Seizure
"Are you insane?!" Kazehana shouted. Amidst the blood-curdling screams of the burning subjects below.
"Insane?! I just saved our asses!" Benitsubasa argued.
"You just killed us all you crazed cunt! You burned down the damn building!" Matsu shot back.
"Yeah, we were at the elevator already! There was no need to go and do that!" Minato shrieked.
"They could have found a way to follow us! I just took them all out in one fell swoop! I think a thank you is in order!"
"Those people were MBI soldiers being tested just like we were! They had families!" Minato screamed.
"Did they care about your family when they were trying to kill us? It was every man for themselves! Survival of the fittest!" she fired right back with her own argument. "Besides no one here is innocent. If they were Jigsaw wouldn't have nabbed them in their sleep."
Minato's face turned red as he tried his best not to explode on this woman who seemed hell-bent on making matters more difficult. The flames beneath the rising elevator ensnared the tight space with overwhelming heat that lessened the more it rose. An explosion rattled their bones as it shook the entire shaft, no doubt caused by Benitsubasa's 'heroics'. The mechanism operating the lift sparked several times and the elevator slowed to a crawl before it stopped entirely. Plumes of smoke began to ascend the walls, seeping into the claustrophobic lift.
Benitsubasa's jaw dropped in dread. "Oh shit..."
Haihane began freaking out. "Oh well, that's just fucking great! It's over! You motherfucker!" she got right in the pinkette's face and put her hands around her throat. She slammed her cranium into the wall repeatedly with each insult she threw. "You flat-chested, stupid, musclehead degenerate motherfucker! All you had to do was get in the elevator with the rest of us and now we're trapped above a miniature sun with no way out! I hope you're happy! Now Natsuo and everyone else is doomed!"
"Get off me!" She demanded with a shove. Haihane landed flat on her ass. "Look I'm sorry! How the hell was I supposed to predict the elevator would stop?!"
"All hope might not be lost," Matsu interjected. "For all we know the elevator was supposed to stop. This may be another test." she pointed to a control panel next to the gate keeping them sealed inside. "I might be able to get it working again. Let me work my magic for a bit and we may start moving again."
"Well whatever your idea is, you better work it out fast. We'll likely suffocate from smoke inhalation soon if you don't." Kazehana urged.
Matsu nodded and crouched down to the panel. She opened the latch, pulled it open, and got to work hastily.
Minato gave her a pat on the back as she went about her business. "Matsu?"
Her chin swung to her shoulder. "I need to focus Minato, what do you need?"
"Should I kiss you? You're hurt and probably need an energy boost to work effectively."
"As much as I'd love to, I don't think that's necessary. You only have three uses left."
"But-"
"But nothing. The kiss should come when I'm on the brink of death. I mean, we all are now thanks to Miss Washboard's quick thinking, but unlike her, I can think as clear as day. It's not necessary. At least not yet."
Benitsu grumbled at the deserved jab and Minato nodded. "Understood. Just let me know when you need me."
"I will, thank you."
"We're lucky the elevator shaft wasn't coated in the gunk that was all over the place earlier." Minato thought aloud.
"Indeed. I'm not sure which is worse, suffocation or burning to death."
"Burning. Definitely burning." Matsu tapped a few inputs on the touchscreen. An exclamation point with a triangle blinked and soon after a string of nonsensical code appeared. "I knew it. It is a test."
"What needs to be done?" Minato asked.
"I just need to hack it and we should be on our way. It seems simple enough for me. If I died though, you guys likely wouldn't be able to make heads or tails out of it. To the uninitiated it's just blinking lights and nonsensical data."
"How long should it take?" Benitsu questioned her.
"Couple minutes give or take. Just sit tight and try not to freak out."
Haihane gasped a sigh of relief. "Thank god then, we're saved..."
"We'll get out of this soon, don't anyone worry." Minato encouraged the group. With the ember flickering smoke cloud slowly thickening around them he had to say something to keep morale high.
