Nomad, Shin's Story

by Dark Ryuu

Growing up, Shin (Toy) always wanted to do the right thing for everyone that he could, especially those in need. But can he keep from losing sight of himself, his family, and his friends, especially his elusive best friend, Lyla, and new partner in life, Komari? A prequel to Step Toward the Future and Legacy, an alternate universe crossover between all games.

18. New Set of Eyes

Chapter 18: New Set of Eyes

Author's Note: WARNING: Hateful language from an enemy character.
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Yagami Shin wasn't certain where they were taken. It looked like an underground bunker about two hours from his home in the middle of nowhere. Nauseous, Shin took a deep breath when the black non-descript vehicle pulled into a lower level garage. Following four stoic officers that said nothing to him this entire time, he entered a sterile almost office area.

He couldn't help smile to see Yamada Komari sitting at the table. She smiled smugly at him as he took a seat where his name plate was, to her left. Itoh Kasumi was to her right, her eyes closed. Well then. "Yamada. Itoh."

"Yagami" Komari nodded as he sat.

Glancing down at her leg, he felt that gut punch to see just one limb. She slapped his arm, muttering under her breath, "Look, we got away with it but I couldn't explain me randomly having a prosthetic, right?"

Oh yea, true. He nodded and she shot him a leer, mouthing 'did you get her?'. Shin smiled some and nodded. Sort of.

Koike and Soga were shuffled into the room and…well, Shin shouldn't spread an ounce of judgment and he wasn't but they looked like hell. Soga had a notable pallor and Koike had gained a lot of weight, understandably. The two settled across from them, silent. Shin…may have actually been lucky.

Teramoto Ken and his partner, Dorey, walked in holding several manila folders. "Men, women, I thank you for all your service and sacrifice, first and foremost. We've dealt a major dent to the Zech's intentions due to all you've done. After I debrief you, you'll be meeting with General Yoshifumi."

Oh…wow, the General? Shin frowned as the folders were passed out by Dorey, Teramoto sitting at the head of the table. "You've probably followed the news—might have even thought 'why in the hell did we just move two weeks ago?'."

"Crossed my mind" Komari said dryly.

"Well, we didn't. We moved around five days after we recovered you all."

…Oh. They all looked up, a bit baffled. So…why did it take two months? Teramoto cleared his throat, folding his hands, "…Listen to me carefully. I know some of my soldiers at this table aren't going to take this well."

Oh God. They were all dead. They couldn't save any of them. Komari pat his hand under the table, her face stolid. "What occurred, Colonel?"

"Yamada, Yagami, you located ten locations—a majority. However, three of them? Three of them were brand spanking new and weren't even on our radar yet—there were fifteen that were on our radar. Basically, that leaves eight outstanding. You found seven of the fifteen we were looking for."

…Shit. Shin swallowed that as Komari looked…aggravated. "With all due respect, Colonel, Yagami and I weren't looking for anything. We were just trying to get rescued and happened to find those ten along the way. We weren't on a mission to locate camps. I hope that's not some knock against us because we didn't find the eight other camps we didn't know existed whatsoever."

"Not at all, Yamada" Teramoto assured, "But, having dealt with the Zechs, I think most of us know what that means."

Ill, Shin squeezed his temples, "…Because you infiltrated the ten we found, they probably have evacuated the other eight."

"We only can presume. We just can't wander around there to locate them either though, so, we may have to cut our losses."

'Cut our losses'? There were people there! Before Shin could protest, Dorey turned on a projector. The pale haired man looked nonplussed as he placed a transparent slip on top of the glass surface. "With the intel you were able to recover, Yamada, Yagami, we were able to retrieve 73 percent of the captives from the infiltrated camps."

…73 percent? Staring, Shin shivered. He…didn't want to be the one to ask. It was eating at him and he prayed someone else did. Komari blinked languidly, "…The other 27 percent were casualties, I take it."

"Unfortunately."

Fuck. Fuck. Komari looked at him softly, murmuring, "Shin, 95 percent of our trained military were killed out there. 73 percent isn't ideal because people died but that's…that's pretty good. You saw what those people were up against—we were better off than them. I guarantee the Zechs weren't giving them food nor water."

"Indeed, Yamada. At least ten percent of that 27 weren't DOA but the damage done to them was irreparable upon recovery."

Numbers. They were speaking of people as numbers. Koike looked…passive though asked: "…Did you catch any Zechs to charge them for all this?

"The roundup of the Zechs was very impressive" Dorey nodded, "They're all in prison right now awaiting initial review."

… "Can we get any of them to flip?" Shin muttered.

Teramoto raised a brow, clicking a pen, "What do you mean?"

"Can we get any of those prisoners to flip on the other eight locations? I understand that they might have been evacuated but there stands a possibility—at the very least, we can collect intel."

