Miracle:

Chapter 14

The darkness wrapped around the man like a cloak, his features indistinguishable as he strode down the street at a brisk pace. Several shadows followed him at a distance, always remaining out of sight in the dim alleys and doorways of deserted buildings. Their goggles gleamed every so often in the weak moonlight, but other then that, they were invisible, dressed in dark gray and black, much as their target was.

The man they were following sped up his pace a little, almost as if he knew he was being followed. The stalkers smirked beneath their dark helmets; fool, they weren't here to harm him, not tonight. Tonight was merely an information-gathering excursion, purely investigative. The rest would come later…once they had completed their mission.

In a swirl of fabric, their target disappeared around a corner. Motioning to the others, the leader slipped ahead, rounding the corner first, eyes already searching for the man.

But before he could even get a clear picture of the side street he was now on, the barrel of a gun appeared before his eyes, accompanied by the sound of a bullet being fired.

His lifeless body fell to the pavement amidst a pool of its own blood.

Hearing the shot, the rest of the team sped up and skidded furiously out into the street, guns coming up at the ready. Three more methodical shots and their bodies joined that of their leader's on the street, dark blood mingling on the glinting pavement.

Stuffing the small revolver back into the depths of his overcoat, Amon turned away and rounded another corner, heading back the way he had came…heading back home.

The sound of a kettle hissing awoke Robin and she opened her eyes to find Touko standing over her with a cup of tea. "Good morning," the other woman said in her quiet way. "I made tea."

"Thank you," Robin answered, sitting up and finding herself still in her rumpled black dress from yesterday. Taking the offered drink, she tossed her hair out of her face and sipped at it cautiously, watching as white steam curled up from the dark surface to mingle with the air.

"How are you feeling?"

Jumping a little at the sudden question from the other woman, Robin glanced up and forced one of her usual smiles. "Just fine, thanks…did I sleep all day yesterday?"

Touko nodded, watching as the young Hunter blew on her tea and glanced at the clock. "Amon brought you home before the work day was even over. Is something wrong?"

Unsettled by the probing question from the brunette, Robin stole a glance at her slender form and sipped at her tea to buy herself some time. But the scrutinizing stare from the other woman never wavered. With a sigh, the blonde girl put down her cup. "No…it's just…"

Touko waited.

"I just found out the reason for…the reason for my…" the young girl's mouth seemed to have a hard time forming the word 'rape'. "…reason for…"

A sudden wave of sympathy washed through the older woman, Amon or no Amon. Here before her was a girl half her age, dealing with problems she herself would never have to be put though. Nodding in understanding, she rose from the chair opposite the couch and came to sit near Robin, noting her slight flinch at another body's warmth. "I see," she said quietly, taking it all in with her calm gaze.

Robin watched her carefully; unsure of what was coming next. Touko had always been kind to her, giving her a place to stay and food to eat, but she had never been overly friendly. Deep inside, Robin had a feeling this had something to do with her close connections to Amon. While she had never seen the two of them intimately together, the young Hunter knew that, at one point or another, her roommate and coworker had been connected. Whether the romantic feelings were mutual, or one-sided, she did not know, but the past connection did exist.

"That's why Amon brought me home…no one was really working yesterday…and…" The small clock Touko kept hanging on her wall by the door chimed, drawing both women's gazes. "I'm going to be late!" Robin exclaimed, jumping up and trying to smooth both her hair and her dress at once.

Also rising, the brunette watched as her younger roommate yanked back her hair and slipped into the hideous pink coat she had been wearing of late. "I'll see you later, Touko," she said, and slipped out the door. Truth be told, she had heard the faint rumble of a car engine below, and was hoping to find Amon waiting for her.

With a stifled sigh, the older woman watched her go. So much to deal with…she should feel more then just a little sympathy for the girl. But…the truth remained…her and Amon…And that was something that Zaizen's daughter just couldn't overcome. Robin's relationship with Amon, no matter what it may be, was irksome to her; it was this irritation, this nagging feeling, which formed the dam that was holding back her feelings of deeper compassion for Robin. No matter how hard she tried to break free and forget…Amon stood between them.

A dark form resembling a billowing shadow met her halfway down the stairs and she stopped just short of bumping into the man before her. Dark eyes met hers from the stairs below and she inclined her head in greeting, still not quite able to manage a smile. Not yet.

