Last Alarm-Book One Chapter 35 - Glass Heart, a highschool of the dead fanfic

Last Alarm

Chapter Thirty-Five

"Glass Heart"

"The heart is a fragile thing. That's why we protect them so vigorously, give them away so rarely, and why it means so much to us when we do."

Unknown

Darkness.

Darkness all around.

Darkness so dense it was almost suffocating, threatening to crush her lungs with every breath she took.

A Darkness so thick that she feared not even her loudest scream could be heard in the inky blackness surrounding her.

And for once in her life, Saeko Busujima wanted to scream.

Saeko strained her eyes to their absolute limit desperately trying to peer through the darkness as she searched for the unseen threat beyond, beads of nervous sweat popping up on her forehead, and her breathing becoming more rapid as her eyes scanned the darkness all around her and seeing,… nothing.

Her fear growing, Saeko wiped the sweaty palms of her hands on her skirt as she tried to maintain her grip on her bokken which threatened to slip from her grasp as she as she continued her feverish attempts to locate the unseen enemies that her senses had detected were lying in wait out in the darkness somewhere, but as of yet had made no attempt to attack.

Though afraid, Saeko had not given in to panic, and unlike most people who succumb to fear, she had not made the often fatal mistake of calling out into the darkness as most people are want to do when facing the unknown.

Instead, Saeko's warrior instincts were screaming for her to remain silent as she listened intently for the slightest sound of an attack, willing herself to stay calm and be ready to react instantly the moment the unseen enemy made the slightest noise, thus giving away his position and allowing Saeko to strike.

But instead, the only thing Saeko could hear was the sound of her own frightened breathing and the extremely loud pounding of her rapidly beating heart.

There.

The faintest whisper of a shuffling noise to Saeko's left instinctively made her shift her position to meet the nearby threat as Saeko assumed a "Judan no Kamae" stance in preparation for an attack by her as of yet, unseen enemy.

And then suddenly every muscle in Saeko's body tensed as another sound came from directly behind her as Saeko then immediately adjusted her stance to be able to defend herself from an attack that would now be coming at her from two opposing sides.

And as Saeko listened for the rush of her attackers, she felt her heart skip a beat as she heard the sound of something else moving in the darkness directly in front of her, as the sound of another attacker, a fourth, sounded in the darkness.

And then Saeko felt a lump forming in her throat as the sound of another, and then another, and still yet another sound of something moving in the darkness filled her ears coming from all around her as Saeko wildly looked around in all directions, fear starting to overtake her as she realized that she was now quickly being surrounded by multiple attackers.

And for the first time in her life since the age of five when her father first began training her to fight…..,

Saeko Busujima began to panic.

And as the growing fear finally overwhelmed her, all the years of grueling training and hard-earned experience as her father's greatest kenjutsu pupil simply seemed to vanish as Saeko's fear became complete.

And all of her finely-honed warrior skills were now forgotten as Saeko gave in completely to her fear and began swinging her bokken wildly in all directions at the sounds that seemed to be so close and steadily growing even louder as she swung with all her strength at the darkness and struck,…. nothing.

"What are you doing, child?" A strangely familiar voice sounded out of nowhere chastising her. "Have you so easily given in to fear already? You are better than this, Saeko."

"WHO SAID THAT?!" Saeko shrieked the panic overwhelming her. "WHO ARE YOU?!"

"Calm yourself child." The voice said gently. "Calm your mind and your heart Saeko, and the path to victory will be visible to you."

"I CAN'T!" Saeko said as the noises became louder.

Closer.

"Trust me child." The voice said. "Calm yourself, and clear your mind."

"I'm scared!" Saeko screamed shaking with fear as hot tears fell from her eyes. "Please help me!"

"I am helping you child." The voice said now speaking sternly. "Now calm down child, and focus!"

Fighting every instinct in her frightened mind that wanted to curl up in a ball and cry her lungs out, Saeko forced every bit of the remaining courage that she had left to slow her breathing and force herself to remain calm despite the unnerving sounds of the still unseen attackers drawing steadily closer.

And as the sounds of movement seemed to be almost upon her, the previously invisible figures in the darkness surrounding her suddenly became illuminated by a strikingly bright light that miraculously appeared out of nowhere and blinded both Saeko and her attackers momentarily.

And as Saeko's eyes adjusted to the sudden brightness of the light illuminating the darkness around her she was finally able to distinguish the dozens of Infected that had been stealthily approaching her from all directions.

*"Chansu!" Saeko thought as a smile appeared on her face as she leapt forward to meet the threat.

(*Chansu- Japanese for "Chance". Or in this case, "Now's my chance.")

And as she got to within striking distance of the nearest Infected, Saeko swung her bokken at the attacker's head as the Infected man's skull caved in upon impact with the solid oak of the wooden sword and disintegrated it, sending a large spray of blood and brain matter to splash onto the other Infected behind him as the now headless body fell to the floor.

Without slowing down, Saeko quickly moved around the falling corpse and swung her bokken in an upward strike, separating the lower jaw of another Infected on impact and sending its body crashing into the others standing behind it, toppling a half dozen of them over.

As the hands of another Infected reached for her, Saeko then spun on her heel and struck her attacker in the face, the force of the blow sending bone fragments into the still functioning brain, severing the electrical links in the brain that controlled motion as the Infected woman fell to the ground.

Saeko smiled as she watched her enemy fall, the panic she had experienced earlier now completely forgotten as she continued her deadly dance, her movements now no longer mindless flailing but focused, fluid, precise, ….

Deadly.

All remnants of the previous fear that Saeko had experienced earlier were now gone as Saeko's confidence, and the warrior skills that she had honed to perfection since childhood seemed to have returned as well with a vengeance as the enemies around her began to fall, the ease at which she was felling her enemies surprising even Saeko at the seemingly effortless way the Infected fell at the blows from her bokken.

The ease at which Saeko moved as she struck her enemies down made Saeko begin to feel like she was actually floating as she continued her deadly dance and side-stepped the rush of a particularly large Infected man and effortlessly dispatched him with one perfect strike of her bokken.

As the pile of bodies continued to grow beneath her feet as Saeko moved effortlessly through the large crowd of Infected, not a one of them able to lay a hand on her as her bokken continued to mow through them like a scythe through a wheat field until finally, all of the Infected lay scattered at her feet.

And as Saeko gazed proudly upon the bodies of the Infected scattered everywhere around her , Saeko could not recall a time when she had ever felt so thrilled or so proud of her skills as she was now at what was without a doubt, her greatest victory.

So enraptured was Saeko at striking her enemies down so easily that it was an absolute shock to her when a large arm suddenly reached out from among the fallen at her feet and grasped her bokken, yanking it out of her hand before she could react.

Startled, Saeko reached out to grab her weapon but was stopped when another hand reached up and grabbed her by the right ankle preventing her from moving, the unexpected shock of being grabbed by the supposedly dead Infected woman causing a frightened scream to escape Saeko's lips.

And as Saeko tried to break free from the vise-like grip of the Infected woman that held her, she then noticed to her horror that the bodies of all the Infected that she had struck down earlier were now beginning to rise up from the ground all around her.

Shocked at seeing the Infected rising up yet again despite the lethal blows she had inflicted, Saeko desperately tried to tear herself free from the grasp of the Infected woman still clutching her ankle as she began kicking her in the face with her other foot in an effort to break free.

The force of Saeko's blows to the woman's skull disintegrated it into a mass of wet, bloody pulp splashing all over her as Saeko finally managed to break free and rushed forward once again to grab her bokken from the clutches of the Infected man who had now stood up and was holding her bokken in both of his hands and shaking it over his head as if it were a war trophy.

Enraged by the sight, Saeko gave a loud, angry, war cry as she charged the Infected man and struck him in the groin with her knee, causing him to double over as Saeko placed her hands on her bokken and struggled to tear her weapon out of the Infected man's grasp.

The man's iron grip on the bokken never loosened however despite her struggles, and to her absolute horror Saeko watched in shock as the Infected man looked up at Saeko standing over him,…

And smiled.

Horrified, Saeko tried even more desperately to wrestle her weapon away as the Infected man, displaying almost superhuman strength, stood up and then yanked mightily on the bokken and lifted the teenage girl into the air swinging her in a large arc as Saeko tried desperately to hang on to her weapon but then lost her grip and fell heavily onto the ground, knocking the wind out of her.

Breathless, defenseless, and once again beginning to panic, Saeko struggled desperately to get up off the ground but was prevented from doing so as the hands of Infected that were buried underground proceeded to rise up through the earth.

And despite her desperate efforts to break free, cold icy fingers grabbed Saeko's wrists and ankles, pinning her to the ground as the Infected man still holding her bokken began walking towards her as she continued her useless struggles to free herself.

And then as the man approached to where the now helpless girl lay, Saeko watched in horror as the Infected man stopped near her feet and then to her surprise, lifted his free hand and beckoned the other Infected over.

And as the rest of the Infected slowly gathered around Saeko as if to act as silent witnesses of what was about to happen next, the man who was still holding Saeko's bokken once again raised her weapon triumphantly in the air and then effortlessly snapped the wooden sword in two, tossing the remains on the ground at Saeko's feet as if to taunt her.

And then to Saeko's shock the man raised his head, and despite the clouded haze over the man's lifeless eyes, the man actually seemed to be looking directly at Saeko as if he really could see her, as the man did something completely unexpected that sent a shiver racing through Saeko's body.

The Infected man licked his lips.

The mounting panic growing within Saeko then almost threatened to overwhelm her as the young teen realized that she was powerless to defend herself and was now at the mercy of the Infected, who knew nothing about mercy.

But as frightened as she was, Saeko fought down the panic she felt as she steeled herself to meet Death with dignity and silently awaited for what was to come next, hoping that it would be over quick as she roared defiantly at her attacker.

Still smiling evilly, the Infected man then took a step forward towards his seemingly helpless victim, appearing to be taking great pleasure in seeing the teenage girl so helpless before him as he licked his lips again as if relishing the easy kill lying on the ground before him as he took another step forward.

And then to Saeko's shock, the Infected man suddenly opened his mouth as if to scream as the sudden appearance of the point of a katana suddenly burst through the front of the man's chest causing the smile on the Infected man's face to evaporate as he then looked down and seemed as if he were actually shocked at the sight of the gleaming blade that stuck up about six inches through his sternum.

Saeko gasped at the sight of the blade suddenly appearing out of nowhere as well, and watched completely fascinated as the blade was withdrawn and the wielder of the sword standing behind the Infected man swung the blade in a large arc and neatly decapitated the Infected man's head from his shoulders, causing the head to fall to the ground and bounce once on impact before the body then crashed heavily on top of it.

Numbed momentarily by the sudden and totally unexpected sight, Saeko stared in shock at the headless body before looking up at the silent swordsman bathed in shadow standing before her.

And then without uttering a word, the shadowy warrior suddenly moved swiftly towards Saeko, raising his katana high above his head before swiftly bringing it down in a large arc towards her.

Seeing the blade of the sword coming at her, Saeko instinctively winced, waiting for the sudden sharp pain she would feel as the blade entered her body from the doubtlessly fatal blow.