"You volunteering?"

…Was he? Shin's eyes closed some, leaning back in his chair, "…I guess we should get through this first, sir."

"Of course. Itoh, Koike, Soga, you have completed your mission. The Army thanks you for your service. Given the nature of your circumstances, we are offering you three the opportunity to end your commission and return to civilian status with veteran benefits. You may also return to service after a mental and physical examination. Should you be found to be unfit, you will be placed in the aforementioned category. At this junction, we would like to offer you the option" Teramoto said, sliding a few pens across the table.

Oh. Koike and Soga took the pens, eagerly signing the paper in the packets with their names printed across them. Shin didn't need to hear what they chose, the former…was a very sweet deal.

Itoh's arms were crossed before she sighed, cutting her eyes towards their commanders, "Is there a particular reason you didn't give options to Yamada or Yagami?"

Oh yea. "Unfortunately, they're not completely done. We need you both to do press."

Pardon? "Press?" Komari glared, "You want us to go out and answer a bunch of interview questions? We're not fucking celebrities."

Yea, Shin was not trying to be on the firing line of questions about this. Dorey looked aghast, "But you are. Please, we have…checks and balances to meet with our coverage of atrocities."

"I feel you could relate a bit, Yagami. If you weren't too young to notice, that is" Teramoto said rather absently, staring at the ceiling.

…

Shin sucked his cheek, Komari looking to him questioningly. It was top tier news for a time. Until the coverups. Until it was no longer talked about. Until it was pulled from public information. Until it just didn't happen. It helped keeping him from finding out. It hurt that a crime that malignant could be swept under the rug.

"…Fine. I'll do it."

Komari groaned, rolling her eyes, as Shin waved a hand, "I can do it by myself."

"No…if you go, I will go" she grumbled.

Kasumi was staring into space. Shin imagined that wasn't what the woman wanted to hear. However, she picked up the pen, muttering, "…I want to continue in the service. Whatever tests you need done, I'll do them."

"Excellent" Teramoto nodded, standing, "Dorey, why don't you get that worked up while I speak with Yagami and Yamada in the other room?"

"Yes, sir."

Shin stood, grimacing as Komari wheeled herself back. He took a deep breath as he kept in step beside her. "You really don't have to, Mari."

"Am I eager to be a spectacle on live television? Nope. But…well, I guess it's a part of the journey, right?"

Maybe. Sitting in a smaller room, Teramoto closed the door, sitting. "The General will be here shortly. Both of you? As far as the media needs to be concerned, you two were in a military facility for the last three months and your family was informed in the last few weeks. I wouldn't expect them to act like they haven't seen you—really, I'm impressed if they were able to fully carry on the façade this whole time."

Seriously. Komari nodded, "I'd prefer that. My community would be pissed if I said my dad's been harboring me for not days but months."

"Agreed" Shin nodded softly.

"Yagami…are you sticking with us?"

…God. Shin looked up, his throat dry. Perhaps I spoke too soon.

…But…there were more camps. The…job wasn't finished. Swallowing, he nodded shortly, "…Yes."

"You don't want to discuss this with your family first?"

"No…they're aware. Anyway, who knows if I'll pass your testing?"

Teramoto's brows rose before he rolled his eyes around. "…That would have been for the others, Yagami. We can rehabilitate you."

…Oh really? "…Their accomplishment of surviving isn't any lesser than ours just because we were crossing the desert, sir. They were taking bullets and out in the elements, just like we were. They can be 'rehabilitated' too."

Komari looked at him absently while Teramoto shrugged. "Yagami, I haven't come close to anything you five have been through. Itoh? Psych test, probably, but she can be rehabilitated too. If the other two had said they wanted to rejoin, probably the same. Your psych test was just now and your over enthusiasm to start flipping POWs for information."

…Oh. "That…doesn't make me stable, Teramoto."

"I should say not, Yagami" Teramoto replied, "But it doesn't make you broken either."

Shit. About to remark, he found himself pausing. Wait a minute. "…You've mentioned Itoh, Koike, and Soga, Teramoto-san. What about Yamada?"

Komari rubbed her brow, drawling, "Shin…"

He looked to her, baffled, before noting she hadn't opened her paperwork. Snatching it open, he glanced at the front page. It was only the decommission option. "What is this?"

"Yagami-"

Glaring hard, he waved the papers, "What is this? Where is Komari's option to stay in the military? Why does she only get one option?"

Teramoto leered, "Do I have to be terribly insensitive, Yagami, or can you perhaps figure that much out on your own?"

Fuck that. "If Komari is out, I'm out."

"Shin" she hissed.

"Yagami, not one accolade will be spared for Yamada. She was there with you and we fully recognize that. But you have to fully recognize that now? Now, after that experience, she is handicapped. She is at a disadvantage in a war game that requires full mobility. Even with a prosthetic, she will not have that."

