6. Chapter 6: Closure
Chapter 6: Closure
Part A
I left the clinic after the deed had been done. I got on Mion's bike and rode back to the Sonozaki house. As I rode, I kept smiling and humming to myself. I had done the right thing. If I didn't kill Irie, then he would have killed me. If not me, it could have been another one of my friends. Kei-chan could have died, or Satoko, Rika, Mion, or Rena. I couldn't take that chance! I couldn't allow Irie to kill again!
I arrived back at the house. I was about to sneak back inside, but I looked at my clothes and at my body. Irie's blood was still on me. I couldn't waltz in through the front and sneak in like that. If somebody caught me as I was, I was done for. Nobody would understand the service I had done for Hinamizawa. They would only call me a murderer. But I knew the truth. I wasn't a murderer...I was a hero.
I went around the back and sneaked through the window. I was in the bathroom now. I took as much toilet paper that was there and wiped my hands, arms, and face clean. After I washed my hands and face, I turned to the door. I silently opened the door and crept through the hallways. I peeked around the corners. I cocked my ears and listened for even the tiniest sound. There was nothing around me. I was all alone in this darkness. I was in my element.
I made it to my room. I changed out of my blood drenched clothes and gathered them up into a pile. I hid them in the closet for now. I would take them and burn them tomorrow in the mountains. I would take the passage via the torture chambers and head up to there. I'd burn them and scatter the ashes into the wind. It would be like this had never happened. Nobody would ever have to know I killed Irie.
I slept soundly that night. I curled up in my bed and drifted off into the realm of fantasy. I was so happy! I was such a good person! I saved the village from evil! Now nobody would ever hurt me again! It would be my friends and I from now on! I could be with Satoshi-kun again...I could be with Satoko...I could be with Kei-chan!
The cry of the cicadas woke me up the next morning. I felt so refreshed and relieved! There was no dark cloud that lingered over my head! I was free! I was finally free! I could finally be truly happy!
A sweet aroma filled my nostrils. It smelled divine. Satoko must have been making breakfast. I jumped out of my bed and literally flew into the living room. I took a seat at the small table and had this gigantic smile on my face. Kei-chan strolled in. He yawned very loudly. He had this real severe case of bed-head! His hair was so flat and it was messier than usual!
"Morning, Kei-chan!" My eyes fluttered at him.
"Oh, hey, Shion!" He sat across from me. Why did he do that? Didn't he want to sit next to me? "Satoko's cooking woke you up as well, huh?"
"Uh-huh! I couldn't resist!"
Kei-chan laughed. I loved that laugh of his. I don't know why, but all of sudden I loved everything he did. I loved the way he talked, the way he presented himself, and the way he would sit.
"Shion, what's with you?" He pointed at me and chuckled. "Your face is all red!"
"Huh...? Oh!" I slapped myself. "I'm okay! Nothing to worry about!"
He grinned. "I think I dazzled you with my entrance! Haha! You've never seen me just waking up, huh? I guess I'm too much for you!"
I shot him a seductive look. "I think I might have been even more dazzled if I woke up beside you..."
He was totally not expecting that comeback! He blushed and suddenly covered his lap with his hands. He squealed in shame.
"My, my!" I put my knuckles up to my lips. I batted my eyelashes. "Kei-chan's very excited! If only I did wake up next to him...I wonder what he would do...?"
His body tensed up even more. He hung his head.
I laughed hard at his shame. I was telling the truth though. I really wouldn't have minded waking up beside him...
Sis came into the room with some plates in her hand, followed by Satoko with her own set of dishes.
"Mornin' everybody!" She beamed proudly at Kei-chan and I. "Breakfast is ready!"
"You better enjoy it!" Satoko laughed and set down the plates in front of us. "Mion-san and I worked real hard on these! So you better appreciate us!" She noticed that Kei-chan was still guarding his lap and that his head was lowered. "What's wrong with Keiichi-san?"
"Don't worry about him!" I snickered. "He's just going through one of his boy phases!"
"What phase is that?"
Mion realized what Kei-chan was trying to hide. "Kei-chan!" She sounded half shocked and half entertained to see him this way. "Show some decency! You're in the presence of women here!"
