Chapter Four: New Danger
Taki was a very passionate man, never giving her anything less than himself, and she hated each bit of that. I have to…For a moment, Taki moved his lips away from hers, letting her breathe. "Maybe someday I'll tell you, but then…" He rolled off of her, lying on his back. "You'll owe me a lot." Robin frowned as she tried to move her limp body. I can barely move…His weight was very intense… "Anyway Robin, what do you say? An eye for an eye you know? I scratch your back, you scratch mine," he said with an arrogant smile. Robin turned her head to stare into his dark blue eyes angrily. "What are you planning? What do you want me to do?" "Oh? That means you will humor me?" He questioned happily as he sat up. "Depends on what you are planning…"
Robin watched him intently as Taki stood, looking out the window. "I'm planning something large, amazing…life changing! And you," he exclaimed, turning to Robin, "Are the most important piece in the plan." Robin swallowed as his eyes shined while he spoke. This plan…What could it be? "So what do you say? I can tell you everything you need to know, and you will help me with my plan. Do we have a deal?" "I…" Robin stuttered as he helped her sit up, his hand raising her chin slightly. Amon warned me not to trust him, but Taki can tell me everything I need to know about Amon and himself…I have no choice… "I'll help you." "Wonderful! Now, I shall tell you my pl…" "ROBIN! TAKI! Are you two done yet?" A joyful voice called as Suzu flew into the room with a smile on his face. "Otherwise, lock the door next time," he joked with a laugh.
"Suzu," Robin said in relief, her eyes thanking him as he gave her a reassuring smile. "Anyway, Taki, Chris wants to talk to you. It's really important and you know how serious things can be when Chris is worried!" "Yeah, I'll talk to him now. Later Robin," Taki said with a salute as he pushed past Suzu, shutting the door behind him. "Gee ouch! Could he be any meaner," Suzu said as he rubbed his shoulder and took off his shoes. "I hope he didn't hurt you too much," Robin laughed as Suzu spun around dramatically, landing on the bed. "He didn't, but it's enough to know that he hates me." "He does?" "Yeah, he always has. Ever since I came here," Suzu sighed, crossing his legs and putting his chin on his hand. "Were you two partners?" "Sadly, yes, but I don't want to trouble you with the story…"
He stood, his eyes covered by his long bangs as he headed for the door. "Suzu…please…" Robin begged. He looks very upset… "You're making me worried." There was a moment of silence as Suzu stopped at his shoes, looking back into her eyes. "Damn it Robin!" He hollered as he ran back to the bed, sitting down. "Those puppy dog eyes of yours drive me crazy!" Robin couldn't help but laugh as he said this. "Puppy dog? Really?" Good! At least I'm making her laugh. She'll forget all about her worries for now. "Well let's begin with my childhood. I was born in Osaka. My family lived on a farm with lots of cherry trees. The beautiful part of Japan. Have you ever seen cherry trees Robin?" She smiled sweetly as she shook her head. "Are they lovely?" "Yes. Very much so. Anyway, one day when I was about age…seven, I was sitting in one of the tallest trees and that's when it happened," Suzu said with a shake of his head.
Robin, who was now very intrigued looked at him with wide eyes. "What happened?" "I fell silly!" He laughed as he continued. "Anyway, my heart was pounding a mile a minute, and I swear I thought I would die. Suddenly, I felt this immense strength generating from my hand, kinda like…" He looked at her, his forest green eyes shining with inspiration. "Some powerful being was putting their power into my hand. Well, I put it out in front of me, and right before I hit the ground, I began floating in mid air. It was so bizarre, but I thought it was the most amazing thing. After that incident, I would go to those very trees and train myself with wind everyday. That's how I became a wind witch." Robin watched Suzu as he spoke, his expressions beautiful. He's so happy about it. So positive.