Jaw ticking, he glared away. Fuck. Komari reached out and held his hand, giving it a squeeze, "It's okay, Shin. I have a lot ahead of me too, don't worry."

"…Be honest with me, Mari" he whispered, "If I had saved your leg, you got back here in entirely good shape, and we were sitting here with this paperwork and it had all the same options, what would you choose?"

"It's not the circumstances, Shin-"

"If, Komari."

She was annoyed, pulling away and grunting, "If in that now mythical possibility? Yes, I would rejoin."

"…I'll rejoin on one condition."

Teramoto groaned, rubbing his face with both hands. "Yagami, you have conditioned me to death, this isn't a hair salon."

Komari bit her lip as Shin sulked. "It can all be a wash, sir."

"What, Yagami?"

"I'll come back regardless, because that's…that's what Yamada wants me to do. However, first, I want you to give her the same rehabilitation treatment I'll receive on a compliant prosthetic and I want her to be tested at the same level for reevaluation as anyone else in three months. Should she fail that examination, so be it. However, I doubt she will" he said soberly, "Komari is a fighter and a soldier without that leg and I won't have it determining her capabilities when she was still saving my life after it was gone."

She looked startled while Teramoto stippled his fingers, staring at them absently, "…It's too dangerous, Yagami. Something happens to that prosthetic in combat, it's a liability on us."

"It's the same liability if something happens to my leg in battle, sir, I've been shot in both pretty severely" Shin countered. "I'm just asking you give her a chance and don't count her out yet."

"And…if I refuse?" Teramoto drawled.

Shin also shrugged. "I have other options, Colonel."

Teramoto gave him a look before his gaze directed to Komari. "…Yamada?"

"…I can't and won't guarantee anything, sir, but…I would appreciate the opportunity that Shin laid out, if it were given to me" she murmured.

"…Mm. I see. Well…it's not the worst 'condition' I've heard but we'll have to run it by General Yoshifumi first. You two are an ornery bunch even now, huh?"

Shin smiled some as Komari scoffed, "Duh, General. You ever cross a desert before?"

"Nope…but just know, you two might cross quite a few before all this is over and done with."

…Strange.

Strange how that plagued him for so many days and nights while he was sitting at home, questioning why he had survived, why he was given the mercy. He continued to feel like a monster, even to this very second, and he…he felt like he'd been lost in that desert for years now. Yet, somehow…he was okay to keep going now, knowing that…the job wasn't done.

…The right person for the job wouldn't desire to stay lost nor flee. No, running here wasn't the option.

…It would only be resolved when he knew, after all the blood and tears, after amending all the suffering, facing the parents of his monsterhood, that he could leave there and never have to return because the work was done.

Okay.

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Whoo boy. Maybe he was full of it.

Shin sat on a bench in a long, whitewashed hallways which led to the rooms where he, Itoh, and Komari were staying. After Koike and Soga resigned their military status, they were pretty much just chauffeured back out of here like, well, civilians. Shin saw the peace in their faces though and he was happy for them. There were other ways to help this crazy world aside from this anyway, if they wanted to.

When General Yoshifumi showed up within that hour, Shin almost panicked. This was the general of the ENTIRE army that he was meeting. However, the man that entered the room…was literally like the nicest person he'd ever met in his entire life and he was so confused. The man bowed to them heavily, shaking their hands and giving them the most gracious of compliments. When Shin, confused but resolved, posed the same conditions about Komari to him, the man gushed, "That very much can be arranged, if Yamada-san feels comfortable with that."

Oh…kay. And, next thing he knew, both he and Komari were tentatively SFC, or, Sergeant First Class. They'd both probably been gaping like idiots in horror. They just skipped like two or three pretty large steps. The General assured that if they could recover and complete recovery of the Prana territory, they would be promoted again and would have his word they'd move into Officer Enlistment meaning…Lieutenant and Colonel status.

As…great as that was, he wasn't sure he was comfortable just…skipping stages here. Komari had voiced the same when they were sitting outside, a bit alarmed. Like, every level meant something, it wasn't just like something to vault over. But…okay…he guessed.

Unsurprisingly, they weren't allowed to contact their parents again because this hadn't been one long drawn out trauma at all. They were sent to bed at around nine in the evening and to say he was no longer on that schedule was laughable. He hadn't been on that schedule in the desert, let alone at home when he was so plagued he didn't fall asleep until nine in the morning some days. Luckily, he had some pills but yeesh.

When he woke up at six, he pulled the formal dress uniform back on and he and Komari were once again driven in a fancy black Lexus to what appeared to be a conference hall. Oh. Right. Questions.

Shin sat beside Komari, already very annoyed because Komari was advised by one of the military women not to 'say too much'. Um, what? Komari had stared at the advisor before nodding once. Why? This wasn't breaking anything down if they complied! But hell, he wished she'd said the same damn thing to him.

