Hinamizawa Hell
Arc 1: "Stained Souls Chapter"
Ch. 13: The Impossible Trap
"Search every area you can find! Leave no rock unturned and no tree top bare! If the Dark Spector is here, then we'll be sure to find him!"
One of the Sonozaki family heads spoke to a large gathering of search members centered at the old Furude Shrine. In precise fashion, every member was assigned to a group and from that their own sectors in Hinamizawa to search. Back at the Sonozaki estate, Mion and Oryu, along with her mother and other village heads, sat in the council chamber beneath the estate. Mion sat at the forefront, discussing the current situation with others.
"Shi-chan and Satoshi-kun, as many of you already know, are well advanced in their relationship as is. From this, we can logically deduct that he and my sister may have tried to go to one of our family's old houses in the abandoned areas near the dam, for their private use of course. We've already sent an armed party there, headed by Kasai, to investigate that area. If anything comes up, he will call us…" stated Mion.
"Good. That is the best course of action thus far. If any of the other search parties find anything, they will tell us first, with no question to loyalty. We can trust the police, but I scorn the military for acting so late in this serial killer's trail. The people of Hinamizawa will put an end to this." Oryu sat without hesitation in her seat, facing the other village heads.
"Hopefully, this ends with only Hagara-san's death and not the teenagers'. We must pray to Oyashiro-sama for their safe return…"
Oryu eyed whoever said that within the chamber. It was just a simple statement from another family head, even so, it deserved mention.
"Hagara-san deserved what he got. He threatened this family and the people of Hinamizawa with his connections to this Dark Spector. Whatever fate befell him was of his doing!"
Within Mion's mind was an outcry of lies and rage at the other family heads. To her, Komoto posed no danger to anyone. However weird or unusual he was in his actions, she believed him to be kind and trustworthy. His death, as unfortunate as it was, existed as something that should have never happened, in hatred or not. Even she could see how this once new arrival to Hinamizawa impacted her friends.
But at the same time, another part of her mind did agree with her grandmother. Komoto brought no protection to fight the Dark Spector, his love Mizuho. As well, because of his connection with Mizuho, Hinamizawa felt misfortune once more. Even now and for the past few weeks the club members didn't feel at right even in their own home. Rika became distant and sad. Satoko felt like she lost a rival to traps. Satoshi, Shion and Hanyuu felt the sadness of their friends. Even Rena's smiles seemed gone for the current time.
And for Keiichi, he seemed so much more quiet and distant. She couldn't figure him out, even now, but she wondered if he felt some obligation to solving this puzzle. Even in the clubroom discussion he was concentrating on far off memories and theories. She admired him for that, but given the current situation all she wanted was for him to be by her side. She knew Keiichi loved her, but if he wasn't with her then and there, it would feel lonely.
For all the other villagers of Hinamizawa, the night time became the most dangerous of times. Children remained indoors, and parents kept to their own with whatever they could manage for weapons. Even some families slept in the same room till this event found an end. Rena and Keiichi alike remained with their families, awaiting the time until the military would enter their own homes in an attempt to find the Dark Spector.
Word the next morning spread like wildfire around Hinamizawa. Though the villagers in the other search parties turned up nothing and even with the military's intervention halfway through the search, Kansai's search party discovered new leads.
From what Rika, Hanyuu, and the now more determined Satoko were told by Dr. Irie, signs of struggle were found on a road leading to some abandoned houses. Shion and Satoshi's school materials were found on the roadside, water damaged but clearly identifiable with their names still inside. Mion's family already assumed the worst, and Kansai, going off of little to no sleep, continued in his efforts to find them; it was clear by this point he was hell bent on revenge.
As well, some other clues were found. There were not three, but four pairs of tracks leading away and eventually fading into the mud and snow off in a random direction. Now it seemed like there was an accomplice with the Dark Spector, which furthered the military's concerns of the Dark Spector's disciples coming into play, if there were any to begin with. It would be logical also given how the Komoto murder processed along with the physics of the body placement. All the pieces were slowly coming together for Rika and the others, but there were still more questions than answers at this time.
