Last Alarm - Chapter Twenty-Five
"A Child's Love"
Part Two
"A daughter without her mother is a woman broken."
Kristin Hannah
UPDATE 6-13-2014:
Based on some suggestions by a few of my readers, this chapter and several others have been dramatically altered.
However, because of what I've done, these "altered" chapters might appear crudely written.
Eventually, I'll get around to "polishing up" these "altered" chapters so that they won't be so crude a read as they are now.
The reason for this "alteration" is because many of my readers became confused as to what I was hoping to accomplish by what I had originally written, and since it's looking like it'll take a couple of years to finish this story, I decided it wasn't worth continuing with what I was doing after all.
As a result, the glimpse into the future that was written into this chapter has been omitted and a completely new ending for the story will be written when the times comes, with a completely different outcome for all the characters.
I apologize for the confusion and the inconvenience.
Time: Morning Z-Day Plus 3
Location: Tokonosu City, Japan
Residential Condominium of SAT Officer Sgt. Rika Minami
On that fateful third day of the Outbreak when Saya's mother ran hurriedly out of Rika's Minami's condominium and out into the street in a worried frenzy that her young daughter was hurt or perhaps worse from the way the guards were avoiding answering any of Yuriko's questions, Yuriko was indeed shocked at what she saw when she finally arrived.
However, it was nothing at all like what she had expected to see.
Not only was Saya visibly unhurt, but what really had Yuriko standing there stunned in disbelief was the sight of all of the guards that had been dragging the children to the awaiting vehicles outside had somehow been soundly beaten back by Saya and her friends, with all of the men now lying battered or bleeding all around the children and their nurse.
And what remaining guards that were not wounded and still left standing were now being held off by the three remaining women of the group, including her own daughter Saya, who were all standing back to-back protecting the two boys and the little girl.
All of them brandishing the same type of large folding knife, which the young girl who had beaten Yuriko and her bodyguard Yoshioka earlier had used to protect the American lying near death, inside the condo.
It was a moment that neither Mother nor daughter would ever forget for the rest of their lives.
"OKASAN!" Saya screamed angrily, her voice echoing down the long empty street and arousing the interest of the Infected slowly approaching their position.
"WE…ARE…NOT…LEAVING!" Saya screamed, looking directly into her mother's shocked face as Yuriko stared at the sudden spectacle before her, as well as trying to cope with the shock of her own daughter defiantly waving a knife at everyone, as well as speaking so disrespectfully towards her own mother.
Regaining her composure, Yuriko then glared at Saya with fury at her disruptive behavior and loudly began to scold her in front of everyone.
Saya however was not intimidated by her mother's angry glare or the tongue-lashing that followed as she scowled fiercely back at her mother, the anger and contempt that she felt at her mother for the terror and brutality she and her friends had to endure at the hands of the guards, after everything that they had already had to endure the past two days, plainly visible on her face.
And as infuriated as she was, not even the normally ominous presence of her father would have intimidated her either.
In fact, his absence only infuriated her even further.
Just earlier that very morning, Saya and her friends had been happily eating breakfast and talking amongst themselves about their adventures of the last two days, breathing a sigh of relief at having survived the experience and also conversing about how happy they would be to be reunited with their families by the end of the day if all went well.
The atmosphere in the luxurious condo owned by Shizuka's friend that they had sought shelter in that night seemed like more of a casual sleep-over with friends than that of them desperately seeking refuge from the horrors outside.
But then suddenly in the middle of their breakfast conversation, the doors to the condo that they had sought shelter in, exploded inward on all sides from the blows of sledgehammers forcing them opened with a crash.
The sudden and completely unexpected violent entry frightening all of them half to death, as Saya and her friends were then pounced upon by over a dozen heavily armed men dressed completely in black from head to toe, who then rushed in and forcefully pushed them to the floor and held them down, screaming in fear and unable to move, without a clue as to who their attackers were or why they were doing this.
And as if all that weren't bad enough, then one of their attackers struck their friend and guardian the American mercenary with the butt of his rifle as the man was only trying to calm everyone down.
The American then reacted to the savage blow to his head by instinctively hitting his attacker with an elbow strike to the groin, although the blow was actually made out of instinct at being struck, and not a deliberate attack on the attacker.
Whether the blow was accidental or intentional made no difference to the black-clad men as to what reasons the American had for striking their comrade, because as a result, the rest of them then swarmed over the American and began beating him with the butts of their weapons as everyone else in the room then began screaming louder in fear and protest at the violent attack on their friend.
At that moment, when everything seemed hopeless, Saeko in desperation managed to disable a guard and briefly incapacitate him with an elbow strike to the face and a knee strike to the groin, sending him painfully to the ground.
Now free from her captor, she then turned back to face the others pulling the large folding knife she carried under the large tee-shirt she was wearing.
And as Saeko raised the large folding knife that the American had given the women earlier and screamed to Saya and the others that the American would be killed unless they fought their captors, only then did Saya remember about the knife that the American had given her to defend herself with, Saya having completely forgotten about it in the shock of their capture.
And as she saw Shizuka and Rei reach for their knives that were concealed on their person, Saya blushed slightly as she stopped her struggles and reached underneath her blouse for the knife that was clipped to the band on her skirt.
Saya grabbed it and then flicked the blade open, cursing loudly as she nearly dropped the knife as she fumbled with the unfamiliar object in her hands.
And then hesitating for a moment at the horrible thought of injuring another human being, Saya then closed her eyes, and placing the point of the knife tentatively over her captor's hands, gingerly stabbed downward.
"OW!" The man yelled as the point of the knife poked him in the soft tissue of his hand between his thumb and forefinger as he immediately let go of Saya, and then started shaking his hand and staring at the oozing blood from the very minor wound as Saya fell to the ground and then squeaked loudly as she landed on her butt.
The wounded guard lost all interest in his teenage captive as he quickly looked at the small wound on his hand and the oozing blood coming from it.
And then becoming more concerned with the small wound on his hand than the newly found freedom of his prisoner, he then absent-mindedly yanked off his black mask from off his head and placed it over the small puncture in an attempt to stem the bleeding from the small wound.
While the wound had barely been more than a small puncture due in no small part to Saya's hesitation at not wanting to really hurt the man, Saya felt as if she were about to throw up after seeing the small amount of blood on the tip of her blade as she sat there on the ground staring at the blade in shock.
Unlike the Infected teacher she had killed at her school and all the blood she had seen spilled since the Outbreak, somehow knowing that she had intentionally hurt someone that was still "normal" made Saya physically ill for some reason.
That is, until she saw the man's face after he had removed his mask.
"MATSUDO-SAN?!" Saya said in disbelief.
"Yo! Saya-sama, O genki desu ka?!" The Takagi family mechanic said rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment for having accidentally revealed his identity.
