way there wasn't much he could do about it now.
A quick knock on the door brought him back to his senses, wary he got up as he was not expecting any visitors. The gun drawn from his holster he slowly approached the door doing his best not to make any noise that could betray his presence.
Peeking through the view hole there was nothing for him to see, scratching his head he wondered why it was completely dark on the hallway but then it hit him. Somebody was blocking the view hole on purpose.
"We both know that you are on the other side. Open it or I will make an entrance myself." Dai cursed as he heard the voice, out of all the people to drop an unexpected visit it had to be him.
"How did you find out where. No, wait. Scratch that, I don't even want to know the answer to that." Opening the door he saw Dreachon standing there. "I know I could just tell you to go somewhere else but you are still going to come inside right?"
"As if you have to ask that. I take it that you were able to locate and recover this Takebe-san?" Looking around his face had already turned into the direction of the bedroom.
"I did think it was a close call. Seems like somebody was already after her." Dai informed him as he told of what had happened.
"It stands to good reason that she was sent by the DRI, if so then she is becoming even more of a risk to the safety of the others. You were foolish to bring her here."
"What!?" Dai almost yelled at hearing that, how the hell was he being the foolish one. "Care to explain before I will attempt to throw you out!"
"Because she is being watched. If they are sending somebody after here then it is clear that she is considered a threat to the security of the DRI, with that we cannot allow her to get anywhere near the Inn or the girls." Flexing one of his claws he turned his gaze back to Dai for the moment. "Were you followed?"
To be honest Dai had not been paying attention to that but now that he was asked there was indeed a risk that Onishi had been able to tag him. "I am not certain."
"Then we will keep watch for now, if she attempts to do this on her own than we can easily subdue her. If not we will have to crack some skulls."
His finger was already in the air. "No. we are not going to kill people just like that, even if they are on the wrong side. That is still no excuse for taking lives!"
"Your naivety is annoying, do not push your luck." Dreachon moved over towards one of the seats followed quickly by sitting down. "Care to offer your guest a drink?"
"I would if you were a guest but I guess I could offer you something given we are on the same side." He sighed as he left for the kitchen, he didn't really have all that much to offer with exception of the few cans of fruit juice but he would have to deal with it.
"Knock yourself out." Dai mentioned he tossed it in the air, I wasn't surprising that Dreachon caught it in mid-flight without even bothering to look.
"Nothing better I see, well this will suffice for now." Taking a quick gulp the can was crushed in his hand. "So what are your plans for her in the meantime, she cannot leave if she becomes aware of what is going on?"
It was a question that was all to haunting to Dai, he had been thinking about what to do but he hadn't come very far with it yet.
"I hope I am not too late?" Nozomi asked as she entered the living room, somewhat out of breath she had been running as fast as she could to make it in time. Seeing all the others having waited for her seemed to made the exercise all the more worth it to her.
Taking in the smell of the food she went quickly to take her place next to Yuka. "Hmm this smell nice, may I ask what it is?"
Handing her the dish. "It is curry rice, I kept it simple since we were expecting some visitors." Yuka mentioned, true she had expected visit but not from the twins that were even now enjoying the food although it seemed that Kyou was more busy with stuffing herself.
Her manners were another thing as she just grabbed everything with her hands, not even bothering to use her chopsticks or a spoon for that matter. Most of the curry seemed to be stuck to her face rather than of the rice.
Yuka was going to have her work cut out for her if she wanted to get Kyou to understand table manners, let alone to even let her be taught about it. With her kind of attitude there was no way that she would let any human tell her what to do, oh she was so going to need the help of her sister and Saeko for this.
Turning her attention back to dinner she smiled as an idea on how to make her a bit more compliant emerged in her head, it had worked before with the others.
Well if there was one thing that she didn't need to worry about than it was that they wouldn't eat anything at all, as revolting her eating methods were Kyou was still gorging down just about anything that she could lay her hands on.
"More!" Still busy on chewing down the last bits Kyou already held up her dish ready for more, right now she wanted to make up for all the lost time in the world. "More now!"
Somewhat annoyed Yuka looked at her. "Care to show some manners at the table, it would be polite if you would ask for it instead of demanding. A little please would also be appreciated."
