Vampire Bund, Tokyo, Japan, 2011.
After the incident of the Bund's police station being attacked, the area was cleaned up and Mina had ordered Beowulf, Spectre, and me to quarantine the Bund so that we could locate any vampires who were infected by the nanomachines. Akira and Angel had lied to Mina about going on a special mission and we were currently having vampires approach us in a line to get their blood taken.
"I repeat, this area is under strict quarantine! You are to step forward to undergo mandatory bloodwork and any noncompliance will result in being arrested and detained! Step forward in a calm and orderly manner!" I instructed calmly while Akira and Angel were taking blood from nervous vampires.
"Thank you for your compliance," Akira said once he was finished taking blood from a vampire.
"Please make sure you wear this armband at all times because it is proof that you have had your blood taken," Angel told a vampire and added, "Whew...three days down and who knows how many more to go. Hey Akira, do you think her Majesty will get angry if she ever found out that our "special mission" was just going out and getting blood samples?"
"Doesn't matter...she won't know, I don't ever want her to know," Akira stated quietly as he was placing a box of samples on a table.
"Do you or David really think that they'll come after us?" Angel inquired curiously.
"Affirmative...with the three of us out in the open like this, it's perfect for an ambush. Our enemy wants us out in the open like this, which is why they left that JPEG where we could find it..." I trailed off when I noticed a blond vampire trying to sneak away.
The vampire saw me looking at him and he froze up, then he suddenly bolted out of the area and I took off running after him, followed closely by Angel and Akira.
"This is Alpha Leader, pursuing possible contact on foot! Standby!" I yelled into my radio as we chased the vampire.
"Don't move! Angie, go cut him off from the back!" Akira ordered as I unslung my MP5.
"Got it!" Angel agreed and went down an alleyway on our right.
"Stop and get down on your knees or I will open fire!" I warned loudly as the vampire went around a corner.
I heard a grunt and the sound of someone hitting the floor. Akira and I rounded the corner to see the vampire on the floor, restrained by Angel.
"Shit, nice takedown," Akira complimented as I approached and aimed my MP5 at the vampire.
"Oh fuck! Please, listen to me! I don't have any nanomachines or whatever in me!" the vampire exclaimed in terror.
"Then why the hell did you run if you're not infected?! Answer me before I have you arrested and detained!" I threatened harshly, causing the vampire to flinch at my hostile tone.
"I...I'm HIV positive, but I haven't registered with the Government yet! If they find out like this, I'll get screwed over for noncompliance! Please..." the vampire begged and we looked at each other.
"What do you think?" Akira asked Angel.
"He sounds like he's telling the truth, and if somebody knows that they have the Pied Piper then that would defeat the point, right? So, they would never think to run in the first place," Angel pointed out while lifting the vampire to his feet.
"Get up...you are a fucking idiot. You should've gotten yourself registered so you wouldn't have put yourself into this situation in the first place," I scolded firmly and the vampire grinned sheepishly.
"Shit, all of that running for nothing? Fucking hell..." Akira muttered in distaste.
"P-please...don't tell anybody..." the vampire whimpered nervously.
Suddenly, I heard a noise and turned just as a cloaked figure broke through the wall next to us and shredded the vampire with claws, forcing all of us to dodge to avoid getting killed. Akira kept dodging the fast swipes, and he ducked just as the figure slashed the wall and debris came falling down on him.
"Akira!" Angel shouted in alarm and charged while I kept trying to get a good aim.
"Fuck, pin him down! I can't get a good shot on him!" I stated in frustration as Angel went to attack the figure.
Angel tried to hit the figure, but instead got grabbed by the neck and the figure started choking him. I quickly slung my MP5 and took out my knife and combat handgun, and began slashing at the figure until the hand holding the knife was grabbed. I struggled to overpower the figure but he wasn't budging and I quickly aimed my gun at his covered face, forcing him to release me and roll out of the way as I shot at him and charged at him again.
Pretty soon, it turned into a deadly dance of slashing, shooting, dodging, fast strikes, roundhouse kicks, and mid-air kicks until bright lights aimed at us, causing us to look up and see Wolfgang with Spectre, Beowulf soldiers, and the Elite Eight.
"Freeze! We have the authorization to open fire, so surrender or we will use deadly force!" Wolfgang warned the figure.
