Author's Note: At first, I didn't know what to call this halo. I just had one scene and then went with it. Then I had a title and then I went along with it. I think writing the Halloween special for this fic took so much out of me. And let me tell you, I was writing a lot. Speaking of Halloween, I have the Fallen City and Wonderland special completed. I only have about two more scenes to write for the Tea Leaves special. (I'm making some good progress with it.) I can't wait for Monday to come. It's going to be lit. I also have next week's halo mapped out in my head. So you then. For now, enjoy this week's halo.
Halo Twelve: Killers:
The bodies were found propped up at the dinner table. Twenty-four-year-old Asanuma Akihiro and nineteen-year-old Genji were dressed up in suits and sitting in front of plates of a meal that looked like it had been rotting for days. Their faces were frozen with fear. The tablecloth was pure white except for what looked like wine spilled on it. Fruit, cake, meat, cheeses, and other foreign foods covered the table. Family photos decorated the dining room. Sachiko took notes as the CSIs processed the scene. These boys looked familiar.
"I've seen them in the news," one of the CSIs said. Sachiko turned to him.
"Do you remember the Asanuma case last year?" the CSI asked.
"Yes," the detective said. They looked at the bodies sitting up at the table. The younger brother had his head on Akihiro's shoulder. The pictures from their parents' shrine sat on either end of the table.
"They were suspected of killing their parents for the inheritance, weren't they?" Sachiko asked.
"Uh-huh," the CSI said.
"And that case is still ongoing?" she asked.
"Yes," he said. Sachiko looked over at the bodies again.
"I see," she said. The CSI tilted his head.
"What are you thinking?" he asked.
"Honor thy mother and father," Sachiko said to herself. She looked up at the CSI. He pressed his lips together.
"It's another one of those kills?" he asked. The detective nodded once. By now, the team was ready to take the bodies away.
Violence against god, art, and nature.
They seemed so dated now that DK thought about it. Blasphemers, sodomites, and usurers. She was going to need three victims each. Still, she was going to have to do it. She was committed to this mission now. Might as well give it a try.
First up were the blasphemers. The tadpoles were off the table. Kitano-sensei wasn't going to allow any harm to come to them. She remembered that he had one of the interns cursed for raping one of them and driving her to commit suicide. So no one was allowed to touch any of the tadpoles. Who did that leave?
Suddenly, her phone rang.
"Hello?" she asked. DK raised her eyebrow as she listened.
"Sure… I'll be right over," she said. She hung up the phone and sighed. Great, now she was going to have to be sociable again. At least it was going to be a small group this evening. She could manage. Besides, she could just leave quietly if she had to. DK rose to her feet.
She would have to pick out her next victim later. Come to think of it, it wasn't Sylar who sent her the information about Chinatsu's home address. It was Quantum. She didn't know why she got the two mixed up.
Satsu had her laptop open on her bed. She got sent another video from Death Tube. The username was blocked. Satsu raised her eyebrow. Aoi wasn't home right now. It couldn't hurt to watch. Satsu clicked on the link to play.
The scene was in Ikebukuro West Gate Park at night. Satsu recognized the tree as where the body was found hanging three days ago. A woman walked into the frame. She was dressed up like a doll and high out of her mind. The woman turned toward the tree.
"Wait… I know her," Satsu said to herself. This was indeed Imai Chinatsu in her final moments. A hand pointed out from behind the camera toward the tree. Whoever was filming Chinatsu was directing her over to the tree. The girl herself mindlessly walked over to her destination. There was a small ladder under the tree. Chinatsu walked up each step. A noose hung over her head. Satsu found that she couldn't look away. Chinatsu slipped the noose around her neck.
"Baby, I'm home!" Aoi shouted from the front door. Satsu snapped out of the trance in time.
"Oh shit," she muttered. The college student closed out the video and her email.
"Welcome home, baby!" Satsu shouted. She jumped off the bed and hurried out of the room. She made her way down the hall. Her laptop was left alone on their bed.