"Was the most plausible plan to venture into the desert, unprepared?" asked a perhaps English reporter, the man drab and his face full of what appeared to be judgment.

"Sir, when you're not expecting to be shot out of the sky on a routine supply run, everything that occurs after, you're unprepared for" Shin answered dryly, about the tenth question asking in a different way and cadence 'well, was going into the desert the BEST option?'.

"But military protocol indicates to stay by the wreckage, as should have been reflected in your training."

Shin found himself daydreaming about if Koji and Nelly were up here. Koji would have jumped over the table they were behind and started punching this man in the throat while Nelly held him down. "Protocol indicates to remain by the wreckage, correct. However, in the event of extenuating circumstances, such as being ambushed by hundreds of enemy soldiers, it can be amended."

"And you both felt that was an 'extenuating circumstance'?" asked this man who'd probably never been trapped outside longer than a minute for any reason, disapproving.

"Hey, I got a question: what the fuck?"

Smirking, Shin rubbed his temple as Komari FINALLY grabbed the mic. Oops, he did have a 'Koji' up here. Komari's brow was pulsing as she glared. The reporter looked disgusted, "YOU'RE supposed to answer the questions, if that hasn't been clear."

"I'll do what the fuck I want and hearing fucking stupid as shit questions is getting me fucking pissed. 'Oh no, was your circumstances so bad that you broke protocol?'. Stupid ass BITCH, only FIVE OF US LIVED. The majority of THREE only survived because two of us LEFT. Yes, you dumb FUCK, it was an EXTENUATING CIRCUMSTANCE."

The man was gawking now as Shin smiled awkwardly, "Um…next question?"

The one that stood next looked like an American fellow, like one of those old Texan men with an oil company. He also seemed dismayed. "Now, what would you all say to those that are irate that you all didn't break in and free those Terrans in the camps, taking them with you?"

Shin took a deep breath. Oh. Komari was nonplussed, "Pay very close attention because this might go over your head: the desert is hot. HOT. You require WATER to stay alive in heat especially. We start a great exodus? You would need WATER AND SUPPLIES. Not to mention, the times that the Zechs just showed up? Well, guess what you have to do with a GROUP of nonarmed people? Protect them. And a crowd draws attention. And us stealing the reason they're out there would have definitely drawn attention. What we chose, while it bothered us to our core, was the best way for us to get them out of there, if we were to be found."

"And if you weren't found?"

"We merely expedited this process. Our army seemed very aware that there were camps in Prana" Shin answered.

"Well, perhaps…" the man scoffed, "If you'd had taken another soldier with you, you would have been more prepared to help those people then and there."

Now Shin was imagining HIMSELF jumping over this table and punching this man in the throat. Sitting up straighter, Shin folded his hands. "…I refuse to speak ill of the dead. Our group of a hundred shouldn't have been decimated. Not for…the Zech's atrocities which I'm feeling more and more is getting validated in this room as their 'right'. But I'll say this: the only reason ALL of us aren't dead is because Yamada had my back. There was no other soldier I would have selected before her and that's not up to question. We're sitting right here. We made it."

"And those that would say women shouldn't be in active duty for the very reason that they wouldn't be as efficient?" asked, SURPRISINGLY, a blonde woman snidely.

Komari stared apathetically as Shin smiled, clearing his throat. "In the spirit of my brothers and my best friend here…fuck them. They can go choke on a dick. Next question, please."

"Well, it wasn't the most…eloquent of meetings but you two haven't been trained to be PR agents."

After getting lambasted and flaming the living hell out of each other, the press conference came to a close and Shin was so on edge, he was teetering over. Komari had covered her face with her hands, seething. Teramoto had dismissed the reporters, now only the three of them in the room. Tapping his fingertips against the table erratically, Shin hissed, "…Am I to understand we're getting looked at as villains?"

How? There wasn't one question that wasn't ridiculing. Not one. His jaw grew taut as he snarled, "It was…120 plus degrees in that desert, Teramoto. We were walking on FIRE. Our bodies were having the water…vaporized out of them. We had no food—we had to KILL people. I didn't want a medal—I don't even want PRAISE, but I didn't expect to hear how much BETTER we could have done."

Komari dropped her hands, revealing her somewhat damp eyes. "…Forgive me if tears of rage seem particularly effeminate and unbecoming of the man's Army."

Shin rubbed her shoulder silently as Teramoto SHRUGGED. Oh, good, SHRUG. "You're going to always have detractors, you two. People that tell you how they would have done something when they haven't had to do anything even close once in their life nor will they, most likely. Don't let them get to you when the heat and Zechs didn't. They're dumbasses."

…Ugh. Easier said than done. "Ready for round two?"