The figure kicked me away and started running, prompting everyone and me to open fire at the cloaked figure as Akira went to check on Angel.
"Form up and pursue the target!" Wolfgang ordered, causing everyone to jump down and take off after the figure.
"Akira, David, are you okay!" Cidra asked in concern.
"We're fine...Angel!" Akira cried out in panic as he checked on Angel, who had a nasty cut on his head.
"I...I'm fine," Angel muttered with a pained smile.
"You three, take a look at this," Goto told us as he was standing in front of the hole the figure burst through.
We went over to the hole and we saw the word 'SAGA' painted in blood, causing Akira and Angel to widen their eyes in disbelief.
"What the hell is going on here? Something is telling me that this is a message for Akira and Angel," I thought while we observed the writing.
After Angel got patched up by a Medic, he was taken back to the castle and Mina showed up while I waited for Akira to be finished with his shower. I knew that Mina was pissed for being kept in the dark about the true nature of our mission and I stayed silent until Akira left the bathroom in a black tank top and blue jeans.
"Hey Angie, you really should get a shower before you head home...huh? Angie?" Akira said when he noticed that Angel was asleep and went over to see him.
"I heard that there was quite the scuffle today," Mina announced, startling Akira and causing him to look at her.
"Hime-san...don't scare me like that," Akira muttered while Mina stood up from her chair and went over to him.
"To break the Beowulf perimeter and escape so cleanly while managing to fight off Captain Temple is no easy feat. He must be a skilled one, this assassin. Were you hurt? Here, let me see...Akira, I am more than a little angry right now," Mina stated with a pleasant smile as she looked for any injuries.
"Wha..." Akira stuttered while sweating a little.
"Disgusting terrorists stride about my kingdom with impunity while their conniving plans force me farther and farther from my subjects with each passing day. And you...you sneak around doing who knows what without a single word to me, which is making me feel like a pariah in my own court," Mina stated lowly.
"W-We're not trying to leave you out of-" Akira sputtered nervously and was cut off.
"Oh, you're not, hm? So, tossing aside your duty to guard me...just so that you could draw blood for days was a mere whim? And getting attacked by an assassin while you and Captain Temple were so conspicuously out in the open like that was a simple coincidence? Oh, and let us not forget the word "SAGA" appearing again at the scene of your battle...all of that is pure happenstance? I don't think so. What are you hiding from me?" Mina questioned with an unamused frown.
"I'm not hiding anything!" Akira lied frantically, which didn't sit well with Mina.
"Don't play dumb with me! Do you think I don't know you well enough now to see straight through you?! As time passes on...this situation drives everyone farther and farther away from me. Are you and David going to leave me too?" Mina whimpered as she looked down, causing Akira to appear pensive as he sighed reluctantly.
"The word in that carving...it's not pronounced SAGA. Hell, it's not even really a word...it's our initials. Sanin, Angie, Graham, Akira, those four names are where it comes from," Akira admitted bitterly.
"So, you're saying that-" I started to say and Akira nodded.
"Yeah...the four of us who shared a month of hardship and fun in the middle of the Siberian winter. As a sign of the bonds we had made, of the brotherhood that we had started, we carved our initials into the wall of the cave we stayed in...it has to be a message for the two of us," Akira theorized grimly.
I took off my helmet and mask so that I could pinch the space between my eyes, then I left the room and headed to my bedroom where Yuki was waiting.
"Hey," Yuki greeted as she kissed me and I went over to the bathroom to take off my gear and uniform.
"Hey, sorry I've been out all day. This job can be time-consuming at times," I stated as I removed my gear, put them away in a safe, and took off my uniform just as I went into the shower stall.
"So, how have things been today?" Yuki inquired while I was relaxing in the hot water.
"Ugh...there are so many things happening right now that I can't keep track on what's going on. There's so much happening that I'm still trying to wrap my head around it," I explained while resting my hands against the wall.
"Well, I'm sure that you and Akira can figure it out," Yuki reassured while I showered.
Once I was done with the shampoo and body wash, I finished up and grabbed a towel, dried myself off and wrapped it around my waist. Leaving the bathroom, I put the towel and my uniform in the laundry, then I shifted into my were-form as I left the bathroom and climbed into bed with Yuki, who laid against my lean torso and stroked the black fur covering my large humanoid lupine form.