Kei-chan quickly got up and left the room.
"Where are you going, Kei-chan?" I asked with a devilish sneer.
"To get my good pair of shorts..."
Mion and I cackled. Satoko only blinked at us. If only Rena were here! She would probably swoon over him and try to take him home with her!
We finished breakfast and played Mion's infamous Old Geezer all afternoon. Surprisingly, Kei-chan didn't lose this time! He actually won the most rounds out of everyone! Satoko, however, scored the lowest. She would have to suffer a punishment from Kei-chan. At first she was depressed, but she seemed happy that Kei-chan was the one who was going to give her the punishment. I saw him wink at her. He was up to something! Mion picked up on the message. She scolded him for going soft on her, while he acted as if he wasn't sure what she meant.
Everybody spoke of their plans for the day. Kei-chan was going to take Satoko up into the mountains again to play. Mion was going to Okinomiya to help our uncle at his store. They were all going to depart in a short while. I was fearful for a moment, as Kei-chan and Satoko took my spot away from me. How was I going to dispose of the blood-drenched clothes now?
I remembered the torture chamber. I could temporarily hide the clothes somewhere in there until I could get to the mountains without anybody noticing me. I didn't want to leave the clothes in the house for too long. Somebody could discover them. I didn't want to take any chances. I had to make everything appear as if nothing ever happened. I was going to succeed!
Kei-chan and Satoko said their goodbyes and took off to the mountains. Mion reminded him to give her the punishment. He laughed and said that he would. I knew what he was up to. He was going to make Satoko play a game up there with him. It would just be a regular game. He had his moments when he could be so sly!
I was changing out of my pajamas when I heard the front doorbell ring. Mion said she would get it and ran to answer the door. After I got into my fresh clothes, I went out to the living room again. I cracked the door open and gazed upon the celestial garden. The flowers were in full bloom and the water was gently cascading down and through the garden. It was absolutely breath taking. I heard the cicadas singing to me. It was all so pretty.
Mion came back into the room. She stepped over to the side and called my name. I turned to face her. Takuma was standing right beside her with his bright and friendly smile. What was he doing here?
"Takuma!" I waved to him. "This is a pleasant surprise!"
"Hey, there!" He smiled back at me and returned my wave. He caught the remaining scent of Satoko and Mion's breakfast. "Mmm, that smells great! Did you guys just eat?"
"Yeah, a little while ago! You should have stopped by sooner! We would have offered you some!"
"Haha! Just my luck I guess!"
Mion led him over to the table. He sat across from me and Mion sat in between the both of us. She seemed very still. She wasn't as bubbly as she always was.
"So," I broke the silence. "What brings you out to the village today, Takuma?"
"Some news about Houjou Teppei has turned up." Takuma said joyfully.
"Oh, really?" My day was getting better! "Did you find him? Did you arrest him?"
"We did find him!"
He did? That was great! Now he would never bother Satoko again! Takuma promised me he would catch him and solve all of our problems! He came through for us!
"You caught him and everything? That's awesome!" I clapped my hands together and gave him the biggest smile I could muster.
He laughed. "Yeah! You won't have to worry about him anymore! We got him alright!"
This was perfect! Rika was right! Everything was getting better!
"We got him in the morgue!"
My heart stopped beating. "…What…?"
Takuma rested his elbow on the table and held up his chin with his hand. He was still smiling at me. "Yeah! We found him last night! Isn't that great?"
I detected a hint of sarcasm in his voice.
"Teppei's…dead…?"
"Uh-huh!" His smiled widened just a little. "Sempai and I were on patrol last night when we found Houjou's corpse. We found him in a drainage ditch on the border between Okinomiya and Hinamizawa. You know what the funny thing is? The water that leads to the ditch comes straight from a certain place within Hinamizawa. You know what place I'm talking about?"
My mouth couldn't open.
"I'm, of course, talking about Onigafuchi Swamp!"
I glanced at Mion. She looked at me with such emotionless narrowed eyes. What? What did I do?
"So, what I'm getting at here," Takuma closed his eyes and kept on smiling at me, "is that Houjou Teppei was murdered and dumped into the swamp!"