Shit.

Alas, with the second round of reporters, it seemed a lot less…biased, like these people weren't secretly supporting genocidal maniacs. They asked general questions and about the experience. There was a Terran reporter that seemed a BIT up in arms though. They admitted they understood the methods he and Komari took but that they wished it were different. No, Shin agreed a hundred plus percent to that…

"Yagami."

After the third and last meeting with the press, Shin found himself sitting outside of the room on a bench, mentally…destroyed and drained. He wanted to go home. He…he finally wanted to just go home. The world was just as jacked up as his mind but at least he knew what he was dealing with there.

He looked up, startled, by the voice. It wasn't one that typically addressed him, at least, not for anything good. Itoh Kasumi appeared, wearing the same dress uniform except with a skirt, her long hair tucked in a bun underneath her cover. She stared at him heavily before slowly sitting on the opposite end of the bench. Well, now he was scared.

"…Itoh?"

Kasumi glared in front of her, her hands rested in her lap. "…I will never think it's necessary, nor appropriate, that Komari has a male friend. Especially one that she is so…taken with."

Okay… Kasumi muttered, "I tried everything. Everything. But you're unmovable in her sight. I tried to muddy your presence and instead only sullied my own. She told me I can go once this is over and she meant it. So, I suppose you can have her."

"…I have a girl. A girl I turned my back on because of things I don't understand. But she…is everything to me and, if she'll have me, I want to be her husband. That isn't Komari. I care deeply for the woman you love, Kasumi, she is irreplaceable to me. But she's not my girl and she won't ever be. And Komari is well aware of that. She has a girl too that needs to come to an understanding."

Silent, Kasumi finally scoffed, "…You'll excuse me if I don't believe you're choosing anyone over Komari."

Shin smiled at that. "You love her and place her highly. I do too. It's just on a different kind of shelf, one where you don't have to worry about me coming to move her."

"…Even if your girl doesn't choose you?"

If Lyla didn't want him… "If Lyla doesn't want me…I don't know if I'd bother with anyone again."

Kasumi pursed her lips, sitting up straighter, "…I don't know what it is that happened in the desert, only that Komari came back with a severe injury that has left her without a limb."

Grimacing, Shin nodded slowly. Kasumi quietly patted her knee, her face scrunching, "…But…she told me you put a lot of effort into making sure she got back alive at all. And she mentioned that you…spoke up to keep her from getting dismissed from the army and stuck up for her during the interviews when they insinuated her gender kept her from performing highly. It's too affectionate and suspicious."

He wanted to fall over. Full DAMN CIRCLE. Rubbing his temples, feeling a furious migraine, he droned, "Itoh…"

"Shut up" she huffed, "…If you mean…what it is you say—and it's Komari that has the utmost trust in you, not me- but…what you said back in the barrack was true. Love and mistrust aren't a combination for success and…if she trusts you, I will attempt to as well. And I…thank you for being able to help her get back alive."

Oh. "…Gladly."

"Kasumi, I SWEAR TO GOD-"

They both jumped as Komari wheeled herself from another room, still looking peaked from the interviews. "Ah, Komari-" blurted Shin.

"If you're giving him shit, Kasumi—I promise, I am NOT in the mood right now" Komari snapped.

Kasumi glowered and Shin smiled, waving his hands, "N-No, no, Komari. We were having a decent conversation, try not to mess that up, please."

Komari gave him a look of disbelief and he nodded to confirm. Kasumi huffed, looking away. Jeez…they needed…a lot of help. But, well…there was no denying there was something there. Standing, he patted Komari's shoulder, "You two should talk. I'm going to bed before my head explodes."

"…Thanks, Shin."

…Well, now that that maybe was resolved, what…about his own predicament? What…what was keeping Lyla trapped?

"Huh. You're pretty good on that."

"Hmm, I cheated a bit."

Yagami Shin strode behind one of the captains commanding the POW jail, a crazy a situation as any. He didn't have time to think about anything. After the interviews, they had to talk to newspapers, news stations, magazines—he hadn't spoken to his family in a week and a half and that was ridiculous. This…was going to possibly take up his life like this, wasn't it?

Well, he thought once all the propaganda fodder was done, they'd send them home. Nope, time for Phase 1. They took them to see the Zechian soldiers, the ones that, four plus months ago, were trying to kill them in the desert. Teramoto nodded, "You said you'd flip them. Flip them."

He meant…hypothetically. He didn't know how to interrogate or break anyone, he'd only been in the army for three years, damn. Komari walked beside him, wearing a prosthetic the army provided her. They had looked amazed when she moved rather fluidly before whispering that maybe 'Yagami wasn't wrong'. Nope. But just…cheated a bit.

"This one's name is Alfred" announced the captain, stopping outside of a door with a one-sided window.