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN, HOW AM I DOING, *AHOU ?!" Saya screamed in rage as she jumped angrily to her feet and yelled in the man's face as he shrunk back.
(*Ahou- Japanese slang for idiot or moron)
"AND WHAT EXACTLY DO YOU THINK YOU WERE DOING MANHANDLING ME LIKE THAT, YOU LECH?!" Saya screamed, enraged and embarrassed at where the man's hands had been as he tried to get a firmer grip on her earlier when they had been struggling.
"A-Ano." The mechanic replied, a little intimidated at being yelled at by the daughter of the powerful Takagi House.
Even though the mechanic and all of the other guards all worked for Lord and Lady Takagi, technically, they all answered to Saya as well.
And right now the "Little Boss" was pissed, and her anger was now directed at him.
"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING HERE ANYWAY?!" Saya screamed growing angrier by the minute as she continued to glare at the mechanic while her friends were fighting hand-to-hand with the guards around her.
"SAYA!" Rei yelled at the hot-head who seemed to be oblivious to everyone else's plight.
"WILL YOU QUIT SCREWING AROUND AND FIGHT?!" Rei yelled as she punched a guard in the face and then did a roundhouse kick at another guard knocking him against one of the vans with a loud thud.
Being a skilled practice of sojutsu, Rei was no stranger to edged weapons or unarmed combat, and while the folding knife that the American had given her was no *yari by any stretch of the imagination, it was still a bladed-weapon that was still very deadly in her more than capable hands.
(*Yari- Japanese spear)
Which she had quickly demonstrated to her captor earlier when Rei finally retrieved her own knife from under her skirt and then flicking the blade of her knife open and grasping it firmly in her right hand in a reverse-grip, cleanly sliced the arm of the man holding her, causing him to scream in pain and then suddenly release her as she dropped to her feet.
Unlike Saya who was more used to using her voice as a weapon instead of the knife in her hand, Rei was an experienced and highly skilled fighter and didn't hesitate to act once she was free from her attacker.
And as soon as Rei landed on her feet, she didn't even bother with defending herself.
She went on the attack.
And as the man who had been holding her captive grabbed his bleeding arm, Rei then spun around and slashed her knife at the man again, slicing his other arm as the man then jumped away from her and started howling even louder from pain and surprise as he lost his balance and then fell heavily to the ground.
With the man no longer a threat, Rei then spun around and roared in anger as she then charged the man that was still holding Takashi, who after seeing the knife-wielding teenage girl rushing at him, realized that he was now in a very bad situation, unable to reach his weapon that was slung behind his back while he was still holding the still-struggling boy in his arms.
Rather than risk injury or possible death, the man instantly dropped the boy and jumped away from him reaching around for his slung rifle and then bringing the muzzle up to bear once he had the weapon in his hands.
Rei quickly dodged around Takashi and then lunged forward and slapped the muzzle of the man's rifle away with one hand as she slashed downward with her knife, severing the rifle sling as the man jumped away from the swinging blade and let his rifle drop to the ground with a clatter as the strap parted.
Still not yet through with the man, Rei then slashed her knife at the now defenseless guard who instinctively raised his hands to protect himself.
Instead of cutting him, Rei moved to the side as Takashi quickly stepped in and punched the man hard in the solar plexus, knocking the wind out of him, as Rei then followed up with a brutal kick that knocked the man backwards as he collided with the man holding Kouta captive.
All three men then fell to the ground with a crash as Rei then rushed up and kicked the man holding Kouta in the face, briefly stunning him as the other man tried to scramble away only to be savagely booted by Takashi in the rear.
Untangling himself from his captor with the help of his friends , Kouta then quickly scrambled to his feet, bruised but otherwise unhurt, as the three teens then turned to face the guards still holding Shizuka and Alice captive.
Alice was still being held fast in the arms of one guard, crying and screaming at the top of her voice as she flailed her arms and legs while the puppy was pulling on the guard's pant leg with his teeth.
Shizuka on the other hand, had finally managed to free herself from her own captor and had also gotten into the fight.
And to everyone's surprise, Shizuka was actually faring better than anybody would have expected.
But it wasn't the most impressive fighting style in the history of combat.
By nature a very kind and timid individual, Shizuka was not at all very motivated to grab her knife and begin attacking the men holding her captive like Rei and Saya had.
But when faced with the fact that their American friend was going to die without their help, Shizuka reluctantly reached down deep within hersel to find the strength she needed to join the fight.
And as panicked tears fell from her face, she then reached into her robe and pulled the knife out of her bra and flicked the knife open.
But instead of trying to break free from her captor by wounding him with the knife however, Shizuka merely raised the blade with both hands into the air and began screaming at the top of her lungs as she started wildly swinging the knife around in all directions.
Having already seen three of his comrades already wounded by the knife-wielding teens, the man holding Shizuka wanted no part of being on the injured list and immediately dropped her as she began swinging the knife wildly in the air as he then turned on his heel to run away from her.
Unfortunately, he was just not fast enough as Shizuka swung her whole body around and accidentally slashed his arm just as the man had turned to run, causing him to scream in pain and surprise at being cut, although in reality, the wound itself was actually very minor because of Shizuka's wild swinging.
"GOMEN NASAI!" Shizuka screamed out loud as she continued swinging the knife wildly, holding the knife in both hands like a sword.
With her eyes closed.
The rest of the guards, including the one still holding Alice, gave up on trying to detain the children and dove for cover in all directions trying to avoid the crazy woman wildly swinging her knife with her eyes closed as Rei, Takashi, and Kouta ran towards Alice and then held her close to them, shielding her as Rei warded off the rest of the guards with her knife.
Unluckily for the teens, the person they needed to fear was no longer the black-clad guards of the Takagi house, but the wildly screaming, completely panicked woman still swinging the large knife with her eyes closed that was now forcing everyone to duck for cover.
Takashi and Kouta knelt down, covering Alice with their bodies as Shizuka flailed her knife wildly in all directions with her eyes closed, screaming all the while as the Takagi guards stepped back or dove to the ground trying to avoid being cut.
"SENSEI! WATCH WHAT YOU'RE DOING!" Rei screeched after nearly being slashed by one of Shizuka's wild flailings.
"STOP WAVING THAT KNIFE AROUND! YOU'RE GOING TO,…..WAAAAAAUGH!" Rei screamed as she ducked below a wild swing of Shizuka's arm.
"SHIZUKA!" Takashi screamed. "OPEN YOUR EYES AND PUT THAT KNIFE DOWN, DAMMIT!
"SENSEI!" Kouta screamed wide-eyed as the air was cut over his head. "STOP IT! YOU'RE GOING TO KILL US ALL!"
"OBA-CHAN!" Alice screamed as Kouta and Takashi covered her body with theirs.