Rika and her friends would have gathered at Keiichi's house a few days later, however, on that day the military came in to search the Maebara manor. For Keiichi's embarrassment, one of the soldiers found his father's stash of echi magazines, from which his very own father attributed to his own son's ownership.
"Oh, how Fate has determined my son's own fetishes in these magazines. How is it to be the day that a father would discover his son's sexual fantasies, soon to be played out into existence with his very own girlfriend! Oh, woe is me!" Keiichi stood with his jaw dropped as his father pointed accusing looks at him, causing the soldiers to just shake their heads and move on. Once they left, Keiichi's father patted his son on the shoulder, thanking kami that his wife was out.
"My son, there will come a day with you will need to blame your own child for such things. Thank goodness that your mother wasn't home, otherwise…"
"Otherwise, she'd kick your ass, just as I'm gonna do now!"
"AHHHHHH!"
Though his father procured unknown bruises, via Keiichi's beatings, no mention was ever told to his mother. For the time being, the military left without any interest into their family's home, earning much needed sighs of relief from everyone.
On the day of the meeting, though, everyone sat in the lobby of the Irie Clinic around late evening. They decided to have a sleepover there, hoping to keep Rika, Hanyuu and Satoko some company. Mion was given permission to stay at the clinic, doing her family a favor by keeping watch over the younger ones. They were well enough safe in their own regards, even being allowed to carry their own weapons with them. Rena especially was allowed to bring her wicked meat cleaver, always keeping it close by her side. From what Keiichi could see, Mion was actually carrying a real firearm this time. Mion told him secretly to not bring mention of it to anyone, hoping that she wouldn't be caught with an illegal firearm. Even so, Akasaka was out and about, along with Dr. Irie, checking in from time to time.
The group of friends conversed amongst themselves about the current events going on, but even among them, the mood felt full of dismay.
"Shi-chan and Satoshi-kun are clearly in the grasps of the Dark Spector, a.k.a. Mizuho Otome. Even though we beat the odds before, we can't do much now…"
"Mi-chan, you're wrong. We can do something. The adults won't think like we do. Together, we can achieve the miracle and beat the game of fate. We just need to try harder," spoke Rika. She sat on the floor with Hanyuu at her side, agreeing with her the whole way.
"Nii-nii and Shi-chan won't fall to this murderer. They're a lot stronger than people believe them to be. Besides, Shi-chan had her taser on her! She had to have put up a fight…" spoke Satoko. She remained stronger than yesterday, having faith in her older brother and Shion.
"But if she had it with her then, Mizuho would still be able to overcome that. Look what she did to Komoto-san…it was even too easy for that to occur," stated Rena.
"Yes…it was too easy for Mizuho to overcome Komoto, but that was with certain circumstances underplaying there. Komoto wasn't going to kill Mizuho, but try to stop her. More so, he didn't have his guns with him. If he did, Mizuho would have been short work for him. Komoto didn't even try to fight back…so maybe Mizuho really is that strong or Komoto cared too much for her…" spoke Rika. She had a wise and distant stare in her eyes, as if pondering something new to mind.
"That's true…" replied Rena. She looked to the ground, feeling like they weren't getting anywhere with their thoughts.
"Well then, time to lighten the mood! I see this as a great time to ease our minds with a game! Penalty game being a punishment of course!"
Mion took out her bag from behind her chair, and opened up a simple game board, again, being the game "Zombie!". The others smirked at Mion's resourcefulness in such times. Even a small game between friends could make a world of difference, such as they all knew from past experiences.
"Ah damnit! Satoko, how do you keep doing this to me!" yelled Keiichi. His pawn piece could have easily been said to have been mauled by 15 zombies. His piece went back to the center square to restart.
"Ho ho ho! Keiichi, you're wits won't save you this time. I have full control of the key roads to the helicopter tile, and now it's only a matter of time till I get there!" replied Satoko. She seemed to really begin to cheer up a bit.
"Sorry Satoko, but I have the cards. I'll play this and essentially kill off your remaining bullet tokens, thus, killing your pawn!" Mion played a devilish card, sending Satoko's plan down the toilet. Her eyes grew wide with dismay, being sent back to square one with Keiichi. Now even his revenge would be swift and just on her.