Shin peered in, finding a maybe thirty year old man with brown hair and blank eyes on the other side wearing an orange jumper, his hands handcuffed to the table. "…He has information?"

"Per all the other soldiers that flipped the second we got them here, he has the most information. He just won't break down and say anything."

…Okay. The captain gave them the keys and a few files. "I'll take my leave. Short of outright murder, the sky is the limit. Good job to both of you and good luck."

Oh really? Komari nodded as the man left, leaning against a table. Flipping open the manila folder, Shin absently read the contents. "Alfred Cranston. Age: 39. Oh, former M16."

"Great, so he's James Bond" Komari snorted sarcastically, reading the same data in her copy.

"Closer than you think too. No family. Parents were killed in an accident…spent time in Desert Storm. No jail time…he's a tough case."

Komari yawned, setting the file down, before tapping her fist against her open palm, "Well, in that case, only one thing to do…"

"Stop it" he snickered, "We've been given full impunity to levy with him. Let's fly him back to the U.K."

"I beg the hell your pardon? This dude is out killing people and you want to just send him home if he gives us information?" Komari demanded.

Shrugging, Shin tucked the file under his arm, "We inform M16 and they formally charge him there for war crimes. He's off our books and he's looking at fifty years in the slammer with what we do have of his records."

"…It's a hard move" Komari muttered, "He should see judicial justice here."

"He should see justice in the Middle East where he committed these crimes. Which is another offer on the table, if you catch my drift" Shin murmured, going to the door.

"…Ah, gotcha. If it doesn't work, beating is Option C, right?"

Shin smirked, opening the door, "Sure."

"I already told you assholes to go fuck yourselves, yea?" snarled the bastard without preamble.

"My guy, you're the only one that fucked themselves in this room" Komari retorted wryly.

The fellow gritted his teeth as they took the seats across from him. "You're a bunch of desperate chinks. Sending kids in here to beg and plead. Go back to the hole you crawled out of, yea?"

"The fuck did you just call us?" Komari demanded, slamming her fist down on the table hard.

"A chink, you butch dyke-"

Shin clamped his hand over the man's mouth hard, shoving his head back. The garbage looked shocked as, like his starting declaration, the act came with no introduction. Gripping hard and squeezing his face, Shin stared at him evenly. "You'll stop your usage of that word now and cease insulting my partner here immediately before I suffocate the life out of your miserable body. Are we understanding or do you want to see what I'm capable of after slaughtering hundreds of your bastard friends?"

While he hoped Komari picked up to play good cop, she actually flipped open a switchblade, "The latter option is gladly on the table, motherfucker."

He glared. M16 trained, he wasn't going to be easily intimidated but he nodded. Of course, the second Shin moved his hand, the miscreant spat at them. Oddly, reflex alone? Well, reflexively, Shin punched him so hard between the eyes, he scared himself.

The man howled, screaming, "You bastard! You bastard!"

"Shut the fuck up" Komari snapped, grabbing his hair and slamming him cheek down into the table, "We're not fucking playing with you. We don't even have to enter records we ever picked your miserable ass up, we can make you disappear from this room. Where are the other camps?"

"Fuck you!"

Shin was already angry. "What do you want to happen here, Cranston?"

"For you fuckers to go to hell" he sneered.

Woah boy. "Okay, we go to hell. What happens to your ass beside coming with us?"

He grunted, turning his nose up. Shin leaned back, folding his hands, "All right, let me tell you what happens at this junction. You're wanted on two hundred counts of kidnapping, armed battery, homicide, and the war crime of genocide against a nonhostile population. You are currently sitting in a country that will not hold your trial—we will return you to Iraq where you'll be tried by the Terran Tribune."

"Those pussies won't do anything."

Komari glanced at the file, rubbing her face, "Actually, they want to set you on fire in the square until you expire, citing it is the crime you committed against several of their high clergy."

"Barbarians" Cranston muttered.

"I'm sorry…did you not hear that part where they want to do what you did to others?" Shin questioned sardonically, "They're barbarians but you're just pure and justified, right?"

"They're responsible for more suffering than you bleeding hearts are capable of accepting."

With a short laugh, Komari picked up her knife, "I dunno about that. I do know you bastards tried to kill me and my buddy here quite a few times and you severed eyeballs, fingers, toes, and hands to torture people so you're setting the bar pretty fucking high."

"Tell us where the camps are, we return you to the United Kingdom. They probably won't execute you" Shin proposed.

"My previous answer still stands: go fuck yourselves."

Shin leaned back, sucking his teeth, staring at this fellow who was unwavering. "…Strange. You're a parentless ex-M16 agent that doesn't want to go home. What's your secret?"

"I have no home."

"Maybe he is James Bond" Komari said sarcastically.