Returning the nod with one of his own, Amon turned and continued back down the stairs, sensing rather then seeing, Robin's slight form following him. Her footsteps were soft as they had always been, but now they seemed to hold an element of irregularity, as if she paused every so often without reason, waiting for something. Caution emanated from her like quiet from a graveyard, and even her breathing seemed baited.

Grunting slightly as he opened the door of the car for the younger Hunter, Amon took the time to look her up and down, taking in her crinkled dress and hastily done hair. It seemed she had once again slept away an entire day.

Calculating all of this, but saying nothing, he joined her inside the car and started the engine, turning the vehicle towards the STN-J building.

He could feel it: another migraine coming on. Rubbing his temples tiredly, Dr. Nakano took a few deep breaths, trying to prepare himself for the task at hand.

Things just seemed to be going from bad to worse. His first test subject kills himself, and now his second test subject kills his field workers.

He had sent out a team early last night with instructions to shadow the man called Amon and discover what they could about him. Work habits, sleep habits, irregularities in his demeanor, anything. But dawn had broken and there was no sign of his team, and no response from their communicators. Wonderful.

He rubbed his temples harder, convinced now that if Zaizen allowed him to see his 30th birthday, his hair would be a lovely shade of pale gray.

"Sir! We've located the team!" The techie who spoke was young with a shock of red hair and a sprinkling of freckles that only made him seem younger. " All four members, found together in the entrance to an alleyway on 6th! It appears they've been dead for quite some time now.

"It's about time! Tell the boys to bring in the bodies for examination." So they had been discovered early on in the night. That wasn't good. He had sent one his best teams after this man called Amon, the supposed half-brother of his earlier test subject. They would not have allowed themselves to be discovered so easily…which could only mean one thing. This Amon knew what he was doing. And he was good.

Shoving the pain of his oncoming migraine to the back of his consciousness, the young doctor began barking orders at an alarmingly fast rate, all the more determined now not to have something go wrong with his precious pet project. If it took all the men he had to track the new subject and gather this information—so be it! Umeda Nakano was not a man to give up easily, at any cost.

The words hung stark before him, shimmering slightly on the computer's iridescent plasma screen. Mouth agape for the second time in as many days, the young hacker merely stared at it, a wide range of emotions flickering over his face. Disgust was most predominant, overshadowing even the horror and terror he felt at discovering such a thing.

"Sick bastard…"

"Who?" Sakaki's voice reached his ears from across the room accompanied by a cheerful whistling.

"Zaizen," Michael muttered, eyes still glued to his screen.

"Knew that already, it's you who has to come to terms with it," the rookie replied, chuckling as he peered over the other boy's shoulder.

But his mirth was cut off sharply as he too took in the new information suspended in black and white on the computer screen. Reeling back in a mixture of surprise and revulsion, the Hunter cried out, "That's twisted!" His hand flew to his mouth as if to suppress the urge to vomit.

"Knew that already, it's you who has to come to terms with it," Michael replied gravely, fingers already beginning to flit faster over the keys. "Make yourself useful and round everyone up as they come in. It's going to be a long day in the meeting room…"

Well everyone, it seems I'm getting at least a little better at writing my chapters faster! Unfortunately, it's probably only temporary…seeing as how it's testing week at my school, I really don't have any homework, or any work at all, to do. But alas, our tests only last a week, and after that it's back to the daily grind, with finals looming on the horizon.

But anyway, concerning the chapter, most of you were right in assuming it was Amon who was to be the next subject. I guess you could kinda see that one coming, huh? But hopefully, the little cliffhanger I put in at the end of the chapter here threw you for a loop. Kind of a "how could things possibly get ANY worse!" type situation. Believe me—they can.

On a better note, I would just like to take a quick second to mention my latest obsession, as I am always searching for others out there who can help me in my quest for knowledge…Anyone here like Kpop? Specifically DBSK? (Dong Bang Shin Ki…or Gi…maybe some of you know them by their Chinese name, TVXQ?) Anyways, I'm completely obsessed with these guys, so if any of you have good websites or media downloads or whatnot, please let me know!

SanoGirl

By the way…

I now have over 300 reviews on this story! Thank you guys SO much, you have no idea how wonderful this feels. "Miracle" is my most popular (and longest!) story so far, and I can only hope it continues to live up to your expectations! Thank you again!