Chapter Thirteen (Epilogue) – by Tei/Disk and Tallulah

Epilogue

A flash of movement—gray on black, hard to see. But the boy being chased made the job easier.

Cool air brushed through his greasy hair and thick stubble. The boy was tiring out, and that—that creature that dared step foot in the Man's territory, that dared steal his daughter away, was heading his way.

Yo-Yo blasted past Onishima. The chimera stopped short, spotting its new prey.

"That's right," the beast said, panting. "Run, run, you'll have to come back to this park sooner or later. I've got your friends! And now – now I'm going to get YOU!"

"Stop right there, punk!!" Onishima pulled out his gun—the real one, not that squirtgun he used on the Rudies—and aimed it straight at the chimera's head. The chimera froze. A standoff.

"I don't mind taking YOU with me too," the chimera said, his muscles tensing. "I don't mind a bit. I'll take you down with the rest and you'll be mine...my toy...forever..."

"Please." Onishima rolled his eyes. "You're so melodramatic, and you've crossed me. Nobody crosses me."

The chimera snarled and leapt. Onishima fired off a quick shot and ducked out of the way; the chimera landed in a crouch. Blood seeped down the side of its head, blacker than tar. Onishima grabbed the chip that he'd knocked clean and stuffed it in his pocket before dropping back for Yo-Yo to charge through and tackle the chimera. He dashed off screaming, "catch me if you can, dog-breath!"

---

Onishima sat in a lush waiting room. As lush as such things can get, anyway...the floor was carpeted in golden and black checker-patterned fabric, the walls were steely gray. There was one red Rokkaku symbol on the high-center of each wall. A secretary sat behind a fancy half-circle desk. The chair he sat in was warm and comfy.

The secretary glanced up at him.

"Mr. Rokkaku will see you now," she said, pointing at the large black doors to her left, each one bearing a powerful white Rokkaku symbol. Onishima shivered at the sight, as if they were some bizarre swastikas instead. Swallowing his pride, he walked through the doors and into Toji's office.

"Captain Onishima, please sit down," Toji said, gesturing to a chair placed in front of his behemoth mahogany desk. In comparison to Toji's personal chair, the one Onishima sat in was fit more for a toddler. "I believe you've received notice of your suspension and resignation?"

"Yep," Onishima said. "That's why I'm here."

"Came to hand in your badge and gun personally? I've got a new guy lined up already, named Hayashi. He won't blow billions of my yen to all hell, I hope." The last sentence contained an edge Onishima didn't like.

"Listen, Rokkaku. I did what I had to for the people of this city and for my family!"

"Blowing up the park that I built and dedicated myself to the people who stopped my father?"

"Those very same...people were in danger! They were subject to a being that could be charged with kidnapping, attempted rape, attempted manslaughter, and attempted murder, all of the first or second degree!"

"That's no excuse! I know you, you think the Rudies are filth to wipe off the soul of your shoes. Well listen up—I'm no better, but if I hadn't done something, the pedestrians would have had me out, and what do you think they'll do when they hear their police chief went crazy and blew up the gift?"

"Sir, if I hadn't done that then the entire city would be in trouble right now!" He shuffled around in his trenchcoat pockets and pulled out a series of snapshots Tracer had snapped of the chimera. Each one was painfully blurred, but you could tell that they weren't of something human. He tossed them all onto Toji's desk. "This thing was an escaped creature from the Golden Rhino laboratories, a chimera that your father's scientists were creating. It was kidnapping Rudies left and right, and if we hadn't blown it up and the park with it, then it would be moving into the streets right now! You wouldn't like it if pedestrians started to go missing, would you?"

Toji didn't bother to look through the pictures. He took one glance at them scattered across his desk and snarled. "Pardon my language, captain, but you're talking complete bullshit. There was never any threat to—"

"Shut up!" Onishima pounded his hands on the desk and stood up. "You're going to listen to me good, Rokkaku. Your father was a poor, insane old man and I wouldn't be surprised if you went the same way, but I'm hell-bent on being right this time. I don't care if it's you or some insane Martian I'm talking to, this point will be proved!"

