Lightest of Nights: A Deck of Minds

Chapter 27

A Secret to Share

The sky darkened by the minute, the sun would soon set. Conan had since separated from the others. There was a lot on his mind; the Black Organization, the assurgent of the drug he had come to know as 'Fear Gas', and most recently the Riddler. The question residing on the surface of his mind.. what next?

The Detective Agency was now in view. Leaning his head forward he began to slow in step, there was something that came to mind, something he had not considered before this very moment. "Could it be?" He stopped. "The fear gas originated from Gotham City before finding ground here in Japan. Gotham is also home to Edward Nigma.."

Conan looked upward. "It can't just be a convenience.. can it?" What if the distribution of the fear gas and the Riddler's presence in Japan were linked? Conan gave the possibility some thought. "But then it wouldn't really make sense. Nigma traveled to Japan with one clear goal in mind, to challenge the oji-san and Kid. If he was in fact responsible for the spread of the toxin one would have to ask.. why?"

Conan's thoughts reverted back to the riddles; stemming from Nigma's initial words all the way through the night of challenge. Was there anything that hinted of his connection with the toxin? Conan didn't feel such a conclusion could be reached. "If there truly is a connection, there is only one way to determine that. The beginning," Conan said. "I'll have to start from the very beginning."

Conan reached for his phone, scrolling through his contacts he found the name he was looking for. Placing the phone upon his ear Conan stood in wait, listening to the sound of the ring that came from the other side. "Come on, please answer." Unfortunately the only voice to come was that of an answering machine. Sighing, Conan went on to leave a message.

"Jodie-sensei, it's," Conan began. He paused. "Listen, I have a favor to ask, there's something I need from you. Get back to me when you can."

Taking a deep breath Conan dropped the phone back to his side. "Well, I guess I better head in for the nigh-"

In the moments of him speaking his phone began to ring. "Jodie-sensei?" Conan was hopeful. Raising the phone he found this not to be the case. "It's Dr. Agasa."

What could he possibly be calling about? A break in the case regarding the fear toxin perhaps? "Doc, it's me," said Conan answering the call. "What's up?"

"Shinichi, it's Mitsuhiko-kun," Hiroshi dispensed.

"Did he finally turn up?" there was a relief to be heard in his voice. "Where was he?"

"No, I just received a call from his mother," Hiroshi replied. "Shinichi, like the rest of us.. she hasn't been able to get ahold of him. He's missing."

His phone began to tremble in hand. "No…"

…..

The boarding process had finally concluded. Now traveling down a fleet of stairs Kaito brought eye to the key card in hand, one which read; 'R 22B'. The end of the staircase was reached shortly after. Lowering the card in hand Kaito referred to his travel mate. "Aoko, what room number are you in?"

"6B," replied Aoko who walked a short distance ahead of him.

Catching up to her side Kaito spoke again. "So.. when are you going to tell me why you really invited me on this cruise?" There had to be a reason. "Surely you didn't drag us all the way out here for just a little sightseeing?"

"If I were to tell you now that would ruin the surprise," Aoko replied.

"Surprise?"

The door reading 6B was reached moments later. Holding out the key card Aoko swiped it which allowed her entry to the room. "We'll meet back up in a bit, there's a few things I need to do," said Aoko who stepped in past the door.

Kaito watched as the door closed before him. "How long before you want to-"

"I'll call you," Aoko's voice carried from the other side.

Sighing Kaito turned back for the hall. It was here that he laid eyes on two women who strolled past. "I recognize them. Yah, they're one of the last people who boarded this ship."

No doubt they were heading toward their assigned room. Given his room was in the same direction Kaito followed. While proceeding Kaito took note of the fact all even numbered rooms were on the right while all odd numbered doors were on the left. Room 22B was reached sooner than he expected. "Now, where did I put that key?"

Moving his hand through his pocket Kaito grabbed hold of the room key. "There you are." Just as he was to swipe it he caught eye of the two women who were standing outside of the room next to his own. "I wonder why they haven't entered yet."