Shizuka however, was in full blown panic mode, driven even more so by the loud panicked screams of the children and of their equally terrified captors all yelling at her at once, as she then stumbled and then lost her balance slightly and began to pivot towards the two boys and Alice, the knife in her hand for all intents and purposes looming as large and as menacing as the scythe of the Grim Reaper as it slashed towards them.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAUGH!" The boys and Alice screamed as Shizuka stumbled towards them.
"ALL OF YOU, SHUT UP!" Saya screamed at the top of her voice as she turned her attention away from the man in front of her and towards the annoying ruckus behind her.
All movement ceased at the sound of the young teen's roar as Shizuka finally snapped out of her panicked trance and somehow managed to regain her footing, much to the relief of everyone, especially the three that were staring at the large blade mere inches away from their faces.
Saya glared in frustration at everyone around her as she then turned her attention back to the mechanic, the scowl on her face deepening as her blood boiled.
"Matsudo-san." Saya said in a voice so menacing the mechanic started to shiver, and not from the cool morning breeze that was blowing through the street either.
"Whose STUPID idea was all of this?!" Saya said angrily as everyone including the guards, stopped to watch the odd exchange between the two.
The mechanic looked away nervously as he tried to avoid looking into the teenager's eyes that seemed to be staring right into his soul.
"ANSWER ME!" Saya roared.
The mechanic jumped back, stunned by the girl's enraged voice and the even angrier look on Saya's face.
"SAYA-SAMA!" The guard that Saeko had disabled cried out as he stumbled towards them his legs shaky and his nose bleeding profusely. "Please stop this, your moth_."
"YOU, SHUT UP!" Saya screamed as she pointed her knife at the man who then froze in his tracks and raised his hands in the air, in surrender.
Saya then turned her attention back to the mechanic and glared at him fiercely as he gulped in fear at her stare.
"Matsudo-saaaaaaan." Saya hissed. "Answer me, NOW."
The mechanic sucked in his breath and then sighed heavily as he reluctantly conceded defeat and began to explain the circumstances to the angry girl.
"Saya-sama." The man said nervously. "Your father told us that you and your friends were being held captive by a dangerous gaijin that had killed several people near you, and because he wasn't able to come himself, he left it up to your mother on how to attempt a rescue."
"MY FATHER?!" Saya replied incredulously, as the mechanic flinched at her angry interruption.
"If my father thought I was in so much danger, why didn't he come too?" Saya asked calmly but still enraged, already knowing the answer the mechanic was going to give her as her anger grew.
The mechanic licked his lips nervously as he struggled to answer, wishing that the ground would open up and swallow him whole so that he wouldn't have to be the one to give the young girl all the more reason to kill him where he stood.
"Your father was on the other side of the city, commanding a convoy of supplies for all the people now seeking refuge at your home, Saya-sama." The mechanic replied, wincing at the visible anger boiling within the young girl.
"He was too busy trying to help others than to stop and try to rescue his own daughter, is that what you're saying Matsudo-san?!" Saya said her eyes narrowing in anger.
"Well,….." The mechanic began, but stopped himself upon seeing the blazing eyes of the young girl staring at him.
"He was just too far away, Saya-sama." Matsudo replied, trying to calm Saya. "And when your mother found out that you were alive and so close by, she decided to organize the rescue herself."
"WHO SAID I NEEDED RESCUING?!" Saya screamed in anger as the mechanic shrunk back.
"Takagi, calm down!" Takashi said as everyone watched Saya appearing like she was about to explode.
"YOU SHUT UP, KOMURO!" Saya screamed as she pointed her knife at Takashi as he jumped back and stared at her wide-eyed.
"Saya-sama." The mechanic said timidly with his hands slightly raised in a calming gesture. "Please, calm down."
"Matsudo-san." Saya said quietly, turning her head to face the mechanic once again and frightening everyone with the calmness of her voice even more than when she was screaming.
"There are only six bodyguards in our entire household." Saya said speaking coldly, ignoring his pleas for her to calm herself.
"And since I'm sure some of them are with my father, and Yoshioka-san is with my mother, then what I want to know is,…"
"WHO THE HELL ARE ALL THESE OTHER PEOPLE?!" Saya screamed, gesturing with her knife towards the guards.
The mechanic gulped as he stared into the face of the angry teen, unable to find the courage within himself to answer her as Saya then glared at the guards and then raising her knife, pointed it at them.
"YOU MEN! I want all of you to remove your masks and identify yourselves!" Saya ordered as she glared at the guards who began to exchange nervous glances amongst each other.
"NOW!" Saya screamed as the guards jumped in surprise, and then began reluctantly taking off the black hoods that all of them had been wearing.
Shocked that all of their captors were now meekly following Saya's commands, Takashi stared curiously at all of the men as they removed their hoods one-by- one, and then meekly lowered their heads, apparently trying to avoid looking into Saya's angry face.
Having envisioned their captors as being hardened men with cruel faces and cruel eyes, Takashi was more than a little shocked to finally see the faces of their former captors.
They were not at all what he had expected.
The hardened, steely-eyed, merciless thugs that Takashi and his friends had envisioned behind those masks turned out to be way off, as the faces of the men resembled those of men that could have passed for fishermen, schoolteachers, and lawyers than the cold-hearted rogues they had been mistaken for.
The Takagi guards seemed so much smaller and meeker than before, now with their faces exposed.
They were a mix of different sizes and ages, some appearing to be in their late 60's with a few of the younger looking ones perhaps in their early 40's.
Some of the older men seemed to be quite pale in appearance, as if they seldom ever came outdoors, while the rest were darker complected, as if they had been working outdoors for years.
But the one thing they all seemed to have in common was the way each of them looked as if they were more than a little embarrassed at being recognized by Saya.
And as Takashi and his friends were about to find out, they had good reason to be embarrassed.
And as he looked upon the faces of their former captors and scratched his head puzzled by the sudden change in the guard's demeanor, Takashi was suddenly startled to hear a weird strangling noise coming from Saya as he quickly whirled around to look at her and gasped at her face that seemed to have paled considerably as if she were choking on something.
Rei had also quickly turned her head as well at what sounded like Saya being strangled and was alarmed to see that Saya was no longer scowling nor was her face red with anger as before.
But instead, her face had suddenly turned pale as if she were in the throes of deep shock, as she began to mumble out the names of the men around them, all of them whom she obviously recognized.
"Fujiyama-san, Hattori-san, Sato-san, Tanaka-san, Yoshida-san, Ito-san, Yamada-san, Nakamura-san, Kobayashii-saaaa,…." Saya said as her voice began to trail off before she could finish naming all the guards surrounding her and her friends as she began to feel light-headed.
Reeling a bit, Saya then glanced over at the big man that had been Saeko's former captor.
"KUKUGARI-SAN?!" Saya said in obvious disbelief as soon as she recognized the face of the man Saeko had assaulted as he pulled off his mask.