"I moved to the city of Tokyo so I could go to college, and that's where I met my girlfriend. We were really happy together, but ever since witches began randomly popping up around here, I was worried for her safety, and just my luck, STEA-L sent for me. At that time, there were more people of course. Anyway, since I was the newbie at the time, I got put with the so called "expert" who you can guess is Taki. It was downhill from the beginning." "Downhill?" "Yeah, we didn't agree on methods of completion. The first mission we had was to stop a small girl whose powers had lost control. When we got there, we split up, and I ended up finding her. She looked so helpless…so sad. I tried talking to her, and it seemed to be getting through…" Suzu looked ahead, his eyes looking lost as he stopped. "Did you help her?" "I…I would have…but Taki…he came in and she got scared so she started using magic, and…he ended up killing her…"
Robin gasped as Suzu put his hand on his forehead, the other wiping his eyes. He murdered a little girl…Just like in the factory… "I hated him so much for that! She didn't have to die! She didn't! And the thing that got to me was that her little brother saw the whole thing." "Suzu…" "It's okay. I just get upset when I talk about it, because I can always picture it in my mind. I can still hear her blood curdling screams. Let's not worry about it. It's in the past."
"Can I ask you another question Suzu?" "Of course Robin! Ask me anything." "Why is the STEA-L so large, but there are so few people here?" Suzu's eyes darkened as soon as she finished. Robin noticed and became worried. "Did something happen to the others?" She could feel her stomach churning as the usually cheerful Suzu turned as pale as a sheet. "Suzu please tell me…" They sat in silence for a moment. Robin patiently waited as the nervous young man contemplated his options. Is she ready for this? Yes or no…He snapped from his thought when her gentle hand turned his face towards hers. "You don't have to tell me until you're ready. I just want you to know that I'm here to listen just as you all have been here for me," she said, smiling sweetly. "Alright then, I'll tell you," he said in a serious tone. "They're all dead. They were murdered."
Robin felt a chill trickle down her spine as she listened to his words. Murdered… "There used to be about fifty members, and they were all slaughtered on one mission. We were going to an abandoned castle where they found several undead witches using elemental powers there. We were to stop them. I ended up getting locked in a cellar with Kan, and the two of us just heard screams from the top floor. Taki got us out about an hour or so later and we saw all the dead members. It was a bloodbath, and we don't even know who did it. They could still be out there," Suzu said, biting his lip. Robin thought for a moment, repeating his words to herself. Don't know who did it… "I'm sorry Robin! I must be scaring you!" Suzu apologized, bouncing off the bed. "I should leave you with better thoughts!"
She just shook her head, giggling. "I don't know if that's possible right now. I have a lot on my mind." "Well then, let me try this. The STN-J wishes you luck and hopes to see you soon," he sang as he skipped to the door merrily, picking up his shoes. "WHAT!" Robin stopped herself from hopping off the bed, thinking of her sore ankle. "That's right. Chris contacted them today. You'll have to talk to him about that tomorrow. I'm sure they'd want to see you again." Suzu winked at her, shutting the door as he left. Robin just sat on the bed, her jaw dropped slightly as she thought of each one of them. Thank goodness they are alright. I can't wait to see them. She lay back, looking at the ceiling. "I have a lot of decisions to make, but the most important one involves Taki." She swallowed, thinking of all the spilt blood from the stories she had just been told. "I can't help but think…that the murders involved…" Robin's sentence was cut off as sleep overtook her.
"Robin? Robin?" "What? Amon?" Robin looked around, seeing nothing but darkness. "AMON!" "Robin?" "AMON!" She began running desperately, searching for the voice that called to her, tripping. "Robin…why did you do this?" A soft voice called out as the wind blew her hair every which way. "Suzu?" Robin gasped as a transparent version of Suzu stood before her, blowing in the wind. "Why did you do this Robin? Why?" "What did I do?" She cried, her hands shaking. "Robin…" Suzu whispered before disappearing into the wind. "SUZU! COME BACK! PLEASE!" Robin picked herself up, hurrying to find someone…anyone.
"It can't be true Robin…" A feminine voice said. Robin tried to stop, sliding along the now icy ground. Looking down, she saw the reflection of Kan, a sad expression on her face. "Kan…" Robin bent down, surprised to find Kan's motions matching hers completely. "Kan, what's wrong?" "Robin, you gave your arcana ability away so easily. How could you do something like this? Tell me it isn't true…" "What isn't!" Robin said in a fierce voice as the wind picked up. "Robin…" Kan's image faded and snow began falling everywhere. Robin squinted unable to see. "Where are you!" "Something's wrong! Robin!" "We have to stop her! We can't let her die!" Robin held her hands over her ears, crying as the familiar voices of Dojima and Sakaki played into her mind. "What do we do? She's far gone…" "Karasuma!" "We can't do much now. This is life or death." "We have to keep trying. It's Robin." "MICHAL! CHRIS!"