No…Shin continued to gaze at the man's unwavering face. Something came to mind. A story he thought he'd heard his father say from afar to his mother. Something about how every person had their weakness and monsters used it to their advantage.

…Was it okay if they were both monsters though?

"…Yamada, a moment."

She gave him a short glance but nodded once, standing and walking with him out of the room. "…I want to get Teramoto and I want him to give clearance to a guy. You've spoken to him before but he's able to piece things together fairly quickly. I think we can get him to flip willingly."

"A stab in the face is just as quick" Komari drawled.

"Nah…he's hardened. It's like stabbing us in the face to get answers, we'd just double down even harder. No, I think I have an angle."

Komari raised a brow as they walked to find Teramoto, her hands in her camo pockets, "What angle do you think we have against a monster like that, Shin?"

"…You ever seen Scooby Doo? It's an American cartoon."

"You're not the American Whisperer, asshole, I know Scooby Doo" she smirked.

"Of course" he winked, "…You ever get the underlying message?"

"They're all potheads?"

"No-o-o. Scooby and Shaggy, they believed every time that whomever they ran into, they were ghosts and monsters. But every time, they ended up finding out underneath that mask was a human being. End of the day, you, me, Cranston…there's a human being under that mask."

With a snort, Komari shook her head, "If we're going to dig for that man's humanity to make an appeal, Yagami, we might as well just let the Terran's burn him up. It'll be quicker."

"End goal."

"…End goal is the information" she muttered grouchily, "Just wished it wasn't coming from this piece of shit. But you really think your guy can figure it out?"

"Hmm…he's shown me he can figure out a lot of things."

Hell, after this…maybe he could help him figure her out.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Yagami-san, you can tell me: what REALLY happened?"

Torataro Louis was staring, wide-eyed, at him as they sat in a room with a computer the size of a truck. Shin was sitting across from him, Komari's legs propped up on the table. The woman blinked at Louis for a second before looking to Shin, "…He looks like the Super Nerds from Pokemon."

"Komari" Shin smirked, cutting his eyes at her, "Louis…let me tell you, man, it sounds crazy. It was crazy. But Komari and I crossed the desert and lived. We…uncovered the other thing we were telling you about before we left: the Zechs were trying to throw us off. They were in that area of the desert called Prana, not in Fenith."

Louis brows furrowed as he crossed his arms, staring Shin and Komari over, "…But statistically, it'd be IMPOSSIBLE. It's one of the hottest deserts on the planet!"

While Shin wanted to ask why Louis thought he'd lie about such an experience, he was honestly flabbergasted when Komari snatched up her pant's leg, showing off her false leg. "You want me to take off this IMPOSSIBLE leg I got because I was out in that desert to beat you with it?"

"…Just so special" Shin groaned.

Backpedaling, Louis blurted, "N-No, no, tha-that's okay. I believe you, just…that's so…so incredible! Superhuman, even!"

Yea… "Louis, I need your help. I know you're a scientist but I think…no, I believe you can get me some intel. I got you military clearance to help us find information on Alfred Cranston."

Louis frowned, looking up thoughtfully, "…Cranston. Cranston…"

After a moment, he snapped his fingers, "He was in Desert Storm with Brent Drake!"

Who? Both Shin's and Komari's brows furrowed as Louis went to work, typing on the computer. "His father, Bernard Drake, is credited with starting the Zechs' Initiative. Brent Drake, his only son, was said to have been killed by a Terran enemy…there was no particular PROOF he was killed by a Terran except his good friend, Alfred Cranston, said he was."

…WHAT? Komari looked startled, "…So…?"

"Hmm, from what I was able to piece together from information I…obtained, it wasn't an enemy soldier at all. The bullet wounds from the autopsy weren't congruent with the weapons the Iraqi soldiers were using at all. In fact, it wasn't the weapons the other side were using either."

What? Louis nodded, "It was a special weapon. Only certain agencies had access to it."

Komari stared before looking to Shin, her eyes narrowing, "…That our weakness, Yagami?"

"It's…a good excuse for a hanging" Shin said lowly, his chest clenching, "Anything on Cranston would be helpful, Louis. Deep interpersonal stuff. Family, friends, lovers…we need to get something important out of him."

Louis blinked at him. "…You sound a bit corrupted now, Yagami-san."

"I know. Just…don't think the cause can afford for me not to be a bit corrupted. I understand if you don't want to assist if you feel it's wrong."

"Oh, absolutely not, I completely want to!" Louis insisted, "Just glad you have a scope on it. I…I don't think others do."

Nope. The…okay one for the job. 'Right' wasn't appropriate. None of it was 'right'. He was preparing to blackmail a man to get to where his cohorts were keeping thousands of innocent people prisoner. It was messy and he hated it.

They…were the ones okay enough to get this job done, hopefully.

"Well, well, if it isn't the halfbreed and his wench?"