But then Saeko opened her eyes in surprise as the pressure she felt from the hands still gripping her wrists and ankles was suddenly released as they were severed from the skillful strikes of the silent swordsman.

Surprised by the sudden turn of events, Saeko looked up at her savior and tried to get up as the man suddenly turned around to face the Infected who were now moving in on them before she could see his face.

"SAEKO, STAY DOWN CHILD!" The swordsman suddenly shouted in warning as Saeko dropped to the ground and then watched in awed fascination as the man charged into the Infected swinging his sword in one beautiful, effortless, fluid arc, his sword clearing a wide opening before him as four of the Infected fell to the ground at his feet, all of them neatly cleaved in two at the edge of his blade.

"Beautiful." Saeko said in an awed whisper as she watched the man spin around and effortlessly cut down three more of the Infected as he moved his blade in an upward strike on his right flank and then moved toward the others on his left as Saeko watched in awed fascination.

The man never seemed to stop moving, his feet and body in constant motion, his every move, his every step, his every strike fluid, effortless.

Perfect.

Saeko found herself held spellbound as she watched the man's fighting technique, a technique so familiar that Saeko already believed she knew exactly who the swordsman was.

And as Saeko continued to watch the man fight, her attention no longer became focused on the man's moves but rather, her eyes were locked on his face, which somehow still managed to remain concealed in shadow as the man continued to strike down the Infected surrounding them.

Yet even without seeing his face, the black and grey yukata the man wore, the long black hair tied back behind his head, the powerful arms with the scar over the right wrist, and of course the man's voice when he had ordered Saeko to stay down had been a dead giveaway of the identity of who the man really was.

But it was not until she saw the man fight, that Saeko was then completely sure.

"OTOSAN!" Saeko cried out with tears in her eyes, as the swordsman cut down the last of the Infected still left standing as it fell heavily to the ground.

Not yet vanquished, the Infected man raised its head, moaning that same awful sound as if it were in pain as it attempted to get up once more, as the shadowy swordsman then gracefully twirled his katana in his fingers over his head.

And then as he switched to a reverse-grip the silent warrior hen struck down, piercing the Infected's skull through, silencing its chilling moans forever.

"Otosan, it's you isn't it?!" Saeko cried out to the lone warrior as he yanked his sword free out of the Infected man's skull.

But as Saeko attempted to get up from the ground and greet her savior, she suddenly felt her body suddenly grow weak and to her alarm, found herself unable to get to her feet.

"Otosan!" Saeko cried out frightened as the swordsman turned to face her. "Something's wrong, I can't stand up!"

"Father, please help me!" Saeko shrieked in despair as the man made absolutely no attempt to help the teen despite her pleas.

"PAPA, PLEEEEASE!" Saeko screamed desperately as the man continued to stand there and watch Saeko's feeble attempts to get up, as if he were enjoying watching her misery.

"Papa, why won't you help me?!" Saeko said crying as she looked into the man's face that was still concealed in shadow and then laid her head on the floor weeping.

"Papa, why are you mad at me?!" Saeko wailed pitifully. "Why won't you speak to me?!"

"Papa, whyyyyyy?!" Saeko continued to wail as the man suddenly whipped his blade through the air splashing the blood still clinging to the blade onto the ground.

The silent warrior then placed the blade in the crook of his left arm and pulled on the sword, wiping the rest of blood off the blade using the sleeve of his yukata as a cleaning cloth, before sheathing the sword in its scabbard and then removing it from his obi sash.

And as he silently walked towards Saeko who was still lying on the ground crying, the man then knelt before her and placed his hand gently on top of her head as if to comfort her.

And as Saeko raised her head up at his touch and looked up, she was surprised to see the familiar face of Hiroyuki Busujima, her father, whose face was now no longer concealed in shadow, but who was now smiling gently at her as he then gestured for her to rise.

Remarkably, Saeko suddenly felt her strength returning as she wiped her face and managed to get up onto her knees as her father then held out the katana with both hands and bowed slightly, offering it to her.

Saeko looked at the sword being offered to her and then held her hands up and placed them on the scabbard and accepted it bowing deeply in respect as her father then released his grip on it.

Saeko stared for a moment at the ornate sword in her hands, a sword that somehow she was vaguely familiar with as if she had seen it once before, but could not recall it ever being among the many other antique katanas in her father's large sword collection at their home.

And as Saeko hefted its weight, her father then gave a short nod and suddenly rose as if to leave when Saeko desperately cried out to him.

"Matte kudasai!" Saeko said, a little too sharply as she bowed towards the man in apology as he turned back to her, his face still in shadow.

"Please,…" Saeko said pleading. "Please, tell me. Are you my father or is this just a dream?"

"Yes Saeko, it is I." The familiar voice of Hiroyuki Busujima replied to Saeko as she stared at him surprised at his finally speaking to her as her heart began to race.

"OTOSAN!" Saeko shouted with a mixture of joy and sadness. "What is wrong? Why wouldn't you speak to me before? Have I done something wrong?"

"No, Saeko." Saeko's father replied. "You have done nothing wrong, my child. And I am very proud of you my daughter for the way you have fought so bravely for the sake of your friends."

"Then why are you leaving?!" Saeko said her heart feeling as if it were being torn in two. "Please! Stay here with me, I need your help!"

"No, my child, you do not." Saeko's father replied gently. "I have done my best to prepare you for your journey on the Warrior's Path, and you have learned your lessons well and have far exceeded my expectations, and I couldn't be more proud of you my child."

"But now you must continue your journey without me, Saeko." Her father said, an unmistakable sadness in his voice.

"Father, you can't leave!" Saeko said horrified, the tears flowing heavily from her eyes. "I have so much to learn yet! I-I don't know what to do!"

"Yes, you do child." Her father said gently to Saeko the same way he used to when she was still very little.

"Do not be afraid, Saeko." Her father added. "Just as you did earlier, you must learn to let go of your fear, and clear your mind of all doubt, and then your path will be revealed to you."

"But Otosan, don't you remember?" Saeko said desperately trying to prevent her father from leaving. "I failed to remain focused and I was nearly killed until you saved me!"

"Please Papa, I'm not ready!" Saeko said desperately. "Please don't leave!"

"Overconfidence in your abilities can kill just as easily as fear, Saeko." Her father replied. "That is why you were almost defeated."

"You must learn to control your emotions at all times, my daughter." Hiroyuki Busujima added.

"Papa, I was so afraid!" Saeko sniffed. "I don't know if I can!"

"Saeko-chan, your heart has always been a kind one, and you have always concerned yourself with the welfare of others." Her father said gently. "But you must keep your mind focused and your emotions in check, especially whenever you are forced to defend yourself and others."

"Or your emotions will be your undoing, child." Hiroyuki Busujima warned.

"Papa, I can't!" Saeko shouted as she reached up and embraced her father, laying her head against his chest. "Please take me with you! I don't want to be alone!"

"Where I am going now my child, you cannot follow." Saeko's father replied sadly as he wrapped his arms around Saeko and embraced her as she wept against his chest.

"You must walk your own path daughter, and fulfill your own destiny, and find the happiness that was always meant to be yours that I to my shame, could not give you."

"But in order for you to succeed in your journey on the Warrior's Path you must be strong, Saeko." Her father warned. "You must be strong for the trials ahead that you and your friends still have yet to face."

"And they will need your strength now more than ever, because they cannot face the challenges ahead without your help."

"What are you saying, father?" Saeko said confused. "What trials? What challenges? My friends and I were at the house of Soichiro and Yuriko Takagi, your former students before I found myself here. We were safe there."

"No place is safe, child." Saeko's father said sadly. "And unfortunately, your life will be one filled with danger around every corner before the world can once again be a safe place for you and your children to live."

"Stay with me, then!" Saeko said as she gripped her father tighter. "Father, please stay with me and help us!"

"Papa please, I can't do this alone!" Saeko wailed as her father brushed her hair with his hand.

"You will never be alone, my daughter." Her father said as Saeko sobbed upon his chest.

"A part of me will always be with you, Saeko." Hiroyuki Busujimai replied as Saeko suddenly felt him try to remove her hands from him indicating that he was attempting to leave her once again.

"And I will always love you, remember that Saeko." Her father added as he began to move away from Saeko.

Horrified that her father was going to disappear from her life forever as soon as he loosened himself from her embrace, Saeko frantically grabbed her father around his chest and desperately squeezed as hard as she could, using every bit of her strength to prevent her father from leaving her.

Just as she had wanted to do so many times before when she was a little girl as she watched him leave her and her mother behind as he boarded the taxi taking him to the airport for one of his many trips overseas to teach at his dojos, but didn't.

So many heart-breaking times before Saeko had sadly watched him go, and had cried for hours afterwards despite her mother's attempts to comfort her.

And then after the death of her mother, Saeko had been forced to watch her father leave on his overseas trips while she stayed behind all alone without the comfort of her mother nearby, and had always watched him depart with an ever present smile on her face as he waved goodbye.

An ever present smile that had merely been a mask for the torrent of tears that wanted to come out in a flood each time her father departed.

And then after his taxi disappeared down the street and Saeko entered the empty house all alone and closed the doors shut behind her, they finally would.

And now her father was leaving her once again, only this time,… forever.

With all the strength she could muster, Saeko clutched her father and with sheer desperation of will she cried out as loud as she could.

"PLEASE Papa! DON'T LEAVE ME AGAIN!" Saeko screamed as loud and as long as she could as her father seemed to flinch at her reaction.

"PLEASE Papa, I don't want you to go!" Saeko shouted as she sobbed heavily against her father's chest, the anguish from the years of loneliness, pain, and grief all coming out in a flood as her father wrapped his arms around her small body and held her tightly.

"I will never leave you, my child." Her father said as he held Saeko in his arms and gently brushed her hair with his hand trying to comfort her.

Shizuka gasped in shock at the sight of the now conscious American sitting up in his bed, holding a still sleeping Saeko against his chest, supporting her as she quietly cried in her sleep.

Shizuka was shocked at the sight of the teenage girl in the injured man's arms, having believed that it had been the puppy all along making the whimpering noises that she had heard at first.

And then she had been alarmed that Alice might possibly be having a nightmare when she woke up and noticed the puppy still lying fast asleep next to the little girl.

But not until she heard a loud sob coming from across the room, did Shizuka realize that it had been Saeko making the noise in the first place, as she looked over towards the chair where the girl had been sleeping.

And then Shizuka had nearly jumped out of the bed at seeing the American now wide awake and holding Saeko in his arms who had obviously been the one having a nightmare of some sort and had somehow slipped out of her chair and had fallen against the American who had either been awakened by Saeko's body falling against him, or more than likely, he had regained consciousness earlier and had caught her before she fell.

Either way, after getting over her initial shock, Shizuka was then overjoyed to see that the wounded man was finally awake, and with the exception of the large bandage wrapped around his head and some slight swelling to his face, seemed otherwise healthy as he held the sleeping girl in his arms and then looked at Saeko with a smile as he lovingly brushed her hair with his hand as if he were holding a sleeping child.

But when Saeko sobbed again still in the throes of her nightmare, Shizuka was shocked by what happened next as Saeko suddenly clutched the American even tighter and then spoke in a low but still audible mumble.