"Sit down right this minute—"

"HERE!" Onishima threw down a stack of papers. "DNA results. The sample I got off the creature matches the samples from the cage." He grabbed one last object, a plastic baggie, from his pocket, and tossed it up and down. "This is a fraction of the being's skin. All the proof is right in front of you, Mr. Rokkaku, and I could get well over three dozen Rudies and four dozen Keisatsu to testify in my defense. One of which," he added, "had a connection to the beast."

Toji stared at the evidence before him and snarled. Damn it...if it was just a handful of Rudies this would be dismissible...but over three dozen? They always have their little squabbles amongst themselves but if they all agree on it then people will listen...

"I'll have my men look this over very carefully," Toji said at last. "But in the meantime, you're still suspended. Get out of my sight, filth."

Onishima smirked and backed out of the office. A temporary victory. Toji wouldn't be able to ignore the truth much longer.

---

Combo was chillin' in Neo Little Grind City. After filling up his belly and getting some much-needed rest, he was ready to go out and have some fun again.

"So you've made this place your temporary residence, huh?"

Combo glanced up from the tag he was laying on the asphalt; Scorn was crouching on the edge of a low roof, wearing a smirk. Combo grinned, and Scorn dropped to the street.

"Well, the Garage is a great place, but it just ain't the same without the park no more, y'know? I'm not cool with dat." Combo returned to tagging. "China Town'll have to do for now."

"I think it's good we got rid of that thing," Scorn admitted, glancing up at the sky. "Though it was nice to be able to see the stars at night for a change."

"Y'all better from your drug trip?"

"Oh God." Scorn slapped his face and rubbed it. "I never, ever want to get smacked around by a monster with stone skin ever again. Being doped up was no fun."

"Hey look, you an' me can chill." Combo finished his tag with a spin. "I know you got stuff against gangs, but I think it'd be pretty cool fer us to hang sometime, ya know?"

"Yeah." Scorn grinned. "But later, I'd better go check on Kell and she how she's doing."

"Aight man...see ya."

***

Scorn headed over into Shibuya, the sun warm on his back, and down to the bus terminal. Once there, he waited until four black-and-pink figures skated into it and started to slap paint onto the buses.

"Hey, Kell!" he called.

One of the figures stopped and crossed over to him. "Oh, it's you."

"Is that how you speak to your fellow suspect?"

"Very funny," Kell said. "I just wanna forget all about all that shit. Akina's back and the chimera's gone and that's the way I like it."

"Ah, don't be so spiky. You helped save everyone from what I hear." Scorn ran his eyes over her. "And you got some new clothes, I see."

"Yeah, well, from what I hear you got your skull bashed open. Why're you so cheerful?" Kell glowered. "We're back to the streets and I'm not pleased. Just because I had to work with Onishima for one evening doesn't mean I want to have the ugly little dwarf chasing me twenty-four-seven."

Scorn shrugged. "Yeah, but look on the bright side, okay Kell? You got your friends back. And come on. You can deal with Onishima. Don't tell me you didn't miss being able to paint his trenchcoat."

Kell glanced at the paint can she was gripping, then smirked. "True. Hang on. Didn't he get suspended for blowing up the park?"

"Well, then. He won't be on your back. Geez, Love Shocker, cheer up! You know, you're alive and chimera-free. Things could've been a lot worse."

She glared at him.

"You could be in pieces," Scorn said. "Or sliced up by a group of Dogma-obsessed Poison Jammers. Or – or loadsa stuff. Things actually turned out pretty good."

Kell sighed, and her glare slowly faded to a faint smile. "I guess. Well, renegade, you better get going. You're trespassing on my turf."

"You're one to talk. This is GG turf."

Kell grinned, eyes narrowed. "I know."

She turned and skated back to one of the buses. Scorn stood there, watching, squinting in the sun, until she yelled, "I said get outta here!"

Scorn leapt onto a railing and ground along, the air shrieking through his hair. As he got to the end of the rail, he leapt – the sun glinted on his skates – the buses – the clean white billboards dotting the terminal – and then he landed, and ambled out of the bus terminal, not looking back.