Everyone was having a fun time, just like before all the killings happened. What little joy they found in a mere board game seemed to lighten the mood all around. Dr. Irie, during one of his rounds, even heard them laughing again, which put a smile on his, of late, tired face.
After dinner and completing the game, the others smiled and began to clean up. They enjoyed their little break from the madness, and decided to reconvene tomorrow on the matter. Everything they could be doing was done, so they ultimately decided to rest their drained bodies.
"Darn, I could have sword the piece was around here. Did it go under the table?" asked Mion. She realized she lost a piece of the game during the game-play and hoped to find it around the area. Everyone searched for it, but it was Rika who found it stuck between the cushions of a chair.
"Found it, Nippah! She smiled.
"Thanks Rika-chan, I hate it when I lose pieces to a game," she reached out to take it from Rika. Rika herself began to hand it back.
"That's ok, it was just hiding in…the…"
Mion tried to take the piece, but Rika dropped it, a look of discovery and awe on her face. Mion and the others watched as she began to murmur things aloud, sending some confusion amongst the others.
"Rika-chan…what's the matter?" asked Hanyuu. She noticed a look of disbelief and at the same time awe in her friend's eyes. What stunned her the most, however, was a look of renewed life and fire in those very eyes, sending a wave of happiness throughout her body.
"Rika-chan, have you…."
"Ha…hahahahahAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
Everyone stood back in fear as Rika let loose a laughter unlike any ever heard. It wasn't maniacal or in shear insanity or madness, yet, one in which Rika cried tears of joy from some unknown discovery. Mion grabbed Rika by her shoulders, trying to calm her down.
"Rika-chan, what's wrong? You're starting to scare us…"
"Haahahaahha! I can't believe it Komoto-senpai! You really….Hahaahahahha!"
Mion stepped back, thinking Rika finally snapped. She looked at Keiichi, mentally telling him to get Dr. Irie for help. As he tried to go, however, Hanyuu stood in the doorway, smiling to the others.
"Hanyuu, I need to…"
"It's ok Keiichi, Rika-chan's ok."
Everyone, including Keiichi's eyes, focused on Rika, who now calmed down. She smirked, almost eerily, while in thinking. She looked to the others, smiling like she's never had before.
"Komoto-senpai once told me the night before he died that even before, he was already laying down whatever cards he had into this game. Furthermore, he even told me outright that:
…that when I'm gone, I'm still here, and when I'm here, I'm not."
"Rika-chan, what is that supposed to mean?" asked a worried Rena.
"Precisely! What is it supposed to mean? I've been asking that question to myself for a long time. I thought he meant nothing of it, but it all meant something. This entire time we believed that certain pieces of the puzzle weren't fitting, but we assumed that they did in some way. We were both right and wrong! Don't you see? We added pieces of the puzzle to other pieces…"
"…That didn't fit all along! Rika-chan, this changes everything!" shouted Keiichi in joy. Mion looked at him, still a bit lost.
"Everyone, I thought the diary was a key piece, but it wasn't at all like most other pieces. If I'm correct in my deductions, then what happened went like so: Komoto-senpai was already playing the game before we met him. On the night before his death, he told me that. More so, he told me the key to this entire puzzle! Even when he's here, he's not. And when he's not here…"
"…he still is!" cheered Hanyuu happily.
"Komoto-senpai wanted to catch the Dark Spector, so he set a trap. The biggest trap I've ever known next to our own."
"Wait, so let me get this straight. You're saying Komoto-san's been playing everyone all along? How?" asked Mion. She was trying her hardest to find out, as well as Rena and Satoko.
"I'll show you. Look!"
Rika hastely took out the game board once more, piecing the town in a certain way with the tiles. It almost resembled Hinamizawa in a way, but was off a bit. However, it got the point across.
"Hinamizawa is a gameboard. The pieces are the townspeople, and this one is the Dark Spector, for all purposes now. If we do this, and this here, then it looks as so."
Mion caught on a bit, noticing the blocked exits like the ones the military was controlling now. Every access point was blocked off, creating a hole for anyone in Hinamizawa. No one got in and no one got out except for the government and the police.
