Welcome to 'Descent'! I hope everyone had the greatest Valentine's Day! Please enjoy the rest of my story!
Before we begin, I'd like to give a shout-out to the Lady Laurannia, the author of 'Hatred'. She created a fic that emits the cold hatred of ignorant people, and I applaud her for doing so. I can't tell you how much I hate the coldhearted, cruel people of America. People against homosexuality really make me sick. Love doesn't know any boundaries because it doesn't have any! Get with the program, people! Yeesh!
Just so all you know, the world of 'Kakumei' supports homosexuality and heterosexuality. It embraces the spirit of true, pure love and bears no ill will against it. Since our world ticks me off so much, I'd like to create the world we'll never see. I hope this doesn't bother any of my readers, but homophobic people REALLY get under my skin. The release of a certain movie has sparked all kinds of mess in my neck of the woods, and it makes me SICK! AAARRGGHHH!
May 'Gravitation' and other shounen-ai series live on FOREVER!
Theme of 'Descent': 'A New Hope (Industrial Version)' by Masashi Hamauzu
Delayed.
The word struck all of them in the form of a cold, black boulder.
Delayed.
The word was a cruel, vicious monster. It was a monster that unleashed tumultuous wrath upon, and it bore no regret against its actions. It caused hearts to drop, and it covered the spirits of the soldiers in cold, hard ice. The eyes of the knights quickly turned into solid pools, pools that held the true soul of fear. The ferocity of true fear swept itself into their bodies, and it was a horrific force of monstrous potency.
The ability to stand drained out of Eiri Yuki as soon as that word hit him. Once again he had lost the basic abilities of human life; he was unable to speak, think, move or even breathe. His heart was wildly screaming against his chest, dying for a chance to breathe, but no opportunity was available. He had never felt such a high amount of fear before, and that fact alone was scaring him. The ground beneath his feet was mercilessly cold, the stream of time was a vindictive torrent...
Warm, comforting hands placed themselves on his shoulders, and a pair of arms lifted him from the ground. The gentle arms belonged to his brother Tatsuha, who was a shining beacon of guidance. For the very first time, the Uesugi was emitting his heart's true potential; he was a fiery bolt of vigilance, filled with the strength of a black panther. Many relationships were finally rising to the surface because of the chaos, and his relationship with Eiri was one of them. He truly felt as if the novelist was his brother, and was ready to lay his life on the line for him.
After he gave his assistance to the silent prince, he spoke to the female employee once again, his voice filled with the fury of the darkest rainstorm. Listening to him was like listening to thunderous liberty bells, for his voice was phenomenally radiant with courage.
"Tell me something. How long is the delay going to be?"
Eiri looked into his brother's face fearfully, bearing the desire to fall back onto his knees. He could barely keep himself on his feet, even though his brother was supporting him. Standing was no different from climbing Mt.Everest at the moment.
"The flight has been delayed by ten minutes, sir. You won't have to wait very long."
Hiroshi Nakano joined Tatsuha at the front, his own voice filled with the essence of tension. His eyes, which were normally filled with insatiable curiosity, were now filled with a blend of agony and fear.
"What about the other flight? Is that one still on schedule?"
He received a smile in return, even though the owner of the smile felt like a bug trapped under a glass jar. "Yes it is, sir." she said mechanically, trembling from fear's cold elegy. Her current clients weren't too happy with their current situation; they looked as if their lives were in danger, and they wanted to solve their problems immediately.
"You don't have to worry about anything, sir. Both of your flights will arrive. Please have a seat in the meantime."
Ten minutes.
Eiri released a heavy sigh, which was composed of frustration. It wouldn't have been any different if she had said 'ten years', for time was standing as a malicious enemy. The novelist bore no desire to befriend the concept of time, since it was the epitome of evil. Tatsuha looked into his brother's face worriedly, feeling a cold hand grasp his soul. He knew his brother was on the brink of insanity, for he was facing a situation that was about to change his life. Eiri had failed to acknowledge the existence of love for many years...but now...everything was different. He was on his way to reclaim his one true love...but there was so much hanging in the balance...
The compassionate Uesugi picked up their tickets, and then took his brother by the arm. His eyes bore the love of a sympathetic father, and they drilled their emotions into Eiri's new heart. "Come on, bro." he said softly, feeling his own body tremble from the heavy tension. The air was excruciatingly thick; it was completely unsuitable for human life.
"It looks like we're all on the sidelines for a moment."
Covered in silence, the band of knights sat in the waiting area. The voices of their fellow humans faded into nothingness, and so did the other elements of outside life. All of them fell into their own world, a world filled with devastating sensations and gruesome pain. Several of them kept their eyes on the songbird's prince, for he looked as if he were about to fall apart. Their chests were heavy, their hearts were on fire...they were an apprehensive family waiting for someone to emerge from intensive care.
Tatsuha held onto his brother's hand with a gentle yet firm amount of strength. Reiji held onto the other with an equal amount of strength, and both of them stood as the prince's guardians. For an eternity, all of them wandered throughout the vicious stream of time...which took them far, far away from the outside world. Voices pricked their ears, but their words went by unidentified...for the knights had no desire to pick up the melodies of a foreign world...
