Enma had never planned to let it proceed that far, for the bond to become so tight and near-unbreakable. Since forcing the bond to break would result in the death of both, Enma had tried to remove Touda by using the virus. It hadn't worked because Tsuzuki had ended up dying with Touda.
Enma needed Tsuzuki to develop his powers because time was literally running out on him. He had a decision to make, a fateful decision, and he knew there was only one solution to his dilemma, a dilemma that had begun over a century ago. He needed Tsuzuki with his powers undone, ready to take a place no one else could. It was too soon, yes, but he had no other choice.
Everything had led to this.
From the day Tsuzuki had been born as a hybrid demon, a child that should have been impossible to be conceived by a mere human woman, to the day he had died by his own hands, Enma had watched him. He had studied this fascinating specimen, had seen the potential, and he knew he could never allow this soul to vanish in either Heaven or Hell. Tsuzuki was perfect and when he had taken his own life, there had been no way that he would not become a shinigami.
So Enma had sat back and watched, had witnessed the pain and the guilt, had seen all the ups and downs, and he had watched the power evolve. Tsuzuki had won four Gods and eight Commanders, had bound the Divine Commanders to him and through it allowed the council to move the adrift realm into cyberspace. Tsuzuki had become interwoven with GensouKai's fate.
The problem was, Enma had overlooked a few grave problems. He had never given them enough thought. Tsuzuki had latched onto Touda as an anchor, had balanced his soul, had grown stronger, and Touda had given the young man what he had been missing. The day Enma had triggered his shinigami, he had made a mistake by bonding him to the killer. He knew that now.
Tsuzuki's incredible psychic power had stabilized GensouKai, yes, but the Gods were unable to hold GensouKai in place should that power ever cease. Another problem since all worlds were so closely interwoven that the downfall of one had terrible consequences.
For Enma to have success he needed Tsuzuki to use his powers without Touda balancing, stopping or buffering him.
So he now had to bring out the big guns, he had to move fast.
This was his last chance.
And he had started the avalanche that would either be his own fall or his final victory.
° ° °
Watari had thrown himself into his research, wading through the data collected when they had briefly opened the wormhole into Hell, and he was trying to find a way to locate Terazuma should he really be in Limbo. Time was running out if he was. And because of that, he was feeling the pressure.
He was currently alone in the room he was using for his work. Rikugo had had to return to GensouKai, Watson was off somewhere, and the Count...
He bit his lower lip as the images of what the man really was flashed through his mind.
A demon. The Count was a demon, in the service of Enma-Daiou, a prisoner of this place, and Rikugo's lover. So many contradicting emotions ran through the blond and he tried to shake them off. There was no time for this!
"I didn't figure you to stay," a soft tenor drew Watari out of his thoughts.
He turned and looked at the unmasked man. There was hardly anything demonic about him now. Still a bit on the pale side, the only reminders of who this handsome person was behind the perfect façade were the red eyes and the minimally pointy ears. Dressed in a simple, white shirt and black pants, he still looked regal and like this was where he belonged exactly, but nothing demonic showed. Not a whiff of an aura that spelled danger.
That he was still unmasked surprised Watari, but not as much as he had thought. It was a matter of trust and the fact that it was no use anyway. He had seen Ryu; he knew what he was underneath that mask and underneath that perfectly beautiful human exterior.
"If you don't mind," Watari only said.
A chuckle escaped Ryu. It was an almost sad sound and didn't match the GQ model exterior. 003 hopped to the edge of the table, head tilted, as she examined their host.
"No, Watari, I don't mind. You can have all the space you want. Call for Watson if you need something."
"Ryu!" Watari called as the slender man turned to leave.
Ryu stiffened and shot him a wary look that hurt more than anything else. "Yes?"
"Uhm, I could need help."
It was the proverbial oil branch. For a breathless moment Watari feared it would be declined, then Ryu smiled a tiny little smile.
"I'll do what I can," was the careful reply.
And he breathed again, fighting against his irrational fear that this was a servant of Hell, and nodded.
° ° °
Watari was, mildly put, astounded as to how sophisticated everything was in the palace. The terminal he was working from was first class, the latest of the latest, and powerful-- though nothing could match a direct access into Mother. That sad realization had struck him after the first two hours. Whatever he tried, the sophisticated security was bringing him down again and again, despite Ryu's adeptness in handling these matters, in keeping them safe, in erasing their tracks as Watari ploughed through the levels.