"I believe what Komoto-senpai did was foolproof! He created a deathtrap for the Dark Spector by creating a live game board. He played everyone so well that now it's all going to his plan," stated a happy Rika.
"But Rika-chan, what gave you this idea?" asked Satoko.
"The game piece that hid from us in the cushion; it gave me the realization of what is actually happening. If I'm correct, then everything up to before Shi-chan and Satoshi-kun's disappearance may have been part of a major plan…" stated Rika.
Everyone began to try and figure this out. Rika seemingly had an answer, but it still left questions to be asked.
"But Rika, if you have the answer, then please tell us how it all fits in. It still doesn't make complete sense…" said Rena. She hugged her cleaver close to her, as if anticipating a major treasure.
"Well, it's like this…"
As Rika was just about to answer the mystery behind all that had occurred in Hinamizawa, the lights to the Irie Clinic suddenly went dead. The power generator suddenly stopped, as its seemingly last breath exhaled in a dying sound of machinery failure. Breaking glass could be heard in the back of the clinic, which caused everyone to grab whatever weapons they could to protect themselves.
"W..wh…what's going on!?" whispered Satoko.
"It has to be the Dark Spector. I'm sure of it!" responded Keiichi. He grabbed his metal bat and kept it close as he hugged a nearby wall near the opening to a hallway.
"Keiichi, stay close. You guys, hug the corner over there. Rena, protect them while we try to get a better look!" ordered Mion. She already had her pistol out and ready, loaded with a clip full of lead; ready to kill any enemy in her path.
Rika tried to get onto the nearby phone, finding it dead from a lack of electricity. Her major concern now was protecting her friends, and without any reach to Akasaka now seemed almost hopeless.
But from her perspective, the battle just began. They were prepared like never before; ready to take on the enemy which threatened their happiness. With traps set and weapons sprung, they waited for whatever lurked in the shadows.
Mion ran down the hallway towards the breaking glass noise, her pistol aimed high and ready to fire at any suspect deemed dangerous. Her keen eyes and tactical movements began to clear rooms left and right, making no mistake apparent for an enemy to use.
The closer Keiichi and Mion moved towards the loud sounds, the more they heard cries of pain. It was unmistakable: Dr. Irie was being hurt…badly. The two hurried their pace, and near an open doorway stood facing the apparent scene.
To their horror, Dr. Irie was being choked with one hand by the invader to the clinic. The figure was cloaked in black garments, hiding whatever facial features via a white mask, resembling an emotionless human face with numerous symbols all over painted in red. Dr. Irie grabbed at the opponent's hand, trying his best to get some air. However, to his own horror, the attacker began to pull out an evilly twisted, silver knife, pointing directly at his stomach area.
Mion stared at the figure with no fear. As she aimed her pistol for the figure's head, it twisted towards her, cackling from behind the mask in a sadistic, female tone.
"Hehehehee…why bother? I'll just kill you ever so sweetly, hehehehhee…" spoke the figure.
"You're the Dark Spector that's been all over the news. You're also the one who killed…" Keiichi gripped his bat harder, unable to finish his sentence. The amount of adrenaline that coursed through his body sent his mind into overdrive, ready to attack the Dark Spector with utmost confidence.
"Hmm…"
What surprised them both was the Dark Spector sending Dr. Irie across the room and over a hospital bed. He remained on the ground; his leg caught between safety bars. A sickening crack was heard on impact, followed by screams of pain, probably from Dr. Irie's leg bone snapping. Keiichi moved to his side, protecting him from any further harm at the hands of the Dark Spector.
"My…you two would just be perfect…for my final sacrifice!" The Dark Spector lunged forward at Mion, pulling two more silver bladed knives from under her black cloak. She cackled all the way, ready to complete whatever goal she had.
However, as Mion began to empty her magazine into the Dark Spector, she was pushed aside just before the enemy had a chance to cut her to pieces.
"ARG!"
