Chapter Eight:
"Daedalus' Son"
Icarus rested his eyes. There was little else he could do trapped like dog on a leash, handcuffed to his seat. There was no way he could escape and he had had tried, but his hand just wouldn't slip through the cuffs. So, he sat quietly. He had slept earlier, now he wasn't particularly tired.
He recalled old memories of a once happier time instead.
He smiled to himself as he remembered a memory from when he was younger. He had a younger brother, but Icarus had not seen him in years. Their father had taken his brother away, separated from their mother in some family feud or other circumstance. It had devastated his mother. Only recently had Icarus located his brother. He was shocked to find his brother where he was, but thanks to a little investigation through certain channels Icarus had finally found him.
Now he was heading to the very country their father took his younger brother. He had had read some horrible things about his father in the headlines, crimes that he had committed, but he didn't believe a word of it, nor did he believe that his younger brother had been involved either. He also learned that Kira had killed his father, or so the media claimed, found hanging in his cell. He didn't care for his father, so his death wasn't a shock. But Icarus wanted to find his brother and what had had happened to him.
Icarus felt the sensation of cool breath in his ear that made him shiver and start out of his reverie. Then he heard the sound of a sweet a sexy voice. And only he could hear it. It was the voice of his Shinigami.
The voice confirmed what he knew was already true from what he had seen with his own eyes. And he was excited to learn more about the details, that there was a cop on board this plane with both knowledge and possibly was in possession of a Death Note. A Japanese man named Light Yagami.
Icarus opened his right eye and looked at the U.S. Marshal sitting in the aisle seat, the middle seat empty. The man's eyes were closed and his legs were blocking any avenue of slipping past him unawares if Icarus could. He was bound for Japan on an extradition treaty. The American Justice Department wanted to keep his transfer quiet because he was, they hoped, a witness against a crime boss the Japanese police had in custody on racketeering and weapons charges. Icarus had been associated with him. But Icarus had no intention of squealing. That would make him a target for the Yukaza.
The Yukaza knew he would never rat them out. And he knew they had a plan to free him once the plane landed. There would be someone waiting for him at the airplane terminal. The Dragon Sect, a branch of the Yukaza, and its leader Terrance Claw, considered him invaluable to its operations. He was a trusted go-between from the Japanese mafia to their contacts in America.
There were no clocks on the plane and it was dark when he looked out the window, but he needed to free himself from these cuffs before the plane began its descent. He needed help.
A flight attendant came walking down the aisle. She was gorgeous with shoulder length dark hair and a hot body. Her breasts were perky.
The voice of his Shinigami spoke softly into his ear again and told him Light Yagami and the this female flight attendant just had sex in the First Class washroom. This surprised him, even shocked him, and it made Icarus chuckle under his breath. He would enjoy hearing about the details.
It was perfect. She would be his leverage to get answers to his questions and Light Yagami would tell him everything he wanted to know. But he needed a way get the Marshal to unlock the cuffs. He was only allotted two bathroom breaks on this flight and he had already used one, the other one was scheduled for later. But when nature called, it called.
He kicked the Marshal awake with a foot, the federal agent snorted and opened his eyes. "Hey Marshal, I need to use the facilities again. This high altitude is playing havoc with my bladder."
"The next bathroom break is not for another couple of hours," U.S. Marshal William Donner told him annoyed, awoken abruptly. "You can hold it."
"Sorry Marshal, I need to go," Icarus said, twitching his legs. "You wouldn't want to get in trouble with your superiors if I told them you denied me use of the bathroom, would you? That would conjure up a whole lot of Human Rights violations and may even play against you. You want me to be a witness against that syndicate crime boss in Japan, right? The cops don't want to release his real name, or a picture to the media, fearing Kira will kill him. I have the evidence you need to put him away for a long time. So, if you want my help, you'll give me this. Or, I'll unzip here and piss all over the floor."
He reached down and began unzipping his pants fly.
"Jesus! Stop that!" Donner told him.
Icarus smiled. "I need to drain the boa," he said with innuendo. "The ladies love a monster. If I recall, before we left from America, you told a colleague you were single. Maybe I know why."
Agent Donner's eye twitched irked.
"Fine," he said insipidly. "You were advised of your rights before we got on the plane and the rules. You've already broken one rule in speaking with that other passenger. This is your last chance. If you need to go again after this, you'll wait until we're off the plane." Donner retrieved a key and unlocked the cuffs from the arm of the chair and then cuffed Icarus's other wrist, putting a shirt over his hands. Donner then stood up and escorted Icarus to the same bathroom they went to before in First Class. It was more easily accessible from their seats. "Now, go! Finish quickly."