"That's the spirit, Minato." Kazehana said giving him a reassuring smile. She coughed loudly, blood splattering from her lips and onto Minato's sneakers.
"Kazehana, are you alright?!" he caught her as she doubled over.
"I'm feeling dazed," she coughed again. "But I'm still standing. As much as I hate to say it, I'm glad Kusano doesn't need to suffer through any of this."
"Kuu..." Minato frowned, the memory of his most innocent Sekirei causing him to shake his head. "If she were still with us, none of this would be happening…"
"Don't dwell on the past, Minato." Benitsu spoke. "We need to look forward so we can get out of this nightmare."
"He can dwell on her all he wants to!" Kazehana defended him. "She meant everything to all of us, be more considerate!"
Benitsu grimaced and stepped towards her. "Look, I know how upset you all are about what happened to the Green Girl."
"No you don't! You never lost someone even a fraction as special as she was!" Kazehana argued.
"What, do I have to curl up into a ball in tears in front of you? Do I have to lock myself away in a room and cut myself over and over and over again like Haihane to prove it to you?! What happened to that girl is a tragedy! And it tears me up inside! But because it happened, what, am I supposed to just lie down and die with her?! It's DONE! It makes me sick that it happened just like everyone else that's died in our wake. All the people I had to kill, that we had to kill... If you believe that there's a hell, I don't know if you're into that, but we're all pretty much going there anyway whether we die in the fire beneath us or not. But I'm not going to lie down until I get there."
"You cold-hearted cunt...I should kill you where you stand!" Kazehana growled.
"No Kazehana," Minato waved her off. "She's right."
"No, she isn't Minato."
"She wasn't nice about it, but she's completely correct. All that matters is moving forward." He looked straight ahead toward the ceiling. His eyes glistened with unshed tears.
Benitsu frowned and stepped towards him, staring blankly into his face. She exhaled and...put her arms around him?
Minato's hand twitched as she pinned his arms to his sides. He couldn't believe it and neither could anyone else. The moment lasted for a good moment with no one speaking a word. This was...not like her.
After another deep breath, she let him go, gave him a pat on the shoulders, and turned around.
"Did...that just happen?" Kazehana's mouth hung open, unsure what to make of it.
"You're a strong man, Minato. Don't forget that." Benitsubasa shrugged.
"I got it!" Matsu cheered as she pressed the green icon that appeared on the screen. The elevator began its ascent again, albeit much slower than before. The smoke was getting thicker, but at least they weren't sitting ducks anymore.
Everyone took a sigh of relief once they started moving.
"Thank you, Matsu. You're a lifesaver." Minato commended the brain-type.
She winked. "It's what I do."
"Hopefully the ride won't last much longer." Haihane said aloud. "This situation is bringing me back to some traumatizing gaming memories. If we were in Mass Effect we'd be good as dead."
"Are games literally all you think about, Haihane?! Now isn't the time!" Benitsubasa shouted.
"Kinda hard not to considering that, you know, we're in one."
"Just be thankful that you didn't need to dig through dead bodies to get an antidote."
Haihane deflated. "...say what now?"
"Please don't remind me of that," Minato said as his stomach became queasy. He shuddered at the thought.
"Just thought of something, pipsqueak. Let's get your mind off it."
"And what might that be, Benitsu?"
"Remember when #3 gave us that rundown of how your flock was nabbed? She didn't really recall all that much about it. Now that brains for tits is with us, maybe she can give us a more coherent explanation. It's not like we can do much while we wait for this thing to bring us to the next test, so why don't we see what she knows?"
Matsu came to her feet and turned around, adjusting her glasses. "I'd be more than happy to now that we're on the move. Though I'm surprised Kazehana wasn't entirely honest when she was questioned about it before."
Kazehana froze in place. "Wait, what does that mean? I told him everything I knew."
"Kazehana...are you saying you forgot the most important part?"
"No!" She shook her head. "I really have no idea what you mean!"
"We were literally all in on it! We kidnapped ourselves!"
"What?!"
