Chapter Sixteen – Murderers

(Camilla and Koji are © me, Koji's name is © NT13. The Assassins' names are ©…uh…I think it's NT13 again, but it's not me. Please r+r!)

Cube swallowed. Camilla could see them. She could see them.

All the time they'd been sneaking around the Rokkaku complex she'd been calm. Telling herself that no one could find them anyway. Because they couldn't be seen.

And now…

"Introduce ourselves?" Garam snapped. "Lady, you put us like this."

"I don't know you," Camilla said. She stood up, folded her arms. With her loose hair and bare feet she looked a lot younger than she had when they'd last seen her.

"We're ghosts," Beat said. "Ghosts of rudies you erased from time. Because you did that, we never saved the world from your dad's rhino demon, and so this is why things are like they are."

Camilla touched her forehead like she had a headache. "Great. I'm hallucinating. That's what this is."

"No," Tab said. "We know we're real. I guess you're in a heightened state of awareness due to your fragile mental state, and that's why you can see us. Koji sensed us, but he wasn't miserable enough."

Camilla stared at them, eyes wide.

"What are you doing here, anyway?" Beat said. "Why are you hidden like this?"

Camilla shivered, her black hair rippling like an oil slick. "My father put me here."

"That's pretty shit," Combo said. "Why?"

"I knew what he was planning, with the Devil's Contract." Camilla sat down, tucking her feet underneath her. "I tried to talk him out of it, and first he cajoled me and then he threatened to send the Assassins after me if I didn't keep out of it."

"Didn't Koji back you up?" Future Gum asked.

"He thought nothing would happen. That father was just being eccentric. So I decided to work in secret. I thought of telling someone, but who'd believe me? And if they did, father would be arrested, or killed…" She shivered. "He's still my family."

"So what did you do?" Tab asked.

"I had been developing a way of changing time…I thought I could alter things, make it so that father never heard of the Devil's Contract. He didn't notice me working, he thought I liked science. No one except Koji knew the truth."

Cube watched as Camilla closed her eyes and sighed.

"Then we got to the night he planned to play the record. It was stormy, and I was in the lab. I was getting so close…and then that music started."

Grace And Glory. Cube heard it echoing in her ears like a distorted heart monitor.

"The Assassins came in. They made me stop."

Her eyes were fixed on the edge of the wall behind them, but Cube knew she wasn't really seeing it.

"My father came. He told me he was going to take all my work away, give it to another scientist, one he could trust…Goji Rokkaku with a time machine…well, you can imagine. I suppose."

"He hasn't got one, has he?" Tab swallowed.

"No." Camilla smiled. Her eyes glittered. "I smashed up everything I'd made. I pushed the machine off the table, onto the floor…broke it with a chair. Then I burnt all my notes on a Bunsen burner. Everything. Months of work and I burnt it. Just as I finished the Assassins were there."

She shivered, bit one curved lip.

" 'Oh, dear, little girl. Daddy's gonna be real mad when he finds out what you did.'

"And he was. Hell, he was."

She looked up, and the fear dropped back.

"So. Here I am."

We must have stopped him from seeing what she'd done, Cube thought. Or coming back to lock her up. Or something.

"So…we're stuck," Future Gum said at last. "We're stuck as ghosts."

"Why?" Camilla asked.

"We got no way to change time, have we? We can't go back and fix what you did. So we're ghosts and you're trapped. Thanks a bunch."

"Excuse me? I've got no idea who you are!" Camilla yelled. "Don't blame me!"

"You're the science babe," Yo-Yo said. "Is there anything we can do? Any way of changing time?"

Camilla shrugged. "Not unless my father has built something. If someone else realised the same thing I did, they could build one."

"Then we'd better go search the building again," Beat said. "Any ideas on where the science labs are?"

Camilla gave them directions, and they walked out of the room and back through the wall.

"This sucks," Garam said. "This really, really sucks."

"Oh, shut up!" Future Gum snapped. "We know it sucks. We don't need you telling us."

"Hey, get off my case!" Garam said.

"Why should she?" Past Gum demanded. "She's only telling you the truth."

"Oh, give me a break, double act."

"That's right," Past Gum said. "Don't listen. You never listen to the truth. You're just blocking out the fact you're a jerk, and you're just blocking out the fact you're a killer."

Cube heard herself gasp. It felt like they'd ripped away her skull and gashed her brain.

"Leave it out," Garam snarled.

"Why the hell should I?" both Gums said.

"You're guilty, aren't you?" Past Gum said.

"Shut up!" Garam yelled. "Just shut up!"