"B-But that can't be! That's not-!"
"Let me finish, please." He opened his eyes. He pulled a sheet of paper from his jacket pocket. He placed it in front of me.
"What's this?"
"Results of a fingerprint test I conducted. These fingerprints, here, here, and here," he said casually as he pointed to each blot, "were found a piece of timber we found next to the swamp."
No…don't tell me…
"The timber was broken and bashed in quite a bit. It had a sharp edge to it, and quite a lot of blood was found on it. That blood belongs to Houjou Teppei. Just to be 100% positive, we checked his wounds. He had many splinters in his body that matched this exact timber. Wanna take a guess at whose fingerprints these belong to?"
I was too afraid to speak. My sweat was dripping onto my shoulders. He had me right where he wanted me.
"Why…they're Mion-san's!"
Huh?
"That's right!" Takuma looked at her, still holding onto that friendly smile. "There was one set of prints in our database that matched the fingerprints on the timber, and those prints belong to Mion-san!"
Mion didn't budge an inch. She was still staring at me.
"S-Sis' prints…?"
"Yep!" He chuckled. Takuma's voice was in a joyful tone. What was this guy doing? "But that's not the only set of prints of Mion-san's that I found! I went to the Irie Clinic that same night to get some medication for my allergies around midnight. I was hoping the place would still be open; I hear Dr. Irie is quite a night owl! But when I got there, I just so happened to find the good doctor lying on the floor in a pool of his own blood!"
I gulped hard. I was such an idiot! I should have disposed of Irie's body! Why didn't I do that? I was so wrapped in my victory that I completely forgot to ditch his body! How could I have been so stupid?
"I found a syringe in his neck as well as a bloody scalpel on the floor near his body. You know whose prints I found on those items? You guessed it! It was Mion-san's!"
Mion's? Again? But…but…I killed Irie! I killed him with that needle and with that scalpel! How could Mion's prints be on there when I was the one who did the deed! And Teppei! That dream I had…I really did kill Teppei! But again, Mion's prints were on that timber I used to kill him, the monster! What in the world…? What was happening to the world around me?
"You see here," he scooted over to Mion. He threw his arm around her shoulders. "This little lady has a criminal record in our database! Her only charge was a misdemeanor from a few years ago, during the Dam War, but it looks like she'll have a charge of double homicide! Isn't that wonderful? Even though we told you kids we would handle Teppei," he turned to Mion, "you still had to take things into your own hands, huh? I don't know why you would kill Dr. Irie, but I'm sure we'll figure that out at the station!"
I was choking up. This was all a lie! Mion wasn't guilty! I was! How could they mistake her for me? Wait! I gathered my fortitude and spoke up.
"Sis didn't do those things!" I shouted out him.
Mion titled her head at me.
Takuma raised his brow. "Oh? But we have her prints! She killed both Houjou Teppei and Irie Kyousuke! You're trying to tell me somebody else did this? That's impossible!"
"It is possible!" I sat close to Takuma. I gripped the sleeve of his jacket. "I'm guilty!"
"You?" He looked at me funny.
"I am! I'm the one who killed them both!" I buried my face into the bend of his arm. "I had this dream where I fought this monster at Onigafuchi Swamp! I killed him with a timber! I ditched him in the swamp! I know it sounds crazy, but I killed Teppei! I did it!"
Takuma titled his own head. "Quit fooli-"
"I killed Irie too! You told me Kasai was killed by poison, right? Well, I got those pills from him a few days ago! I went to get revenge for what he did to Kasai! I killed him! I killed him and I enjoyed every second of it! I'm the one you want! Sis is innocent!"
"But her prints…"
"We're twins! We probably share the same style of fingerprints! I don't know! But Mion is innocent! Please! Don't take her away! Take me!"
Takuma watched me for a moment. I think he was trying to see if I was telling truth.
"Shion. Stop it." Mion's narrow eyes were looking at me again. "You're talking nonsense. I'm guilty…not you. Don't defend me. You're innocent."
"Sis!" I went over to her now. I removed Takuma's arm from her and held her hands in my own. "I'm the killer! I did all of these terrible things! The demon made me do it! It's all on me! I'm the one he wants!"