"Have you heard? They've found Shuichi Shindou!"
"Are you serious? The poor kid's still alive?"
"Yeah! It's all over the news! The other members of Bad Luck are right over there!"
"I saw their manager rush in a few minutes ago. There he is, sitting over there."
"Shuichi Shindou's in New York! Some psycho must've kidnapped him and dragged him to America! Some luck, eh?"
"Eiri Yuki's going after him in hot pursuit. You should've seen the way he barreled through here! It was crazy!"
The lights of the flight board...the voices of the employees...the voices of other travelers...
All of those elements were rushing right by them, lost within a world the knights were unable to acknowledge. They had been pieces of the puzzle, a puzzle that held the mysteries of humanity...but now, all of them were on their way to discovering the true spirit of life. None of them were breathing among a world filled with leniency; they were drenched in the cold tides of tension, and they knew their hearts were about to be exposed. They were on their first true journey, a journey that was about to reach completion. The end of their journey, unfortunately...
...wasn't clear.
Tatsuha squeezed his brother's hand, but received no response. The novelist was cold, and shivering from an enigmatic, vague elegy. Images were flowing through his heart again, and they were frightening him. He was no different from a child facing a monster, for his heart was trapped in an ocean of immoderate, inexplicable fear. His eyes were closed, but their emotions were painfully clear.
"This is driving me crazy! How much longer do we have? I can't stand seeing Eiri like this!"
Claude K. Winchester looked at his cell phone casually, acting as if he were in the middle of a picnic. However, his exterior betrayed his true emotions. He was trapped within their realm of fear; he could feel every tidal wave, every zephyr. "You've got five minutes." he reported calmly, his eyes twinkling with mysterious starlight. Once again, he had the look of a vigilant cheetah about his eyes.
Reiji's eyes swelled with tears. Eiri's facial expression was horrifyingly difficult to look at; he was in danger of losing a precious loved one, and was dangerously close to his breaking point. She gave his hand a squeeze and felt her chest burn from a tremendous load of tears, her eyes shimmering with silver moonlight. The novelist removed his right hand from Tatsuha's protection, which alarmed the young priest...but the movements that ensued caused the priest's heart to drop.
His brother removed his cell phone from his pocket, stared at it sadly, and then opened it. All eyes fell on him as he gazed upon his cell phone's monitor, bearing the eyes of a saddened animal. He was a lion that had been torn from his mate, and he missed his mate badly. Watching a human fall into the deep, eloquent emotions of an animal broke all of their hearts; Reiji was forced to release her tears, Hiroshi lowered his head in sadness, and the others felt their hearts fall further into their new world of pain. The expiration of five seconds caused all of their hearts to shatter.
"Yuki! It's Shuichi! Listen! I won't be able to come home until nine! I'm really sorry, but K wants us to hang out at some weird bar. It looks kinda scary...but we'll have a lot of fun! We always do! I'll see you later! I love you!"
That was the straw that broke all of their backs.
A massive lump developed in the novelist's throat, and it caused his entire body to become lighter than air. The world around him began to spin...as tears filled his eyes...
"He said that to me...all of the time..."
Tatsuha took his hand once again, his eyes filled with sapphire blue oceans of sorrow. Clear starlight continued to fall from Reiji's eyes, and turbulent waves caused her body to tremble. All of their eyes filled with lucent oceans...as Eiri's hoarse, frail voice pierced their souls.
"He said that...so much. He must've said it...at least a million times..."
Tatsuha took his hand and placed it on Eiri's arm. He spoke to his brother gently, and realized that his own voice was just as fragile as Eiri's.
"Bro, come on. Don't do this. Don't break down on me. We're gonna find him."
His desire to end Eiri's tears crumbled as soon as the novelist looked straight into his eyes. The emotions within the prince's eyes were so deep, so pristine and beautiful...that they brought the priest to tears. They were immaculate, pure and immeasurably ethereal...true emotions that were from the depth of true love. They were so deep...they were almost frightening.
"We're going to find him. And then you'll be able to bring him home. Back here, to Tokyo!"
Tatsuha's delicate emotions caused Reiji to burst into tears. Ayaka was right behind her, and so was another knight. The third knight went by the name of Claude K. Winchester.
"None of this would have happened if I hadn't been so...this is all my fault..."
Oceans coursed out of Tatsuha's trembling heart, and they fell onto his body as shards of diamonds. His voice was painfully hoarse, and filled with the true depth of love...
"Hey. None of that matters now. That's all over and done with. What matters is now. You can't cry over yesterday."
"But...he said those words...so many times...and...I-I never said them once..."
The priest and the novelist fell into an embrace, drowning in the mist of sorrowful tears. The others released their own oceans; even the knights that were normally strong were unable to refrain from sobbing. Eiri's words echoed throughout their hearts vibrantly, and instilled a message into their souls. It was a message none of them would ever forget...a message none of them wanted to forget.
Take care of the ones you love, because once they're gone...you can never get them back.