"Oh come on," she said taking another swipe of the card. "It's not working."

"Maybe you're sliding it wrong," the woman beside her stated.

"I've already tried both ways," she responded.

"Here, why don't you let me take a look," greeted Kaito who approached the two.

The girl holding the key froze upon his approach, her eyes locked in awe. Reaching out Kaito grabbed hold of the card she possessed. "Hmmmm.." After examining the card Kaito then looked up at the room they were attempting to enter. "So that would explain."

"What?" questioned the woman with the longer hair of the two. "Have you figured out what's wrong?"

Nodding Kaito handed the key card back to the shorter haired woman. "This room 24B, your card is for room 24A," Kaito pointed out. "In other words, you're on the wrong floor."

The two women looked to one another, then back at him before laughing. "Oops, my mistake," said the longer haired girl who wore a pair of finger cut gloves. "I had forgotten that I asked the captain to move us up a floor."

Kaito smiled, finding humor in the situation. "It happens to us all. Don't mind it."

"Well then, we better get going."

Kaito went on to turn back for his room.

"Wait, what's your name?" the shorter haired girl asked.

Turning once more Kaito came to face the shorter haired girl. "Kaito," he replied.

"It's nice to meet you Kaito-kun, I'm Chiasa," she replied bowing her head. "And this is Yuriko."

"Perhaps I'll see you both around," Kaito said.

Chiasa smiled brightly. "I sincerely hope so!"

"Ok, we really should be going," said Yuriko who grabbed hold of her friends hand before marching forward.

"See you later Kaito-kun!" waved Chiasa as the two departed.

He watched as the pair strolled away.

"Did you have to make it so obvious," scolded Yuriko after the two were halfway down the hall.

"I can't help it, he's really cute," argued Chiasa.

Vaguely hearing their words Kaito smiled as he turned for the door he stood before. Sliding the card he forced his way in. "Might as well get myself acquainted." Now inside the room he did just that.

To his surprise the space to find was much larger than he had anticipated. Far across the room was screen door, one which provided a view of the ocean on the outside. Toward the right was where the bed was located; next to it on the left was a night stand. Kaito then looked to the other side of the room to find a TV attached to the wall, below it was a dresser. There was a door to spot further up, what could be on the other side? He assumed it to be the bathroom.

"Well, I'm not exactly in a rush to go anywhere," said Kaito who walked. Finding way to the side of the bed he removed his bag before tossing it into a chair that was near. Fading back he fell onto the softness of the sheets below. "Just what will this delightful cruise bring?"

Laying there his mind began to flow to a matter that had been lost to him since arriving. "The Riddler." There was no way that what occurred the other night was over. On the contrary, that was only the beginning. There was no doubt about this in his mind. "Lucky for me I took note of every riddle the Riddler gave that night."

Raising his phone to eye Kaito went on to open a window that had stored notes for everything he had accounted for the previous night. "You played your first hand man of riddles… just what will be your next move?"

….

Ten minutes passed since the ship's departure. In that time everyone had cleared the deck, all except Mitsuhiko. He was becoming growingly anxious by the minute. If there was a possible murder to come, what good would standing around do? Damian who had left for a short time returned, clearly focused on something that was on his phone.

"Damian-kun, didn't you say we should be on the lookout for anything or anyone suspicious?" reminded Mitsuhiko. "How can we do that if we stay up here?"

Damian didn't respond. "Hey, are you even listening?" asked Mitsuhiko trying to get his attention for a second time.

"Silence," Damian retorted. "You're distracting me."

"What could be more important than our mission?"

Damian didn't respond. Could it be that he wasn't taking it serious? The thought of it crawled into mind. "Should I tell him?" Mitsuhiko looked over at Damian. "Should I tell him the truth? No.. I can do this. This is my case, I'll crack the mystery, no matter what!"

It was time to act. "Standing around isn't going to get me anywhere."

As Mitsuhiko turned to walk Damian spoke. "That's it, bout time."

His words pulled Mitsuhiko's attention. Curious as to what he was talking about he looked back at him. "What are you talking about?"