"Shion."
"I did it! I'm guilty!"
Mion pulled my ear close to her mouth. She whispered to me. "Stay quiet! I'll be alright…let me help you, Shion!"
She was…covering for me…?
"It's not fair for you to suffer so much! Let your sister handle this now!"
"Sis…" I was tearing up. I was sniveling. She knew all this time. "Please…don't…"
"Take good care of Kei-chan for me…tell him…and Satoko…that I love them…"
"No…no…no! I won't let you leave me like this! I'm responsible! I'm responsible! Don't do this! I'm begging you!"
Mion cracked a smile at me. "I'll be fine! What could they do to me? I'm Sonozaki Mion! I can do anything! Ahaha!"
I wrapped my arms around her. I didn't want to let her go. I'd do anything to keep her with me. I wouldn't let her leave me! I wouldn't let him take her!
"Shion." Takuma pulled out a pair of handcuffs from his pocket. His voice was very sullen now. "I have to take Mion-san now."
"NO!" I squeezed Mion tighter. "Don't you lay a finger on her!"
"Shion, please! Don't make this harder than it already is!"
"I'll kill you!" I pulled out my stun gun and switched it to the highest setting. "If you touch her, I'll kill you! I'll kill you too!"
"Shion, stop it!" Mion shook me hard. "Let me go with him! I'll be fine! Let me do this for you! I want you to have your chance at happiness! I want you to enjoy a carefree life! I want you to be happy for once, instead of masking your pain! Please, let me do this! I want this!"
"…Sis…no…"
Mion broke free from my grasp. She stood up and placed her arms behind her back. Takuma handcuffed her. The click of the cuffs rang in my ears. It nearly deafened me. I should be the one in those! Not Mion!
"Let's go, Mion-san," Takuma said quietly.
"Take care of Kei-chan!" Mion called back to me as she walked off with Takuma. "He's hopeless without someone to watch out for him! Ahaha!"
I reached out for her, but I couldn't touch her. "MION!"
Just like that, Sis was gone. I sat there on the floor, clutching the stun gun in my hands. I squeezed it so tightly that my arms vibrated. I was alone. Sis and I were supposed to stay together, but now she was covering up for my stupid mistakes. She didn't have to do this! I should be the one to be punished! Sis was innocent!
"Dammit…dammit…dammit…dammit!" I glowered at the bright blue sky outside the living room. It was mocking me! "Oyashiro-sama…you bastard!" I ran outside and shouted up into the sky. "Are you happy now? Are you satisfied? You robbed me of my sister! That should have been me! Why are you torturing me? What more are you gonna take from me? I trusted you! I received your blessing! I thought you blessed me and that you were going to watch out for me! Damn you! DAMN YOU!"
I dropped the stun gun. I collapsed to my knees. I was clutching my stomach. I was so sick. I felt like my stomach was going to burst.
I vomited. I coughed hard and I was choking on what came out of me. Some bits were stuck in my throat. I looked at the mess I had made. It was all blood.
It was the blood I drank. From Teppei when I had killed him near Onigafuchi, when I first tasted that sweet drink, and from Irie when I slew him in his own clinic. The blood was moving. There was something squirming within in. What was it? It was small and it was wriggling about. Oh God…was that…was that…a maggot?
I screamed at fell on my back. Some of the blood was on my chin and on my lips. They were crawling there too! The maggots were crawling all over me! I swiped at them until they were completely off of me. I stomped down on them. I broke them all into tiny pieces, but those pieces formed more of the wriggling creatures! I stomped one more time, they attached themselves to my leg! They traveled up my leg and up to my face! They covered every inch of my body! I tried, but why couldn't I get them off?
I shut my eyes tightly and then opened them again. The tingling sensations from the maggots were gone. I looked at my arms and legs. They were all gone! Was it another hallucination? I looked down again into the mess on the ground. It was still reddish. I knew it was blood. It had to be!
All of these things were destroying me! I couldn't stop them! I couldn't…hold on. Oyashiro-sama…he was the one who was doing all of this to me! I hated him! I wanted him to die! But I couldn't kill a god! I couldn't fight him! However, I could attack the very thing in which he was connected to! I could kill that connection! Furude Rika!