He turned and ran.

"Garam, wait!" Beat yelled after him, but he didn't stop, dashing through the wall and vanishing.

"Oh, way to go," Slate snapped.

"Hey, they're right," Yo-Yo said.

"You're just saying that cos you want your threesome," Slate said.

"No, I'm not! Garam's a killer, ain't he?"

"Guys, cool down," Tab said. "What he did don't matter, and besides, in this universe, he isn't a killer. He never existed."

Cube swallowed. Yes. Him – and her – hadn't done anything. Not this time.

"How can you say it didn't matter?" Past Gum yelled. "He – killed – people. That doesn't matter?"

"Gum, leave it," Tab said.

"Why the hell should I? So he had trauma. We all had trauma, why the hell should he have a fucking license to go slaughter people?"

Cube glanced at the red kimono lady picture.

The red was running out of the kimono.

Onto the frame.

Out of it.

Down the white-painted wall.

She didn't want to look. But her eyes wouldn't move. None of her would. She just had to keep staring.

"Shut up," Combo said. "You don't know what happened, just keep your damn mouth shut."

"Yeah," Mew said, glancing at Cube. "This isn't a good time."

"There is no time!" Piranha yelled. "We don't have time! We're stuck like this for ever!"

"Don't," Mew said. "Just don't."

"Why not? We're all going on 'bout facing facts, let's face this one! We're dead!"

The blood was pooling on the ground now. It had stained the lady's long white neck and fingers. Cube wanted to scream, but if she moved it would sense she was there, drag her down.

Mari blinked, opened her eyes, and started to cry.

"Mummy…" she wailed. "I want to go home."

"I know, honey."

"I want to go home now…"

Cube swallowed. The blood was rising. Oozing over her skates. She could smell it now, meaty, making her think of dissection and glistening. The scent was strangling her.

"Gum," Tab said, "please, just stop talking. Please."

Future Gum nodded, but Past Gum snapped, "Just quit getting on my case!"

"Shut up!" Combo, Tab and Future Gum all yelled.

Gum's face contorted with fury, and she screamed, "You shut up! You…" She pointed to Future Gum. "You're just trying to be maturer than me, you…" She glared at Tab. "You're trying to play God, and you…" She turned to face Combo. "You're just defending Cube, and say what you like she's a murderer, and from what I heard, she's a sadistic monster as well!"

Then she turned on her heel and marched through the wall.

Monster.

Cube's vision turned red. The GGs became black silhouettes against crimson light.

She blinked. Nothing happened.

Combo was saying something to her, but she couldn't hear him. She closed her eyes, but there was red behind them as well. Surrounding her. Just waiting for her to make a mistake. Just waiting to drown her.

***

Combo stared helplessly at Cube. She wasn't listening to him. She stood, frozen, eyes locked shut.

Suddenly he heard footsteps, and saw the lift doors open.

And two familiar figures stepped out.

"I don't know why Goji's bothering," one of them said. "She is nothing but crazy. He should leave her behind that wall."

Combo stared at him, and Bantam Street rose in his memory…hot dog carts…trains rattling over his head…a whip cracking the dusty, sunlit ground…

The man wore a suit and sunglasses and his head was covered with a checked scarf. Now Combo was glad Cube had her eyes shut. He didn't want her to see this guy.

"Yeah, but he wants her to build his time machine, doesn't he?" the other man sneered. "Even if she is nuts, she might be useful, remember something."

Combo shivered. He'd heard his voice before, when it had cut over Jet Set Radio… 'I've just set a bomb in the city…' And screams had mingled with the words…

Assassins. He heard Mew gulp.

"You think she has?" Assassin #5 said as he pushed back the picture and typed something into the terminal.

"Heh…she won't be too happy. Come on, Whiplash, she's been walled up in there for five years, if that happened to me I'd be loony by now."

Whiplash snorted. "Molotov, you are loony."

He finished typing, and stepped back.

The wall sank into the floor. Camilla was sitting on her bed, staring fixedly at her hands.

"Hey, Miss Rokkaku," Molotov murmured. "Daddy wants to see you."

She jumped, stared up at them with eyes that looked too young for her face. They dragged her to her feet and marched her off towards the lift. Behind them, the wall rose up again, hiding Camilla's room.

Molotov was staring back as it did. His eyes slid over the invisible rudies.

And stopped.

Combo felt sweat pool on the back of his neck. Molotov was watching him. Molotov could see him. But how?

"Come on," Beat said. "Let's follow them."

Molotov smiled.