"I hacked into the server," informed Damian. "Now we'll know who is staying in which room aboard this ship."

This was good news. "What! Really?!"

Raising the phone Damian skimmed through the list he now had at his disposal. "Where are you Bane, what name are you traveling under?" The thought of that rolled through his mind as he scrolled down. He stopped upon coming across a certain name on the list. "Enab? … That's Bane's name spelled backwards, that has to be him. Room 12B."

Directly under Bane's listing he found the names of two others that grabbed his attention; Drib and Ggort. "Room's 13B and 14B, Bird and Trogg no doubt. You seriously can't convince me that was the best they could come up with for fake names."

"Damian-kun."

"What?" questioned Damian who swung his head to face him.

"What about that really suspicious guy we saw board earlier," Mitsuhiko asked. "The one who was wearing the hygiene mask.. what was his name again?"

"Manabu Yoneda," answered Damian who now had his name atop the list. "Room 2B."

"Great, then that's where we'll go."

"Pretty sure we're not getting in without a key card to that room," Damian noted. "And it's not like we can just knock on his door and say let us in, we're investigating you for looking painfully suspicious."

Mitsuhiko chuckled. "Why not, we could at least give it a try."

"Very humorous," replied Damian with a dose of sarcasm.

"Hey, where did you go just a while ago," Mitsuhiko asked. "You told me to stay here, but you never told me where you were going."

"Oh yah, I almost forgot about that." Reaching into his pocket Damian revealed a key card. "This one is yours, Room 25A."

Damian handed the key card over to him. Mitsuhiko was admittedly surprised. "You really got me my own room? How much did it cos-"

"An insignificant detail," Damian shot down. "Here's the deal, this ship has four levels; the deck where we are now, floor A which is directly beneath us, floor B, and the bottom level which we visited earlier."

"You mean where the storage room is right?"

"Yes," Damian confirmed. "I purchased you a room for floor A and my room is on floor B. This was intentional."

Mitsuhiko's detective instincts kicked in. "I see, you wanted us to be able to explore both floors without coming off as suspicious to the other guests. As long as I have my key card for floor 'A' no one will question me roaming that area, likewise for you on floor 'B'."

Damian was impressed. "Perhaps you'll be useful after all."

"Wait, are you saying you didn't believe in me beforehand?"

"Ah hem," Damian huffed as he turned away. "Listen, this is all that is located on floor A outside of the rooms for guests. Toward the rare of the ship is where this ship's kitchen is located; in there is where the cooks will be."

"Why do you say? Do you want me to investigate them too?"

"It wouldn't hurt," Damian replied.

"He's right," Mitsuhiko thought. "I still don't know the full circumstances for what is going to happen."

Damian continued. "Located beside the kitchen is the cafeteria, you'll want to check there as well."

"Got it," nodded Mitsuhiko.

"Now on the opposite side of floor B is where the game room is located."

Mitsuhiko's eyes lit up. "Game room?"

Damian's eyes narrowed. "That's not going to be a distraction for you is it?"

Mitsuhiko shook his head. "Of course not, why would it?"

Damian took a long hard look at him. While not completely convinced he found it in himself to take his word for it. "Like the cafeteria, if there is anyone in there I want you to observe them from a distance. Don't engage or bring any attention to yourself, just observe."

He nodded. "Got it." That moment was when it really hit him. "Hey, what exactly should I be on the lookout for?"

"As I said before, if anything out of the ordinary happens you'll keep note of it and report to me."

"Well.. that doesn't really help."

"Is the makeup of my words that difficult for you to comprehend?" questioned Damian.

"I fully understand, that's not what I'm saying."

"Then what?"

"You still haven't told me why we're doing this," Mitsuhiko replied. "If you tell me what we're specifically looking for it would give me a better handle for what I should be searching for."

"Trust me when I say the less you know the better," Damian shot down. "Either way that wraps up all there is to find on floor A."

"What about floor B?"

"You need not concern yourself with that," replied Damian. "I'll be searching floor B myself."

"So I search floor A, you search floor B.. then what?"