Rika…that little bitch! She was the reincarnation of Oyashiro-sama! She was his priestess! He had to be connected to her! If I could just kill her, I could get back at him! I could get back at that bastard! It realized it now! She didn't bless me! She had cursed me! She cursed me so that I would suffer this torment!
I rushed inside of the house. I ran all the way to my grandmother's room. There, upon the wall above a dresser, was my tool! With that, I could get my revenge! I took the ceremonial wakizashi down from the hanger and unsheathed it. The gleaming blade was singing to me. It told me to kill her!
"Hahaha….NYAHAHAHA!" I swung the blade, slicing the air all around me. I imagined myself running that little brat through with this sword! It's what she deserves! "You're gonna pay for betraying me, Rika! You lied to me…you said everything would get better, but you knew from the very beginning that this was going to happen! You cursed me! You witch…I'll kill you! I'll kill you!" I yelled. "Oyashiro-sama! Are you watching me? I'm gonna kill your reincarnation with this sword! I'm gonna kill your precious little Rika! I'll show you what happens when you attack a demon! Nyahahahahaha!"
Part B
I was walking down the road to Rika's house. I wrapped the wakizashi up in a cloth so no one would see it. Although I did that, there was no one around. They must be all home at this time.
It was early evening when I began my walk. The sun was setting in the horizon. It was blood red. The sky looked bleak to me. After all I had been through, everything looked bleak. The beautiful flowers that were blooming along the road looked dead to me. The crisp evening air was disgusting. The fresh emerald grass looked lifeless. This was the Hinamizawa I was living in. I hated it.
I hated this village. I hated it because of Oyashiro-sama. I wanted it all to be erased. I wanted it all to leave my sight, to leave existence. This village was not the home that I loved anymore. It was a land of lies of never ending torment. I wanted it to burn.
I arrived at Rika and Satoko's house. This was it. Now I would kill her and get my revenge on that damn god. I would show him, and to everyone else, how dangerous a demon really was!
I knocked on the door. There was no answer. I knocked again and received the same result. I got tired with this waiting around. I kicked the door down.
The door fell with a loud crash. I removed the cloth from my sword. Rika's time had come. I walked inside and looked into the living room. She wasn't there. I looked in the kitchen. She wasn't there either. She must be upstairs!
I slowly walked up the stairs. When I got to the top, I dragged my feet as I walked into the bedroom on the top floor. Her bed was all made up. She probably woke up this morning and fixed it before she went to school. Not finding her here, I looked in her closets, just in case she was there hiding from me.
I couldn't find her at all! She wasn't home! Did she know I was coming? Did Oyashiro-sama warn her about my plan? No, that wasn't the case. It couldn't be. She must be out buying ingredients for dinner or something. I would simply wait for her to come, and then I would shred her to pieces.
Hours past. It was already nightfall. Rika still didn't return home. I was becoming increasingly impatient. I had been stabbing the floor repeatedly with my wakizashi to kill time, but my target never showed up.
I was very suspicious. She had to have known I was here waiting to kill her! Oyashiro-sama warned her! He told her I was waiting right here to ambush her! That wasn't fair at all! I wasn't surprised though. That evil being always was one step ahead of me, making my life worse with little to no effort at all. It was all his fault! Not mine! His!
I got fed up with waiting. There was only one other place where I could think of where Rika may have been. The Furude Family Shrine. Of course! I should have gone there first! Knowing my luck though, Oyashiro-sama would tell her and she would be in her home right now, while I waited for her to come to the shrine. That clever bastard!
I left the home and followed the road to the shrine. It was very dark out at this time; nobody would be out roaming the village at this hour. I didn't have to worry about hiding my sword anymore. Even though it was late out, the shrine was the only place Rika could have been. It was worth a shot. It was my only chance!
I found the steps to the shrine. I casually walked up them, with the sword vibrating in my hand. I would take another life this night. More blood would be spilled. I would drink that blood. I wanted to drink it. I wanted to know what Rika's blood tasted like, the blood of Oyashiro-sama.