Sorrowful, dark oceans drenched all of them for an eternity, then K removed the mist of oceans from his eyes. The normally calm, cool officer was now frightened; his facial expression made that evident. He had never felt the cold sting of fear before, for he had been a part of many death-defying missions in the past. He was in the full presence of fear now, and would never forget its cold whispers.
His cell phone pierced the cold air with its ringtone, but the melody came to an end after several seconds. The officer opened his phone and began to speak, his voice filled with anticipation. His companions, including Eiri Yuki, kept their eyes on him in silence...and glued themselves to every word that made an ascent from his mouth.
"Yeah. Talk to me. You have? What's the situation?"
Yuuji and Ryuichi exchanged glances with each other. It was the New York Police Department, no doubt.
"Uh huh...yeah...I've got you."
K's face became grim. He was no different from a moviegoer predicting the inevitable outcome of a horror movie; his eyes were radiant with frustration, and hot sweat was streaming down his forehead. His voice was strained, pulled back by the strings of devastation.
"Yeah. Have you tried to calm things down?"
Five seconds of silence elapsed at a horrendous speed, then K released a heavy sigh of pain. He placed a hand on his forehead and closed his eyes, alarming not only his dearest friend, but everyone else around him.
"Listen. I want all units to hold down the fort as long as possible. We can't afford to lose him. Uh huh. That's right. Make sure we've got medical units on standby. Continue to prevent innocent casualties, but take out our enemies with every trick in the book. I repeat; continue to prevent innocent casualties, but take down the enemy with everything you've got. Have you received a visual on the hostage?"
The color drained from Eiri's face. A moment of silence passed between all of them, then K released another heavy sigh. Something was horribly wrong.
"Yeah. Do whatever you can to prevent that from happening. Make sure the hostage stays with us. Yes, that's right. And send out three helicopter units. Have them meet us at the New York airport. I would appreciate it. Keep me informed."
The call ended, and questions began. Suguru Fujisaki, who saw Shuichi Shindou as a little pest in the past, brought up the first question.
"All right. What happened?"
Ayaka's question followed his. "What's going on?"
"Spill it, pal." Ryuichi Sakuma said fiercely, his eyes blazing with power. "What's going down?"
For the first time in his life...Claude K. Winchester was overwhelmed with tears.
He wrestled with himself for a moment. He made an attempt to recover the power of speech, but his heated chest prevented him from doing so. Tears tore themselves out of the officer's eyes, and his chest began to heave with silent sobs. Ark placed a comforting hand on his arm, but he was unable to regain the ability to speak until he saw Eiri's facial expression. The novelist, who had been emotionless for so many years, had the look of a heartbroken puppy...and it was a look that broke K's heart.
"There's been a change in plans. Do you remember our deadline?"
Hiro and Yuuji exchanged fearful glances with each other. Tohma, Ryuichi and Ayaka kept their eyes glued to the silent novelist, their own eyes filled with vibrant tension. Reiji nodded in the officer's direction, balling her hands into a fist upon her lap. The officer released another heavy sigh, which made something very clear; he was extremely upset.
"We're going to end up losing if we follow that deadline."
A chorus of "what"s filled the air, and then K continued.
"The one conducting the hostage situation has been identified as 'Yoshiki Kitazawa'. She's the one that came into contact with Eiri just a short while ago. I was right on the money when I said she wasn't bluffing about 'holding a party'. Get this; she's a prostitute with an enormous network. She and her friends are wreaking havoc within the Empire State Building."
Suguru's mouth practically fell to the floor. K nodded at him, and a sorrowful smile bloomed on his face. "That's right, my friend." he told the musician calmly. "They've got the whole package going. Explosions, gunfire-you name it, they've got it. It's massive chaos down there, but here's the icing on the cake. Shindou isn't in the greatest of conditions. Time's running out, and it's running out fast. We're half an inch away from losing him."
Reiji rose from her place and allowed Tohma to take it. The kindhearted Seguchi instantly brought Eiri into a gentle embrace, and felt the rhythm of the novelist's heart. It was slow, yet horrendously fast; a rhythm like no other.
"Here's the icing to end all icings. Kitazawa's threatening to throw him off the top floor."
That caused an explosion of shock to ring through the small band. Hiroshi clasped his hands to both sides of head and released a loud moan. Ryuichi's jaw plummeted to the floor, and his eyes widened in fervent shock. Ayaka's facial expression was no different from his, and neither was Tohma's. Suguru covered his face in his hands and released a cry of ardent frustration.
"You've GOT to be shitting me!"
"Sorry." the officer said softly, his quiet voice filled with immortal frustration. "I'm not shitting you, my friend."
A river of laughter exploded from Hiro's mouth, but the laughter was nowhere near being pleasant.
"Someone tell me this isn't happening. Please tell me this isn't happening."
K's vigilant, benevolent eyes fell into Eiri's eyes. The eyes of the novelist were articulate, vibrant canvasses of life; they were filled with sorrow, fear and pure love.
"I'm accompanying Eiri. One of you is switching places with me, but we aren't taking the flight. The flight isn't going to get us there in time. I've found another route, and we're taking it."