"We regroup and head to the bottom level together," Damian responded. "Outside of the storage room there are still a number of other places we need to check. These areas would include; the indoor pool, a steam room, a recreation center, and the armory."

Mitsuhiko was surprised by the last. "An armory? What is something like that doing on a cruiser?"

"It's merrily there for guests to spectate if they so choose," Damian explained. "Nothing more. Unless you have any more enquiries, shall we proceed?"

"I do have one more question. How long do you want to search floors 'A' and 'B' before we meet on the bottom floor?"

"Hmmm.." Damian gave it some thought. "Let's try and keep it within the fifteen minute range, a little under or over is ok. That all?"

Mitsuhiko nodded. "That's it."

"Very well."

…..

Conan had searched high and low. No matter where he looked there was no sign of Mitsuhiko. He stopped after reaching a certain street corner. Once there he looked down at his watch. "They should be here any moment," Conan determined after noting the time. As expected a short time later Haibara and Ayumi came into view from his right while Genta panned in from the left.

"Any luck guys?!" asked an out of breath Genta.

"No sign of him at the park," Ayumi replied.

"He wasn't at the school either," Genta conveyed.

"We've searched every place we'd expect him to be," Haibara added.

"Dammit," hissed Conan under his breath. "Just where could he be?"

"According to what was told to the Professor from Tsuburaya-kun's parents, he was on his way to meet the rest of us," Harbara relayed. "Something clearly happened that prevented him from showing."

"But what?" Genta questioned.

"It could also be something prompted his focus elsewhere," Haibara added. "Wherever he is, Tsuburaya-kun has either lost his phone or is unable to use it due to his situation or the battery being dead all together."

Ayumi gulped. "Or maybe it's because he's.."

"Don't think that," Conan stated. "He's alive for sure, I know it. We'll find him, so don't you worry."

Haibara looked to the sky, noting how dark it had gotten within the past couple minutes. "It's getting dark, perhaps we should continue our search of the neighborhood inside the car alongside the professor."

Conan agreed. "I'll call him and let him know to meet us here." The young detective did as he said he would, raising the phone to ear as he waited for an answer. "We'll find him no matter what."

Mitsuhiko now walked the floors of level A. He had just exited the stairwell. On the right was another door. He could check to see what was on the other side or instead opt to go down the long hall that led to the other side of the ship. "It'd be best if I checked this room now, I'll save myself a trip."

With his mind now made up Mitsuhiko turned for the door. After reaching it he noticed a sign hanging over the door, one which read 'Cafeteria'. "Damian-kun was right; the cafeteria is definitely on this floor."

Now with an idea what to expect Mitsuhiko turned the door knob which allowed him entry. The cafeteria was much larger in size then he had been expecting. Subconsciously he began accounting for everything that came to view. There were fifteen seating areas spread across the room … no seventeen, each from what he could tell could at least host twenty people at a time.

Mitsuhiko scoured the room further, counting off every person that fell in his line of sight. "One, two, three.. four. That's it," Mitsuhiko said. "There's only four people in here."

While he may not have noticed at first glass, far across the room in the right corner another door was spotted. "Could that be where the kitchen is located?"

Pressing an inch forward Mitsuhiko stopped after catching eye of something left of him. "Oh, it's just a water fountain." Further down was a hanging sign which read 'Rest Room' was spotted. He looked away, refocusing on what was most important; the subjects to investigate. "Damian-kun said only to observe, not to engage. I don't see how that's going to help us learn anything, and with a possible murder on the line there's no way I can just sit back and make mental annotations."

With his mind now made up Mitsuhiko walked toward the four who sat near the door. "I recognize all of them. The two sitting with their backs to me are Kiku Toda and her father Katsuo Yanagi." Mitsuhiko was sure of this. "The two sitting across from them is that up and coming singer Reira Jo and her agent Issuma Sadow."

Reira who was holding a menu in hand was the first to notice him approaching. "Hey there," she greeted.

Mitsuhiko waved in return. "Hi!"