I arrived at the top of the steps. The shrine was right in front of me. If she wasn't there, she had to be in the Saiguden. Either way, she would die this night. She would die for cursing me and for taking Mion and Kasai away from me. I wondered what her last thoughts would be. I wondered if she would beg for mercy. I wondered if she would try to run from me, only to have my sword driven through her small chest. The thoughts made me excited! I couldn't wait!
I approached the main altar. I laughed darkly.
"Rika-chaaaaaaaaan! It's Shii! I want to talk with you! Could you please come out of there and see me?" I hid the sword behind my back as I waited in front of the altar.
Rika didn't come out of the shrine.
"Oh, what's this? You're going to stay in there? Fine! It doesn't matter to me! I'll come right in then! I have something I want to discuss with youuu!"
I jumped over the altar.
My feet landed on something. It wasn't the paved stones of the property. It felt squishy. The sound made my stomach churn. I lifted my foot up. I heard something oozing out. What in the…?
I dropped my sword when I peered down. I saw a tiny body, naked and bloody. Its abdomen had been sliced open and its contents were strewn about where my feet were. Its long hair was drenched in red liquid. Its little arms and legs were mangled. It eyes were wide open. Its mouth was agape, with dry drool on its chin. This…this was…Rika!
My eyes turned to her head. There was something imbedded right in her forehead. It was an odd looking thing. It looked like some sort of blade, with a hilt similar to my wakizashi. The thing looked like a drooping branch from a willow tree. The blade was broken, though. The remaining piece of the blade was near her feet. Was this thing a sword?
I backed away from Rika's mutilated body. What happened? Who did this to her? What in the world was going on here? I was supposed to kill her! Wait…I shouldn't have been sad about that! Quite the contrary, I was happy! I was happy that she was dead!
"Ha…haha…hahahahahaha!" I breathed deep and howled louder than I ever did before. "I won! I won, I won! Oyashiro-sama's reincarnation is dead now! Hahahaha! Kasai! Mion! I won after all!"
My laugh was cut short. There was some rustling that came from behind me. I glanced over my shoulder. I froze in my place. There were monsters…hideous looking creatures behind me! They had dark claws, fangs, green slime as their saliva, and these feral blood red eyes! They looked hungry. They looked thirsty.
There were at least five of them. There were all bigger than I was. There could rip me apart with a single swipe of their claws! All I had was my sword and my stun gun! I couldn't defeat all five of them, could I?
"What? Are-Are you the ones that did this to Rika?"
They merely growled at me. They approached me dangerously slow.
My face was twitching. I couldn't help but smile and laugh at this.
"You're demons too? You're just like me? Of course you are! I know it!" I picked up my sword. I pointed it at Rika's corpse. "You had your fill of her and now you want me, is that it?"
They kept getting closer and closer to me.
"But I'm one of you! We're the same! Why would you want me? I'm a demon just like you!"
One rushed forward. Her swiped at me with his claw.
I dodged, but he still managed to cut my cheek. I backed away and saw my blood fall to the paved stone. When I saw my blood, I only got more excited. I was laughing! I was smiling! I love this! I was going to fight my own kind!
"You want me, huh?" I squeezed the switch on my stun gun. "Well come and get me! I dare you to try it! Nyahahahaha! My demon is much stronger than you! I'll rip you all apart!"
That same demon charged again. I thrust the sword into its broad shoulder and stabbed its neck with my stun gun. The monster fell to the ground with a loud thud. It hit the ground so hard that it made a small crater. That was the power of a demon? It was pathetic! My demon was stronger than any of these lesser ones! I could kill them all myself!
Two of the remaining demons rushed me. I dodged the first and thrust my sword into the waist of my second attacker. I hit the other with my stun gun as I used my sword. There was only two left now. They growled at me in fury and put their claws up to their mouths. I saw their jaws moving and that slime oozing from their mouths. What were they doing? Were they waiting for me to attack first?
Just as I was about to strike, more demons came from the shadows. Each one glared at me and raised their claws. I counted at least ten now. I wasn't going to be as lucky as I was before! I had a feeling their tactics were going to change. I defeated three with no problem, even with two attacking me at once, but I couldn't fight ten of these monsters simultaneously! I knew my demon was powerful, but I had to be smart! Even with my strength, I couldn't get cocky!
