Chapter 7
{Hey peeps, BBBlue here! Sorry for such a long wait for this new chapter. I kind of put this story on hold since I took a break from the fandom - toxic fans, twitter culture, etc - but I should be back to uploading at least once a week for the next month or so. Hopefully I can stay 2-3 chapters ahead so there's some semblance of an update schedule, but no guarantees. Anyway, thank you guys so much for your kind reviews and kudos! Ngl they're kinda the whole reason I'm continuing this story now and not during winter break, but I digress. Enjoy the story!}
The night was quiet for the most part - people naively walking the streets while crime awoke in the shadows. Dazai and Chuuya had made their way to the designated meeting place for the Experimentalists; an abandoned church on the outskirts of Yokohama. Dazai took the opportunity to make several jokes about how cliche the whole thing was.
Chuuya had taken the liberty of filling Dazai in on the necessary details, unsurprised when he already had a decent grasp on the situation. Stupid mackerel and his stupid predictions, he scoffed.
Double Black was meant to sneak into the meeting to collect intel, Dazai's area of expertise, and ambush them while two squads waited on standby. Simple enough, but Dazai was more concerned about the unknown abilities of the artificials, which was what the Port Mafia had nicknamed the artificial ability users. Dazai, trying to determine the best strategy, concluded that since the meeting contained about eighty people there would likely be between five and ten artificials on standby.
If they were strong enough to hospitalize Akutagawa and leave him in critical condition, this was going to be a tough battle. Chuuya hoped the situation wouldn't require him to use Corruption. Dazai, taking the lead, began climbing up the church's fire escape. Grinning pridefully, Chuuya flew up to the roof, careful not to land on any of the crumbling areas. Any unordinary noises could give them away and jeopardize the mission, so they had to watch their step more than usual.
After a couple minutes, discreetly clothed members began filtering into the church, the door only creaking open after quick words were exchanged. Chuuya watched his partner listen in, eyes memorizing each face and ears fine tuned to the whispers below. Dazai was stiff, unmoving - undetectable to an average bystander.
As people stopped entering the building, Dazai turned his attention to a crack in the rusted roof. It was jagged, but just wide enough for him to see and hear. It was actually perfect for gathering intel since it didn't require awkward positioning to listen in.
A darkly cloaked figure with wire framed glasses, a white lab coat peeking out from beneath his gray robes, and stark white hair emerged from the back of the silent church. It wasn't Heinlein, but Dazai instantly recognized him from the file and previous experience. This man wasn't only a high ranking member of this organization, but a researcher for the Supernatural Ability Special Investigation Division. "Chibi -" Dazai whispered, "Come over here."
Chuuya carefully shifted so he was pressed against Dazai and they watched the scene unfold together. The crack in the roofing was, thankfully, large enough for the both of them. The man, his name escaping Dazai, held a book up and began preaching to his audience. To any outsider it would have looked like a normal sermon, however, the things he was preaching about were downright eerie. The smooth talking man went on about how serving their leader by taking on artificial abilities would bring them closer to salvation and in order for them to save non-believers they would have to cleanse them of all impurities.
A darkness settled over Chuuya, the familiar emotions causing him unease. Despite being a mafia Executive, he never derived pleasure from needlessly hurting others. It was a job, it was work - nothing more. He'd killed dozens of people, sparing them when he could, but nowhere near how many lives Dazai had taken. Although he had a near-perfect track record as an executive, he did go out of his way to spare people deserving of mercy. However, this man (if you could even call him that), deserved every ounce of his unrelenting wrath. He sensed Dazai felt the same from the way his jaw tensed and eyes locked onto his target with disgust.
"We move in as soon as he's done," Dazai hissed between clenched teeth. "I'll take out the head, you call for both squads to come in and cover all exits. No one leaves here alive."
Chuuya hesitated to speak, to spit back a witty remark at his partner. He got the sinking feeling he wasn't talking to the Dazai who had found some semblance of purpose in the light, but the Demon Prodigy. The partner he couldn't stand if his life depended on it. Chuuya still found issues, picking at the smallest of problems, but it was obvious the two of them had grown a lot since they were sixteen and lost in the world. Dazai, though still a bit emotionally stunted from everything he'd been through, had learned to protect instead of destroy. The very characteristics that once put them at odds had been discarded alongside their immaturity.
"Tsk. Fine." Chuuya rolled his eyes with exasperation.
He floated up so he wouldn't be heard and called in the two squads on standby. There were only two exits to cover, so it wouldn't be too difficult to contain them. The issue now would be to secure their leader and kill the ability users before they wreaked havoc on the surrounding area. If their information was accurate, these new artificials would die once they'd overused their powers. Chuuya gently landed to the side of the front entrance, holding up a hand to stop his men from moving in. Dazai would give the signal since he was watching the unsettling sermon from the roof.