"Yes! Me, you, Tsukiumi, and Homura set it all up! The only ones who didn't know were Musubi and the landlady! How could you possibly forget that?!"
"I must have been more wasted than I thought. Ever since he disappeared all I could do was drink to calm my nerves."
"You forgot because you were drunk?!" Matsu groaned. "Why am I not surprised?"
"Easy now, Matsu." Minato gestured with his hands as if telling her to breathe calmly. "Start from the beginning. She might remember something."
"Very well. It all started with a box someone left at the inn's doorstep..."
...
John extracts a sealed package, his thumb obscuring the individual intended for delivery. "Would you kindly deliver this to the inn after midnight strikes?" he requested. "I'm sure the resident in question will find its contents…more…than enlightening."
Dr. Gordon accepted his gesture. "I'd be more than happy to, John."
…
13 Days Before Minato's Trials…
"Matsu, there's a package here for you at the door." Miya called out to her from the bottom of the steps.
Matsu hurried out of her cubby and down to the first floor. She hustled past her and retrieved the box from the welcome mat. "Thanks Miya! Looks like it arrived earlier than I expected!"
"What is it?" Miya asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Oh, um, it's nothing! Just new equipment!" she said, ascending the steps. "Well, gotta go! Bye!"
Matsu sped back up the steps like a cheetah and disappeared around the corner in an instant, slamming the door behind her.
Miya blinked in confusion. "Oh, well, alright then. Have fun." she said as she went back to sweeping.
Matsu took a deep breath and exhaled in relief as her back slid down the door. She sat there for a moment to gather herself before peeking back out into the hallway to ensure she was alone. "Okay, no one's there. Now, let's see what we've got here..."
She grabbed a box cutter from beneath her mattress and slid the sharp edge down the airtight seal. She peeled the package open and looked inside.
"What the..." she reached in and pulled out a very creepy-looking doll.
...
The head rotated like the exorcist, the familiar visage of the Jigsaw puppet met Miya's gaze with an infantile cackle and exploded into bits of white shrapnel. More nerve agent geysered outward through the exposed funnel in its trachea. The landlady, eyes filled with allergy drawn tears, sunk to her knees in a hacking fit.
…
"This is definitely not the dildos I ordered."
She looked at the box again, and her name was on it. It was addressed right to her. This wasn't right. She never used her real name when ordering anything online. She rifled through the box more and pulled out several wrestling robes and pig masks, four sets to be exact. She set them aside and pulled out a large metal container, and finally at the bottom was a laptop and flash drive. On it said, "PLAY ME."
Matsu blinked with uncertainty. Just what the hell was all this garbage? Did she have a stalker or something?
Maybe the flash drive would contain answers?
She plucked the laptop from the clutter and flipped it open. It was fully charged and it didn't need to be turned on. It lit up the moment she opened it. She inserted the drive into the USB plug. A video began to play the moment she did so.
On-screen was the creepy doll she plucked from box. Or at least one that resembled it. It slowly turned its head towards the camera.
"Hello, Matsu. I want to play a game. Here's what happens if you lose..."
The camera zoomed out, revealing that the puppet was sitting on a bed...right next to her Ashikabi who was out like a light.
"Minato!" she gasped. It had her full attention now.
"Right now your Ashikabi is sound asleep. He will remain this way until the toxin we administered to him is cleared from his system with the antidote coursing through his veins. He will recover within two weeks. However, if the antidote stops for any reason, things will become, lets say, complicated for him. Here, I'll show you..."
The puppet clenched its fist on the IV lines supplying his body with the antidote. Moments pass and nothing happens, until suddenly…
Minato's body begins slightly twitching, only to increase in speed until the ronin begins to violently thrash about beneath the covers like an epileptic. His eyelids fully open, and pupils rolled into the back of his head. His teeth gnash and flare as blood begins to seep from his mouth as the fit intensifies.
"No! Minato!" Matsu's immediate thought was to stop the video from playing and tell the others, but she thought better of it. She needed more information on the situation before doing anything else. She tried to calm herself as Minato's seizure forced him to make these awful...sounds from his throat. Obviously the video was filmed beforehand. The fact she was still alive more than proved that her Ashikabi survived this episode.