"Please Papa, don't leave me again." Saeko said as Shizuka and the wounded man gasped, both of them equally shocked at the girl's words.

"Please, Papa, I don't want you to go." Saeko said a sob escaping her lips as Shizuka noticed the man shut his eyes as if he were reacting in pain.

And then to her surprise, Shizuka watched as the American held the sleeping girl and pulled her even closer to him, tears falling from his face as he spoke.

"I will never leave you, my child." The American said as he held the weeping girl in his arms.

And it was at that moment that Shizuka's heart felt as if it were being torn in two as she watched the man holding the young girl in his arms, remembering the conversation that she and Yuriko Takagi had discussed earlier.

When Yuriko had warned her about the dangers of allowing Saeko Busujima to have any more contact with the American for fear of the pain that would surely follow once the man was taken away, which would surely shatter her already fragile heart.

And to Shizuka's dismay, it now seemed that Yuriko's warning had been correct, because now there was no doubt whatsoever that the man had indeed, albeit unintentionally, deeply touched the heart of the young girl so much that she had subconsciously accepted the man as a father figure.

And now adding to the tragedy, the American had now also willingly accepted her as his own child.

The same man that was more than likely going to be torn away from all of them and executed at the hands of a frightened Government, who was too involved in the current crisis to care whether the man was truly innocent or not of the charges against him.

"Oh no." Shizuka thought to herself, her heart rending in two as she suddenly turned around at the sound of the door to the room suddenly swinging open as Saya's parents and the Security Chief Yoshioka walked in, the noise waking up the sleeping teen immediately as she and the American both tensed at the sight of the three adults entering the room.

And as the three adults entered, Shizuka noticed the looks of shock on their faces, as Yuriko then turned towards Shizuka with a horrified look on her face.

"Ohhhhhh, dear." Shizuka moaned, believing that the reason for the expressions on their faces was due to seeing the previously comatose man suddenly sitting up in bed and conscious, despite the severity of his injuries.

And no doubt, the fact that Saeko was being cradled in the man's arms must have come as something of a shock to them as well.

But what the school nurse hadn't noticed, was that the real reason Yuriko was looking at Shizuka with such a horrified look was because of the fact that the American was holding the young girl in both arms.

Because now unlike earlier, the American was no longer handcuffed.

Immediately upon noticing that the American was now free from his handcuffs and also afraid that the young girl lying in his arms was now a possible hostage, Yoshioka instinctively reached underneath his jacket for his Beretta M9, as Saeko, who had awakened at the sound of the three adults entering the room suddenly tried to tear herself away from the American's grasp and attempted to lunge at the Security Chief.

"NO!" The American shouted in horror as he grabbed Saeko around the waist and pinned her down on the bed as she struggled against him.

"DON'T SHOOT! DON'T SHOOT!" The American roared as Yoshioka aimed his pistol at the American and thumbed back the hammer. "PLEASE DON"T SHOOT! YOU'LL HIT HER!"

"LET ME SEE YOUR HANDS!" Yoshioka shouted as he aimed at the man's head, trying to get a clean shot so as not to hit the struggling girl. "LET HER GO! LET HER GO!"

"JIMU-SAN! LET ME GO! THEY'RE GOING TO KILL YOU!" Saeko screamed as she fought to get out from underneath the man pinning her to the bed.

"NO! PLEASE DON'T SHOOT! HE'S NOT TRYING TO HURT HER!" Shizuka screamed as Alice woke up from all the yelling and grabbed Shizuka around the waist, frightened out of her mind as the puppy began barking in response to all the noise.

"PLEASE, I WON'T DO ANYTHING!" The American shouted. "JUST DON"T HIT THE GIRL!"

"EVERYONE SHUT UP!" Soichiro roared as the room suddenly went silent, with even the puppy stopping his loud barking at the sound of his voice.

"All of you calm down and keep quiet!" Soichiro snapped. "All this shouting is accomplishing nothing!"

"No arguments there." The American said as he held the struggling girl down on the bed. "It was getting rather loud in here, I have to admit."

"Listen, if you mean to kill me, I have no intention of stopping you." The American continued, as he stared directly at Yoshioka through swollen eyelids who was still aiming his pistol at him. "But please, at least let the girl get out of the way first."

"NO!" Saeko screamed as she struggled to get out from underneath the American who was using his body to shield her. "Jimu-san, they want to kill you!"

"I know that, baby." The American said in a gentle voice. "And if that's what they want to do, then I won't stop them."

"As far as I'm concerned, they'd be doing me a favor." The man said which stunned everyone in the room.

"But if you got hurt, I wouldn't forgive myself." The man said as he looked back up at the muzzle of the gun still pointed up at him.

"I'm going to let her go now, bub." The American said as Yoshioka's finger remained steady on the trigger. "Just please don't shoot me until she's clear."

"Slow." Yoshioka said in a warning tone. "One wrong move and you know what happens next."

"Yup." The American quipped. "I know. Saeko go with Shizuka, now."

"NO!" Saeko shouted. "I'm not leaving!"

"Saeko-chan, this is no time for arguments. Go over there with Shizuka right now, honey." The American said sternly as Saeko refused to move.

"Saeko! If you truly want to help your friend, go with Marikawa-san immediately!" Yuriko said as Yoshioka kept his pistol trained on the man.

"Saeko, you need to get going sweetie." The American said as he began to lift her up as Shizuka anxiously held on to Alice and reached her hand out towards Saeko, the look on her face pleading.

"Jimu-san, please don't!" Saeko screamed struggling against the man's grip.

"Saeko-chan, that's enough, sweetie." The man said firmly. "Quit fighting me and go with Shizuka , now."

"NO!" Saeko screamed the tears flowing from her eyes, refusing to let go as the American tried to tear her away. "I WON'T LET THEM KILL YOU!"

"SAEKO! COME HERE NOW!" Shizuka shouted.

"NO!" Saeko screamed desperately as the American tried to loosen her grip on him. "Please Jimu-san, I don't want you to die!"

"Yoshioka-san,…." Soichiro said suddenly as Yoshioka continued to train his pistol on the American. "Please holster your weapon."

"Takagi-dono?" Yoshioka said confused as he glanced over at Soichiro, not quite sure that he had heard correctly.

"Soichiro-san?" Yuriko said looking over at her husband in surprise.

"Holster your weapon, old friend." Soichiro repeated. "He has no intention of harming the girl, and she has no intention of getting out of the way either."

"And there have been enough mistakes made this day already, and no reason for us to make another." Soichiro said turning his head towards Yoshioka.

"Put it away, Ken-san." Soichiro ordered once more.

"Hai, dono." Yoshioka replied, as he reluctantly clicked on the safety of his pistol and holstered it as Soichiro turned to face the American.

"You have nothing to fear from us, Mr. Trevino." Soichiro said in perfect English with no hint of an accent to the American who was now looking back at him confused by his sudden change of heart, but still watching their every move cautiously.

"We merely came here to try to get some answers from Marikawa-sensei, but now that you're awake, perhaps you can better answer them for us." Soichiro added, deliberately keeping his hands away from his katana that was hanging on his hip so as not to appear threatening.

"I'll be glad to help if I can, sir." The American replied. "If you'd kindly give me your word please that my friends here won't be harmed."

"You have my word." Soichiro replied. "No harm will come to anyone, provided that you make no attempts to harm any of my family or my staff, as well."

"Family?" The American asked quizzically. "This is your house? You mean you're not with JSDF Intelligence."

"Not at all." Soichiro said with a smirk. "My name is Soichiro Takagi, this is my wife Yuriko, and our Security Chief Yoshioka, and this is my home."

"Takagi?" The American said. "You mean your pumpkin's dad?"

"Pumpkin?" Soichiro asked confused.

"Sumimasen, Takagi-sama." Shizuka said interrupting. "That's been his pet name for Saya-chan."

"Pet name?" Soichiro said his eyebrows rising.

"That's just what I've been calling her." The American explained. "I take it you have a different nickname you call her?"

Soichiro looked over at his wife Yuriko who seemed just as embarrassed as he was at the American's question.

Never before had it even occurred to either of them to use any such terms of endearment as regards calling their daughter by anything else other than her own name.

"We can discuss that later," Soichiro mumbled under his breath. "For now, there is something of the utmost importance that I would like to discuss with you, if you don't mind?"

"Not at all, please have a seat." The American said gesturing politely as Saya's parents and their Security Chief moved towards the bed as the American felt Saeko suddenly tense up in his arms as they approached.

"Saeko-chan, stop it. They just wanna talk." Soichiro head the American say to the young teenage girl as Soichiro glanced over at her.

"Busujima-san." Soichiro said sternly giving Saeko a hard look. "You gave me your word that there would be no more violent actions on your part."

"And I shall keep my word, Takagi-san." Saeko said looking at Soichiro with the same icy stare as she had given Yuriko before. "But I will not allow any harm to come to Jimu-san even if it means breaking my word."

"Saeko." The American said in a scolding tone. "That's enough."

"Busujima, Saeko,…." Soichiro began as the teenage girl continued to stare defiantly at him.

"I was your father's pupil at one time, and out of respect for my former teacher, I've been very patient with you." Soichiro said his scowl becoming deeper.

"But do not try my patience any further, child." Soichiro said.

"And out of respect for you as one of my father's favorite pupils, I too have tried to be respectful towards every member of the Takagi House, especially you Takagi-sama." Saeko replied.

"But I will not let you hurt him, Takagi-dono." Saeko said defiantly as she tensed herself once again.

"Saeko, that's enough young lady." The American said as he scooped Saeko up from her sitting position in front of him and then placed her behind him as easily as if she had been a small child.

"Jimu-san!" Saeko protested trying to move out from behind the man who was now intentionally leaning back against her, pinning her body between the fluffed up pillows and himself to prevent her from moving.

"That's enough Saeko!" The man hissed. "Stay still and don't move or so help me, your grounded!"

Soichiro and Yuriko both reacted with mild surprise at seeing Saeko stop her struggles momentarily as the American looked over at her with a scolding look on his face.

"Jimu-san,…Saeko began as the American cut her off.

"Knock it off, sweetie." The American said firmly. "Just sit tight and don't move."

"Grounded?" Soichiro said cocking an eyebrow. "I think what she and her friends have done today merits more than a simple grounding."

"I take it the kids been misbehaving themselves while I was napping?" The American said with a smirk as everyone turned to stare at him as if not believing he would even think of joking during such a tense situation such as this.

"That would be an understatement." Soichiro replied gesturing to the bandage placed over Yoshioka's broken nose.

"Ouch, I see your point." The American replied with a frown. "Well, where I'm from usually when a child misbehaves they get grounded or maybe even a spanking."

"Which I've had to do to this young lady once already." The American said looking over his shoulder as Saeko continued her attempts to try to squirm free.

"And if she doesn't knock it off she's about to get another one right here in front of everyone." The man said in a warning tone as Saeko suddenly stopped squirming.

"Of course, if you're really serious about me disciplining the kids,…." The man added. "Then I guess I could take the X-Box away from them for about a week."

"Jimu-san, please." Shizuka hissed angrily her anxiety level growing as Soichiro continued to stare at the American, his face devoid of emotion.