Dazai stood, giving the all clear. He drew a gun from his waistband and gracefully leapt down from the roof, black coat billowing around him and enveloping him in nightly camouflage. The adrenaline and opioids coursing through his system kept Dazai numb to his body's current condition but gave him the energy needed to carry out the mission at hand. Chuuya had done a good job in directing their subordinates, better than he used to, anyway.
Dazai rushed in with Chuuya covering him, quickly dispatching some of the non-ability users attempting to fight back with curved knives. So they were armed. Since their organization was headed up by scientists, Dazai thought, those blades were likely coated in a poison or paralytic. He would probably be fine, but if any of them grazed Chuuya he wouldn't last very long in this fight.
"Their blades are poisoned, hat rack!" Dazai shouted as he reloaded his gun.
Their leader was being escorted out through the back, not that he'd be able to make it out with half a squad blocking that exit. Dazai rushed in, taking out the body guards blocking his way. Apparently he hadn't aimed well enough because he was promptly grabbed and held in a chokehold by one of them. The bullet hadn't completely missed his head, but only grazed the side. Dazai was able to slip out of the man's grip by shooting him in the foot and jumping back a safe distance.
Dazai finished the job, putting the screaming man out of his misery with a shot to the head. He was tempted to shoot again. And again. And again.
Take out all his frustrations on someone else. But it was wrong. Dazai was fairly certain what he was feeling was guilt for even considering that course of action as a possibility. The man was dead, there was no point in causing any further damage; Chuuya had taught him that.
Dazai moved forward, chasing down his primary target. While Double Black had been ordered to wipe out the ability users and other Experimentalists at their gathering, Mori would no doubt be angry if he killed a source of information.
"Lovely little speech you gave back there, John Varley." Dazai smirked darkly. "If you thought I wouldn't remember you working with Ango, you were mistaken. Now, what do I do with you…?"
He briefly considered putting the cornered researcher out of his misery instead of dragging him back to headquarters for interrogation. But Dazai knew better than to risk that. Mori could always dispose of his prisoner later if he wasn't needed.
"Don't kill me! Please - I don't know anything!" Varley pleaded as the cold barrel of the gun was placed against his forehead.
"Actually, I think you do." The traitor, clearly not too phased about the gun to his head, shifted into an entirely different persona - perhaps his true nature.
"You should have left when you had the chance!" Varley screamed, red lightning flashing around his body. "You'll die by the power of thegift given to me by our savior. No one can withstand my Red Lightning!"
Dazai jumped back to go on the defensive, dodging the crackling strikes by mere inches. As quick as his ability was, Dazai doubted it would activate before he was struck by something as fast as or actual lightning. Although, it was his only option. He would have to risk being incapacitated to get in contact with him, but it would be worth it.
The crimson lightning struck his arms and neck before dissolving in soft flashes of white as he aimed the gun at Varley's thigh. "Son of a - God Damnit!"
He needed to bring this man in before he caused any more problems. The lightning finally stopped when he collapsed, leaving Dazai feeling strange and jittery. It was definitely the previous shocks affecting his nervous system, he concluded, catching his breath. He shot out his other leg as well, making sure he wouldn't be able to escape anytime soon.
"Stay put, would you? I've got to go deal with the others," Dazai winked with false bravado, running out to regroup with Chuuya, but someone else had been waiting for him in the wings.
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Chuuya waved his subordinates onward, using his ability to redirect their hail of bullets towards the first ability user he encountered. She was a middle aged woman, flinging violet blades at Chuuya and his men. They seemed to be intangible unless she wanted them to make contact, since Chuuya couldn't manipulate the gravity around them. As they proceeded to exchange blows, knives and bullets flying past each other and slaughtering non-ability users in the room, the woman's body was noticeably deteriorating.
"Oi! Looks like you won't hold out much longer," Chuuya shouted, raising a load of rubble and broken pews above her head. Crushing her was the best course of action and would keep everyone else in the vicinity more or less safe. Her eyes widened as the debris crushed her, sending up a plume of plaster dust around them.
Two more artificials emerged from behind him, though their abilities seemed like watered down versions of Chuuya's. Telekinesis was nothing compared to gravity manipulation since one gave more control over the surrounding area than the other. As the dust settled, the redhead realized they looked alike. Twins, then. That would explain why their abilities were the same.
They were easily restrained with gravity and left at the mercy of Chuuya's subordinates. It didn't seem like there was anyone else who dared to attack, though, that didn't mean no one had gone after Dazai. After ordering a few of his top members to check the bodies in the surrounding area, all of the cultists were confirmed deceased along with twelve of his subordinates. He removed his hat in respect at the news.
As he lowered his head, Chuuya found himself wondering where in the world Dazai had run off to. He should have been done fighting off the creepy preacher by now, but he was nowhere in sight.
"You two, come here," Chuuya barked, waving over two of his subordinates. "Go look for Dazai. He should be around here somewh -" Chuuya stopped as a crash reverberated throughout the building's foundation.
"Goddamnit.