"Ohayo, Saya-sama." The man said in a meek voice, obviously deeply embarrassed at being recognized.
"Takagi-san, are you all right?" Kouta asked, worried at seeing Saya seeming like she was about to faint.
"I-I-I." Saya stammered as she took a step back and really did seem as if she was about to faint, as she then began to pivot.
"SAYA-SAMA!" All of the guards yelled as it appeared that Saya was about to pass out.
"Y-Y-Y-YOU'RE,…." Saya continued, seeming to be struggling to speak despite the fact she was just about to fall to the ground.
Saya suddenly snapped out of her daze and then quickly regained her composure.
Which for Saya, was the equivalent of a bomb going off.
"YOU'RE ALL FIRED!" Saya screamed in rage as she pointed her knife at every one of the guards around them as Takashi and the rest of the group watched in fear and confusion.
There was nothing but dead silence from everyone for a moment as all eyes were focused on the enraged teenager brandishing the large knife in her hand until the silence was finally broken by the sound of someone whining in despair.
"Sonnaaa." One of the guards said in despair at losing his job.
Saya however, had no sympathy as once again she pointed her knife at the man known as Kukugari and spoke in a voice so filled with venom, it scared everyone, as well as the guard.
"Kukugari-san." Saya hissed. "Go back inside and tell my mother to come out here right now, and if she even thinks of harming any of my friends,…
"I won't forgive her or you. UNDERSTAND?" Saya said as the air seemed to crackle around her.
The guard gulped as he stared at the girl's hate-filled eyes and then quickly stumbled off to do his mistresses' bidding without a word.
Saya angrily watched him leave and then suddenly snapped her head around, glaring at everyone around her as they all jumped in fright at her savage look.
Even Takashi and the rest of the group flinched at the terrifying expression on Saya's face.
"Both of you form up around Komuro and the others." Saya angrily ordered Rei and Shizuka as she began walking towards them as they hurriedly rushed into a protective position around Takashi, Kouta, and Alice without a word.
"Protect them with your lives; because once my mother comes out here, she's going to want to make another attempt to subdue us." Saya said as she took up a position in front of her friends facing the gate as she readied herself to face her mother.
"And we are not going to let her." Saya said, gritting her teeth as she turned around and faced the gates, brandishing her knife like a sword in front of her.
"Saya,_" Takashi began, as he tried to make another feeble attempt to try calm the girl down.
"Don't you DARE, say anything to me right now, Komuro-kun." Saya said as she glared back at him angrily.
Takashi flinched, as he suddenly found himself rendered speechless as he gazed into Saya's wild eyes.
"I'M HANDLING THIS!" Saya roared as she then cast her gaze upon Kouta who gulped in terror at suddenly being caught in her angry gaze.
"Hiiiirano." Saya hissed as she smiled evily at Kouta who suddenly began to fear for his own life as he stared at the large knife clutched tightly in her hands.
"If you EVER tell me to shut up again, I will make you PAY,….. DEARLY."
"I PROMISE YOU." Saya said as Alice started to cry at Saya's frightening look while even the puppy seemed to shrink back from the terrifying sight as well.
"H-Hai, Takagi-sama." Kouta said visibly shaken, as he held Alice closely and tried to comfort her.
"I thought I told you to call me "Saya", fatty!" Saya said as she continued to glare at him.
"Ha-Hai, Saya-san." Kouta said apologetically.
Shizuka and Rei wisely said nothing as they both turned away from the angry teenage girl's gaze and focused on the men surrounding them, who now seemed strangely enough, to be too terrified to move.
"Just what the HELL, is really going on here?" Rei whispered to Takashi as she looked all around at the visibly shaken guards who had been so easily cowered by Saya, when just a short while ago they had seemed so fierce and intimidating earlier.
"I don't know." Takashi said with a shrug as he looked over at Saya and then met Rei's eyes. "But as long as they're the ones Takagi is pissed off at right now and not us, I'm staying out of it."
"Aren't you going to do anything at all, fearless leader?!" Rei whispered loudly in disgust at the weird predicament they were in.
Takashi sighed as he once again, looked over at the enraged form of Saya standing a few feet away.
"Right now, she's the only thing keeping us from being captured by these guys again." Takashi replied.
"And until her mother comes back outside and is hopefully more willing to listen to reason now that the tables have been turned, there's really not much more we can do for now." Takashi said as he looked towards the open gate in frustration.
"I don't believe this." Rei said shaking her head in frustration as she snorted in disgust.
And then after a few agonizing moments of waiting as Saya did a slow boil, the man Kukugari finally returned.
But instead of being followed by Saya's mother as was expected, the man was instead being closely followed by Yuriko's bodyguard Yoshioka, who like Kukugari, was also sporting a bloody nose.
And as he ran towards them, Takashi noticed that the man was also coughing and rubbing his throat as well.
"That has to be Saeko's doing." Takashi said under his breath with a smirk as the man walked up towards them and then stood in front of Saya.
But then Takashi began to sweat, as he could clearly begin to see the muscles on Saya's neck and shoulders tense knowing Saya was about to go into orbit at her mother obviously ignoring her daughter's demands that she come at once and sending her bodyguard to solve the situation instead.
"Ooooh, this is going to be ugly." Takashi thought to himself.
And before either man could utter a single word, Saya angrily spoke first.
And surprisingly enough as if it were humanly possible, her voice sounded even angrier and more terrifying than before, Takashi thought.
"Kukugari-san." Saya began in a voice so calm that it sounded even more frightening than Saeko when she was angry.
"I TOLD you to get my mother, NOT Yoshioka-san." Saya said gritting her teeth.
"WHERE THE HELL IS SHE?!" Saya exploded, as the two guards flinched at her angry shout.
"Takagi-dono." Yoshioka began, his voice sounding a little hoarse, more than a little surprised to see the reasons for the tense situation outside that had made Kukugari so reluctant to speak about in front of Yuriko Takagi and the young girl protecting the unconscious American.
"And just when I thought things couldn't possibly get more ridiculous with these children." Yoshioka thought. "Now I have Saya-sama holding everyone at knifepoint while an entire city of Infected is about to swoop down on us and at the same time, her mother is being held hostage by another crazy girl inside."
"Saya-sama," Yoshioka sighed, deeply frustrated that his well-laid plans for this rescue had been foiled by a bunch of "kids."
"Your mother is inside trying to talk some sense into your other young friend who is being quite unreasonable with us right now and refuses to leave the American's side even though the danger to all of is increasing the longer we stay here. And because of that, she sent me here to check up on all of you and see if all of you were all right." Yoshioka replied to the angry teen.
"Now please Saya-sama, we don't have time for,…" Yoshioka began, trying to calm Saya down as he began slowly reaching for the knife.