I fled from them. I ran off to the side, sprinting down the road that would lead me to the suspension bridge. They ran on all fours like rabid beasts hunting down their prey. If I could get them onto that narrow bridge, I could have a chance of killing them all!
I made it to the center of the bridge. I spun around and readied my wakizashi and my stun gun again. They couldn't attack me in unison here! They had no choice but to fight me one on one now!
"Nyahahahaha! Is this all you got? Come on! I was expecting more from demons! Now, come at me! I'll make you regret the moment you decided to-"
Thunder cracked and lighting flashed in front of me. I felt a sharp pain in my shoulder and in my leg. I yelped in pain and collapsed to the pathway of the bridge. I was squiring where I lay; writhing in my pain. My shoulder! My leg! Something was stuck in them! It hurt! It hurt so much!
They all approached me and hovered all around me. Their fangs glistened in the moonlight. I was dead! They were going to kill me like they killed Rika! I was going to suffer her fate! No! I wasn't going to die! I wasn't going to die here! Not like this!
I swung my sword with all of my might and thrust it all around me. One demon sliced my wrist. The sword fell from my grip and plummeted down to the water below us. I tried my stun gun, but it met the same end. It was over. I had no more weapons. I couldn't find any longer. I couldn't move because the pain was so bad. I had lost.
After they punched at me and kicked at me, the demons lifted me up into their grasp. They all smiled and laughed at me. They laughed at my awful state and the futile attempt to survive.
They threw me over the side of the bridge.
Where did it all go wrong? Where did everything go to hell? Why did it have to be this way? Why did I have to die?
My thoughts drifted back to the day I saw everyone in Angel Mort. We were all laughing and enjoying life together. It wasn't until Teppei came back when it all came crumbling down. No…it wasn't his fault…it wasn't anybody's fault…it was my own.
I gave in to my demon. I let it take control me and take advantage of my vulnerability. I let it use my obsessions, my lust, my hatred, and my pain against me. I was a mere puppet. I tried though. I really tried to fight it…but I failed. I failed because I was too weak. I relied too much on others to help me when I should have made myself stronger.
"I'm sorry…Rena…Satoko…Takuma…Rika…Sis…Satoshi-kun…and you…Keiichi." I thought to myself as I fell to the rocks below. "I betrayed all of you…I'm so sorry. I gave in and I failed you…if I had just one more try…just one…maybe I could prevent this from ever happening again. Please…Oyashiro-sama…or whoever is listening to me. If I had this one more chance…I promise…with all of my heart…I wouldn't make this awful mistake again…I promise…I promise….I-"
Everything around me turned to darkness.
Epilogue
My hand twitched. My legs shook. I tried to open my eyes. There was sand in my mouth. I was still alive.
I spat the sand from my mouth. I tried to get up, but I couldn't move. My shoulder still hurt, as did my leg, but now my whole right arm was throbbing. I couldn't move it at all. It was broken.
I finally rolled over on my back. I coughed up water and sand. Blood spurted from my mouth. I was alive. I had survived that fall, but was I really fortunate? I should have died. I almost wished that I did.
I desperately struggled to get on my feet, but the pain was just too much. I had to fight it though. I needed to find help. I wouldn't get far like this. I needed a doctor.
I managed to get on my feet. I had found a long stick near the small beach I was on. I seized the stick and used it to help me walk. I tried to climb back up to the road, but I fell twice. I fought through the pain until I finally reached the main road.
I stumbled along the road with my walking stick. Okinomiya was too far away to get help, but Hinamizawa was close. I think there were a few houses along this road. Maybe I could pay those homes a visit and find someone who could call an ambulance for me. I clung to this fading life…I clung because I wanted to see Satoko and Kei-chan. I wanted to see them one last time before I died.
The cry of the cicadas was all around me. Their song was rather sad. Were they singing for me? Were they singing for all the people I had hurt? Were they singing for the people I killed? I had no idea. No one would sing for me…not after this.