"Although that would probably kill someone like Kouta,…." The American continued, still joking even in their present tense situation.

"Jimu-san!" Shizuka hissed angrily again as she held a thoroughly frightened Alice in her arms. "Shut up! This is no time for jokes!"

"I'm not joking Shizuka-san, he's probably going through internet withdrawal even now as we speak." The American said with a grin.

"You seem to enjoy making jokes, Trevino-san." Soichiro interrupted the tone of his voice irritated. "And while I normally appreciate someone with a sense of humor, I must warn you I will not tolerate the antics of these children anymore in my house like the ones they have already committed earlier today."

"Antics?" The American said with a puzzled look as he looked over at Shizuka.

"Shizuka-honey, ya'll been letting them young-un's go runnin' in the halls with scissors again?" The American said with an exaggerated Southern accent

"Mr. Trevino, please do not try my patience." Soichiro said as he absent-mindedly rested his hand on his katana as he was always prone to do.

"Whoa, and here I thought that old "bow to me or I'll chop your head off "mentality had died here in Japan finally." The American said with a chuckle noticing the motion." I didn't realize casual conversation could still get you killed here in Japan."

"My apologies, force of habit." Soichiro said his face like stone. "However you'd be surprised at how easily that mentality could arise again, given the circumstances."

"Yeah, I'm beginning to see that." The American said with a smirk as he looked back at Saeko and grinned.

"Well in that case, why don't I just go ahead and adopt you and the rest of the kids and take ya'll back to Texas with me, Saeko-chan? The American said with a passable wink of his swollen left eye.

"At least in Texas ya'll wouldn't have to be hacked to death by some rich snob who's seen too much Saturday Night Samurai Cinema." The American said looking back at Saeko with a grin as everyone in the room gasped in shock at the man's sarcasm without a doubt aimed towards the Lord of Takagi Manor.

"Are you quite done with your impersonation of Dirk Pitt, Mr. Trevino?" Soichiro said icily as the temperature in the room lowered a few degrees from the tension in the air.

"My wife had related to me about your unique sense of humor while all of you were being driven here this morning, and I have to say, I find it just as irritating as she does."

"And while I realize you Americans pride yourselves in "laughing in the face of danger" I could not help but find your attempts at humor remarkably similar to the rapier-like wit that the hero of author Clive Cussler's books, "Dirk Pitt", does when he is faced with danger."

"Rather pathetic actually." Soichiro said with a snort. "I actually expected better from someone like you."

"Actually, I was trying to impersonate Al Giordino, Takagi-san." The American said with a chuckle. "But I'm impressed that you caught that. I take it you're familiar with Mr. Cussler's works?"

"Yes, I am actually." Soichiro admitted as Yuriko and Shizuka looked at the two men and rolled their eyes in disgust at the ease of which the American had diverted the topic of conversation and deflated the tense situation in the room at the same time.

"Baka." Yuriko and Shizuka thought at the same time as they watched both men talking as if they were old friends reunited.

"I must admit, I find his books rather intriguing, especially how every subject in his books deals with a nautical theme." Soichiro added.

"I agree, I love his tales of the sea." The American replied. "I also love how the opening chapter in every one of his books where he opens up with the story starting with an exciting and suspenseful event in the past before explaining how those events in ancient history tie up with our modern day timeline."

"I agree." Soichiro agreed. "Sahara was always my favorite book."

"Really? That was my brother's favorite as well." The American said with a nod. "Although "Pacific Vortex" is still my favorite."

"Oh yes, that's one of his earlier works isn't it?" Soichiro said as Yuriko shot daggers at him.

"Yup, it's the first one I ever read." The American said as Alicewho was still holding onto Shizuka grew nervous as she felt Shizuka's body shaking in anger as she glared at the American.

"Well, I have to say, anyone who's a Dirk Pitt fan can't be all bad." The American said as he held out his hand. "Call me Jim."

"Soichiro." Soichiro said as he shook the man's hand.

"I cannot believe you Jimu-san!" Shizuka snapped as an angry scowl formed on her face. "Just a moment ago you were about to be shot, and now your cracking jokes, talking about adventure novels, and acting as if nothing ever happened?!"

"I have to agree with Marikawa-sensei," Yuriko said as she stared evilly at the two men. "I'm half tempted to shoot both of you myself, for getting everyone so worked up and then acting as if you're in the same book club together."

"So if the two of you gentlemen are quite done,….as you Americans say,…"playing grab-ass" Yuriko said hotly, completely frustrated with both men. "Perhaps we can attend to the matter we came here to discuss, finally?"

The two men looked up at the scowling faces of Yuriko and Shizuka for a long moment before turning back to face each other with embarrassed looks.

"Women,…." The American said with a heavy sigh. "They sure do take the fun out of saying "howdy", don't they?"

"Indeed." Soichiro replied as he reached into his coat pocket and fished out a small item and held it up in the air.

"I apologize for earlier." Soichiro said speaking to the American as he held up a small folding knife with wooden handles and a type of tribal inscription on it. "But we came here to find out exactly where you got this knife."

"A friend of mine gave it to me." The American replied casually as Saeko suddenly felt the American tense up.

"Your friend who gave you this knife, what was his name?" Soichiro asked as he held the knife in his hand.

"Forgive me if I sound rude, but why do you wish to know?" The American said still keeping his voice casual.

"Because your life and the lives of your friends running around out there may very well depend on what you tell me next." Soichiro replied.

"So please, who gave you this knife?" Soichiro asked once more.

Shizuka watched as the American suddenly stopped smiling and the expression on his face suddenly became very serious as he replied to Soichiro Takagi's question.

"His name is Andrew." The American said as Saeko watched the expressions on Saya's parents and their Security Chief change from one of serious concern to one of shock.

"Andrew Poynton?" Saya's father asked as Saeko waited for the American's reply, and then grew concerned when he didn't reply.

"Jimu-san?" Saeko whispered into the man's ear. "Is something wrong?"

"Not at all Busujima-san, he's just being cautious." Soichiro said his gaze never leaving the American's face.

"The man who gave him this knife gave him very strict instructions on what to do if anyone ever recognized it." Soichiro explained. "And what your American friend here is waiting for is the secret code that this same mutual friend of ours gave him, to identify that he is in the presence of a friend."

"The first part of the code that Andrew gave you is,….. Zero-Niner-One-Zero –One-Niner-Eight-Two." Soichiro began. "The second part is,…Tango-Alpha-Romeo-Foxtrot-Uniform"

For a moment, everyone watched the American staring in silence at Soichiro Takagi as if in shocked disbelief, and then slowly the American gave the counter-sign.

"The first part of my "ident" is,….One-Two- Two-Three- Two-Zero-Zero-Four." The American said as Saya's parents and Yoshioka audibly sucked in their breath as he spoke.

"The second part is,…Foxtrot-Uniform-Bravo-Alpha-Romeo." The American finished as he waited for Soichiro's response.

"Ano,…..what does all that mean?" Shizuka asked breaking the uneasy tension in the air.

"The numbers I gave stand for October 10, 1982." Soichiro replied. "The birthdate of Sarah Poynton, Andrew's wife."

"The ones I gave stand for December 23, 2004, Shizuka-san." The American said, explaining his countersign. "That's the birthdate of Andy's baby girl, Anastasia Poynton."

"And those letters?" Saeko asked puzzled. "What does all that mean?"

"It's military phonetic alphabet." Soichiro replied clearing his throat. "It was Andrew's idea as an added security measure."

"What do they mean?" Shizuka asked as Soichiro and the American glanced at each other with embarrassed looks.

"The letters I gave stand for the letters in the Military acronym "T.A.R.F.U." which means "Things Are Really ,….." Soichiro began but stopped himself as he cast a quick glance at Alice who was watching nearby.

"Fouled Up." "Soichiro finished feeling embarrassed at having to explain the former SAS commando's code and wondering whatever possessed the man to ever come up with something so crude.

"And yours, Jimu-san?" Saeko asked.

"Uhmmm,…Fouled Up Beyond All Recognition, sweetie." The American whispered to Saeko also trying to keep Alice from hearing. "Andy has a much more warped sense of humor than I do sometimes."

"Where is Andrew now, Jim?" Soichiro said anxiously. "Were you on BLUE Team with him?"

"No, I was on GREEN Team." Saeko heard the American reply. "Both of our teams were forced to separate when the helicopter we commandeered from the airport lost hydraulic power and we crashed in one of your city parks and then came under attack by the Police and the Infected."

"What was your mission exactly?" Soichiro asked. "The details have never been clear on what happened down there or what happened at the airport either, but I was told that you and your team were originally headed to Africa to provide security for some oilfield workers."

"Actually, we were originally supposed to provide security for a group of oil-pipeline engineers inspecting pipelines near a supposedly hostile area in Africa and were flying over the Sea of Japan when we experienced engine failure from one of the engines on our cargo plane and were forced to land for emergency repairs at that island airport off the coast." The American began.

"Tokonosu Airport?" Yoshioka asked.

"Yes." The American replied. "We were waiting for the repairs to be completed on our plane and sometime during the early morning hours we were attacked by these "Infected".

"And since we couldn't raise anyone by phone to help us, we commandeered a helicopter and we were even flying "heavy" with one Security guard and a few mechanics as well, and managed to make it to the Mainland, but crashed in one of the local parks somewhere in the downtown area."

"We managed to survive the crash without any casualties, but then we were fired upon by your Police forces when a whole bunch of the "Infected" attacked them." The American finished.

"What happened after you and your teams were fired upon?" Soichiro asked staring directly into the American's eyes looking for the barest hint of deceit. "Did you return fire?"

"No." The American said staring Soichiro directly in the eye as well. "As a matter of fact, I tried to help as many Police officers as I could before we were all overrun and forced to run for the hills."

"And then in the process of trying to escape with your Police officers and help evacuate the crowd of civilians that were just standing there rubber-necking, I was fired upon by another group of policeman that had just arrived on scene and didn't know what was going on."

"All they saw was a heavily armed man standing there in the street and opened fire on me, and I was forced to run away and hide."

"And then later on in the day while I was trying to avoid the Infected, I came across your daughter and the other children at their school while I was *E&Eing to the nearest American Embassy."

(*E&Eing – Escaping and Evading)

"So all of you scattered to avoid capture, but didn't open fire on the Police?" Soichiro asked again.

"Yes sir." The American replied choosing not to mention about his shooting up in the air to get the civilians running away from the Infected at the park as Soichiro continued to stare into his eyes.

"Mr. Trevino, I believe you." Soichiro said finally as everyone breathed a sigh of relief. "All of you can relax now."

"Thank you." The American replied as he sat up, allowing Saeko to also sit up now that the danger had seemingly passed.

"Yoshioka-san?" Soichiro said turning towards his Security Chief standing behind him. "Go ahead and release the rest of the children, there's no reason to keep them detained anymore."

"Hai, dono." Yoshioka replied.

"I'll have them brought over here immediately." Yoshioka said as he turned on his heel and briskly walked out the door and disappeared down the hallway.

"Yuriko." Soichiro said holding out his hand as Yuriko pulled out her satellite phone from the pouch hanging on her belt and punched in the secure number and then handed it to her husband.