Robin felt her head spinning as the ones she loved spoke, but were still unseen. Suddenly, the blizzard stopped, and Robin was right in front of a large black coffin. Her trembling figure slowly stumbled to it, her fingers touching the smooth casket. "Who…?" She pulled up the top, seeing only two beautiful and pale hands holding red flowers while the rest of the body was covered in black cloth. "Someone dead?" "Ro…bin…" She gasped as a deep voice called out to her in pain. Robin turned, seeing a trail of blood making a path in the snow. "Oh my god. That voice…Amon!" Her feet carried her quickly, but the trail seemed endless. "Please let me find him soon…Please…" Suddenly, the blood began rising, turning into bright pink and red petals that would be found under a cherry blossom tree. "What does this mean? Amon! Where are you!" Robin screeched to a stop as a scene of horror appeared before her. Amon was lying lifelessly on a large bed of red petals, blood streaming from his body. "Amon…" Robin almost collapsed to the ground, holding her own so she could reach him, holding his freezing body tightly. "Amon! Wake up! Wake up!"
"Ro…bin…" He whispered weakly, his dark eyes opening to show tears in his eyes. Robin gasped. His eyes rarely brought forth tears. "Amon! Tell me what's going on! Amon!" "Robin…" he choked as he struggled to finish. "When I see you again…" "Tell me…Tell me…" She begged, tears falling from her aquamarine eyes onto his pale face. "When I see you again…" He repeated. Suddenly, a slicing sound rang out. Robin gasped as Amon's eyes widened, shutting slowly. She looked up, feeling the warm spray of blood on her face. "AMON!" She screamed at the top of her lungs. "AMON!" "Robin, it's alright," a voice similar to Amon's soothed. Robin's eyes looked up to see Taki, dressed in blue clothes so rich they made him look like a king. He was holding a long sword which he had impaled directly into Amon's heart. "You did this…Taki…You…" Robin felt her head spinning, her whole body heating up with rage. "Stop it Robin…you don't want to hurt me," he whispered.
She once again looked deep into the two pools of blue and despite all her hate for him, she calmed. "That's better. Now come my queen. I need you," he said, reaching out his hand. Robin gasped as she found herself standing, walking to Taki obediently. "No…I don't…Amon!" Robin looked back, trying with all her will to return to the one she loved, but her feet kept moving until she was in Taki's arms. He held her tenderly, smiling as tears streamed down her face. "Don't cry Robin. After we find the Arcanas, I shall take care of everything. Just rest until I need you," he whispered, kissing her lightly. "I don't…" Robin felt herself falling backwards, the world around her darkening as she went further and further. "I…"
Robin sat up, back in her room. She took several deep breaths as the room came back into focus. "My god, that was the realest dream I've ever had…I'm still getting chills. That was terrible." Robin rubbed her forehead, trying to forget the realistic nature of the dream. "Maybe I should get some more rest…" Just as Robin was about to go back to sleep, the sounds of an ambulance came into play. Ambulance? She stumbled out of her room, almost running directly into Suzu and Kan, both still in their pajamas. "Guys! What's going on?" She asked, catching Kan's arm as they went by. "We're not sure yet. We just woke up too," Kan replied. "We were gonna find Suzuki and ask her." The three began down the hall, but Suzu stopped when they reached Taki's door. "What's wrong?" "Taki wouldn't sleep through all of this…" "Do you think he's in there?" Kan said, standing before the door. "Maybe…" "Taki? Taki, are you in there?" Kan called, knocking. To their surprise, the door opened. Kan backed into the wall immediately. "Oh my god…"
Suzu stepped inside to inspect the room. There was blood everywhere and the room was in shambles. Feeling a draft, he looked towards the window to see it broken. "Where's Taki?" Robin questioned, coming in behind him. "I don't know…but I think he's in trouble…" The two looked out the window to see the ambulance opened with a stretcher being wheeled towards it, Suzuki running along beside it. Robin squinted, but couldn't tell who it was because of her eye sight, but Suzu knew. "Chris…" "That's Chris?" Robin felt her heart thumping, thinking of the danger he could be in. If someone could do this to Taki, imagine what they could do to Chris… "Let's go!" Robin exclaimed, hurriedly running from the room. "What kind of attack is this?" Kan thought out loud as they ran down the stairs. "I don't know. It's strange how only certain people were attacked. There has to be a catch."