Everyone else who sat among them became aware of his arrival. "Who is this?" Issuma asked. "Reira-san, do you know this boy?"

She responded by shaking her head. "I do not." Reira then looked him in the eyes. "I take it you would like an autograph?"

This was the perfect opportunity. Mitsuhiko played it off as that, nodding as to confirm the predicted. "Yes, I would really like that!"

Reira turned to Issuma. "Sadow-kun do you have a pen and a piece of paper on you?"

"Of course," he replied. A few moments was all it took for him to search his pocket for a writing utensil and a notepad. Ripping out a page he handed it over along with the pen. "There you go."

Reira wrote her name down before holding it out for Mitsuhiko to handle. "All done, here you are little guy."

Mitsuhiko bowed his head before thanking her after accepting the piece of paper. "I can't thank you enough." It was now time to act on his true motive for what brought him here. "Jo-san, what lead to you joining this cruise, if you don't mind me asking?"

She took a couple seconds to think about the asked. "A small vacation would be the best way of putting it," Reira replied. "What better way to do that than taking a cruise?"

"Hard to argue against that," Mitsuhiko said.

"Better make that the both of us," spoke Kiku who sat directly across from Reira. "There's nothing better than taking a cruise to get away from it all."

Mitsuhiko looked up at her. "So you're on vacation?"

"That's right," confirmed Kiku who looked down at him. "Today marks my father's Birthday who just turned fifty two. To celebrate that my husband and I who just married a couple months ago decided we'd go on a cruise to celebrate."

Mitsuhiko looked around after hearing this. "Where is your husband now?"

"Upstairs resting up for a bit, he plans on joining us in a bit," Kiku replied. "It's been a long day to say the least."

"Tell me about it," murmured Mitsuhiko.

"Where are my manners, I failed to ask your name," Reira said.

"Tsuburaya Mitsuhiko," he proudly replied.

Reira smiled. "Well it is a pleasure to meet you Mitsuhiko-kun. So who are you with? Your parents? Surely you aren't traveling alone?"

"I.."

Unexpectedly the five would be joined by a young man who made his way over from across the room. Taking note of his apparel which consisted of a white apron and white fluffy hat sitting atop his head there was no mistaking who it was in Mitsuhiko's mind. "This must be one of the cooks. None of these people seem all that troublesome, there's no need for me to stick around any longer."

"Hello everyone, my name is Nenjo, and I will be the one serving you tonight," he introduced. "Can I start you all off with some drinks?"

With everyone's attention now diverted on the cook Mitsuhiko took that opportunity to stroll off. He exited out the same door he had entered. Now back in the hall he took a deep breath. "That takes care of the cafeteria, now for the game room."

From there he marched onward. As he did he couldn't help but shed eye to the number of guest rooms he passed. 1A, 2A, 6A.. 13A. The numbers increased the further he progressed. One of the doors ahead flew open without warning. Mitsuhiko stopped, was someone about to come out?

"Yuriko, I'll meet you down at the pool!"

Mitsuhiko was uncertain of who the voice belonged to.

"Ok," another spoke. "I'll join you soon Chiasa. I'm going to stop by the cafeteria first to get us some snacks."

"Alrighty!"

A moment later a young woman dressed in a two piece gold and black swim suit stepped out. Not wanting to get in her way Mitsuhiko stepped off to the side. Noticing his gesture Chiasa spoke. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," a smiling Mitsuhiko replied.

Now with a clear path ahead the young detective continued forward. The final guest room on this floor was 25A. Making a left turn after reaching the end of the hall Mitsuhiko came to find a door on the right no more than five yards away. He rubbed his hands together in anticipation. "That has to be the game room."

Excitement mounted. What would he find on the other side? What kind of games would be available? The door was reached in short. Once inside he was astonished by what he saw, not expecting to sight as much as he did. There was a pool table no more than ten feet into the room. Turning his head he spotted a badminton setup nearby, a set of dart boards, and a table hockey further left. While the lights were a bit dim in this room he was still able to make out where everything was.

"What to try first?"