"Your fur feels so soft...David, we've been together for about a year now, right?" Yuki inquired, and I looked down at her.
"Yes, why do you ask?" I wondered in confusion and Yuki blushed a little as I wrapped an arm around her.
"Well, I was wondering when we'll be, you know, official yet," Yuki pointed out, and I tensed up since I knew that she was talking about us mating and getting married.
"Yuki, I...I don't know about this. Are you absolutely sure you want to...get married and have kids? And don't you think that it is a little soon to be asking me that?" I questioned uncertainly since I didn't want to seriously hurt her when we do mate.
"I...I was wondering since we've been taking things slow and...I guess I am wondering when it will happen," Yuki admitted shyly and I adjusted so that she could look up at my beautiful golden eyes.
"Yuki...are you really sure you want to get married and have kids? This is a big thing you are asking me and I want you to be absolutely sure about this because when we do decide to have kids...I just don't want to hurt you since mating in this form and my wolf form can be agonizing for the partner...maybe we should wait until you are absolutely sure you want to mate with me," I offered and Yuki nodded.
"Okay...we'll wait just a little longer until all of this is over, then I want to see just how wild my big bad wolf can be," Yuki whispered seductively, and I blushed under my fur since I wasn't used to a girl flirting with me like that.
"Hmmm...I can't wait to claim you so that no one can take you from me," I growled lowly and leaned down to gently nibble her neck, causing her to gasp softly in pleasure.
I curled around Yuki and gently held her in an embrace, enjoying this tender moment and we fell fast asleep.
It had been two days since the attempted assassination and Akira has been mostly quiet since that time, though he did tend to talk about anything and nothing whenever it's he needed to take his mind off whatever's been bothering him. Tonight, I had found Akira in a room, looking out a window with a pensive expression. I stood next to him, and caught his attention but he didn't comment on my appearance.
"I've been looking for you...just wanted to let you know that the Princess' medical checkup is happening soon so we should get ready to escort her," I informed him, and he nodded while staying silent.
"Thinking about the past? You have that same look I do whenever I'm lost in thought," I pointed out and Akira looked at me.
"It's nothing...I just have a lot on my mind is all," Akira stated with a shrug.
"About your Rite of Passage? I know a little bit about it and I once overheard you and Angel mentioning something about an incident with Sanin, Graham, and you," I said, and Akira shot a glare at me as I added, "Listen, I know it's none of my business and I have no right to go there, but my advice is that you get it off your chest before it eats you up inside."
"What the hell do you know? You don't know anything...so drop it," Akira warned with a slight growl, and I felt my wolf urging me to remind him who the Alpha was since Akira was issuing a challenge.
"You're right, I don't know anything. Look, you're not the only one who's been through hell and lost friends, but if there is one thing I had learned in the Bund...is that keeping it to yourself is not going to make it go away.
Every mission I've been on before I wound up here, I became the only survivor in every single one and I had eventually stopped caring about the next unit I was placed in since they would only die in the end...I'm broken Akira, I'm damaged beyond repair and it has been hell trying to come to terms with myself about who I am and what I have done during my life as a soldier killing people for chump change.
We all have our own private hell and our own demons to wage war against...your hell is what had happened two years ago and my hell is what Umbrella did to me and what I did for them. I've struggled for a long time with survival and thought that it would never change for me, but I eventually found someone and something to fight for in this world of darkness and cruelty.
What I'm trying to say is that there are times where you just need to let someone in before you go down a path that you can never come back from...I'll let you think about that," I said and kept looking out the window until the door opened and Angel walked in.
"Akira, David, Hime-sama is about ready to go for her medical checkup," Angel informed us as I checked the mag in my MP5.
"Copy that," I replied and we left the room.
We took the elevator down and brought the limo to the front of the building, waiting until Mina and Vera met up with us so that we could drive to the hospital.
"Akira, do you still send emails to your mother?" Mina asked.
"Yeah...sometimes," Akira replied quietly.
"Did you know, Angie? Akira is actually quite the conscientious letter-writer. He used to send me these wonderfully long letters once a week. I looked forward to reading them all the time, but now they no longer come...they haven't come once since that winter two years ago. Yuki also mentioned something to me, Akira. She said that two years ago, you stopped smiling like you used to...is it what had happened that winter that changed you that much?" Mina inquired softly, causing the atmosphere to become tense.