***

Gum walked into the garage, squinting as the bright sunlight was replaced by afternoon darkness. The air was hot and still.

"Guys?" she called.

"Uh-huh?"

Slowly, as her eyes started to adjust to the light, she made out several slumped GG shapes.

"What the hell are you all doing in here?" she asked.

"Bein' bored," Beat said.

Gum hid a grin. "Uh – why?"

"Why not?" Tab said. He was lying flat on the sofa, arms crossed over his chest like a corpse. "No park. I wanted the park. Now the park is gone…"

Gum sighed. "Look, if Combo and me and Garam can handle it, why can't you?"

"Because," Mew said from the silent sound system, "Combo's sensible, and you and Garam are – and I can see this – you and Garam are just sooo smug you were right about the park."

Gum's grin broke through her face. "Well, maybe a little. But look, guys, I'd have thought after being practically buried alive for, like, ages, you'd be desperate to get out there and get painting."

"But what's the point?" Piranha said. "We're illegal again. We can't do it properly, people will keep trying to chase us and shoot us and gas us. In the park we could concentrated on what really mattered."

"Which is what?" Gum said. "Painting the streets. The streets. Expressing yourself to the world. Sure, the park's gone, and I guess it might have been quite cool…"

"Quite cool?" Yo-Yo moaned. "Quite cool? It was a god, Gum! It was our god!"

"It also had a chimera lurking in it," Gum said. "Guys, come outside and be rudies again. You can't stay in here forever."

"Can," Beat muttered. "I got used to being down in the dark."

Gum rolled her eyes. "Geez, you guys are so immature!" She walked over to the door. "I don't know. It's a gorgeous day, there's a ton of paint and bare walls all ready for you, the world is full of things to grind on, and all you can do is loll about in here being depressed."

"Yep," Tab said, putting his hands behind his head.

"Fine," Gum said, wrenching the door open. A cloud of dust-laden sunlight billowed in. "Well, I've got work to do. The Love Shockers are in the bus terminal, and I'm not gonna hang around letting them steal our turf."

She marched out into the hot streets, shook a paint can, and prepared to start dashing.

"Any luck?" Garam said from where he was leaning against the sun-baked concrete.

"Nope. They're being such jerks!"

Garam grinned. "Now you see why they were pissed with us."

"Ohhh…irony sucks!"

"Guys?"

They looked round. Mew and Piranha stood in the doorway, blinking like moles.

"What are you doing out of your cave?" Gum said.

"Well, we figured, okay, the park's gone, but…the Love Shockers? We can't let them take over."

Gum grinned. "Cool. Let's get going."

The four of them began to skate down the street.

"I gotta admit, it's nice being out in the sun again," Mew said, stretching. "It's pretty nice out here –"

"Hey, guys, wait up!"

They turned. Slate and Tab were dashing down the streets towards them.

"What?" Garam called.

"We, uh, we figured seems kinda dumb not to come out. I mean, it's not like it's raining," Tab said.

"Yeah." Slate looked serious. "I mean, it's not like we get nice weather all the time. May as well make use of this day."

Gum grinned. "Yes! Six GGs? The Love Shockers won't know what hit 'em."

They dashed across the road, which shimmered with exhaust fumes, and then stopped as another voice rang out: "Yo! Guys! Wait for meeeeee!"

"Hey, gummi bear," Gum called. "What's your excu – uh, reason?"

"Well, the Love Shockers? Four chicks in skin-tight spandex?" Yo-Yo grinned. "I can't pass up that opportunity. Besides, you'd be amazed how sexy a girl can look when she's clutching a box of high-explosives."

They skated down the street into the petrol-scented bus terminal. The Love Shockers were still there, dashing from billboards to buses, leaving a rash of purple-blue-red behind them.

"Right," Gum called. "Let's go!"

"Excuse me," a new voice broke in. "You were gonna start without us, were you?"

Gum turned. Cube and Beat stood there, arms folded, faces grim, laden with paint.

"I'm your leader," Beat said. "You can't start chasing Love Shockers without my permission."