I came upon a small hill just outside the village. My eyes widened. I made it! I had made it to Hinamizawa! I might just make it!
I saw something dancing before me. It was large and it covered the whole village. It crackled and it grew larger and larger which each passing moment. What was I looking at?
I heard sirens blaring down the road behind me. I turned my head. I saw armored cars with soldiers, escorting ambulances and fire trucks. What was going on?
"Look! There's one now!" A paramedic called out. One of the ambulances stopped near me. The paramedic sprinted over to me and examined my wounds. "You're one lucky woman, you know that? How the hell did you get out of there?"
How did I get out of what? What was he saying?
"Oh, man! You look bad! C'mon, lemme take you to the hospital!"
"Wait…!" I tried to speak but my voice sounded very hoarse. My throat was killing me. "What's happening…? Why are the army and all these emergency vehicles here…?"
"But, didn't you just come out of there? You have to know what had happened! Jeez, she's in shock! Hey!" He turned to face another paramedic in the ambulance. "Get me the gurney!"
I looked behind myself one more time. I wished I hadn't.
My brain finally registered what my eyes were seeing. There was a fire, a great fire! The fire swept all over Hinamizawa like a plague! It engulfed the entire village in this inferno! I could hear screams, cries of death, and I could feel the heat of the flames from all the way here! All of Hinamizawa was burning!
I remembered what I had said a few hours ago. I said I wanted this village to be erased, to burn. I did this! I was responsible! I cursed Hinamizawa and caused all of this!
I dropped my walking stick and fell to the ground. I gripped my head with my arm and screamed. After that…all I heard were footsteps and the eternal cry of the cicadas.
Official Report from the Okinomiya Police Department, given to various radio stations and television channels.
On the night of July XX, around midnight, a great fire swept across the village of Hinamizawa, Shishibone City. The fire began at that time and continued until three o'clock in the morning. The incident has claimed the lives of nearly the entire population (2,000) in Hinamizawa. Rescue crews and the military have done all they can to save lives, but unfortunately, the death toll is still high. It even continues to rise as most of the survivors die in their hospital beds, due to the intake of the smoke and chemicals from the fire.
There is one survivor of the fire that is taking a considerable amount of attention; that is Sonozaki Shion. She was found badly injured just outside the village. She was taken to the hospital in Okinomiya where she is now receiving care. Her condition is stable for now. When she recovers, we hope that we may get a few words from her regarding this tragedy.
There is no evidence of what caused the fire. There are rumors that are currently circulating, but we are not sure if they have any truth to them. Nonetheless, we will inform you of these rumors. Hopefully, maybe something will come from them.
One rumor that is going around involves a group of radicals that sacked the village early this morning. These radicals are said to have committed murders, along with the murder of the priestess of Hinamizawa. These radicals are said to be supporters of the Keima Family. The Keima family, from what we know, is an old family that goes back to Hinamizawa's past.
The Keima Family and the Furude Family, the family of the priestess who was murdered, were very close until the Keima Family supposedly left the village. As to why these Keima supporters attacked the village, we do not know. We are unsure if there really is any truth to this rumor. It can be assured that this incident will be fully investigated.
That is all the information we have at this time. More news of the incident will be distributed later. Please know that this information is extremely difficult to obtain, and when we do obtain it, we will share it immediately.
A death list from the Okinomiya Precinct and the Okinomiya Hospital:
Houjou Teppei
Died a few days before the Great Fire. (Supposedly) Murdered by Sonozaki Mion.
Tatsuyoshi Kasai
Died a few days before the Great Fire. Murdered by Irie Kyousuke.
Irie Kyousuke
Died the night prior to the Great Fire. (Supposedly) Murdered by Sonozaki Mion.
Furude Rika
Died the night of the Great Fire. (Supposedly) Murdered by Keima Family Activists
Rumiko Chie
Died in the Great Fire.
Kimiyoshi Kiichiro
Died in the Great Fire. Bludgeoned to death. Possibly Keima Activists
Ryuugu Rena
Died in the Great Fire.
Maebara Keiichi
Died in the Great Fire, trying to save Houjou Satoko. Houjou is now in the hospital.