Moving deeper into the room Mitsuhiko noticed a fleet of stairs toward the right, his eyes widening after spotting what was on the second level of the room. "Arcade games!"

Following the floor lights that were embedded Mitsuhiko excitedly hurried to the next floor. Once at the top he heard a sound that was familiar. "Could it be?" It sounded like that of someone mashing buttons, which could only mean one thing, someone else was in the game room besides him.

Determined to find out who Mitsuhiko followed the continuous sound to its source. Maneuvering around two arcade machines Mitsuhiko came to spot two men who were seemingly battling against each other in one of the games, due to them standing side by side. Closing the distance Mitsuhiko came to recognize who they were, the black leather jackets they wore being a dead giveaway. "Kiyoshi and Saburo.. yah, I'm pretty sure that's what their names are."

How should he greet them? That was the question that resided. Mitsuhiko contemplated that as he continued to approach the pair.

"There we go! How do you like that combo?!"

"Phff!" the other grunted. "The red button on this control pad was jammed there for a second, that's the only reason you were able to land those hits."

"That's right, let's hear those usual excuses Saburo."

"I'm not lying," Saburo protested. "Switch me sticks, you'll see!"

"Stop ur complainin', the match isn't over yet."

Mitsuhiko stopped after falling within inches of the pair. It didn't take long for one of them to notice.

"Yes!" shouted Kiyoshi who threw his arms into the air. "I'll take that win! At this rate you might want to retire my friend."

"It's not even like that, I was distracted by this kid," Saburo argued.

"Are you really fallin' to that level of excuses?" Kiyoshi laughed. "An imaginary friend, really?"

"No, I'm not kidding," said Saburo who pointed directly at Mitsuhiko. "Look!"

Feeling his friend was telling a tall tale, Kiyoshi gave his friend the benefit of the doubt and looked to find there was someone else now among them. "Who the hell are you?!"

Mitsuhiko gritted his teeth. This was not how he envisioned things going. "I umm.. I was just looking for a game to.. play."

"Cool it Kiyoshi, you're scaring the boy," Saburo stated before looking back down at him. "What's your name kid?"

"Mitsuhiko," he replied. "That's my name."

"Well then Mitsuhiko-kun, is there something we could help you with?" Saburo asked. "Perhaps you wanted to play the game we're currently occupying?"

Mitsuhiko waved his hands back and forth in denial. "No, that's not it at all," he assured. "I'm just looking around."

Following this Mitsuhiko made a move to walk away. "I guess I should be going now." The thought of it ran through his mind, to ask or not to ask. Unexpected to the others Mitsuhiko stopped after only taking a couple steps.

"Something the matter?" questioned Kiyoshi. "You drop something?"

Mitsuhiko had made up his mind. He looked back at the two men. "I hope you don't mind if I ask you guys something."

"It depends what you're askin'," Kiyoshi replied.

Dropping all hesitation Mitsuhiko went on to ask what was on his mind. "What made you guys decide to join this cruise?"

The pair looked to one another before looking back at him. "Admittedly none of this was planned," Saburo informed. "It was Yasu who received three tickets in the mail about two months ago for this specific cruise."

"Yasu.. that must be the girl that was with them the first time I saw them," Mitsuhiko remembered. "You said she received the tickets. What do you mean by that? Did she not go out and purchase them?"

Kiyoshi shook his head. "She won them in some kind of prize drawing, one she didn't recall entering, her own words."

"Whether she remembers or not, we'll take it!" Saburo yelled. "I've never been on a cruise before now!"

"I see.." Mitsuhiko paused.

"What's this all about anyway?" asked Kiyoshi. "Why do you care to know all of this?"

"Well, I guess I should be going. My friend is probably wondering where I am," Mitsuhiko smilingly waved. "See ya!"

The young detective took off from there, not once looking back. Kiyoshi shook his head as he watched the boy turn the corner. "What a strange kid."

"You can say that again," agreed Saburo. He went on to shift his focus back to the arcade game beside them. "Up for a couple more rounds?"

"More rounds of grown ass beatings delivered to you? How could I possibly turn down such a generous offer?"