"Oh, really?" Gum looked at him. "So let me guess, you thought you'd better come out and give it to us. Otherwise this expedition wouldn't be legal."

"Exactly."

"And what're you doing here, Cube?" Garam asked.

Cube shrugged. "Uhh…lack of Vitamin D. Need sunlight. Don't want to develop rickets, now do I?"

Gum snorted and quickly tried to hide her giggles. "Oh, definitely not. Well? We gonna go get 'em, or are we gonna stand here talking?"

A slow smile spread over Cube's face.

"Let's go," she said.

And the GGs dashed forward into the bus terminal.

***

Some time later, Gum sat resting against a billboard, feeling paint start to dry on her skin. That had been a good fight.

"Hey!"

She looked up as Garam jumped across onto the platform she sat on. He was flecked with pink paint, but he was grinning.

"Hey," she called as he came to sit next to her. "Enjoy yourself?"

"You bet." Garam flexed his muscles. "The streets are ours again."

Gum glanced down at the bus terminal, where the GGs were covering up the Love Shocker tags, and felt a smirk curl over her face like a wave. "I know."

"Looks like everything's back to normal, then, don't it?" Garam said.

"I guess," Gum said. "But…I don't know…can it really be that easy?"

"Oh, come on. Everyone's fine. The PJs are thrilled to have been part of their own horror movie, they're telling each other increasingly gory descriptions of it. The Noise Tanks are all together again and they're starting to take care of Benten-cho, the Love Shockers are as bitchy and annoying as they ever were, and look, we're fine."

"Well…what about the Chimera? How could it contact me—and why?"

Garam let a sigh out through his nose. "He told me somethin' just before he caught me—he said that he hated you because you didn't want to play."

"To…play…?"

"He was looking for some friends, I guess." He shifted his weight. "He just went about it the wrong way, and almost killed all of us. I suppose it's justified, what we've done. But we're fine—we're fine. That's the important part." He smiled.

Gum leaned over and kissed him. "Mmm," she said. "We certainly are…"

Garam laughed, and kissed her back.

"Hey, guys!"

Gum leaned back from Garam to see Beat standing on a bus shelter roof.

"When you quite finished," he called.

"Sorry." Gum kissed Garam again, then got to her feet.

"That's better," Beat said. "Now we're all finally in agreement about where to spend our time, we don't want to waste it."

"Quit bein' so bossy," Gum said, leaping down from the platform. "Just because you're the leader. I saved your butt, remember?"

"We did," Garam said, leaping down too.

"Yeah, well, that was then…"

Gum laughed as she followed Beat down towards Center Street.

Suddenly she saw a familiar figure in the town square. "Hey, it's Shorty."

"So?" Beat said.

"I just wanna talk to him. He can't hurt me, he's been suspended, remember? I'll be back in a minute."

She skated into the square, ignoring the pedestrians, and screeched to a dusty halt in front of Onishima. "Hey. How's tricks?"

Onishima squinted up at her. "What do you want, rudie?"

"Just comin' to see how you were. Heard about the suspension thing. Uh – I'm sorry."
Onishima shrugged. "Ah, don't worry. Had to be done, didn't it? Anyway, I'll make sure Toji faces up to the truth sooner or later, he can't get rid of me that easy."

"But – but what if he doesn't give you your job back? Not that I, like, mind, but what'll you do?"

"Find another one. Hey, my lifelong dream – apart from being a cop, that is, and getting you punks slammed up in jail for good…"

"Ah, good to see you ain't changed underneath."

"As I was saying – my lifelong dream is to run my own pizza place. So if Toji does slam me, that's what I'll do. And I'll throw in a free chimera-story with every piece."

(A/N: I think this was JW's idea. Do you mind me hijacking it?)

Gum grinned. "Sounds good to me. Well, I'll see you around, Shorty."

"Whatever, rudie scum."

Gum skated back to Garam and Beat. The sun was rising, high in the sky, turning everything a warm golden-white. Tokyo-to drowsed under it. There was paint. There were baking walls. There were railings and bridges and roads.

Park of the streets.

Boredom? Dead. At last.

THE END