Combo put a hand on Cube's shoulder and gently guided her towards the lift. She still didn't open her eyes, but she reached round and clutched his hand.

The eight GGs piled into the lift with Camilla and the two Assassins. Camilla was trembling. Combo was finding it hard to believe she was the same woman who'd taunted them all before.

Whiplash couldn't see them, Combo was pretty sure. He stared straight ahead. Molotov…well, he was still smiling. And he was glancing round the lift, and never stopping smiling, a sort of I-know-something-you-don't-know smile…

And Camilla? Combo couldn't tell. Her eyes flicked from side to side to take in the Assassins, she didn't seem to notice the GGs. But then, that was understandable. Combo was watching the Assassins too.

The lift stopped and everyone walked out, back along the corridor to Goji's office. There were no windows anywhere here, but far away, dimly, Combo heard a snarl of thunder.

Goji was standing in front of his desk, very straight, looking grim. Koji was lounging against the adjacent wall, arms folded. When he saw Camilla, he rushed over to her, but Goji coughed fiercely, and his son stopped.

Sitting round the office were four more familiar figures. Combo counted them off in his mind. One, the gigantic ninja who'd stood guard in Benten. Two, the winged killer who'd shot bullets off the Kogane rooftops. Three, the gas-masked pyromaniac, with a laugh like crackles of flame. And Six, the glittering electric thug who'd hurled lumps of sparks at him and Cube in Grind Square.

He swallowed as Molotov and Whiplash let go of Camilla and took their places around the room. Molotov was still watching the GGs. Combo put an arm round Cube. Her shoulder blades curved under her Skull T-shirt like pieces of sculpture. He tried not to notice them.

Camilla stood on the rich red carpet, her bare feet sinking into it. She raised her head, pushed back her tangled hair, and stared into her father's eyes.

"Well?" she said.

"You will tell me all the information that you destroyed." Goji ground out the words like he didn't want to be speaking them.

"What happened to 'hello, my only daughter, it's so nice to see you again?'"

"You are not my daughter," Goji said. "You betrayed me."

"If I hadn't, I don't want to think about how many people you'd have killed by now. What's wrong? The world's best scientists can't fix time travel?"

"You're the only one who knows the secret," Goji said. "And you're going to tell me it, do you hear?"

"No."

More thunder. Combo wished they could rip the roof off this place. It was too stuffy. Too much recycled air.

He glanced at Molotov, and their eyes met.

Smirking, the Assassin drew a finger across his throat.

Combo felt his stomach lurch, and closed his eyes a moment. When he opened them, Molotov was watching Goji again.

"Don't make me hurt you," Goji said.

"You can't kill me," Camilla said, her voice shaking.

"No. But I can make you tell. I need you to tell."

"Koji, do something!" Camilla ran towards her brother, gripped his arm. She looked even more pathetic next to him. "Help me! Please, help me!"

"Father, please," Koji said, glancing at the ground. "Don't do this."

"Neither of you can stop me!" Goji slammed a fist down onto the table behind him. "You're children, nothing more! I am going to get what I need and then I am going to use it, do you hear me?"

"You're crazy!" Camilla screamed.

Cube tensed into Combo's arms, like someone had electrified her.

"Are you going to tell me or not?" Goji said, slowly, darkly.

"No! No, I'm not! You and your stooges can go to hell!"

Camilla drew a breath that was trembling as much as she was.

Combo heard the faint signal of rain pattering on the roof.

"I see." Goji's face sharpened. He nodded to the Assassins.

Cube blinked, and her eyes shone in the strip lights. She looked up at Combo a moment – then saw the Assassins, and swallowed.

Then her eyes narrowed.

"Koji!" Camilla yelled. "Help me!"

"I –"

Camilla turned, screamed at the GGs, "Do something! You said you were from another future! You could help me! Please!" They'd grabbed her now, were marching her out of the room. Combo felt sick, he knew what the Assassins could do –

Cube broke out of his arms, and ran towards Goji.

"You pig!" she screamed. "You snake! You sick, twisted freak!"

She slapped him. Her hand passed through his face. Goji touched his cheek, looking baffled.

"Did you hear something?" he asked Koji.

Cube gasped for breath, her face ringing with fury. "You let her go right now!" she screamed at Goji, then marched over to his son, and shouted, "Don't let him get away with this!"

"Father, you can't do this!" Koji said suddenly. He marched forward and pulled Camilla free from the Assassins. "She's family. You can't do it."

"She's not family," Goji said, his eyes blazing. "She gave up that honour five years ago –"

"Honour?" Camilla cried. "You call being the daughter of a murdering villain an honour?"