After about 15 seconds the puppet mercifully released the IV drip. His body soon began to relax.
"As you can see, Mr. Sahashi's condition is rather delicate at the moment. If you wish to be reunited with him, you must follow the instructions presented in the laptop we delivered to you. As long as you follow orders and do as we say, no further harm will befall him. However, refusal to do so will result in deadly consequences for him and by extension you. I require your assistance as well as the assistance of the rest of his flock. You see, I'm trying to end the Sekirei Plan and save lives in doing so. In order for that to come to fruition, I need you at my call. From a distance, of course. I'm well aware of your abilities and know full well you will be able to trace me back to my lair at a moment's notice without effort. Any attempt to notify the authorities and track my location will result in your Ashikabi's death. The seizure you saw would have been fatal within two minutes if I hadn't let go. By the time the police arrive, he will be long gone from this world, so I would suggest keeping this information to yourselves if you wish to see him again. Feel at ease, he is safe in my custody. Just follow the rules and he will be fine. One more thing. Musubi and the landlady must be kept in the dark about all of this. If they catch wind of the circumstances surrounding your Ashikabi, well, you know what happens then. Let the game begin."
…
"I had...a seizure?"
Matsu nodded. "Most violent one I ever witnessed. I was so scared. Frightened out of my mind."
"What did you do next?"
"Next thing I did was look through the instructions left to us."
"What did they tell you to do?"
"Kidnap your sister and Shiina among other things."
"Jigsaw got his hands on Yukari?!"
"I'm sorry. We didn't have a choice. It was that or you. He had us drug them and bring them to an abandoned building to participate in a game of their own."
Minato grabbed Matsu by the arms and pleaded with her. "Please tell me she's alive! Please!"
"She survived the test but after that, she was taken to their lair. According to Tsukiumi that is. She observed the game take place under Jigsaw's instructions."
...
"Someone was watching the events of the struggle take place through this peephole," Kaho concluded. "Convenient that it was drilled in just the right spot, so whoever was looking through it could watch the inevitable bloodbath."
…
"He forced her to watch my sister get tortured? Why? For what purpose?"
"He wanted her to dispose of the Mikogami's body."
"Mikogami was involved?!"
"Yeah. Yukari saved his life but he attacked her afterward and she was forced to kill him. After Yukari was abducted, Tsukiumi was ordered to bring the body to a marked location and then call the police to lead them to the location of the game."
"Why?"
"Probably so Jigsaw could taunt Minaka and any first responders. He never really specified."
"How did he nab Mikogami without any of his Sekirei knowing?" Haihane wondered.
"Kazehana and Tsukiumi distracted them while Karasuba abducted him from under their noses. They never saw it coming."
"Karasuba is in cahoots with Jigsaw?!" Benitsubasa spat in surprise.
"Indeed. And she was apparently tested beforehand. She had these really grizzly scars on her face that looked infected according to what Tsukiumi told me."
"Somehow Karasuba working with Jigsaw doesn't surprise me in the slightest. It makes me wonder how in fuck's name he managed to capture her and force her into a trap though." Kazehana said, the fog in her mind clearing slowly.
"If I had to guess, Natsuo probably would have died if she didn't do as asked."
"How do you know that?"
"Educated guess?" Matsu shrugged. "Only one that makes sense to me really. If he captured you to have us do his bidding, why not exploit the wellbeing of other Ashikabi to coerce their Sekirei?"
"What else did that bastard force you to do?"
"Kidnap your mother."
"Mom?! Why?! What did she do to deserve that?!"
"I don't know how to say this but...Takami is partially responsible for Kuu's death."
"I...I refuse to believe that."
"It's true. Homura let us know a few days after the fact. She approved the matchup between her and Karasuba after being given no choice by Minaka."
"I see...so she isn't completely at fault then. I assume she tried to help matters?"