The Tandeki Group knows that Halloween is coming. In fact, some of them are waiting for it. Kitano sat in his office. He hit record on his tape player.
"I only have two things to report at the moment. First, there is Chirin. The toxins in his blood from Yokubo seem to have taken a new development. I want to get ahold of him to run more tests. The current sample that we have has given us a rough idea of what we are dealing with. But the toxins have grown and changed with the new drugs in their bodies. The whole thing has me excited for what's going to happen, I'm not going to lie. And to think I wrote off Chirin as dead on arrival when Yodogiri suggested that we use him for the project. However, I will intervene if things start to get out of hand. For now, I will sit back and observe."
Kitano sighed.
"The other issue is my daughter. Asahara… I mean, Ten no Shin'en has gotten bigger. I heard that Chisa is now leading them. Shoko said that something is different about her."
He paused and rubbed his forehead.
"This is going to be another headache for me. Before, Ten no Shin'en was just a nuisance when they were Asahara. But now, things are different. I'm going to have to talk to her. Which is why I invited Chisa over for dinner this Sunday. I don't know how this is going to turn out. It was Shoko's idea. She says that I have to talk to Chisa. A family dinner would be a good place to start. I have my doubts about this. But I will humor her because she is my daughter.
"I get the feeling that the tadpoles will be in their line of fire. Etsuko and I are ready to take the necessary steps to keep them safe. For now, Halloween is coming up. I get the feeling that a certain horse will make its appearance. After that, things are going to be different. We will see what happens then."
Kitano hit stop on his tape recorder.
The rest of Tandeki's inner circle was already acting on their plans. Halloween was in a couple of days anyway
In the middle of the day, a woman and her male companion walked into the city. Both of them stood out on the cloudy day. She was hard to miss in her black robes and crown of coral. Her long red hair swayed in the low breeze. He looked like a dandy gentleman with his suit and straw hat. Even if anyone spotted them, they didn't pay them any mind. The woman held out her hand as she looked up at the sky.
"It's still not raining yet," she said. She looked over at her companion.
"We still have time to stop what's coming next," she said. Her companion nodded.
"Shall we get started then?" he asked.
"Why yes," the woman said. "But first, I should blend in a little bit." She reached into her cloak and pulled out a small white bag. She reached inside and pulled out a light pink pearl. The woman tossed it to the ground. In the pink cloud, the woman was now dressed in jeans and a long-sleeved black shirt with matching kitten heels.
"How do I look?" she asked.
"Very good," he said. The woman perked up.
"Excellent. Shall we get going?" she asked. Her companion bowed his head.
"Yes we shall," he said. The pair vanished into thin air.
Sachiko looked at all of the crime scene photos. First, there was the caretaker who was disemboweled and stuffed with yen coins. Next was the salaryman with his mistress in the hotel. Finally, there were the Asanuma boys. She was already working on a theory in her case.
The caretaker represented greed due to being stuffed with yen coins and bills stuffed in her mouth. The salaryman and his mistress were "thou shall not commit adultery". Finally, the Asanuma boys were "honor thy mother and father". So what was she looking at here? Was this a Dante Killer copycat? No… It didn't feel like it. They were similar, yes. But different… somehow.
Sachiko leaned back in her chair. That wasn't the only thing to bother her. She had no bruises on her body this time. Still, Izaya's words messed with her head. What the hell did he mean?
She turned her head when she heard a knock on the door.
"Yeah?" she asked.
"Can I come in?" a lab tech asked.
"Sure," the detective said. She turned around as she heard footsteps. The lad tech was standing in front of her with the lab results in hand.
"What did you find?" the detective asked.
"The toxicology report came back and it came back positive for traces of arsenic," the lab tech said. Sachiko took the results and read them to herself.
"Rat poison?" she asked.
"Yes," the lab tech said. "It's been laced in the food and the wine." Sachiko looked up at the lab tech.