"DON'T YOU DARE TOUCH ME YOSHIOKA-SAN!" Saya yelled as she slashed the knife towards the man who quickly backed away, his eyes widening at her malevolence.
"Saya-CHAN!" Yoshioka began, trying to speak authoritatively in an effort to calm the girl down and quash the tense situation.
"DON'T YOU DARE CHAN, ME, YOSHIOKA-SAN!" Saya roared, completely catching the Head of Security off guard with her retort.
"I AM NOT SOME SPOILED PRINCESS LIKE ALL OF YOU THINK I AM, MISTER!" Saya shouted as everyone watched the tiny pink-haired teen squaring off against the Chief of Security of the Takagi Household.
"I AM THE DAUGHTER OF SOICHIRO AND YURIKO TAKAGI OF THE TAKAGI HOUSE, AND I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF YOUR BULLSHIT THAT I'M GOING TO TAKE FROM YOU TODAY!" Saya roared as she pointed the knife towards Yoshioka in a threatening manner.
"Takagi-dono!" Yoshioka replied, getting very angry now. "We have no time for this! The Infected are just down the street!"
"Then I suggest you hurry back and get my mother, Yoshioka-SAN!" Saya shot back defiantly.
"BECAUSE UNLESS ALL OF YOU WANT TO DIE THIS DAY, THEN YOU MARCH RIGHT BACK IN THERE AND TELL MY MOTHER TO GET HER ASS OUT HERE, RIGHT NOW!"
Takashi watched nervously as the Security Chief of the Takagi Family swore under his breath as he glared angrily at Saya for a moment and then cast his angry gaze towards the rest of them, and then shook his head in frustration as he spat on the ground.
And then motioning for the other man Kukugari to take over, he then turned and ran through the gates back up towards the condo to retrieve Saya's mother.
Takashi sighed as he looked down towards Kouta who was still holding Alice who had stopped crying, but was still sniffling a bit.
"You guys, okay?" Takashi asked smiling at Alice as she looked up at him.
"Onii-chan, I want to go home." Alice said sniffling, as Kouta merely gave a "thumbs up" in response not wanting to attract Saya's attention again.
"Don't worry Arisu-chan, we'll be leaving soon." Takashi said as he gently patted her head.
Takashi then glanced towards Rei who was gritting her teeth in frustration, and not wanting to incur her wrath, he then he looked over at Shizuka, who looked like she was about to pee herself.
"Marikawa-sensei, are you all right?" Takashi asked her, worried that she might go into another fit of hysterics again.
"H-Hai." Shizuka replied, her hands shaking as she clutched the knife so tightly, her knuckles paled.
"Don't worry, Sensei. It'll be all right." Rei said consolingly, not eager to be on the wrong end of Shizuka's knife again.
Shizuka nodded her head that she was fine, although in fact she was actually petrified with fear, and as if things weren't bad enough.
She really did need to go to the bathroom,…..badly.
The normally docile nurse was in a situation that she never dreamed she would ever find herself in. Armed with a knife and forced to protect the lives and safety of the children around her by holding off a group of men that had attacked her and the children only a few minutes earlier.
Shizuka's hands were visibly shaking partly because of the fear she felt and partly because the knife she held felt so strange in her hands, so unfamiliar, alien… evil.
And it was all she could do to keep herself from throwing it on the ground and running away from everyone as scared as she was right now.
Sometimes though, when fear seems about to overwhelm even the stoutest person, somewhere deep within our soul, a small inner strength within us surfaces at a time we need it most, and then a courage we never knew we had will give us the strength to conquer any fear.
And thus at a time when Shizuka was the most afraid, a strength Shizuka never even knew she had, finally came to her at a time when someone else, needed it most.
And the reason that it came to her at that particular moment was because of a small voice behind her from the little girl that had come to rely on Shizuka's strength and more importantly her love more than the former school nurse had realized.
"Oba-chan,… I'm scared." Shizuka heard Alice say as Kouta and Takashi held her between them, guarding over her as she and Rei continued to keep their captors at bay with their knives.
Shizuka suddenly stopped her nervous shaking at the sound of the child's voice calling out to her in fear.
The very same scared voice from that same frightened child who had cried so pitifully in her arms after they had returned to the condo after that terrifying rescue last night.
The same child that had cried in her sleep during the night as Shizuka lay next to her and held her close trying to comfort her until she began sleeping quietly again.
The same child that had screamed in fear as the attackers burst into the condo and then dragged them all out into the street while Shizuka and her friends had been unable to stop them.
The same child that was calling out to her right now, at a time that the child needed Shizuka's strength and reassurance the most.
And the fear that had taken such a firm grip over the shy, timid,school nurse immediately left her as she suddenly found herself growing angry at the men around her for frightening the child so much after all the tragedy that had already befallen her.
"How DARE they treat all of us this way." Shizuka thought as fear turned to anger.
"How dare they kill Jimu-san and then mistreat the children and say they're just trying to "rescue us." Shizuka thought as anger turned to rage.
"HOW DARE THEY FRIGHTEN THIS POOR, INNOCENT CHILD AFTER ALL SHE'S ALREADY HAD TO SUFFER?!" Shizuka thought, as rage turned to hate.
The men standing in front of Shizuka began to visibly pale as the look on Shizuka's face changed codiderably.
"Don't worry, Arisu-chan." Shizuka said to Alice as she turned her head and looked down at the visibly frightened child whose face was wet with tears.
"Everything is going to be all right, so don't be frightened my child, okay?" Shizuka said, smiling sweetly at the girl as Alice looked up at her and nodded her head.
"Oba-chan, honto?" Alice said sniffling.
"Hai. Don't worry Arisu-chan, they won't do anything to hurt you, I promise." Shizuka replied as she then turned her attention back towards the Takagi guards and glared at them with a look that would melt ice.
"They wouldn't DARE." Shizuka said out loud so everyone could hear, gritting her teeth as her entire demeanor changed and the guards realized that the shy, docile woman they had encountered earlier was no more.
They could see it in her eyes.
The woman now standing before them was now the most dangerous force on earth known to man.
A mother protecting her child.
And indeed, Alice had no more reason to fear any of the men that had frightened her so much that day.
Because after seeing the drastic change in the blond woman's demeanor and the murderous look in her eyes, there wasn't a man among them foolhardy enough to want to try anything against the enraged woman now.
Noticing the sudden change in Shizuka, Takashi smiled as he saw the determined look on her face, and he knew that there was no way anyone was going to get past the enraged woman protecting her young now.
"You okay?'' Takashi asked looking back again at Rei after hearing her mumble something incoherent.
"Hai, but we really need to figure out what we're going to do Takashi, and quickly." Rei replied looking down towards the end of the street and gesturing with her knife at the approaching danger.
"Because "They" are starting to make their way over here a little faster now because of all the noise and I don't think we have much time left, if you haven't noticed." Rei said gritting her teeth.