"Your Majesty!" Angel exclaimed in shock.
"Silence, I am not asking you! Akira, what am I to you?...am I not even worth the dignity of a response?" Mina pressed, and I decided to stop her since Akira was looking more and more stressed from the personal questions.
"Ma'am, with all due respect, you're being out of line there. If Akira doesn't want to talk about it, then that's his choice since he is clearly uncomfortable from you pressing him," I pointed out just as I saw something on the roof of a tanker truck driving onto the highway, and my eyes widened when I saw that it was the figure from two days ago.
"Vera-san, hit the brakes!" Akira shouted in alarm as the figure jumped off the roof of the truck and landed on the hood of the limo.
"Hime-sama, put your seatbelt on!" Vera instructed just as I aimed at the figure.
Vera slammed her foot on the brakes and the figure went flying off the hood and crashing roughly onto the highway, then Vera activated the guns that popped up from the hood and loud rapid gunfire rang out as Vera sped us away from the figure.
"Did you get him?!" Akira questioned urgently, and he was answered when something punched a hole in the roof and the figure peeled it open.
"Shit! Plug your ears and cover your heads because this is going to get loud!" I instructed and aimed up at the figure.
I switched to burst fire and shot at the figure with rapid gunfire until I was grabbed and yanked out of the car, landing on the roof just as Akira grappled the figure by the throat and climbed onto the roof.
"Angie, take care of Hime-san for us!" Akira ordered as his teeth grew sharp.
"Akira, David!" Mina cried in panic as I slung my MP5 and joined Akira in trying to throw the figure off of the limo.
"We'll be fine Ma'am because this time...the gloves come off!" I snarled the last part as Akira and I shifted into our were-forms, Akira's Beowulf uniform expanding to fit his large size.
Akira and I started to push the figure off of the limo but he suddenly howled as his form changed into a werewolf before our very eyes, the figure having one eye that was blind and a few large scars covered the right side of his muzzle.
"What the fuck?! A werewolf?!" Akira exclaimed in shock, giving the figure the chance to shove us onto the hood of the limo.
We looked up to see the figure was about to swipe us with his claws, but Vera suddenly turned and I was thrown off the limo. I performed a backflip in mid-air and landed onto the beginning of a long bridge and watched as the limo skidded to a stop nearby as the figure was thrown into a semi tanker truck by a kick from Akira. The figure crashed into the passenger side of the tanker and bounced off it as the tanker skidded, tipped over and smashed onto its side just before it erupted into a massive explosion.
Akira was coming toward me from where the limo had skidded to a stop, tossing away the hood ornament that had stabilized him on the hood of the limo, and we both tensed up when we saw the figure exiting the flames.
"Akira, David, are you two okay?!" Mina exclaimed in alarm as cars pulled up to the scene and people got out to flee the massive fire that was raging out of control.
"Ma'am, stay in the car and let us contain this situation!" I ordered urgently as I looked back at her.
"Monster!" I heard a deep voice shouting, and I looked to see the figure wearing an enraged expression.
I saw the figure suddenly bend over and grip his head, snarling in pain from something and looking at Akira in recognition while shifting back to his human form.
"A...Kira? Akira," the figure muttered, causing Akira to widen his eyes in disbelief just as an Apache helicopter flew up behind the figure.
The figure whipped around and slammed his foot onto the hood of an abandoned car to hold it vertically in front of him. The helicopter fired its 30mm chaingun into the vertical car enough to force the figure and his makeshift shield backwards into the wreckage of the tanker truck where the section of the bridge weakened by the explosion, collapsed, and it all fell into the water far below us. I simply stared at the flaming carnage's descent as the helicopter flew away. Mina left the limo and quickly headed over to us.
"Akira, David, are you two okay?! Did we get him?" Mina questioned frantically as we shifted back into our human forms.
"That howl...yeah, he's a werewolf and maybe even..." Akira trailed off while I went over to Mina.
"Ma'am, this area's a hot zone so we need to escort you to safety," I suggested and Mina nodded.
As we all went back to the limo, I wondered how that figure knew Akira and I had a feeling that it wasn't over yet.
A/N Looks like things are heating up so who do you think that figure is and how does he know Akira? Well, if you all have read the entire manga, don't spoil it for me since I'm not even finished with volume seven. If you all like the chapter, let me know and stay tuned.