Ch. 10
Upon unanimously agreeing on how to execute our plan, Soul and I went off to meet with the the band and rehearse. We met them in some dingy apartment building a few blocks away from our hotel after we stopped at a nearby music shop to pick up a keyboard and a guitar. The band was called 'Knights of Gallowmere' and they were a cover band that played various styles of music. The band consisted of five members; Eddie the drummer, Rob played bass, Johnnie was their only guitarist , and two vocalists, Todd and Krista. At first they were skeptical that Soul and I couldn't play, but we proved our worth and thus they were impressed. We then spent around two and a half hours deciding which songs to play, and then practicing nonstop. It was 8 o'clock by the time we finished practicing, and Soul and I were exhausted. We parted ways with the band, and went back to the hotel to meet with the others. While on our way back, Soul and I spoke so that we may know a little more about each other.
"Hey Vlad, how do you think this whole mission is gonna go?" I shrugged in reply, and maintained eye contact while responding: "To tell the truth. I'm not too sure. I can only hope things go well, and neither the band members or any of us get hurt." He nodded and followed up with another question; "How did you learn to play the guitar like that?" I grinned with pride as I told him, "I taught myself to play. Sareena gave me my first guitar when I was 13, and I learned on my own." In response, I asked him, "When did you begin to play the piano?" "I started when I was 5. But I've never really liked to play in front of other people because I didn't think I'd ever be as good a musician as my brother. Up until tonight, the only other person who has ever heard me play is Maka." "Well that's quite a shame, because you clearly have talent." "Hey, what styles of music do you like?" I replied, "I have a handful of favorites, but my top two are rock, and heavy metal." "What about you?" I asked. "I mainly like jazz and some rock. Heavy metal isn't really my thing" I merely chuckled at his answer. His next question abruptly erased my smile "You mentioned someone named Sareena. Who is she?" I sighed before answering, "She was many things; my Meister, my best friend, and the love of my life." "Was? What happened? Did you guys break up or something?" "No. Nothing like that. We actually were really happy together. Four years ago, we were sent on a mission, of which afterward I was actually planning on proposing to her. Lamentably, she died during our fight. We initially were sent to fight and kill one witch, but we didn't know we'd fall into a trap and fight against three other witches. We were able to kill three of them, but the last one proved to be too much." I glanced at Soul who was shocked by what I told him. "I'm sorry, Vlad. Did you at least kill the witch who took her life?" "Yeah, I did. It took some time to hunt her down, but I got the satisfaction of killing her with my bare hands. The sad thing is, even though I avenged her death, I still feel a void due to her absence." Soul gave a sad smile and said in reply, "She must have been an amazing person." I nodded and told him, "Perhaps someday, we'll share a beer, and I'll tell you about how her and I first met." I then pulled my jacket hood over my head and bowed my head so he wouldn't see my tears while walking the remainder of the way in silence.
We returned and saw everyone gathered around in the living room eating burgers, fries and milkshakes while laughing at who knows what. "Hey guys, I hope you're hungry," Liz said. "The girls were impatient, and getting hungry. So rather than wait we decided to order dinner. I hope you don't mind," Kid said. Soul walked over to join them in their carefree banter while I ignored the invitation. I walked out to the balcony in silence with my head bowed down, and closed the doors to smoke. I leaned against the railing, exhaling a long cloud of smoke while staring up at the star-cluttered sky. Although I usually found tranquility by merely looking up at the stars and moon, there was no serenity to be found for my mind was plagued by many thoughts. I continued to feel uncertainty regarding the outcome of tonight's mission. The thought of anyone of them getting killed or even hurt left me profusely apprehensive. I stole a glance at each of them and silently vowed to keep everyone safe; no matter the cost. My thoughts were interrupted by Liz who was knocking on the glass doors with a look of genuine concern. I motioned for her to come outside and she did.
"Hey, aren't you going to eat with us?" "I appreciate the offer, but I'm not really hungry. "You've been really quiet since you and Soul came back, is something wrong?" "There's too much on my mind right now that's kept me from having an appetite." "Oh yeah? Like what?" "Mainly assessing how tonight will go, the great responsibility I have of assuring everyone's safety, and faint nervousness about the performance Soul and I are putting on tonight." She was silent for a while taking in the magnitude of my inner conflicts. She then smiled and spoke. "Vlad, you don't have to worry about us so much. We're not kids, it may not seem like it, but we can protect ourselves against the worst of enemies. It's great that you want to make sure everyone is safe, but the best thing you can do is have confidence. In yourself as a leader, and in us as your partners. I was surprised by how effective her words were in relieving me of my doubt and panic. She noted my look of grim dread was gone and was replaced with a smile. "That's the spirit, now come inside and join us before Black Star and Ragnarok eat whatever is left." I snuffed out my cigarette and walked inside taking off my jacket and sat on the couch next to Soul and Crona.
I turned to ask Soul how he was feeling about performing in front of unsuspecting targets. He grinned before speaking, "Being all sneaky isn't really my style, but I can't wait to see the look on their faces when they realize they're in for a trap." I turned to face Black Star and said to him, "Hey, don't forget to steal the show, Shinobi." He in reply laughed and said, "Ha! They'll be blinded by how bright I shine." "Yeah, I'm sure they will." I looked down and saw there was only one burger and a small handful of fries left. I was going to reach for it when Crona who was sitting next to me, and also had the same idea beat me to it. He panicked briefly but I gave him a small pat on the back and said. "Go ahead, Crona. Take it. I'll eat something later." "A-are you s-sure?" "Of course. Now dig in. We need you at one hundred percent if this is to go smoothly." While Crona nibbled on his burger, I glanced at Kid and asked, "How's your aim?" He replied confidently, "Accurate and lethal. But why do you ask?" "Because if Black Star's gonna take out the VIP, we could certainly use a great diversion. I'll give the signal, and when the time comes, open fire."