Takashi quickly looked down the street and gasped at the sight.
Rei was right, he hadn't noticed.
In the confusion of the fight to free themselves from their captors, and then after being distracted by watching the intense exchange between Saya and the guards, Takashi had completely forgotten about the large mass of Infected one of the guards had been yelling about earlier just before they had all been dragged out of the condo, that were now shuffling towards them at the end of the street.
Unlike last night during their psychotic and mentally and emotionally traumatizing rescue of Alice, this crowd of Infected was much, MUCH larger than the one they had to mow through with the Humvee.
In fact, this particular crowd of Infected coming towards them was HUGE.
It almost seemed to Takashi, that the enormous crowd of Infected he and Saeko had witnessed moving along the river headed for Tokonosu Bashi last night had suddenly changed direction and were now intentionally seeking them out.
And now this gigantic crowd of Infected was almost near the still smoldering pile of bodies that the American had set that fire trap for last night.
And it wouldn't be long after they traversed over that makeshift smoldering barrier of bodies, before they would then arrive at their current position and push through into the complex, swarming over it and killing everything in their path.
Already, Takashi could hear the faint screams of people living in the houses at the end of the street being attacked as doors and windows were smashed in by the sheer weight of the vast numbers of Infected pressing in all around and the victims inside were overwhelmed and devoured.
And now with Saya in a state of near frenzy, Takashi realized that if this tense situation wasn't resolved soon, it would be too late for all of them.
But as he had mentioned to Rei earlier, right now, Saya's defiant stand was also the only thing keeping them from being dragged away again as captives.
And if there was any chance at all of saving the American mercenary from being killed by the Takagi guards or the Infected, then Saya's stand-off with the guards was the only hope they had.
But time was quickly running out.
Rei and Takashi held their breath as Saya's mother finally showed up in front of them all and then stopped in her tracks and then stared at them wide-eyed, in shock at what she saw.
And from the look of things, Saeko had obviously gained the upper hand over Saya's mother as well as the other guards, since no one had heard any gunshots after Saeko disappeared.
And with both guards standing there with bloody noses and Yuriko Takagi's hair in a mess, Rei deduced that the Kendo champion had soundly thrashed them all, but good.
"Busujima-sempai, you're awesome!" Rei thought as a smile cracked from her lips.
But as Rei listened to the heated exchange between mother and daughter, both of them evidently oblivious to the approaching danger, her smile quickly turned into a frown as she watched the Infected looming even closer towards the pile of burned bodies lying in the road.
There were enough bodies lying on the ground forming a small barrier that would serve to keep the newly arriving crowd of Infected occupied for a few minutes once they began to trip and fall over each other.
And as the first bunch of Infected fell on each other and the others shuffling behind them would fall over them and entangle themselves as well, the ensuing chaos would thus prevent the large crowd following closely behind from advancing forward too quickly.
"But it won't hold them off forever." Rei thought as she watched the Infected quickly closing in on the smoldering remains.
"Komuro, DO SOMETHING!" Rei hissed at Takashi as Saya and her mother seemed locked into their heated exchange and most definitely oblivious to the danger nearby.
"SAYA-CHAN!" Yuriko said in a loud scolding voice directed towards Saya. "Just what do you think you and your friends are doing?!"
"PUT THAT KNIFE DOWN THIS INSTANT, YOUNG LADY!" Yuriko shouted, trying to intimidate Saya into obedience as she took a step forward towards the angry teen.
Saya however, stood her ground as she glared right back at her mother's angry face and replied defiantly to her mother.
"We are not leaving our friends behind mother." Saya replied in a low, angry voice that betrayed no sense of fear or hesitation. "And if you try to take us away like prisoners again, we'll fight you with everything we have."
"Saya, listen to me child,…." Yuriko began, trying to calm Saya down and peacefully resolve the tense situation by trying to speak calmly herself.
"I'M NOT A CHILD, MOTHER!" Saya shouted as she stood up to her full height. "STOP TALKING TO ME LIKE I AM ONE!"
"THEN STOP ACTING SO CHILDISH AND I'LL STOP TREATING YOU LIKE A CHILD!" Yuriko angrily shouted back.
"CHILDISH?!" Saya retorted angrily. "YOU WANT TO TALK ABOUT CHILDISH?!"
"How about this stupid half-ass "rescue" you pulled off?" Saya shouted. "What kind of idiot uses our groundskeepers and kitchen staff to perform a hostage rescue?!"
The reaction from the former "captives" to Saya's eye-opening statement about their former "captors"was immediate.
"Ara?" Shizuka said confused, her anger at the guards abated somewhat. "You mean all of these men are your groundskeepers and kitchen help?"
"You're kidding." Rei said flabbergasted as she lowered her knife and stared at the man whose arms she had sliced with her knife now still sitting on the ground trying to stop the bleeding with his mask as a bandage.
"She is joking, right?" Kouta asked looking ill as he then finally stood up and looked around at the visibly embarrassed men all around them still holding their weapons and looking as if they wanted to throw them away and run home.
"Nope, she's serious." Takashi sighed looking into everyone's embarrassed faces and feeling very stupid.
"We just got our asses kicked by a bunch of gardeners and fry cooks." Takashi said in disgust as he slapped his forehead with the palm of his hand and shook his head.
"I'm not a fry cook you young punk!" One of their former captors said as he tried to rush towards Takashi but was held back by some of his friends.
"I'm a saucier!" The man shrieked, swinging his arms wildly in anger as Takashi rolled his eyes.
It goes without saying that Takashi and his friends were now no longer intimidated in the slightest way by any of the Takagi guards, even though all of the men were still very heavily armed.
"So let me guess, you're the butler, right?" Rei asked Kukugari sarcastically as she pointed at him.
"Actually no, I'm the chauffer." The man said embarrassed as Rei rolled her eyes as well.
"The man your American "friend" nearly beat to death over there is the butler." Yoshioka said angrily as he jerked his thumb over at the men carrying the unconscious man that had struck Saeko.
"And he was my assistant." Yoshioka said quietly gesturing towards the men struggling against the Infected man Doi who had resumed his violent struggles despite his bonds.
"And what are you?" Takashi asked Yoshioka dryly not sympathetic in the least. "The pool man?"
"I'm the Chief of Security, young man." Yoshioka replied stiffly, not liking the tone of Takashi's voice even though he was also obviously embarrassed at being the leader of a very unorthodox and very inept assault team.
"How DARE you speak to me that way Saya-chan, I'm your MOTHER!" Yuriko shouted growing frustrated at the increasingly absurd stand-off between all of the adults and the schoolchildren.
"SOME MOTHER YOU ARE! Saya spat back.
"WHERE THE HELL HAVE YOU BEEN THE PAST THREE DAYS?! Saya screamed accusingly.