Since the last time he had tried to hack into Mother, things had changed. Not just one password, no. Several levels had been replaced with new ones and Watari was getting nowhere fast.
The only progress he made between attempts, fiddling with the access, was getting to know the Count as the man behind the mask. He was fascinated anew again and again.
"It's no use!" Watari muttered after the latest attempt and sank back into his chair with a frustrated growl.
Ryu, looking a bit exhausted himself, leaned against the terminal and regarded it with shadowed eyes.
"You are good," he finally said.
"Not good enough."
"You managed to get all the way to the center."
"Only to be rejected because of the wrong password again!" Watari jumped up and paced the spacious room. "It's like the last time! I get to the last level and before I can look at the code, they start flipping it around. With the time limit we're on, I can't just have a go at it like I normally would. I need direct access! It's the only way."
"Direct access?"
Watari's amber eyes were hard and decisive as they met inquisitive red ones. "I have to access Mother directly, without a terminal between us."
"Mother is located underneath Enma-Daiou's palace," Ryu pointed out.
"I know."
"And you know how to get in?"
A slow, almost menacing smile was on the normally so easy and smiling face. "Yes."
Ryu tilted his head. "What if they changed those passwords, too?"
No questions as to how he even knew them, Watari thought.
"They can change passwords all they want," he said. "They cannot chance the recognition code of a Mother to her children." He tapped against his temple.
Ryu's delicate, raven-wing brows rose. "I see. But if you go, if you leave this place, you'll be unprotected, Watari."
Watari stared at him and the other man smiled faintly.
"I've been around long enough to understand quite a few things by now. And lately, those things have been happening too often and too frequently, involving always the same people. Something is happening, I know it. Something that's responsible for Terazuma's disappearance. You're here because the Palace is neutral ground, because I can protect you, even though you fear my other side, the demon I am."
Watari opened his mouth, then snapped it shut again. "It's the only way," he murmured. "I have to go, Ryu. I have to. For Terazuma's sake. Only Mother can scan the Limbo. With her help, I can locate him."
"And the Five Generals will let you enter?"
Now the menacing smile was back. "Oh yes..."
Ryu chuckled and nodded. "I wish you luck, Watari Yutaka."
Watari gave him a nod in return. "Thanks. And thanks for your help, Ryu."
He hurried out of the palace, heading for the heart of Meifu, the palace of Enma-Daiou. He knew it might be a suicidal move, but it was Terazuma's only chance.
°
Ryu stood at one of the windows and watched the disappearing figure. He knew he could have stopped the shinigami easily, lock him in the palace, but it had never been his intention. Terazuma's life depended on Watari's success, on his genius, and the young man was a genius.
"Watson?"
"Sir?" a gravely voice replied at his knee level.
He glanced at the misshapen gnome, his loyal servant and companion of such a long time. "Deliver a message to the Shadow Master. Tell him where his partner is going and that he is needed."
That was all Ryu could really do.
"Yes, sir."
Watson waddled off, leaving his master alone in the endless seeming place. Ryu stayed at his place at the window, gazing out over the so peaceful landscape.
° ° °
Tatsumi was in his office, pacing, stopping, pacing again, then stopping once more to look at the wall clock. It had been hours since Tsuzuki and Watari had set out to go wherever they had gone. Tatsumi had drunk pots of tea, then switched to coffee, and had finally ended up eating several donuts for the sugar rush.
He was just considering another mug of very strong and very black coffee when there was a knock. He opened the door and his eyes fell down... to about his knee level.
"Watson? What can I do for you?"
"I have a message," the gravelly voice answered his question. Watson held out a small, white envelope.
Tatsumi took the envelope and looked at the clean, precise writing. His name.
"Thank you," he said.
Watson inclined his head and disappeared again. Tatsumi closed the door and walked back to his desk to read the letter.
Tatsumi,
Watari has left for Enma-Daiou's palace, more precisely the Mother computer lab.
Tatsumi stared at the words. Watari had what!
He will need you there. Go after him. Protect him.
There was no signature, but he knew the handwriting. The letter had come from the Count. Why? Why had the Count...?
He pushed that question aside and grabbed his suit jacket. He hurried out of the almost deserted office building. Whatever Watari was doing at Enma's palace, Tatsumi would be there to help if help was needed.
tbc...