Nodding politely, Soichiro then lifted the phone to his ear and began speaking in rapid Japanese to the caller on the other end as he turned and walked out the door.

"What's going on?" The American asked as everyone looked at Yuriko, all of them wondering what was happening.

"My husband is calling my brother to have him call off the search for the rest of your teammates, Mr. Trevino." Yuriko answered. "And since you and your comrades are no longer fugitives, there's no need to keep the children detained since there's also no need for them to try to help you escape since you're no longer a prisoner here."

"Forgive me for asking,…" The American asked warily still surprised by the sudden turn of events.

"But how exactly does your husband now about Andy and the teams we're on? And why is it that your husband has the power to call off a nationwide manhunt?"

"Even being as wealthy and powerful as all of you seem to be, I can't help but wonder how your husband can pull all of that off." The American said obviously suspicious at the ease with everything had just transpired.

"It's actually a little complicated to explain, Mr. Trevino." Yuriko said hesitantly.

"Please call me Jim, I hate being so formal especially since the hatchet seems to have been buried between us." The American said as Yuriko smiled.

"Very well, Jim." Yuriko said as she shook his hand. "I'm Yuriko, and the answer to your question is that despite the power my husband has as a politician, you are correct in assuming that it is not enough to call off a nationwide manhunt on a heavily armed foreign Security team on Japanese soil."

"I'm afraid the answer is more complicated than that." Yuriko said casting her eyes down. "And I'll have to let my husband divulge that information to you when he gets off the phone."

However, as far as our history with Andrew is concerned,….." Yuriko began. "What I can tell you is that Andrew was once in my husband's employ before."

"And because of his prior military background serving with the SAS, my husband had hired him to train our bodyguards to be more efficient in providing security for the house as well as also serving as Soichiro's personal bodyguard for a while."

"I see." The American replied.

"Actually, there's more to it than that." Soichiro interrupted after he hung up with the other caller and re-entered the room. "And to be honest, I'm glad that you're sitting in bed, because you might want to lie down afterwards with what I'm about to tell you."

"What do you mean?" The American asked slightly alarmed by Soichiro's remark as his eyes grew wider. "Is it bad?"

"As my wife had mentioned earlier, it's complicated." Soichiro began as he sat on stool near the foot of the bed and glanced over at his wife who sat down on the bed next to Shizuka as Soichiro began to explain.

"This contract that you and your teams were enroute to before your plane experienced engine trouble,…" Soichiro began. "It was a contract to provide security for some oil pipeline engineers in South Africa, correct?"

"Yes." The American replied.

"Well, the men you and your teammates were hired to protect were employees of a petroleum company that the Takagi family has had holdings in for many years." Soichiro began.

"My great-grandfather was the one who originally bought stock in it and as the company prospered, so has my family." Soichiro said. "Much of what you see here is the result of my great-grandfather's, as well as my grandfather and my father's financial success."

"And while the Takagi family still has financial interests in petroleum,…"Soichiro added. "I on the other hand, decided on a career in politics."

"However, I do keep tabs on the family's financial assets, and just recently, while a tribal war was going on in a neighboring area, some of the company's pipeline engineers were killed by some local tribesman when they went to inspect a possible leak in a pipeline running through an area that the tribesman claimed was actually their territory."

"And since that pipeline had been experiencing problems with leaks, it was vital that another team be sent in to inspect the pipeline and initiate repairs as soon as possible."

"As a result, I strongly recommended that a "Private Security Force" be hired to provide protection for the next team going in to inspect the pipelines in the same region."

"What happened?" Saeko asked as Soichiro glanced at his wife and then gave a heavy sigh.

"Because the Board did not wish it known that the Company itself had hired "mercenaries", they initially refused at first."

But seeing how much money they were losing each day, they finally relented, provided that everything be handled as if an "anonymous shareholder" had hired them instead, which is why they then asked me if I could have Yoshioka "recommend" such a Security Force based on his contacts with former Special Operations personnel."

"But what actually happened is that based on my previous association with high-profile security personnel during my trips to the United States, I wanted men I knew and trusted for the job, and so I handled the matter myself."

"I see, so you contacted Laidlaw because you knew Andy." The American said nodding his head.

"Not exactly." Soichiro said hesitantly as he glanced over at Yuriko who seemed to be embarrassed.

"While I did know Andrew worked there, that wasn't the only reason your Security Company was hired."

"Oh, then why were they hired then?" Shizuka asked leaning forward with Alice sitting quietly on her lap.

"This is embarrassing,…" Soichiro said clearing his throat. "But my actual reasons for contacting your firm were purely personal."

"The main reason your firm was hired is because one of the men assigned to inspect that pipeline is a family member." Soichiro explained. "He is the son of my brother-in-law, who is the General in the JSDF that I just finished talking to."

"And because the previous team of pipeline workers had been killed,…" Soichiro added. "I wanted to take no chances with his life by hiring any of the local contractors in Africa whom I had never met before, so I decided that I wanted men whom I knew and could trust to protect him and the rest of his crew."

"And so as my wife just related to you, years ago Andrew had previously worked for us as my personal bodyguard, as well as Yoshioka-san's "Security Consultant" to try to improve our security capabilities here."

"However, since you are a friend of Andrew's, I'm sure that you must be familiar with the way he was after the death of his wife and baby?" Soichiro asked directing his question to the American.

"Yeah." The American said his eyes lowering. "Yeah, he told me."

"Because of that, I decided to keep tabs on him." Soichiro said. "And through my sources, I found out that he had moved to America and had found employment with an American-based Private Security Company owned by former American Special Forces personnel."

"And one of the founders of that company was a former DELTA Operative that I believe you may be familiar with, whom I had met myself years ago when he and his team were to provide security for my family and I, when we went to visit the American President and his family at Camp David."

"J.R." Soichiro said as the American looked at him, the wheels turning in his head.

"Yes, and at that time, the company he and his friends were trying to build was just getting started." Soichiro added. "And since J.R. and Andrew were both men I knew well and trusted deeply,…"

"You've gotta be kidding." The American said his voice filled with disbelief. "You bought into the Company?"

"Yes." Soichiro said with an embarrassed look. "I had my financial advisors discreetly provide untraceable financial securities for the company in exchange for any future services."

"You did what, now?" Shizuka asked confused as Saeko's eyes widened at Soichiro's words.

"Are you saying,…..?" Saeko said her mouth dropping in shock.

"That my husband and I are unofficially part owners of the Private Security Company your American friend works for?" Yuriko interrupted in answer to Saeko's question. "Well, technically yes."

"So that means your Jimu-san's bosses?" Shizuka asked a little confused.

"Officially,… no." Soichiro said straightening his tie appearing as if he were very uncomfortable with all the information he was divulging.

"Basically, the funding we provided was more of an investment into the company to help out the two men whom I considered trusted friends." Soichiro explained. "The only reason I did it was because I wanted to help give Andrew a fresh start."

"So you helped the company get off the ground, and when the time came that you actually needed their services, you discreetly recommended them to the Petroleum Company that you also partially own." Saeko said as Yuriko glanced over at Soichiro who seemed to be more embarrassed than before.

"Actually, it's much worse than that." Soichiro said with a cough. "No one other than my financial advisor and the men Mr. Trevino works for, and of course, the people in this room know anything about this, and it must not leave this room."

"The truth is,….." Soichiro continued. "When I said that I was asked by the Board to have Yoshioka-san "recommend" a Security Force to provide security for the pipeline engineers, the Board asked that the Security Force be one made up of men already experienced in "discretionary warfare", in order for there not to be anything leading back to the company if something should happen."

"And so when the arrangements were made that two teams of American "Private Military Contractors" were to fly to Africa and act as Security,…."

"I hadn't mentioned to the Board that the teams being sent were from a "Security Company" that I actually helped finance myself." Soichiro said as Saeko's jaw dropped.

"And since no contact was to exist between the Security Team and myself, I was not even aware that all of you were even in Japan until now." Soichiro said as the American looked at him stunned.

"You were afraid someone would find out?" Shizuka asked. "What's so bad about that? The Government sends soldiers to fight in different countries all the time."

"When the Japanese Government sends out its Military forces to fight in another country, it isn't the same as a single politician hiring "mercenaries" Marikawa-sensei." Yuriko explained.

"What we did would be a scandal that would completely ruin my husband's political career, not to mention his being arrested and brought before the Japanese Judicial System and having to answer for the charges brought against him for covertly funding his own "private army" made up of former British SAS, Green Berets, Delta Force, and Navy SEALs flying around the globe on covert operations at his beck and call."

"I KNEW IT!" A loud excited shout sounded from the doorway startling everyone as they turned towards their heads toward the source of the shout and saw Yoshioka and the rest of the teens all standing in the doorway, the teens still dressed only in their bathrobes and staring in shock after overhearing the conversation.

All of their faces appearing shocked with the exception of Kouta however, who looked like he had just won the lottery, his face split almost in two from the wide grin on his face.

"I KNEW IT!" Kouta shouted again triumphantly. "Being a fireman was just a cover! YOU REALLY ARE A SEAL!"

Everyone in the room then turned to look in astonishment at the American who suddenly groaned loudly and rolled his eyes.

"For crying out loud, I'm not a SEA_!" The American began to say as he smacked his forehead in frustration and then stopped himself mid-sentence as he suddenly seemed to take notice for the first time, of the heavy bandages wrapped around his entire head and then gasped as he felt nothing but cloth everywhere he touched.

"AW MAN! DID YOU GUYS CUT OFF ALL MY HAIR?!" The man cried out in horror and then sank back into Saeko's arms in resignation.

"Aw screw it, I give up." Saeko heard the man grumble as he sank back against her.

"Forgive me guys, I know I didn't earn the right, but to be honest, I've wanted to say this all my life." The American mumbled to no one in particular as Saeko leaned closer, trying to hear.

"Jimu-san? What did you say?" Saeko asked as a frown formed on her face at what the American said next that made no sense to her whatsoever.

"Hooyah." Saeko heard him say before the man then passed out in her arms.

"Jimu-san! Jimu-san!" Saeko shouted in alarm as she began shaking the unconscious man as Shizuka rushed up and checked his pulse.

"Marikawa-sensei, is he going to be alright?!" Saeko asked anxiously as Shizuka raised both of the man's eyelids and checked his pupils with a small penlight.

"Hai, he's alright Saeko-chan, he just passed out." Shizuka replied with a sigh of relief. "Help me lay him back down on the bed."

"Wait, we'll help you too Marikawa-sensei." Takashi said as all of the teens rushed forward to help, everyone gently placing their hands on the unconscious man and then lifting him up enough for Saeko to get up from behind him.

And then once she was free, they then helped Shizuka gently lay him back onto the bed as she began to examine him further.

And as they watched the children silently hovering around the man's bed with worried looks on their faces, Soichiro glanced over at his wife as Yuriko met his eye and then nodded her head.

It was exactly as she had feared as Yuriko watched the teens, including her own daughter, acting as if the American mercenary was a beloved family member and not just a kind-hearted stranger who had helped them in a crisis.

A closely-knit bond had definitely formed between the American, the children, and their school nurse over the past three days of terror, and all signs showed that the bond was only becoming stronger.