Yuriko hesitated for a moment at Saya angry shout and hung her head, unable to speak as if trying to search for the words that would calm the angry child in front of her.
Her child.
The child she thought she had lost.
The daughter she knew she had failed.
"WE DIDN'T KNOW WHERE YOU WERE SAYA!" Yuriko said finally her voice full of sorrow as she choked back tears, her daughter's angry words stabbing her in the heart.
"We didn't know." Yuriko said as she tried to keep from crying in the presence of all of their servants and then found herself unable to stop the tears from coming as they ran down her face.
Yuriko gazed upon the angry face of her daughter glaring accusingly at her, and the guilt Yuriko felt at not being there for her child who had been left all alone to fend for herself in a city full of ravenous monsters felt like a knife being twisted in her gut as her emotions began to overwhelm her as Saya's eyes stared angrily at her.
"I'm sorry my child. I came as soon as I found out where you were." Yuriko said as her voice began to break.
"Forgive me Saya." Yuriko said bowing low as tears fell from her face.
"I'll never forgive you or Papa for any of this!" Saya said unmoved.
"I wish you had never come!" Saya said turning her head away.
"SAYA-SAMA!" Yoshioka roared as he heard Yuriko gasp at Saya's hateful words.
"WE WERE DOING FINE WITHOUT YOU!" Saya suddenly screamed as she glared angrily at her mother. "AND THEN YOU AND YOUR STUPID APES CAME ALONG AND RUINED EVERYTHING!"
Immediately without thinking, Yuriko stepped up towards Saya, and avoiding the knife in Saya's hand slapped the teenage girl hard across the face as everyone flinched at the sudden assault.
Saya dropped the knife as she reached up and placed her hand on her reddening cheek where she had been struck.
The scowl on Saya's face disappeared as tears began to pour from her eyes and she began to cry pitifully in front of everyone.
"Saya-oneechan." Alice said sadly as she looked at the older girl sobbing all alone in front of her mother as Yuriko gasped in shock at what she had just done.
Yuriko looked upon her daughter and immediately regretted losing her temper and slapping Saya as she then quickly tried to console her.
"Saya-chan." Yuriko said, trying to apologize.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean,….." Yuriko began.
"YOU DIDN'T MEAN WHAT?! Saya suddenly screamed as she glared at Yuriko, as Yuriko stepped back in surprise at her daughter's sudden outburst.
"WHAT DIDN'T YOU MEAN, MOTHER?! Saya shouted, tears still running down her face as she stepped away from Yuriko her eyes filled with hate as well as tears.
"YOU MEAN YOU DIDN'T MEAN TO LEAVE ME STUCK IN THAT SCHOOL ALL ALONE WHILE PEOPLE WERE BEING KILLED ALL AROUND ME?!" Saya yelled.
"OR MAYBE YOU DIDN'T MEAN FOR ME TO ALMOST DIE BECAUSE YOU WERE TOO BUSY HELPING OTHER PEOPLE INSTEAD OF YOUR OWN DAUGHTER! Saya shouted as her mother cast her gaze downward, tears falling from her eyes at Saya's verbal onslaught.
"SAYA-SAMA!" Yoshioka shouted. "THAT'S ENOUGH!"
"I WAITED FOR YOU!" Saya wailed loudly as she started to cry uncontrollably, as Yuriko looked up and stared sadly into her child's face.
"I waited for you and Papa to come rescue me." Saya said softly between sobs.
"I waited for you both and you never came." Saya said looking sadly into her mother's face. "I was so scared and you never came for me Mama."
"And when you didn't come for me, I tagged along with them, looking for you." Saya said pointing to her friends.
"And I would have been dead if not for them." Saya said as she looked into her mother's face again.
"Why didn't you come for me, Mama?" Saya said, as her anger was finally spent and the only emotion left was sadness.
Tears fell from Yuriko's eyes as she looked upon her daughter sobbing pitifully in front of her.
Many times her heart had been torn at seeing her daughter so distraught, and always it seemed that nothing she ever did would comfort her daughter.
Saya only seemed to find joy and comfort in her father's arms, and Yuriko's heart always yearned to receive even a small portion of the love and adoration that Saya seemed to have reserved only for her father.
Yuriko heart ached for her daughter's love.
And when the Outbreak broke out and it seemed Saya had been one of its many victims, Yuriko had been inconsolable, her heart broken at the loss of her only child.
And when news had finally arrived from her brother, Isoroku, a General with the JSDF that Saya was indeed alive and had been spotted taking shelter nearby, Yuriko had wasted no time gathering volunteers to form a rescue party and attempt a rescue.
And then upon their arrival, things had gone so terribly wrong.
And now the bond between mother and child had been all but severed.
Yuriko walked up and placed her arms around Saya as she tightly embraced her daughter who wept bitterly against her bosom.
"I'm so sorry Saya-chan." Yuriko said holding her child tightly.
Takashi gazed upon Saya and her mother and wished deeply that it wasn't necessary for him to interfere, and that there was time for both mother and daughter to repair the strained relationship between them.
But there was no time.
And Takashi cursed the fact that if any of them were to survive, he had to interrupt the two women whose relationship was already so severely strained.
Takashi sighed as he let go of Alice, leaving her in Kouta's care as he then stood up and then began walking towards Yuriko who was still holding Saya as she wept bitterly in her mother's arms.
Ever the vigilant bodyguard, Yoshioka began to step in front of Yuriko to head off Takashi, but stopped when Saya's mother shook her head.
"It's all right, Yoshioka-san. Let him speak." Yuriko said as she looked into the boy's face.
Takashi stepped up in front of Yuriko and gazed down at Saya who was still sobbing for a moment, before speaking.
"Takagi-dono." Takashi began. "Please forgive me for interrupting at a time like this."
" But I do want to say that I am so very sorry that some of your men have been hurt and one of them has been killed as you were all just trying to rescue all of us, especially your daughter."
"I'm really very sorry for all that has happened." Takashi said bowing low before he continued speaking.
"And with respect, I appreciate the fact that you were only trying to rescue us from a man you perceived as a threat. However, please believe me when I say to you that the man that's lying wounded inside with Busujima-san has in fact, done nothing to harm us in any way, form, or fashion. Nor do I believe he ever meant too, either"
"And despite everything that has happened, my friends and I really are grateful for what you and your men have tried to do for us." Takashi said gesturing towards his friends watching nervously nearby.
"So forgive me for saying this." Takashi continued. "But despite all you and your men have been through I have a favor I wish to ask of you."
Shocked by the teenage boy's sudden display of humility compared to the vicious contempt and anger he and the rest of his friends had displayed earlier, Yuriko stared closer into the boy's face as he spoke.
"What is it Komuro-san?" She asked curiously.
And once again, Yuriko Takagi was shocked to hear the same words she had heard just a few minutes earlier from the half-naked teenage girl inside the condo, now coming from the young man's mouth as well.