Saburo rolled his eyes. "Ya, we'll just have to see about that. Let's do this!"

….

BWOOM!

Kaito pushed up from where he had fallen asleep, his heart now pounding. "That loud noise, what was that?"

He stood up from the bed as he looked to the screen door right of him. "It sounded like glass shattering.. like it came from outside."

Walking over Kaito opened the screen door. Now on the balcony he searched the area. There was a glass table aligned with two chairs on the right. Looking left there was nothing more to find. He was certain what he had heard came from the outside. Yet, there was nothing that appeared to be broken. Kaito went on to step up to the railing, looking overboard he saw nothing but an endless sea.

"Maybe I was just hearing things." Kaito looked to the night sky. The view of the moon was enough to draw a smile. A sound suddenly erupted from back in the room. "My phone."

Retrieving his phone which was still positioned on the bed Kaito came to find he had five missed calls and a number of unread texts. "Of course all of them would be from Aoko. No doubt she's wondering where I am." Checking the time Kaito found that over twenty minutes had passed since he had entered the room. "I better get going before Aoko orchestrates some kind of riot to find me."

He checked the most recent received text which read; "In cafeteria, where R U?!"

"Yep, I better hurry." Placing the phone back into his pants Kaito walked toward the door. He stopped, it was subtle, but he was certain he heard something. Kaito looked right; it was coming from the other side of the wall. "It sounds like a shower is running. I guess someone is in room 24B after all."

Continuing onward Kaito made his way out, certain to make sure the door was securely locked on his way out. Kaito looked right; rooms 24B and 25B directly across could be seen. Past both rooms there was a lone door at the end of the hall. "I wonder what's in there?"

Upon questioning this Kaito spotted a sign cemented above it, one reading 'Computer Room'. "That's definitely not where I want to be. If I'm not mistaking the staircase to the next floor is this way," said Kaito who turned left. He took only a step after hearing something from behind. Looking over his shoulder he saw nothing. He stood there for several moments before going on to shake his head. "I guess it's nothing."

As he walked his thoughts drifted back to what he had been thinking about earlier. He tried to block it all out. "I'll worry about all of that later. One night of a relaxing cruise shouldn't hurt."

As Kaito came within feet of the door leading to the stairwell he heard a sound once more, one which echoed through the hall. He grinned. "And this is the part where I turn around to find that there isn't anyone ther-" Kaito was cold stunned to find that there was someone standing at the far end of the hall where he had come.

It looked to be a man, one wearing a white jacket, shades, a ski cap, and a hygiene mask over his mouth. Their sights were aimed dead on each other. Kaito felt as if his heart skipped a beat. In the heat of the moment the door from behind swung open, startling Kaito who spun around and raised his hands to the air as if to prepare for a fight.

"Relax kid, I'm just running a surveillance check for this floor. We've been having a couple glitch problems with a couple of the cameras."

Kaito sighed in relief after finding it was only one of the security guards. "Sorry, you startled me," Kaito apologized as he lowered his hands.

"I figured that much," replied the security guard.

Kaito looked over his shoulder to find that there was no longer anyone standing at the end of the hall. "Did I envision all of that?"

The security guard noticed this. "Something wrong?"

Kaito shook his head. "Nothing, nothing at all.."

Mitsuhiko couldn't get the thought of it out of his mind. The mysterious man he had followed earlier in the day, the truck driver, the dead body, and now the possibility of a planned murder. How did it all tie together? Above all, was it wise for him to keep this all to himself? He was starting to question that very thing. "I wish Conan was here, he would figure this out no problem."

After refocusing his sights Mitsuhiko found only three steps remained before he was to reach the bottom; noting this instead of continuing to walk Mitsuhiko jumped, bringing him to the stairs end. "Now, to find Damian-kun."

The door leading to the hallway was only a few feet away. Pushing toward it Mitsuhiko heard a voice. "Don't bother." Mitsuhiko turned around just as Damian stepped out from the side of the stairs where he clearly had been waiting. "Took you long enough."