"You were a Rokkaku. And you betrayed me."

"You think I care one bit about being a Rokkaku?" Camilla yelled as Molotov grabbed her wrist. "I don't! I hate it! I think our family sucks, I think we're crazy, and I think you're the worst of all!"

She spat at Goji's feet.

He looked at her, and his eyes roared with rage.

"Kill her," he hissed. "Take her away and kill her as painfully as you can manage. You're good at that. Kill her."

"Father, you can't!" Koji yelled. "I won't let you!"

"You won't let me?"

Suddenly Goji stopped.

"What – what are all these people doing in here?" he said.

"You can see them too?" Molotov said.

"There. And there…and there…" Goji indicated various GGs. "What's going on? They look like a bunch of kids…"

"I can't see anything," Whiplash said.

"There's…" Koji squinted. "There is something. I think…"

"This isn't good, is it?" Mew said.

"I would say – no." Tab looked thoughtful. "On the other hand, we are ghosts."

"Who are you?" Goji demanded.

"Hey, Beat, you're the leader," Garam said. "Do the welcome thing."

"Uh. Um." Beat shuffled his feet. "We're a bunch of people whom your daughter wiped from time in another reality."

"My daughter?" Goji's eyes widened. "You mean – she knew how to manipulate the future?"

"Yeah…" Beat said warily.

"You did it!" Goji swept over to Camilla, gripped her shoulders. "You managed to do something no scientist has done before! Listen, my girl, you could have fame, fortune –"

"Fame? Who'd know? The rats in the Tokyo ruins?" Camilla snorted. "Chill, boss," Molotov said, pulling Camilla forward. "Once me and Napalm've had some fun with her she'll give you all the fame you want."

"Come on," Goji said. "You rubbed all these people out of time. Don't you want to be remembered for that? The opportunity –"

Camilla swallowed. "No. That was wrong."

"You're rudies, aren't you?" Molotov said, scornfully studying the GGs. "Wow. Real important people you wiped, Cam."

"You have a problem with us being rudies?" Slate said. "Hey, we put Goji dude out of business in our reality –"

He stopped.

"I don't think that was a good thing to say," Tab said.

"What?" Goji said, almost laughing. "A bunch of street kids stopped me? I don't think so."

"Accept it," Slate said. "We tagged over all your Rokkaku rooftops and your rhino demon exploded. Then we tagged you right on the top of your shiny bald head. And then – uh – you fell off the roof and died."

"Slate, you give a new meaning to the word 'tactless'," Mew said.

"I don't believe that," Goji said. "I didn't die. I don't die."

"Only cos your daughter cut us out of history," Tab said. "If she hadn't, you'd be a nasty stain on Shibuya sidewalk by now."

Goji snorted. "Listen. Rudies do not kill me. I kill rudies."

Cube gasped.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Mew demanded.

"The stupid rudie who had the record," Goji sneered. "He tried to send it to Tokyo-to. We found that out eventually. Then we killed him. A bullet in the back of the neck did the job quite adequately."

Cube pressed a hand to her mouth. Combo felt dizzy. He hurried over to Cube, she clung to him. Every bone in her body tingled with fury.

"Well, whatever you like," Beat said, "we killed you. Accept it."

"Shut up!" Goji roared. "Whatever you did in your life, you don't have one now, you're dead, all of you are dead!"

"Actually, we're not technically dead," Tab said. "We never existed, so we never died."

All the Assassins except Molotov had been looking pretty freaked out during this exchange.

"That's true," Camilla said. "They are existing in potentia, as it were."

"And you made them like that," Goji said. "You have that power. Don't throw it away. Don't."

"Shut up," Camilla snapped. "I don't want to listen to you."

"Just do it," Assassin #2 said. "I mean, think about it, toots. If you do it, you get unlimited fame, glory, blah blah blah. On the other hand if you don't do it, you get unlimited flame, gory, blah blah. It's that simple."

Camilla shuddered.

"All right!" she snapped. "All right, I'll do it!"

Combo swallowed, feeling as if he'd just been dragged down into a cold, dark pool. This couldn't be good.

"Excellent," Goji said. "Take her down to laboratory five. Koji, you come as well. And as for you lot…"

"You can't do anything to us," Mew said. "We're transparent."

"Can't you make them un-transparent?" Goji snarled at his daughter.

"Not at the moment. I don't know if it's possible to put people back into time."

"Then you'd better make it possible. Because I don't want threats hanging around me. When you've done it, we'll make them properly visible, and then we'll kill them. We'll kill them all."