But what troubled Yuriko and her husband now was the fact that any further contact with him by the children was still inherently dangerous due to the paranoia of the frightened mob outside.

Not to mention the emotional damage being done to Saeko Busujima who was obviously becoming more emotionally dependent on him as well, Yuriko observed.

And as her husband glanced over at her, the brief look in his eyes told Yuriko that he was in complete agreement with her concerning the conversation that they had spoken about earlier.

That for the sake of the children's emotional being and general welfare all around, that the American should still be evacuated by the JSDF as soon as possible, if only to keep him and everyone around him safe from the still murmuring mob outside.

And Yuriko's heart dropped now that she could see exactly how deeply the children cared about the man, knowing how distraught they would be later to know that he was being sent away from them anyway.

"Marikawa-sensei?" Soichiro said interrupting his wife's troubled thoughts.

"Hai?" Shizuka asked as she reached for her stethoscope and blood pressure cuff and prepared to check the American's vital signs.

"If there's anything you need, let the guards outside know,…." Soichiro said. "And when he awakens again, please contact us immediately. My wife and I would like to speak to the both of you later."

"In the meantime, please do all you can for him." Soichiro said as he motioned for Yuriko and Yoshioka to follow him outside.

"Personally, I'd like to ask him how he managed to get out of those handcuffs as well, dono." Yoshioka said as he glanced over at the unconscious man.

"Indeed." Soichiro said with a smirk. "Please contact us as soon as he awakens if you please, Marikawa-sensei?"

"Hai." Shizuka said as she placed the blood pressure cuff on the man's arm and inflated the cuff as the teens watched anxiously nearby.

And as Saya's parents and Yoshioka turned to leave, almost as if reading their thoughts, Takashi suddenly stood up and opened his mouth to speak.

"Ano, Takagi-san?" Takashi asked a little hesitantly, still slightly intimidated by Saya's father.

"Is Jimu-san still under arrest?" Takashi asked as Soichiro turned to look back at him and then glanced at all of the teens who were staring anxiously back at him, awaiting his answer.

"From this point on, your American friend is no longer a fugitive of the State and is no longer considered as being under arrest." Soichiro replied. "And as such there is no need for any of you to be kept under guard anymore either, provided that none of you pull any more stunts like the ones all of you did earlier."

"However,….."Soichiro added. "Public paranoia over the belief that America has declared war on Japan and is responsible for this Contagion is still very strong, and due to the incident we had today, I would like everyone to remain inside the mansion for now."

"And the guards?" Rei asked pointing towards the two guards still standing at the doorway. "Is Jimu-san going to still be kept under guard even though you say he's not a prisoner?"

"In order to protect your friend here from any attempts on his life by someone outside who is determined to eliminate any Americans they see, the guards outside shall remain at their post." Soichiro replied. "They're there for his protection only."

"We can guard him too!" Saya said as Yuriko gasped in shock at her daughter's blunt remark.

"We'll be glad to take turns standing watch, Takagi-san." Takashi said. "That way we can be here to tell Jimu-san that he's not a prisoner anymore when he wakes up."

"Hai!" Kouta replied. "I'll stand guard as well, is it possible to get my rile back?"

"And my bokken?" Saeko asked.

"That's out of the question." Yoshioka said firmly. "Only authorized Security personnel may carry weapons on these premises."

"But what if they get past your guards?!" Saya said hotly. "Then what?"

"Saya! That's enough!" Soichiro barked as Saya balled up he fists and gritted her teeth in anger.

"Can all of you continue this conversation at another time, please?!" Shizuka said with a huff as she deflated the cuff fastened around the man's arm, the air coming out of through the relief valve with a loud hiss.

"I can't hear a thing with all of this shouting!" Shizuka snapped as she re-inflated the blood pressure cuff, attempting to take the man's blood pressure again.

"Of course Marikawa-sensei, my apologies." Soichiro said with a slight bow.

"We will discuss this matter later, young lady." Soichiro said in an angry tone at Saya who stared back at her father defiantly. "As well as your behavior towards your mother and I earlier today."

"Yuriko, let's go." Soichiro said as he turned away and walked out the door followed by his wife and Yoshioka.

"Soichiro-san, were you able to get through?" Yuriko asked as they walked down the hallway after the guards had closed the door leading into the American's room behind them.

"Hai." Soichiro replied. "I explained the situation, and fortunately, with everything that's going on, the search for the other American Security Contractors was no longer a priority with the JSDF anyway."

"So the search was called off then, dono?" Yoshioka asked.

"Actually, it was never really implemented." Soichiro whispered with a tired sigh, keeping his voice low so it wouldn't echo down the hallway and be overheard by the teens. "Once the Infected started attacking, the entire incident at the airport and at the park was never officially reported by the Police."

"You mean?" Yuriko said in shock.

"Yes." Soichiro replied in disgust. "These men were actually never officially wanted as terrorists by anyone."

"WHAT!" Yuriko said under her breath. "What do you mean? I thought these men were wanted by the authorities as dangerous fugitives and that there was a nationwide manhunt out for them!"

"That's what we were all led to believe, Yuriko." Soichiro said gritting his teeth.

"But after talking with Isorhoku, he said that after further investigation into the claims that an "American Strike Force" was running loose in Japan, his people reported that there had really been no orders sent for their capture by the JSDF, the Police, or any other Agency."

"Instead, what really happened was that things were blown out of proportion when some civilians had claimed to the local news media of witnessing a bunch of armed American soldiers running away from the Police in the park after the helicopter crash."

"And then apparently the media just hyped it up by saying that "An American Commando Unit" on an alleged secret mission had crashed in Tokonosu Park and then fired on the Police in an attempt to get away."

"But because of the chaos ensuing later that morning by the attacks by the Infected and the fact that none of the Police at the park ever called in that they were actually being fired upon by American Forces, the Police and the JSDF blew it off as a hoax due to public panic ensuing from the attacks by the Infected."

"The whole story was then also dropped by the media once the Infected began to attack all over the world." Soichiro added. "And my guess is that a story involving an even bigger plot by the United States to declare war on Japan made for better ratings than an unfounded attack by "American commandos" on Japanese soil."

"So everything said about those men attacking our country was just the media's attempt to get higher ratings?" Yoshioka said with disgust. "Unbelievable."

"And we all fell for it." Soichiro said his anger building. "We fell for it and believed all of the hype that this man was a dangerous criminal and our daughter's life was in danger."

"Not knowing that he was actually one of our own men." Yuriko said with a sigh.

"And now one good man is dead and several more were seriously injured for nothing." Soichiro said angrily.

For a long moment no one said a word, the great hall silent except for the sound of their footsteps echoing down the corridor.

"What should we do with the American contractor, dono?" Yoshioka asked.

"See to his medical needs for now and once the escort from the JSDF comes for him in a couple of days, we hand him off to them." Soichiro replied.

"What about the people outside who believe that we are at war with the United States?" Yoshioka asked. "They still believe there's a conspiracy going on between this man and our two countries, and might still try to take matters into their own hands."

"There is no plot, there is no conspiracy, and that man is no longer under suspicion." Soichiro replied a noticeable edge to his voice.

"He is a guest in my home, and will be treated as such." Soichiro said firmly. "Make sure no harm comes to him, Ken-san."

"Hai." Yoshioka replied.

"Soichiro-san? Did my brother mention if any of the other members of his team were located yet?" Yuriko asked.

"No." Soichiro replied. "No JSDF ground patrols have reported coming into contact with any other heavily armed foreigners as of yet."

"The normal procedure for a unit working covertly in a civilian environment that is suddenly compromised is to scatter and avoid detection, Yuriko-san." Yoshioka explained.

"So you're saying they could be anywhere?" Yuriko asked.

"Hai." Yoshioka replied. "We may never know what has happened to them."

Location: Northeast Quadrant of Tokonosu City

Time: Afternoon

Z-Day Plus Three

"KEEP FIRING!" Lt. Asuma Shinohara roared as he raised his pistol and fired at an Infected man in grey coveralls who had almost grabbed the shoulder of that increasingly annoying replacement machine gunner in his platoon, Private Noa Izumi.

Shinohara watched with grim satisfaction as the top of the large Infected dockyard worker's skull blew away from the impact of the 9mm round and the large man then fell to the ground just as the Infected man was about to grab Private Noa Izumi who was bound and determined not to leave her beloved .50 caliber M2 machine gun behind as the Infected began to overwhelm his patrol.

"IZUMI! CLEAR THAT DAMNED GUN AND GET YOUR SKINNY ASS OVER HERE BEFORE I KILL YOU MYSELF!" Sgt. Major Sakaki roared as he watched Private Noa Izumi trying to carry her beloved "Alphonse" with her as the rest of "Echo" Platoon tried to cover her haphazard retreat.

Azuma had been extremely reluctant to accept the tiny woman into his unit who been sent in as a replacement along with another raw recruit, a private Kyoko Otonashi , who had been sent in along with Izumi as a replacement medic.

While Shinohara had no problem with women serving in the JSDF or his unit either, having a woman whose weapon weighed almost as much as she did and a medic who had only completed half her medical training before being transferred to his platoon had not given Shinohara a lot of confidence in their abilities.

And the stress of having to deal with his two new replacements and the Infected at the same times, which were now dangerously close to overwhelming their current position, was giving him serious heartburn.

And now as he watched the tiny woman carrying the big 37 kilo machine gun in her arms like an infant while a swarm of Infected were on her heels, he wished he had never given in to Sergeant Major Sakaki's request for transferring the increasingly annoying little smart-ass trouble-maker into his platoon, who was now intentionally refusing to listen to his orders to drop her beloved "Alphonse" and run for her life.

"Echo" Platoon had already come close to having been overrun before by the Infected and had already lost some of their members during the first day of the Outbreak. And as the Contagion continued to spread out of control and the JSDF casualties mounted, Shinohara's platoon was then hastily put back out into the field with orders to take two replacements hastily chosen out of a group of volunteers on their way out.

And to his chagrin, Sergeant Major Sakaki had then showed up later with two volunteers that Sakaki had chosen himself, instead of taking the ones Shinohara's platoon had been assigned originally.

Shinohara was rendered speechless upon seeing his replacements for the first time, and wondered what it was that the old soldier had against him as he shook hands and welcomed his new "replacements", into the platoon, who both looked like they belonged in high school.

Cursing his luck, Shinohara smiled as he shook the hands of his two "replacements" was a combat medic trainee still in the middle of her training, and the other, a Logistics clerk who was to serve as their new heavy machine gunner for the big .50 caliber machine gun that "Echo" Platoon was manning on this particular stretch of road leading towards one of the few routes left leading towards the dockyards.

The obvious lack of combat experience had been a serious cause of concern for many of the other members of "Echo" Platoon who had served together for two years and were just barely getting over the loss of their comrades whom they had just lost on the very first day of the Outbreak.

But there had been little time to grieve for their fallen comrades or to complain about their new squadmates however, when the Infected struck seemingly from everywhere, as the members of "Echo" Platoon tried desperately to protect the thousands of refugees fleeing the walking death directly on their heels before they were forced to fall back, the small group of JSDF troopers unable to hold back the hordes of Infected coming directly at them seemingly without end.