They screeched to a stop as soon as they reached the outside. Robin watched paramedics preparing the doors, wheeling the stretcher towards them. "Chris!" Robin called, hurrying over so she could see him. His face was bloody and his left shoulder was wounded. The rest of his body was covered with a white sheet, but Robin had a hunch he was injured all over. "Chris…" "R...Robin…" He turned his head to look at her, his hazel eyes looking into hers. "In my room...there's a program. You need to find that program…" "I will," she said, taking his hand. He smiled innocently at her. "Be strong. I'm coming back…" Robin held his hand tightly until he was wheeled away. Be strong Robin. Robin couldn't help but break down, sobbing on the ground. Suzuki rushed to her, helping her up. "Don't worry. We're going to figure this all out." She led Robin over to the others, herding them all inside.
They sat down to breakfast, everyone quiet and tense. No one ate. There was no way they could. Suzuki noticed the distress that all three had, so she spoke up. "I might as well tell you what I know. I woke up this morning and began down the hall. I went into Taki's room to see him, but he was gone. The blood had me worried. Then I ran into the research room because Chris is always there, and I found it completely destroyed. Chris was in the middle of the floor. He was soaking wet and he was shot with Orbo." "Orbo!" Robin gasped. "But no one here has Orbo." "I know. Luckily, he was shot in the shoulder so it hadn't spread. I asked him about what went on while we awaited the ambulance, but strange enough, he couldn't remember…"
"This doesn't make sense. We don't have that many enemies, and Chris rarely ever leaves the STEA-L because of all his research, so he's not easily recognized. And who is strong enough to take Taki?" Suzu questioned, leaning back in his chair as he massaged his temples. "We have a mastermind on our hands…" Suzuki agreed, sighing. "I can't say much right now. I guess we're going to have to move research to the library for now. Don't worry about the situation at this time. Just get back to your researching." The three stood, going towards their rooms. Suzuki watched them, putting her head down once they left. "This is terrible. I'm afraid for them. They're all in a lot of danger…and I think Chris knew."
Robin was the last to reach the library. Suzu and Kan were already deep in research, conversing quietly. "Here we go!" Suzu hollered, clapping his hands. "Hey Robin, can you look at a book for me?" Robin nodded, and Suzu gave her the section and the name. Robin began searching quietly, finding the area. "Let's see…Advanced Potions and Spells…" She looked for several minutes, but no book like that was there. Strange enough, there was a hole in the bookshelf where it should have been. Did someone else take the book? Who? "If they were looking for this book, then it has to be important." Robin sighed, leaning against the bookcase. The day is only beginning and I'm already feeling like I'm being hunted…Her eyes moved idly around, when they caught someone at the window. "Taki," she whispered, opening the window. He was just as bloody as Chris, yet he still had a grin on his face.
"Taki, you have to hurry inside so we can help you," she coaxed, trying to help him in. "No Robin. There are still some things I need to do. For now," he said, looking her in the eye seriously. "Stay alive and wait for me. We still have a deal." With that, he kissed her on the forehead, shutting the window. Robin turned around, calling out to Suzu, only to turn around again and see nothing. He's gone! "What's up Robin? Did you find it?" Suzu called from across the room. Robin just stared out the window, watching the clouds roll by. "…No!" What are you thinking Taki? What's going on? And this dream…What does it mean? "Hey Robin! Hurry back! We have another mission! "Oh! Coming!" She called, hesitating for few moments, taking one last long look out the window before hurrying away. I have a feeling we're in more danger than we know…