"Very much so." Matsu was going to elaborate more on the matter but stopped herself. If she let Minato know his own mother of all people asked Karasuba to 'end it quick', it would destroy him.
"How did you manage to kidnap her?"
"Kazehana and Tsukiumi paid her a visit and drugged her bottle of scotch when she went to go shower. All they had to do was wait for her to fall asleep and then take her to a marked location."
...
Oh, damn, Takami muttered to herself. The scotch must have been spiked with something…
…
"What about the other stuff in the box? What was in the container?"
"A nerve agent made by Miya's husband. It was designed to attack a Sekirei's core and render them powerless for a short period. I was instructed to install it in the central air system when the time came to abduct everyone."
...
"It's gas!" The landlady surmised, clasping a hand over her nose and mouth. The rest of her speech was now muffled. "Everyone, try not to breathe it in!"
…
"By now you should notice that the air has become thicker. Rest assured the nerve agent you are currently breathing is non-lethal to Sekirei. It will, however, render you all unconscious within approximately two minutes taking your wind barrier into account, and yes, that includes you too, Miya. Your husband was the one who designed its formula, after all…"
…
"That I remember," Kazehana said. "Oh crap, it's all coming back to me now..."
"I had a feeling it would. The four of us had to act the part and make the kidnapping come off as legit as possible so the landlady and Musubi wouldn't become savvy to us being in on the plot. Homura damn near gave us away though when he snapped at her. Good thing he passed out when he did. You could have died if he lost his cool further and continued poking the bear."
Minato rubbed his the crown of his skull. "I wouldn't say him passing out is a good thing, but it was probably for the best given the circumstances."
"Mhm, if it wasn't for Tsukiumi intentionally pointing out the Jigsaw doll to Miya when she did she may have killed him if he snapped at her before she got blasted with the more potent gas."
...
"Um, if I may inquire for but a moment…" Tsukiumi muttered through her cuff, pointing with her free hand. "I think I hath found our Ashikabi…"
Hunched into a ball in the corner of the living room facing the wall, the young man with grimy sprinkles of dirt in his dark hair wept.
The landlady reached for her sword. "Stay behind me." She instructed her tenants, approaching the crying Minato; she tapped his shoulder.
…
"What else did he instruct you all to do for him?"
"We assisted him with kidnapping some other Ashikabi and Sekirei. Namely Higa, Kakizaki, and Seo. And well, you know the result of their tests..."
"Great..."
"It was all for you, Minato. We weren't given any other option. I'm sorry about everything."
"Do you know what happened to the landlady?"
"Afraid not." Matsu shook her head. "After the staged kidnapping, the next thing I remember is waking up here and watching over you until you came to rescue me."
"Other than kidnapping everyone in the capital, did he instruct you to do anything else?"
"He left the kidnappings to the others, but I had to work day and night to keep the MBI satellites from finding Jigsaw's hideout. It was exhausting."
...
Matsu hadn't left her room since Minato went missing last week, most likely to keep focused on trying to find him 24/7. She had the skills to hack into every mainframe, security cam, and top-secret network in the world and enslave them to scour the globe for any shred of evidence leading to his whereabouts, but nothing had come up. Or at least Matsu would have poked her head out of her damn room and said something if it had.
…
"This whole ordeal must have traumatized each of you. I'm sorry I wasn't more careful walking home from work. Speaking of which, for how long was I out for?"
"At least two weeks. The monitor in my test chamber gave me today's date. It's Halloween. You were abducted on the 17th. We found out about it the very next day."
"Wow..."
Before Minato could process matters further the elevator slowed to a stop and the gate opened to the next test.
A blast of cool air hit their faces instantly upon exiting the smoky confines of the elevator. Smoke continued to pour forth along with the ash falling steadily across the floor. When it cleared, they found themselves in a room with even more flammable crap on the floor. Above them on the ceiling glass jars loomed overhead and well out of reach, at least a hundred of them. And right across from them they found the next Sekirei they needed to rescue…
XXXXXX
A/N: God I love writing plot twists.