Puffing her lips Kyou made no attempt to correct her attitude as she was still holding up the plate. "More now!"
"Well young lady I guess that will mean no desert for you tonight then, good girls get treated with nice food, bad girls don't get treated at all." Not taking well to being lectured by a human Kyou slammed the table as hard as she could.
"Don't you dare to talk to me like that! You bugs have done al-!" She was stopped in mid-sentence as he sister rose quickly to stop her from saying anymore.
"O-Onee-chan… p-p-please stop, I don't want to get into trouble." The sudden concern of her little sister seemed to be enough for her anger and irritation to subside for the moment. Giving up she gently placed the dish back on the table before leaning back in her chair, her eyes firmly focused on the empty dish in front of her.
Having seen it Nyu wasn't certain what to make of this, being honest she found this silent Kyou much more unpleasant than she was her loud self. "Yuka-san would it be alright for me to share some of mine with her, I am not that hungry."
"Nyu-chan that is very kind of you but she has to learn that she can't just go and behave like that at the table. But if she is willing to apologize for her earlier remark then I guess she could have some of your portion."
They were both looking at Kyou but it seemed that she either hadn't heard them or that she simply didn't care anymore.
Taking a slice of the pizza Dai chewed on it as looked at the clock, it seemed time was not going as fast as he had hoped it would. "So how long do you think we would have to wait?"
"Longer now, she isn't going to rush in. I would not be surprised if she weren't to show up for a couple of days, until then you have time to find out if you have been followed or not." He got up as he made his way towards the door.
"Where do you think you are going?"
"Obvious isn't it, going to make sure things are fine at the Inn. One of the twins likely has caused already some issues no doubt. Besides if I find that things are going smoothly then I should be able to return and do another sweep of the surrounding area."
"Another?" Dai remarked as he heard him say that, well that did hint that for the moment it was likely safe. "Did you find any trace of her?"
"Not at the moment, likely she went and got herself a different car after the previous one was trashed by Bando."
Dai jumped up from his seat. "You know that guy? Hey wait a moment? How do you know he was the one to wreck it?"
"Because I saw it. To be honest it was not that impressive for you to be beat up by her like that, I had expected better from you."
That was just what he needed, to be lectured by Dreachon and worst of all was because he had lost to a woman in a fight. Didn't matter off course that she appeared more of a trained fighter than he was. Shaking his head he made it clear that he didn't want opt hear another word about it, much more he was interested into how he knew Bando.
"Let's keep it at that we have some run ins in the past, that said I have no quarrel with him. Although a wild card at this moment he is by no means a threat to the safety of the girls."
"What should we do about him, we can't let him run wild?"
His hand resting on the doorknob. "Nothing, like I said he is no threat to the girls. He knows perfectly where the live and so far he not once made any attempts to inform others about this. Truth be told I'd rather trust him than you." With having said that he left leaving Dai alone and insulted, to think he was being considered not trustworthy.
Shaking the unpleasant remark from his head he locked the door and took his place again at the seat, listening as he could hear some noise coming from the bedroom but it seemed that it wasn't much.
The dampness of the room wasn't an annoyance to him, on the contrary he found it somewhat pleasant. Taking a moment to enjoy the silence he moved closer towards the center of the room, the monstrous tank that was situated there towered over him and yet it was but just a small cog in his grand scheme. It had been constructed for a clear and specific task, to house a being of immense power.
Pressing his hand to the glass he wondered if she was aware of his presence, right now he needed a sign from her more than ever.
"We, the family, were oppressed and chased underground in every epoch." He mentioned as he looked closer. "To rule the earth and skies in homo sapiens stead. This is what we dream off." Taking a few steps his mind went back to all the times his family had been wronged, such a long and tragic history the Kakuzawa clan has had to endure.
"For us the Diclonii to prosper. It is we who must become gods ourselves and ascend to that power. Like gods to homo sapiens… For us to be worships for ages to come… Your power exists for that very reason. Please understand me, Anna."
A dark shape was starting to emerge, seeing it he started to move to the upper portions of the tank, the place where it was possible to gaze at what was starting to show itself.
"Yes my father." The response came to him, even though all the liquid that filled the tank he could hear the words clear as day.