From their perspective, Rena had jumped into the Dark Spector, flailing her wicked meat cleaver in the process. The two different, bladed weapons clashed, sending out sparks of red and yellow around. The Dark Spector and Rena collided into the wall, and soon after recovered from the ground. Rena pared every swing of the Spector's knives, protecting Mion while she loaded another clip. Mion herself was beginning to fear for her life, unable to understand how the Dark Spector evaded every one of her bullets midair. It was as if she was a ghost; letting the bullets pass through her body without worry.
Keiichi stepped into the fray, attempting his best at hitting the Dark Spector with every chance he had. By this time, the others also came into the room, hell bent on attacking their enemy for survival. Satoko, using some rope and a small ball weight at the end, threw her lengthy weapon around one of the hospital bed's safety bars, attempting to trip the Dark Spector unknowingly. Mion, once seeing her friends clear of her line of sight, began to fire away into the Spector, managing to hit the cloak with a few rounds. Only holes, however, remained to be seen after the smoke cleared. The Dark Spector merely cackled, unaware of Satoko's attempts in the meantime. Whoever this enemy was, she was a skilled fighter.
But for Rika and Hanyuu, they conversed quickly in their mental state, as they saw their friends try their best in fending off their attacker. They held in the back, trying their best to aid their friends.
*Hanyuu, I've figured it out, but it can't be too late, not now! If only there was some way…* thought Rika.
*Rika-chan, you are the one who can bring miracles to light. And I am the one who sets fate in motion. Just have faith, and alone with our wills that will be enough to make a miracle!*
Her friend's words inspired Rika to her core. She wouldn't have gotten far in the game of fate without her friends support and wills to fight on. Now, she delved into whatever she could find, wishing…asking…no, making a miracle appear.
"Heh…too easy!"
The Dark Spector cackled as maniacally as ever, making little work of Rena's cleaver. She assaulted Rena when her guard was down, and smacked her into the nearby wall. Though as the Dark Spector backed away, trying to regain some ground, she did fall for Satoko's trap, tripping over the rope. As she fell, however, Keiichi was cut across the leg, and in mid-drift Mion lost her grip on her pistol, being cut deep on her hand from a flying knife.
"Kei-kun!!!" yelled Mion in terror. She witnessed Keiichi back into the wall, holding his now deeply cut leg wound with one hand, but with the other still holding the baseball bat up. Even wounded, he didn't falter in his offense.
Mion tried her best to recover her pistol, but to no avail did the Dark Spector let that happen. With another throw of a knife, the tip being thrown ever so carefully between the loop of the trigger guard, did the Dark Spector manage to literally nail the weapon to the floor without any chance of recovery.
"Now now, we can't have this, can we? I'll just end this now and begin a new hell in this forsaken world of ours. Hmm…You, Keiichi, and your little girlfriend Mion…you two will make such perfect sacrifices. Two lovers, whose lives will be given up to the demons as a gateway to this world, you two will mark my six hundredth and sixty si…"
*Crack*
Hanyuu and Rika, as well as the others, watched as a brown cloaked figure with long, blue hair rush past them with great speed, firing a single round into the Dark Spector, causing a small wound along her left neck side. In a single motion, the new figure collided into the Dark Spector with a powerful spear attack, forcing their bodies out the blinds and into the remaining parts of the broken window. With a crash, they landed outside, trying their best to get up quickly from the ground.
Rika and the others rushed out to the window, witnessing the Dark Spector and her mysterious foe fend off against one another. The Dark Spector, injured somewhat from the neck wound sustained, tried her best to stop the bleeding, managing to tie off the small wound with a bit of her cloak. As the two figures stood in the darkness of the night, the Dark Spector laughed again, giving no heed to any fear or dismay from her new opponent.
"Hmm…a feisty one aren't you?"
"I've finally found you, you bitch!" yelled the brown cloaked figure. By the tone of voice, it was clearly a woman.
"Found me? You've been following me, haven't you? I knew I was being tracked, but I didn't know the government was this clever in skill. Just who are you?" The Dark Spector sounded surprised, halting in her movements for a bit, waiting for an answer from her opponent.
"My name? It is of no concern to you, but what should be is what I'm about to do to you…" replied the brown cloaked figure.