"Takagi-san,I wish for you to take Saya and all my friends away from here to safety." Takashi replied as Saya stopped crying and looked over at him.
"I on the other hand, will be staying here with Busujima-san and Jimu-kun."
Yuriko's eyes grew wide at Takashi's words as Saya suddenly released herself from her mother and stared dumbfounded at Takashi as well, her emotional outpouring forgotten.
"ARE YOU CRAZY?!" Saya shouted her eyes and face all puffy from crying. "That's suicide!"
"TAKASHI, NO!" Rei screamed in shock, dropping her guard which would have left an excellent opening for one of the guards to take advantage of if they had been so inclined.
But like the rest, all of the guards were spellbound at the drama unfolding in front of them and were unsure as to what to do.
"YOU CAN'T DO THIS KOMURO!" Shizuka and Kouta shouted. "WE WON'T LEAVE ANYONE BEHIND!"
"ONII-CHANNNN!" Alice wailed unsure of why everyone was yelling at Takashi, but afraid for her "Big Brother" nonetheless.
"ALL OF YOU BE QUIET!" Takashi roared as everyone flinched as if struck by his sudden outburst.
Takashi sighed as he re composed himself and then continued speaking for everyone to hear.
"I am the leader of this group." Takashi said calmly. "And I have made my decision."
"Takagi-san." Takashi continued looking back into Yuriko's shocked face. "You have your daughter now, and as you can see, she has not been harmed."
"We, on the other hand, were not the main reason you came and therefore, are not your first priority, am I correct in my assumption?" Takashi asked looking at her face.
Yuriko's face fell in embarrassment as she responded to the teenager's words with reluctance.
"You are correct, son." Yuriko replied.
"Then there's no reason for any of you to worry about detaining us any longer for our own safety then." Takashi replied matter-of-factly.
"So if you would please take my friends away from here, I would be most grateful." Takashi added as he suddenly turned to leave.
"WE ARE NOT LEAVING, KOMURO!" Saya yelled standing in front of Takashi, angrier now at the boy than she had been with her mother as he tried to walk around her.
"Takagi, go with your mother." Takashi replied. "This no longer concerns you."
"The hell it doesn't!" Saya yelled. "Give me one good reason why we should leave you behind!"
Takashi said nothing as he quietly walked past her.
"DON'T YOU TURN YOUR BACK ON ME KOMURO!" Saya screamed angrily as Takashi suddenly halted.
"Takashi! Why are you doing this?!" Rei asked as she gazed teary-eyed at him.
Takashi sighed as he calmly turned to face his friends.
"Rei, do you remember that time when we were standing on the stairs back at school trying to sneak past the Infected in the foyer? Takashi asked.
"Hai." Rei replied, confused as well as frightened.
"Do you also remember asking me why I volunteered to walk out onto the foyer alone to see if we could sneak past "Them"?" He said looking into Rei's face.
"Hai." Rei replied again.
"Do you remember what my answer to your question was?" Takashi asked, his eyes looking as sad as they had been on that day.
"Hai." Rei said as tears fell down her face as she spoke.
"You said, "I don't know why." Rei replied.
"I lied." Takashi said as he gazed longingly into Rei's eyes.
"I knew exactly why I was doing it then, and I truly believe that it's the same reason why Jimu-san has done everything he has done for us and continued to risk his life for us all this time." Takashi said as he then stared down at the ground for a moment.
"And it's the same reason Saeko is in there alone with him right now and willing to sacrifice her own life to be with him." Takashi said quietly as he gazed over at the open gates of the condominium.
"And it's also the same reason why I'm going to stay and help Busujima-sempai take care of Jimu-san, even if it means my life." He said hanging his head.
"What reason is that?!" Saya asked, crying as she and everyone looked at Takashi as he turned his head and started to walk away from them so they wouldn't see the sadness in his eyes.
"Because I don't want the ones I love to die." Takashi said as he turned and walked away.
Author's Notes:
I wish to thank all of you that have continued to support me as I continue writing this story. Your kind reviews and support have really encouraged me to keep writing and to continue to strive to make the story better.
As some of you may have noticed, there have been some changes to some of the chapters in my story lately. Part of it was a goof on my part because I was trying to organize my chapters better and just screwed everything up instead.
I did my best to fix everything but I'm sure there's been some confusion, and so I apologize for that.
Also, "Last Alarm" up to this point has mostly been a "rough draft" and so now that some time has passed, I've gone back and made some add-ons to the story and corrected some mistakes as well.
As time goes by, I'll keep trying to improve on the earlier chapters that I've written so don't be surprised if you notice any changes.
Since I started posting "Last Alarm" back in February, I've had a ball writing the now more than 25 chapters to this story that I had no idea would grow so big since now it's only day three of a story that was supposed to describe an ordeal that lasts two weeks.
Even I have no clue just how many more chapters it'll take before I'm done.
But I'm having fun still so you won't see me complaining. ^_^
As a matter of fact, it's been interesting trying to keep all the guys at work from knowing exactly what it is that's been keeping me so occupied on my laptop so much at work when there aren't any station assignments or emergency calls going on.
Everyone thinks I'm writing bad things about all the guys I work with which has them acting VERY cautious around me. LOL.
But while it's been fun, it's also been very exhausting turning in a new chapter almost every other week for the past 6 months.
And lately, because summer is here, our call volume goes up, mostly from an increase in brush fires and auto accidents which have really worn all of us out especially with the South Texas heat we have had to endure.
While brush fires here in Texas are not as intense as the forest fires the guys have in California and Arizona, they do take a lot out of you, and because of that it took me a bit longer to write this chapter because we've been so busy lately.
So I'm sorry to keep ya'll waiting so long for the next chapter, and I hope that all of you enjoyed reading it now that I finally finished this portion.
When I started writing this particular chapter, I sort of hit a wall, mostly because trying to come up with a lot of dialogue for so many characters in one chapter is pretty tough for me, not to mention my brain was pretty fried from work and lack of sleep.
Originally, "Last Alarm" was meant to be a story based on the HOTD series as seen through the eyes of an American Firefighter/Paramedic, turned PMC.
It wasn't meant to be written with everyone else's point of view as well.
Instead, "Last Alarm" has evolved into something else entirely, and even I am amazed at what I've managed to accomplish with it.
Well, actually shocked would be a better word.
I'm no literary expert by any stretch of the imagination, but this has turned out better than I thought.
"Last Alarm" is definitely not a Shakespearean play, but for me being a lowly Firefighter from Texas, it's a huge personal accomplishment.
Not trying to toot my own horn, but for me, this story is like "Forrest Gump" writing "War and Peace." by Leo Tolstoy.
It aint the best story in the world, but considering it really is my first written work since high school, it's a big thing to me.
Thanks again for all of your support.