Now cut off from any other units, hopelessly outnumbered, low on ammo, and unable to hold back the hundreds of Infected pressing in on them, Azuma had waited until the last possible moment to give the order for his people to fall back, giving precious time for the civilian men, women, and children to flee to safety.

And now as they attempted their own desperate flight to safety fighting fiercely every step of the way, Azuma cursed himself for not having made the call to withdraw earlier, realizing now in their increasingly desperate situation that he had waited far too long.

As the small band of JSDF troopers hastily abandoned their position and ducked down a side street to escape the thousands of Infected that had overrun their previous position, their hopes that they were almost home free were abruptly dashed.

As the JSDF exited the street they had ducked into, followed by Noa Izumi still struggling to keep up while still carrying her heavy burden, the small band of soldiers suddenly found themselves completely surrounded by a smaller, yet no less large horde of Infected that they were unable to fight through, as Shinohara fired his pistol at another Infected woman that had tried to grab Noa Izumi, the 9mm bullet blowing the woman's face off as she dropped like a stone.

"HIROMI-CHAN!" Lt. Takeo Kumagami yelled at her platoon's M60 gunner, one of the few personnel left in "Delta" Platoon who had survived nearly being decimated earlier that day and had linked up with Shinohara's "Echo" Platoon.

"GRAB THAT IDIOT AND DRAG HER STUPID ASS OVER HERE BEFORE SHE GETS HERSELF KILLED!" Kumagami yelled as she emptied the magazine of her Sig P228 at the horde.

"YOKAI!" Private Hiromi shouted as he moved forward firing his m60 from the shoulder in short bursts as he quickly moved up to where Noa Izumi was still trying desperately trying to carry "Alphonse" just as a half-dozen Infected surged forward to pounce upon her.

"NOA! GET DOWN!" Hiromi roared as he opened up with his M60-E3 and mowed down the Infected who were nearly on top of Noa as they were knocked backwards by the impact of the bullets.

And as the heavy rounds impacted the Infected, each of them came apart, splashing blood, body parts, and brain matter in all directions as the 7.62 rounds tore through their flesh chopping them up like a meat grinder as Hiromi fired the last half of his 100 round belt ammo into them on full automatic.

His weapon now empty, Hiromi wasted no time as he slung his weapon over his back and grabbed Noa by her harness and threw her over his shoulder kicking and screaming as Noa wailed over the loss of her precious "Alphonse" that she was forced to leave behind.

"ALPHONSE!" Noa screamed as her beloved .50 caliber M2 machine gun disappeared under the feet of the sea of Infected pressing forward.

"YOU MOTHERF_CKERS!" Noa screamed in rage as Hiromi ran back to the rest of the platoon as they fired all around him trying to cover him while Noa kicked and screamed and shouted epithets at the Infected behind them, enraged that she had to leave her weapon behind after she had fought so hard to be able to man one again.

"YOU BETTER HOPE WE ALL GET KILLED TODAY IZUMI!" Sakaki roared as Hiromi ran by him still carrying Noa over his shoulder. "BECAUSE IF WE DON'T, YOUR ASS IS MINE WHEN THIS IS OVER, YOU HEAR ME?!"

Noa however, had not heard the gruff old Sergeant Majors threat, as she watched her beloved "Alphonse" being kicked around and scraped all over the pavement by the feet of the Infected.

"Waaaaaah, Alphonse!" Noa wailed as Hiromi tossed her to the ground and then reloaded his weapon, and turned back to join the fight.

"She really has an unhealthy attachment to that weapon of hers!" Kumagami yelled as she fired her pistol at the crowd of Infected.

"You would too if you had been assigned to a clipboard since Boot, Ma'am!" Sergeant Major Sakaki said as he fired his shotgun into the horde, felling three of their number.

"Good point, Sergeant Major!" Kumagami shouted as she stopped to reload her pistol.

"I'm out!" The new medic Kyoko Otonashi shouted as another trooper handed her a spare magazine, as she then quickly reloaded, and continued firing single-shot into the horde as the troopers tried to fall back.

"Last mag!" Shinohara heard Private Ota shout as he slapped the bolt catch on his rifle and continued his rate of fire.

"Lieutenant!" One of the men in Kumagami's platoon shouted. "They're closing in on us!"

"OH SHIT!" The voice in Shinohara's mind screamed as he realized that the situation was now extremely grim with everyone in his command shouting that they were either running low of ammo or completely out altogether.

"Everyone's almost out of rounds and there's no exit!" Shinohara swore as the rest of the JSDF soldiers began to form up all around him, everyone preparing to make their last stand.

"Azuma-channnn!" Kumagami shouted to Azuma, still somehow managing to be flirtatious despite the fact that they had only moments left to live. "I'm getting low on rounds!"

"How low?!" Azuma shouted as he fired at an Infected woman wearing a rather skimpy outfit and blew the top of her head off.

"I always hated her singing." Azuma thought as the once famous J-pop singer fell to the ground.

"Last mag!" Kumagami shouted as she fired at a man in a tuxedo, blowing off the left side of his face as he continued to lurch forward.

"Me too!" Azuma shouted as he fired at another Infected and missed.

"F_ck me." Sakaki said under his breath as he pumped the action of his now empty shotgun and then seeing that he was out, reversed the shotgun in his hands and clubbed the nearest Infected in the face, smashing the Infected man's teeth, facial bones and cartilage into a bloody mess.

Cursing, Shinohara turned and took a quick look around his people trying to get a grasp of their situation and then realized with horror that they were all now as good as dead as some of his people like Sakaki, had also reversed their empty rifles and started using them as clubs, trying desperately to stay alive for even just a few precious seconds more.

Seeing their plight, Shinohara turned around and fired at the horde attacking his men swinging their empty weapons, trying to keep the Infected off his people as long as he could until the slide of his pistol locked back.

Empty.

"Oh shit." Shinohara moaned out loud as the world as the world around him suddenly exploded as a hail of gunfire rained down from directly above them.

The sudden loud roar of weapons firing on full auto from somewhere above their heads and echoing all around drowned out the sounds of the loud moans of the Infected pressing in on the soldiers of "Echo" and "Delta" Platoons as Shinohara and everyone else instinctively ducked as literally dozens of rounds tore into the Infected all around them.

The lethal mix of 5.56 and 7.62 rounds rained down upon the Infected like hail, blowing off chunks of flesh, separating limbs, and causing skulls to burst apart from the high velocity rounds that mangled flesh and sprayed blood everywhere as the Infected simply came apart and fell heavily in heaps all around the helpless JSDF soldiers.

The weapons fire had lasted only a few seconds in reality but seemed to Shinohara to have lasted an eternity until finally, the firing stopped and a sudden heavy silence hung over the JSDF soldiers as they began to brushed themselves off and breathed a sigh of relief at their narrow escape from death.

And as the JSDF soldiers stared in shock at the piles of bullet-shredded carcasses lying all around them, they all stood up and with ears ringing from all the weapons fire, looked up towards the rooftops where the firing had come from and gasped at the sight of who their rescuers actually were.

"Azuma-chan, we have company." Kumagami said tugging on Shinohara's shirt as Shinohara wiped the blood splashed across his face with his sleeve before opening his eyes and turned towards where Kumagami was gesturing.

"Oh shit, now who are these guys?" Shinohara said out loud as he looked up into the faces of perhaps over a dozen heavily armed men standing on the roofs of the second floor buildings on both sides of the street.

They were a mean-looking lot, and the Oakley sunglasses each man wore only made them seem even more intimidating as they stared down upon the helpless JSDF troopers who now no longer had a single round of ammunition between them.

Shinohara's eyes quickly scanned over each man, taking in every detail of the men who had saved them who were obviously not JSDF, each of them sporting beards, and dressed in a mixture of western style clothing and tactical gear, with no two of them dressed or equipped exactly alike.

Even their weaponry was a mixed variety, with most of the men carrying American-made, highly modified M4 carbines with at least a couple of them equipped with M203 grenade launchers attached underneath.

There were also two other men carrying M249 SAW machine guns, and one man standing with a German-made MP5 cradled in his arms, while Shinohara saw another man reloading an M60-E3 machine gun hanging on a sling.

And those men that were not reloading their weapons were slowly sweeping their weapons back and forth over the heads of Shinohara and his men ready to shoot any other threats that approached the JSDF troopers.

At least, that's what Shinohara hoped they were doing as the M60 gunner charged his weapon and brought it to his shoulder sweeping back and forth like the others.

"My guess?" Kumagami replied in a whisper interrupting Shinohara's thoughts. "From the way they're dressed and the variety of weapons they're carrying I'd venture to say that they're American Special Forces."

"I concur with Lt. Kumagami, sir." Sakaki said under his breath. "Those beards and the weapons and gear those men are carrying are a dead giveaway that they're definitely not regular U.S. Army."

"Are all of you people, alright?!" The biggest man in the group called out in English interrupting them as Shinohara looked up at the sound of his voice.

The man was a giant. Broad-shouldered with a powerful chest and heavily muscled arms, the man had the appearance of a Viking, and just looking at the man Shinohara was glad that this man and the men with him were not hostile.

Hopefully.

"Yes, we are!" Shinohara shouted back in English as he glanced over at Kumagami. "Thank you for helping us, sir! I'm Lt. Azuma Shinohara and this is Lt. Takeo Kumagami of the Japanese Self Defense Force."

"Our pleasure!" The big man called back. "No problem Lieutenant, we just happened to hear your weapons fire and saw your situation and figured you could use a hand!"

"Well, that's an understatement." Kumagami said under her breath as Shinohara shot her a dirty look.

"Thank you again sir, we're in your debt!" Shinohara called back to the big man.

"By the way, are you American Military by chance?" Shinohara asked as he and the rest of the JSDF soldiers looked up at the heavily-armed man staring back at them behind his Oakley shooting glasses.

"Captain John Ross Wallace, U.S. Army Special Forces, at your service, Lieutenant." The big man said after a moment's pause. "And these men with me are members of my team."

"You forgot to mention "retired", brother." Captain Chris Adkins, leader of BLUE Team who was standing right next to the leader of GREEN Team, whispered with a chuckle.

"Shut up, Chris." Captain J.R. Wallace growled as Chris and all of the men standing on the roof around him chuckled as well. "They don't know that."

"Yeah, but what happens when they figure out the truth, boss?" Glen, the former "Nightstalker" pilot said as he pulled the empty magazine of his MP5 and replaced it with one of his last few mags. "And, that we're just about out of ammo ourselves?"

"There you go with them negative waves again, Glenn." Ben, the medic of BLUE Team said rolling his eyes. "Why don't you try to think positive once in a while, dude?"

"I am thinking positively Benji, m'lad." Glenn said his voice filled with sarcasm. "And I strongly think that when our JSDF friends down there realize that we're not who we say we are and that we're practically zip on ammo too, that we're positively f_cked."

"Always the optimist, aren't you Glen?" Chris said with heavy sarcasm as he looked back down on the battered group of JSDF troopers staring back at them.

"What do you wanna do now, brother?" Chris asked directing his question to J.R. as the big man gave a sigh. "We can't just leave them here all alone without any ammo and no way to defend themselves, bro."

"I know." J.R. said as he looked at the two young officers staring back at them, waiting for some type of response.