"Gotta sit, Marshall, so, it might take me a few minutes," Icarus said with a wink. "I'll try to push the little turds out as smoothly as I can, but I don't want to strain myself, or I could develop a hernia, and how would that look? My testimony could be pushed back for weeks while in hospital."
Donner gave him a contemptuous look. Icarus enjoyed annoying the federal marshal. "You're testing my patience, Icarus. Just do it," he said. "And be as quick as you can without hurting yourself, you piece of…"
"Will do, Marshal. You might want to ask that cute flight attendant for a little air freshener, though, because I'm feeling a little gassy. Wouldn't want to deprive the rest of the passengers of these wonderful First Class facilities." Icarus squeaked out a fart and wrinkled his nose. "Wow! See, it's already starting."
Donner waved a hand in the air. He opened the washroom door and literally pushed Icarus inside, closing the door behind him. Icarus chuckled under his breath.
The first part of his plan had worked brilliantly. The rights of federal prisoners were so tightly regulated that any complaint had to be thoroughly investigated, so obviously Donner didn't want any trouble especially when it came to something as simple as use of a bathroom, a basic human right.
Icarus knew the federal agent would be on the other side waiting for him when he was done, but what the agent didn't know was things were going to be a whole lot different within a few minutes.
Icarus took a moment and looked around the inside of the washroom and noticed the mirror was cracked like a spider web. He didn't know the reason, but he figured it must have been done when the flight attendant and Yagami had sex in here.
He wanted to know more about Light Yagami. Something about the guy intrigued him and he wasn't referring about the Death Note. Something fascinated Icarus about him. He could read people like a book.
From a purely physical standpoint Yagami was a moderately attractive guy. If he was in First Class, then he had money, or it could have been something else. He had actually noticed a bunch of "suits" waiting near the Boarding Bridge before embarking the plane and they all looked like cops. He knew a cop when he saw one. Their arrogance, even mannerisms, gave them away. That made Yagami one. He also smelled a suited rookie and that meant he could be exploited.
Thanks to his Shinigami, he knew what Yagami did in here. Of course, there was no concrete proof and he could deny it outright, but just the accusation of a sexual liaison on board a plane could destroy his career. But why destroy him when he could be manipulated or even blackmailed?
Icarus threw off the shirt around his hands and looked at the handcuffs. He didn't have a key, but that didn't matter. "Unlock the cuffs, Shinigami," he quietly said, and they did. The Shinigami complied.
He rubbed his wrists and looked into the cracked mirror. He saw his distorted and broken image and smirked. When he was younger, he followed all the rules and respected the law. He never even thought crossing on a street against the light. All that changed soon after his father left taking his brother with him. He searched everywhere, even went to the police, but they were useless.
He didn't need to use the washroom, but dropped the lid of the toilet loudly, so Agent Donner could hear it. He then sat down on the closed lid and he stayed their for a moment to think.
Something then caught his eye and he noticed a white glob on the floor. In their haste, Yagami and the flight attendant failed to completely clean up after themselves. He knew exactly what it was, and smirked.
"Shinigami," he said quietly calling out, "give me the power that I seek."
The god of death didn't physically appear, but Icarus could feel its presence. No doubt it judged the dimensions of the washroom and it could not accommodate its size to equate its form, but something else did materialize on the counter, a black notebook with indecipherable lettering on the front. It was in an alien language, but basically it translated as "Death Note".
A writing implement also appeared, a pen with a feathery tip. The pen had self-generating ink.
Icarus took the pen and opened the Death Note to a blank page. Here he wrote a specific set of instructions, very detailed, leaving a blank space for a name to be inserted later. He had learned this from experimentation. Things could be written in the Death Note and then a name could be added later. It wasn't difficult to figure out that Kira could manipulate his victims before they died. But the basic end result was the same. And a heart attack was the coup de grâce.
When everything was written down, only then did he use the toilet, and urinated. He produced a steady stream, and he felt relieved. The image of the flight attendant entered his mind and he began to get excited. He looked down and said, "Down boy, you'll see some action later."
After he shook-off, zipped, he flushed, and washed his hands. He returned to the Death Note and then added the U.S. Federal Marshal's name—"William Donner".