"Any fingerprints?" she asked.
"No, miss," they said. Sachiko clicked her tongue.
"Damn it," she hissed. The lab tech paused for a moment. The detective noticed the look on their face.
"What?" she asked.
"We did manage to get some footage around the house on the night of the murder," the lab tech said. The detective stood up.
"Show me," she said. The lab tech led her over to her computer. They opened up the database and clicked on the latest footage. What they needed to see was only about fifteen seconds.
"This was taken from one of the hidden entrances that lead out into the street," the lab tech said. Sachiko took a closer look. A figure came walking out into the narrow alley. Sachiko hit pause when the figure came into full focus. The black clothing blended in with the dark footage. However, that wasn't what caught her attention.
"Is that a rabbit mask with antlers?" Sachiko asked.
"A jackalope, miss," the lab tech said. The detective turned to them with a confused look on her face.
"A what now?" she asked.
"A jackalope," they said. "It's a bunny creature with antlers on its head." Sachiko wrinkled her nose and snorted.
"That isn't real!" she said.
"It isn't," the lab tech said. "I believe it comes from North American folklore." The detective took a moment to think.
"I see," she said. "Interesting." She looked back at the screen at the frozen figure on the screen.
"And the DK wore a mask too?" she asked.
"DK?" the lab tech asked.
"Dante Killer," Sachiko said.
"Oh. Yeah, the Dante Killer also wore a mask," they said. "It was a black and red goat mask."
"Heh," was all the detective could say. This was what she needed to hear. Now, Sachiko knew the angle that she could work from.
The following is a recording of a therapy session with Noto Sawako during court-ordered anger management.
Date: October 10th, 2014
Patient: Noto Sawako
Session #1
Do you know why you're here?
Sawako sat on the couch looking agitated.
"My little outburst."
What happened?
She sighed and rolled her eyes. "I punched a hole into the bathroom wall."
And?
Really? They were going to do this. Sawako sighed and rolled her eyes. Might as well get this shit over with.
"I shouted at a coworker, tore up the ladies' room, and then punched a hole in the wall. There, happy?"
It doesn't matter how I feel. I'm here for you.
Where has she heard that one before? She would rather be anywhere but there in that office. This was her boss' stupid idea.
How often are you violent?
"Not often."
How often do you have violent thoughts?
"Every damn time." Already, she can feel her anger flaring up. Sawako was now glaring at the therapist.
What usually triggers your anger?
They really were going to do this. It took her all not to jump over and tackle her therapist. Instead, she clicked her tongue.
"Work. My idiot boss. My annoying coworkers. My evil stupid bitch of a mother. You. And people in general." Sawako leaned back in her chair and sighed, blowing up her bangs. How long was this going to take? Already, Sawako wanted to go home.
But then, the therapist asked a question that really caught her attention.
Have you ever wanted to kill them?
Sawako paused with a confused look on her face.
"What?" she asked. The question alone intrigued her. But a strange fear wouldn't let her push further.
"I… I don't know."
Noto-san, you have to be honest in these sessions. Otherwise, we won't get to the heart of your problems. So please tell the truth. Have you ever wanted to kill them? Yes or no?
She looked down at her hands.
"Yes." With that one answer, she opened the door to something dark inside of her.
-December 15, 2015-
Aoba sat alone in a jail cell. He tried to process how he got here. He didn't do anything. The police processed him hours ago and wouldn't give him the details. The boy sat down on the floor and waited. He expected to be there all night.
Suddenly, the door opened to the cell.
"Kuronuma Aoba let's go. Your bail has been paid," the officer said. The boy looked up with a puzzled look on his face.
"Huh?" he asked.
"You are free to go," the guard said.
"Who paid my bail?" Aoba asked. The officer didn't answer. He just turned and walked off. Aoba stood up and walked out of the open cell. He didn't know what to make of this sudden turn of events.