"Don't do that, you scared me!" Mitsuhiko shrieked.

"Hardly see how that's my problem," Damian said in response. "How did things go on floor 'A'? Anything worth reporting?"

Mitsuhiko shook his head. "What about you?"

"Outside of the rooms for guests, there was only the computer and laundry room on that floor. Both which were empty.. now, shall we?" commented Damian who took a step toward the door.

When Damian realized Mitsuhiko wasn't following he stopped. "What's the big idea? Why aren't you moving?"

"Damian-kun, I… there is something I need to tell you."

"We don't have time for any of that, come on," Damian responded with the sway of his left hand.

"It's really important though," Mitsuhiko argued.

Damian grunted as he faced him once more. "Alright then, what's so important?"

"Well.. you know how earlier I told you I ended up on this ship by accident? I might not have been entirely honest."

Damian crossed his arms over his chest. "Didn't I tell you I didn't care why or how you ended up on thi-"

"There's a dead body in the storage room." Mitsuhiko jumped straight to the point. "And if what I heard earlier is true, someone aboard this ship is going to be killed before this cruise is over."

Damian's eyes widened as his arms dropped down to his side in disbelief. The uncertain look on his face turned to one of determination just as fast. "Tsuburaya… tell me everything."

….

Traffic was light at the given moment. How much time had passed since either had spoken a word? He blinked an eye, the urge to close his eyes completely weighed heavily. It had been a long day to say the least. Passing another street light his eyes peered off to the right side, he was familiar with the area and knew a coffee shop would soon be reached. When that time came he took a right, pulling into the parking lot of the desired location.

The man sitting in the passenger seat was confused by this action. "Gin, what are we doing here?"

"To get a drink, why else would I stop here?" questioned Gin who pulled into an empty parking space. After bringing the vehicle to a halt he looked to his comrade. "You coming?"

Vodka shrugged. "Why not?" The two exited the vehicle to be met by a passing breeze. "Finally a chance to stretch my legs."

Gin said nothing as he advanced toward the coffee shop. "Bro, hold on," Vodka called. "What about the meeting, is it still going down Saturday?"

Gin stopped before turning to match his eyes. "The meeting has been pushed back due to that side show being pushed to Sunday," informed Gin. "In other words our meeting will occur Sunday night to coincide as we originally planned."

"No doubt all because of that Riddler fiasco," Vodka assumed. "I still don't see why it's so important for our meeting to fall in line with that Kamen Yaiba showing."

"Complaining isn't going to change that."

"I'm aware." Moments of filled silence passed between the pair. ".. Gin, tell me. What have you heard about the newcomer, Horilka? You never specified to me what they're bringing to the table."

"… They have a special background for hunting."

"Hunting? Doesn't sound all that special to me," Vodka remarked. "Last I checked we're not an organization of poachers."

"Horilka hunting is for a special kind of people."

"Oh yah, and what kind of people are we talking?"

"Mercenaries."

Vodka was now intrigued. "Mercenaries? Since when do we go after mercenari-"

"The moment one foiled not one, or two, but three of our organization's operations within the past four months," relayed Gin.

"I never heard that."

"I received the news myself earlier today," Gin said. "In regards to the new, Horilka is being brought in to find them, and when that happens.. I will put the pest on ice myself."

This was not what Vodka was expecting to hear. "Someone has been screwing with our business?! Who?!"

Gin turned for the coffee shop. "We don't have a name, no knowledge of where she or he is from, we don't know who they answers to.. if anyone. We know very little, only that they are skilled in the art of combat and are proficient with firearms."

Gin began to walk with Vodka following. "Nothing we can't handle." Vodka was confident in his words. "Bro, this person.. the mercenary, do we at least have a description for what the bastard may look like?"

Now halfway across the lot Gin stopped, facing his partner for a final time. "No one has gotten a look at their face, even if they've managed to come within feet of them."

"Huh? If people have gotten that close how were they not able to make out their look?"

"I'm told this specific mercenary wears a hood over their head," answered Gin who turned to walk once more. "A 'red hood'."

To Be Continued