The note would not start right away. The instructions were very detailed and would not be triggered until he said so. It was a trick he learned. He could write everything down, even a person's name, but within the instructions, unless it was physically impossible for its victim to do, he could control of that person with a delayed response, even indefinitely, if something wasn't said that was embedded within the instructions. Similarly to a code word or a phrase only spoken by himself.
He gave the Death Note back to the Shinigami to hide. If he needed it again, then he would simply call for it. But he had no immediate plans for it again. He put the handcuffs back on and tightened them. It would look suspicious if they were off and his plans would immediately go awry.
He opened the door.
U.S. Marshal William Donner was standing outside. He was on his phone, probably checking in. That's what all federal agents did to assure there were no problems. And yet, what could possibly go wrong on an airplane 25,000 feet in the air?
"All finished, Marshal." Icarus smiled, holding out his hands. "Oh, by the way, it wasn't me who cracked the mirror. Not sure who did it. Might have been someone who used the place before me. You know those privileged First Class people. They don't care about other people's property."
"Huh?" The Marshal looked inside and saw the mirror. He eyed Icarus and his nose wrinkled from the smell. Icarus purposely let off a series of silent ones to hide what he really did. Donner waved a hand across his face. "Oh my god! That's just putrid! Never mind about the mirror. I would have heard if you smashed it. We'll let someone else deal with it. Back to your seat."
Icarus winced at the smell. It was pretty bad, it had to admit. "Any chance I could get something to eat, Marshal? I'm famished! I haven't eaten all day. And after what I just dropped, I have room for it."
"It's four in the morning, breakfast won't be served for another couple of hours. Get back to your seat."
"Don't be so cruel, Marshal," said Icarus. "I'm not trying to make any trouble. You misunderstand me. If you really get to know me, I'm a pretty nice guy." He smiled.
"Nice guys don't murder people for the sake of sensationalism," Donner stated. "I'm counting the hours until someone takes you off my hands. You have just under six hours until you can kiss any chance of freedom goodbye. You'll rot in a Japan prison for the rest of your life. I'm only escorting you, the authorities there will deal with you further. Enough games, get back to your seat!"
Donner went to grab him, but Icarus took a step back. He had written a phrase in the Death Note to control the U.S. Marshal. Now was time to recite it as the federal agent began to get angry.
"By the way, Marshal—'Daedalus is my Daddy'," Icarus said, reciting the phrase.
Agent Donner said, "What?" His eyes narrowed. "I'm not playing these games, Icarus. 'Daedalus' was Icarus's father according to Greek legend who built his son wax wings that melted when he soared too close to the son. He was a horrible father and should have known the risks. However, your real father was a psychologic killer who liked to murder innocent children. And just like him, I'm pretty sure Kira will catch up to you eventually with his own methods. In the meantime, you'll do what you'll told and—"
Donner's arm dropped a second before he would have grabbed a handful of Icarus's hoodie sweatshirt.
The phrase Icarus had written in the Death Note with a delay had triggered and Agent Donner was now under his control. The rest of what he wrote down, Donner would now obey without question. If he resisted, he would die immediately of a heart attack. But it didn't appear that there was going to be any trouble. The tables had turned rapidly and now he was in control of the game.
"Excellent, time to get started," Icarus said. "Be a good man and take off these handcuffs." Donner retrieved a key from his pocket and unlocked them as ordered. Icarus then slipped the cuffs into the front wide pocket of his sweatshirt. "Okay, now give me your gun."
Donner unclasped the safety from his right hip holster and took out his gun. It was a standard American pistol, a Glock 22, high ammo capacity, which held fifteen rounds to a standard magazine. Not very exciting to some of the other types of guns Icarus had held, but it would be sufficient. He checked the safeties and them disengaging both. Firing a gun in an airplane would be stupid, but it was the ultimate intimidation factor. However, he didn't want to hijack the plane. That would only have the aircraft surrounded as soon as it landed with law enforcement. He had an ulterior plan.
"Now, casually get the attention of that cute flight attendant and bring her over," Icarus ordered.
Donner turned down the aisle, through the separation curtain between First Class and Second. The flight attendant was walking towards them from somewhere she had been. Donner waved her over.
The flight attendant approached.
Icarus pretended to be handcuffed. Only when the curtain fell back did he reveal the gun and his free hands. Her eyes widened and she gasped. He put a finger to his lips and smiled at her. "Hello, good looking. Now, be a good little helper, and do what I tell you, and no one will get hurt."
To be continued...