Standing at the top now he watched as the figure remained there, it's dark shape seeming to stare back at him.
"Anna, are you actually holding a grudge against me?" The was no response this time.
"For how many years will this go on…"
A monstrous arm erupted from the water before slamming into the walkway next to him, the railing crumbled as it was flattened.
"Anna has always…"
A small buzz announced that he had company, only a handful of people knew about this hidden room and despite its enormous size nobody had ever learned about it.
"It is kind of rare for us to meet in the location. I did not believe you tolerated the presence of others Kakuzawa-sama." It was Yamada, he had summoned her here to be judged.
"How are matters proceeding, has the loose end been taken care of." It was a question that he directed at her, he had made it clear what he wanted to hear.
"I have not yet received word from Onishi-san but she is a competent operative. She will inform me soon enough." With a growing anxiety she looked at the tank, she could clearly she the abomination that emerging even now. "Do we really need her for this?"
He remained motionless. "Her cranial being increased a thousand fold. For us what she is pondering is already inconceivable. She is an omniscient and omnipotent being. Defying what is forbidden I have created a true goddess."
Yamada could feel her stomach drop as a globe like shape now emerged from the water, eyes as big as a human being gazing downat her and the chief. It felt wrong to her to using this creature.
That said she knew the dark secret that resided behind the creature, what she really was and why it was for the best that as few people as possible were even aware of her.
"Will she be able to answer the question, she couldn't possibly know everything?"
The chief rebuked. "Of course not. You can't foretell what you will have for supper today. A single person's behavior is based on impulse and it can't be estimated."
As much as she had already guessed for herself, but if she could not help with finding Lucy then what was the point of even asking her. Why did she have to be dragged all the way to this damp room, she hated this place.
"But if it's about the future of hundreds, thousands or millions of people as a whole community, with complex functions and large amounts of data then it is possible to calculate the estimate."
Her eye brow raised as she heard him say that, she had seen plenty of things that would be called supernatural by others but this was going a bit too far for her.
"Anna's intellect has that implemented. She is the prognosticator, wielding godlike wisdom."
She watched as the chief turned his attention back to Anna, her monstrous looking down upon him.
"Anna. Tell me the answer when the calculations are done. Whether the demise of mankind, the rise of the diclonius and my becoming of a god and creating the world of the new humanity are feasible?"
There was a moment of uneasy silence as Anna watched them both closely, her eyes betraying not a single emotion. Yamada was wondering what kind of answer it give in return, would the chief truly base his entire course of action on what this thing was going to tell him.
"Father… Anna knows… all the results. Father… you can do it father." With those words she allowed herself to slide back into the brackish water.
Elated the chief looked at her. "Have you heard her? The more certain the outcome is, the easier the pieces will into place for me. If Lucy is still around, she will fall into my hands. That's how it is."
Bidding her farewell she left him, in her mind it was foolish to place all faith in something as vague as that thing had just told them. To her it would make much more sense to send teams out to track and hunt down Lucy no matter where she was hiding.
Nana opened the door as she heard a knock at the rear, getting somewhat cranky as she had just made a comfortable spot for her to sit she was worried somebody else was going to steal it from her. Seeing Dreachon standing there she let a casual puff. "Oh it is you, what is it that you want from us this time?"
"Stop being obstinate, it is getting old." He remarked as he looked around.
"If you are looking for Kouta-san or Yuka-san I can call them?" She asked as in her mind he was likely looking for them, no doubt wanting to discuss something urgent.
"Actually it is you I am after." He looked down at her. "There is something that I need from you and you are the only one who at this point can do this."
Nana took a few steps back. "Eh. What are you talking about, I am not going to hurt anybody just remember that?"
"Rest assured, what I have in mind is for you to tutor Saeko-chan in the usage of her vectors. She only has them for a couple of days and she has no idea on how to properly use them, you will agree with me that is a dangerous situation."
Not having thought about it Nana agreed that it was indeed dangerous if Saeko did not learn how to control and use her vectors, although she didn't mean to harm anyone there was the ever present risk of it happening by accident.
"Also I want you to teach her how to numb the vectors of another diclonius just in case."
Her eyes widened as she knew to whom he was referring. "You wouldn't mean Kyou-chan by that would you?"