"And we both knew exactly what we were gonna end up doing the moment we decided to open fire and save that bunch of kids down there." J.R. replied as he pulled out the empty magazine in the magwell of his M4 and replaced it with another.

"You sure?' Chris asked as a thin smile formed on his lips. "Even if it means sitting out the rest of the zombie apocalypse in a Japanese prison after they find out who we really are?"

"I'd rather do that and be able to live with myself afterwards." The big man replied. "Turning my back on a bunch of scared kids without a means to defend themselves in this mess just doesn't sit well with me."

"Me neither." Chris admitted with a nod of his head.

"Just the same, the rest of the boys have a right to make their own choice." The former Delta Force Captain said. "So let's hear it."

"We were with you when you decided to turn around and help these people, boss." Patrick the explosives expert of GREEN Team said. "We're with you now, no matter what happens."

"Same here." Ben the medic of BLUE Team said.

"Yup." Glenn growled in agreement.

And after a few brief hand signals to the men across the street, one by one, each man gave his answer until all team members had made their decision known.

Each man would stay with the team, and they would all escort the battered JSDF trooper's home regardless of the outcome afterwards.

While each member of BLUE and GREEN Team were a mixture of both former American and British Special Operatives, each of them having served with different units all over the world, their decision to remain as team despite the possibly grim outcome awaiting them was based on a bond forged by many years of combat experience in small closely knit units.

But their decision to stand together as a team now spoke volumes to the man who ultimately led them all, who was greatly moved by the decision of his men to stay the course with him.

Although in truth, knowing his men as well as he did, and trusting completely in each and every one of them, there had really been no doubt in the former Delta Force Captain's mind what the final decision of his men would be.

But even so, he was greatly moved by their decision to stay, and he could not help but let his men know how he felt.

Although unlike what you see in the movies, men in such closely-knit units do not give rousing, heartfelt, speeches designed to inspire men to perform great acts or praise their loyalty and devotion to the cause.

Instead, men in such small, close-knit, units have an entirely different way of showing their gratitude to their men.

"You guys are f_cking crazy." The former Delta Force Captain growled as a slight smile formed on his lips."I don't know why the hell I hang out with any of you suicidal psychos."

"Probably because we work cheap, mate." Steve, the former Australian SAS sniper on GREEN Team retorted.

"That ain't no shit." Bobby, the Heavy Weapons expert on BLUE Team said with a frown. "Sure as hell ain't getting paid for this OP, that's for sure."

"We're not?!" Steve said in mock horror. "Bloody hell, I might have to re-think my decision."

"You both have to actually do some work first in order to get paid, boys." J.R. said, a huge shit-eating grin forming on his face.

"F_ck youuuu." Bobby and Steve both growled in mock anger as the men around them laughed.

"Alright ladies, knock it off already." J.R. said quickly growing serious. "Everyone do an ammo check and let's saddle up and get these people back to their base before it gets dark."

"Roger that." Glenn said as he slapped the bolt on his MP5 with a loud "click" as the bolt slammed forward.

"Head 'em up! Move 'em out!" Chris called out as a couple of the other men began singing the theme song to an old TV show from the 1960's called "Rawhide", a show about cattle drives in the Old West starring a young Clint Eastwood.

"Hey, knock it off you guys." J.R. said with a chuckle. "You'll piss our JSDF brethren down there if they realize you're talking about our escorting them back to their base being like we're herding cattle."

"You got it boss." Steve said as he looked down at the JSDF troopers still looking up at them.

"Yaah!" Steve hollered and then made the sound of a whip cracking as J.R. threw an empty 7.62 case at him as the sniper from BLUE Team dodged it and laughed as he ran towards the door leading to the fire exit stairway and ducked inside.

"You think those people have any idea where Andy and Jim might be, Johnny?" Chris asked J.R. as he noticed a frown forming on his friend's face.

"I dunno." J.R. replied with a sigh. "Knowing Andy, he's probably already on a flight back to the U.K. popping back a few pints as we speak."

"But Jim,….." The former Delta Captain began letting the unsaid statement hang in the air.

The leader of BLUE Team gazed at his old friend and nodded his head knowing what the leader of GREEN Team was thinking, and knowing full well that nothing he said would ease his friend's troubled thoughts.

In an effort to escape both the panicked weapons fire of the Police behind them and the frenzied clutches of the Infected coming from all sides, both teams had scattered using the confusion of the attack on the Police as a diversion to get away. A tactic often employed in covert operations to ensure that at least some operatives who had been compromised in the field would make it to safety.

However, as each man split off to follow his own escape and evasion plan giving each of them the best chance of reaching the American Embassy by splitting up, no sooner had any of them run more than two blocks when all of them came to realize to their horror, that almost the entire area was infested with the Infected and there was no way out.

And now with the noise of all the weapons fire coming from the Police drawing the Infected directly towards them, the men of both teams had then been forced to re-group and fight through the horde, expending much of their precious ammo in doing so.

And for the past two days the small band of mercenaries had been avoiding contact with both the Infected as well as any of the civilian population, which had been no easy task with the thousands of panicked civilians stampeding everywhere with the Infected following closely on their heels.

Concealing themselves in abandoned buildings and traveling over rooftops, and through back alleys, the remaining Laidlaw mercenaries had managed to avoid detection.

But now on the third day of the Outbreak, they were quickly running out of ammo as well as options.

But what had been weighing most heavily on J.R.'s mind was the loss of their two friends, and Chris could see as he looked over at his former teammate in Delta Force, that what was really bothering his friend was the loss of the civilian medic on his very first Op with them.

An Op that was supposed to have been extremely low-risk even by "normal" mercenary standards.

While none of the former Special Operations men had ever truly considered any "contract" they took as a "cake-walk" and thus make the often disastrous mistake of underestimating the possibility of unforeseen circumstances occurring,

This particular mission of guarding a crew of petroleum pipe-line workers from the local tribesman who had already been run off recently by their revenge-seeking neighbors, was not supposed to have been high-risk at all, period.

The risk of anyone even spotting a local tribesman herding cattle much less firing a weapon at them was highly unlikely. And the chance of anyone getting hurt especially with the number of men being taken on this mission as well as all of the other assets they had on hand provided for them by their exceptionally generous "client" should have been next to impossible.

In short, the mission should have run much more smoothly than most of the ones they had deployed on before and could not have been foreseen to have become the disaster that the trip had actually turned out to be.

"Ben said he last saw him trying to help the local P.D. get away from the Infected." Chris said breaking the silence trying to console his friend. "You never know, maybe he was able to get away. He's not a kid after all, buddy."

"Maybe." J.R. replied, the tone in his voice betraying the fact that he wasn't convinced that the former fireman had survived the attack.

"Of course his chances of getting away would have been better if he hadn't turned back and tried to be a hero." J.R. said as he threw a spent casing angrily across the street. "Never should have given that order to scatter."

"Don't go blaming yourself for that, bro." Chris said as J.R. glanced over at him. "It was the right order to give and you know that."

"Jim was no fresh-faced grunt out of "Boot" Johnny." Chris said as J.R. listened quietly.

"He was a 45 year old fireman who pushed himself to be like one of us and he knew the risks when he signed up." Chris added. "And he made his choice when the bullets started flying."

"And as much as Jim wanted to be one of the team, I guess the fireman part of him just couldn't turn his back on someone in trouble, and he turned back instead of hauling ass like he was supposed to." Chris said as J.R. nodded his head.

"It ain't your fault, brother." Chris said as J.R. looked back towards the young soldiers on the street still nervously awaiting a response. "You can't blame yourself for what happened."

"Yes it is, Chris." J.R. said as he waved his hand trying to get the attention of the two JSDF officers still staring up at them from the street.

"I'm the one that decided to hire him, remember?" The former Delta Force Captain said with a heavy sigh as he leaned over the parapet of the roof to shout at the soldiers below.

"What are they doing up there?" Kumagami whispered as Shinohara gazed at the armed men talking quietly to each other above them and then suddenly seemed to be joking around and laughing.

"You got me, but it's safe to say that they're holding all the cards right now." Shinohara replied as the big American who had spoken earlier suddenly waved at them.

"Lieutenant Shinohara?!" The American Captain shouted as Shinohara waved back.

"Yes sir?!" Shinohara yelled back.

"Lieutenant, have your people stand fast, we'll be down there shortly to escort you and your people back to your base!" The American Special Forces Captain said as he and the rest of his men withdrew from the rooftops and walked back into the building, no doubt headed for the same access way they had used to get into their elevated position inside the building to get back down to the street below.

"Well, guess we'll have to rely on them to get us back to the FOB." Shinohara said. "This is gonna suck when everyone sees us coming into base with no ammo and a bunch of hairy-faced Americans escorting us back."

"Especially when Col. Goto and Nagumo find out." Kumagami said with a grimace. "She'll be giving us shit about our screw-up, and he'll just laugh his ass off at us as she does it."

"Don't remind me." Shinohara said with a grimace.

"Sonuvabitch!" Azuma and Takeo heard Sergeant Major Sakaki suddenly growl loudly in disgust as they both turned around to look at him.

"Sergeant Major?" Azuma said as he watched Sakaki glaring at the spot where the group of heavily armed men had been standing. "Is there something wrong?"

"Americans." The old warrior spat as he continued to glare at the soldiers looking down at them from above. "We just had to be saved, by a bunch of hairy-faced, trigger-happy, yee-hawing Americans."

"Damn American cowboys." Sakaki growled as he slung his shotgun over his shoulder and then fished a cigarette out of a pack he had pulled out of a pouch on his tactical vest and lit up using a stainless steel Zippo, inhaling deeply before speaking again. "Every one of them thinks he's John Wayne."

"I'll never be able to look myself in a mirror again, after today." The old soldier grumbled as he walked past Shinohara and Kumagami, shaking his head.

Author's Notes:

When I first wrote "Last Alarm" I had opened up with "The Bridge" and introduced the JSDF soldiers of "Echo" and "Delta" Platoon who were based on the characters from the anime "Patlabor".

In this chapter I came full circle because I wanted to re-introduce those characters and also cover what had happened to the rest of the Laidlaw mercenaries as well.

In the anime and the manga, nothing was ever mentioned about Saeko's father other than he traveled overseas and was Soichiro's sensei.

So being a huge fan of "The Last Samurai", I used actor Hiroyuki Sanada as my model for Saeko's father.

His skill with a sword and his portrayal of the character "Ujiyo" in the film inspired me to use him for my fanfic.

A lot will be happening in future chapters as thing heat up so stay tuned.

The next chapter will be back at the airport as things start to go south over there as well.

When I first started this story, what was posted here was in actuality, a "rough draft".

Even though I had a story to tell, I had no clue on exactly how to use a computer to do it, plus, there were many other mistakes such as capitalization and other errors that I made.

And when I looked back at my old chapters, I realized that I've come a long way in my writing, and that my early chapters were extremely crude by comparison.

As a result, in between writing new chapters, I decided to go back and fix the mistakes I made in the early chapters I first posted, as well as add to the story to make it more enjoyable to read starting with Chapter One "The Bridge", which has been updated from its original 5000 words to 8900 words.

Please bear with me as I update the past chapters

And as always, thanks again for your support!