"HAHAHAHA! What? Do you really think you can kill me? I'll cut you to pieces before you…"
"Knives? Amateur…" The others could see the brown cloaked figure smirk underneath her hood. She reached for something in the snow nearby, clearly planted covertly under the snow. She pulled out a long, leather case, and pulled out a magnificent rifle outfitted with a scope, bipod, and harness. It was a rather large gun, with a block suppressor at the end. The gun, once unveiled, fit snuggly into the brown cloaked figures shoulder, aimed at the Dark Spector.
"A rifle? Come now, you can't even manage to hit me with just that. The green haired girl had a better chance with a pistol." The Dark Spector raised her blades, smiling evilly underneath her mask.
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Rika was amazed that a miracle had occurred in their most dire of times. This new opponent to the Dark Spector came at the best of times, protecting them from certain death. Rika smirked, impressed with how everything came down even now.
"Hanyuu…the tide of this battle has turned. Let's finish this!" Rika delved once more into her soul, finding another power like none other. She called for another miracle, so as to ensure an end to this madness. In a way, it felt almost dark in energy to her, but somehow it felt natural to her, as if it was her true fate all along.
Back down below, the Dark Spector's opponent strode along in her process, chambering a magazine into the rifle. She hummed along in a minor tune as she readied her weapon; sounding eerily like a song played before one's death. She was ready to take on her opponent, no matter what costs would be paid. Her goal was simple: kill the one who was her target.
She aimed her weapon at the Dark Spector, who likewise did the same, preparing for what seemed like the final brawl between them, leaving only one to walk away. As they did, suddenly, a loud sound could be heard in the sky.
As the clouds cleared away the path for the moon to shine in the dark, night sky, the rotating blades of a helicopter announced the entry of the military upon the battle area. The helicopter's large searchlight shone upon the scene, blinding those below, except for the two opponents. They remained focused on their objective, however, knew all too well that the scenery would soon be changing.
The soldiers suddenly surrounded the two below, coming out of thin air behind bushes and trees in the forest nearby. The helicopter began to have soldiers repel to the ground below, raising their guns in precise unison, aiming at their targets. From whoever remained in the helicopter above, a loud voice could be heard ringing out to those below.
"Dark Spector, by order of the Japanese Government and Armed Forces, you are hereby under arrest for the murders and crimes you have committed against humanity. Lay down your weapons and surrender or we will open fire with extreme prejudice!" roared the soldier in the helicopter above.
The Dark Spector laughed, and twisted by to the brown cloaked figure. Just as it seemed like she was about to surrender, the Dark Spector, in stunning awe, jumped through another nearby window in the Irie Clinic's first floor, and smashed through the glass. The brown cloaked figure did the same, not letting her target get away. Rika and the others suddenly crouched down behind the door, as the military began to unleash a barrage of bullets into the enemy, not caring about the well being of the mysterious heroine who saved the kids.
The first floor became bullet ridden; items of all sorts and parts of walls being ripped apart from the bullets' impacts. Splinters and debris flew out in all directions, but as the two figures ran to the other side of the building, each trying their best to escape the other, not a single bullet ever met its target.
Mion rushed to the other side of the building, noticing out an opposite window that the Dark Spector and her enemy were well away from the armed soldiers. The government let the enemy escape through their clutches again, putting everything that occurred up to that point almost in vain.
"Dammit! We had her, and she's gone…" said Mion. She punched a nearby wall in anger, cursing under her breath for letting the Dark Spector get away.
As she looked dismayed to the others, Dr. Irie, being helped by Keiichi and Rika, came out from around the corner, keeping off his broken leg.
"That's not true Mion…ahh…its actually part of the plan…"
Author's Note: Well, here we are, coming down to the conclusion of the first arc. Rika has solved most of the mystery regarding the Dark Spector, but a twist will appear in the last chapter of the "Stained Souls" arc. I'm well on my way to finishing this arc, and I hope you find it to your liking.
Thank you to all my supporters in this story. Without any of your comments, I'm not sure if I would have continued writing this story after ch. 2.
This coming conclusion to the arc marks the first of a trilogy series. The next arc will be revealed in the conclusion's author's note. Enjoy!