Shin entered the room quietly, Komari coming behind him, holding a boxy chunky phone. They sat across from Cranston, staring at him emptily. It'd been a day. A day too short in Shin's book. Alfred Cranston stared at them, smirking, his fingers crossed. "I figured it was strange to have a blue-eyed Jap. Must have been some American quim or randy gent that got their rocks off in one of you orients."

"How in the fuck do you manage to be that fucking racist?" Komari leered incredulously, "Is that some class major they have in M16 or did you find yourself in the skinheads, ya' flaccid dick for brains?"

Alfred snorted, "Why don't you check how flaccid it can be or would actually seeing a dick change your ways?"

"Oh, yes, Mister Terrorist Man, perhaps your penis would save me from the sinful wiles of lesbianism" Komari sang, swooning, before she leaned back, her eyes narrowing as she droned, "And me without my magnifying glass."

Shin smiled as Alfred opened his mouth to probably continue this tit for tat. Nope. They had work to do. "Mr. Cranston, you're not entirely ignorant. You know this can only go but so many ways for you. All we want is information and, perhaps, it can go the less painful way."

"You can leave, hybrid. The girl is the only one that can get fucked in this situation."

"We'll send you back to England then" Shin replied, "You'll be prosecuted for war crimes and, most likely sentenced to spend the rest of your life in an isolated prison. A good deal for someone that doesn't deserve it."

"Whatever floats your boat" Alfred drawled.

Shin tapped his cheek, musing, "Of course, it just wouldn't be quite appropriate if we just sent you back without speaking to your nan, right?"

Alfred stared as Komari held up the phone on speaker. After a few rings, a sweet elderly voice came on the line, "Hello?"

Good ol' Louis. Shin watched as the color drenched from Alfred's face. Komari smiled, "Hello? Is this Agnes Cranston?"

"It is. May I ask who's calling?"

Alfred slammed his fingers down against the table, rapidly shaking his head. Shin stared at him evenly, "End the call, Komari. Tell her we're going to send her flowers."

"Ah, Mrs. Cranston, I'm a part of a group that seeks to recognize missing soldier's relatives. We heard about your grandson, Alfred, and we wanted to send you flowers and cakes. You still live on 40 Blenheim Road in Sutton, England?"

"Oh, that's so kind of you. Yes, that is my address. It's been so difficult since Alfie went missing."

"I can imagine, ma'am. Chin up, we'll watch out for you."

"Thank you so much. Ta."

"Ta."

Alfred was shaking as Komari looked at her nails, Shin staring at him evenly. "If-If you bastards do anything to my nan-"

"No, no. That's…that's the kind of shit you would do, 'Alfie'" Shin assured, waving his hands, "Despite the fact she managed to raise a despicable piece of garbage like you, I'm not sure that was her fault. She did the very best she could with you, the one that was recklessly breaking and entering and beating and robbing her elderly neighbors while she worked to put a roof over your head. Why, everyone in the family told her she was crazy for adopting her 'rebellious grandson' but good ol' nan made sure her Alfie stayed out of the orphanage."

"And she's so proud of her dear 'Alfie' getting inducted into the prestigious M16. However, she seems quite unaware that you were dishonorably removed from service for…what was it, Shin?" Komari questioned airily.

Shin nodded, opening the file, "Ah, yes, treason, Komari. Selling M16 secrets to your former 'best friend's' father and anyone that paid enough."

"Oh, by God, it would break poor nan's heart to hear her beloved Alfie was out there killing and murdering and betraying Queen and country!" gasped Komari.

"Yes, just…imagine when M16 puts it out all over television and paperthat Alfred was wrangled and entangled in a genocidal terrorist group that has murdered over three thousand good British soldiers and women, if nothing else. Oh, all those relatives that said she was wasting her time, why, they'll worry her into the grave early" Shin shook his head.

Alfred's jaw was ticking rapidly. Shin suspected. "D-Do it then! I don't care about that crone!"

"I figured it'd come to that" Komari yawned.

"Yes, I figured he'd overlook the crimes and potential beatings she might receive for having such a vile grandson. But strangely one that sent her checks up until last month in the guise of M16 beneficiary pay. Why, she just might lose that house he's been paying for for no good reason."

"…W-What does it matter? You already said you're telling M16, all of this would happen whether I provided you information or not!"

Shaking his head, Shin held up his hand, "…Tell us all you know, Mr. Cranston, and M16 will take you and indict you under a false name. A POW account. To your dear nan, you were merely a casualty on the field. M16 will continue to fund her and she will never know what befell her rotten grandson."

"Why would I even begin to trust that?" Cranston spat.

"Because we like your nan and we hate you" Komari said shortly. "Even if you do take the shitty grandson route, we'll take care of her. Remove her in her last days from the only home she knows to keep her in a safehouse here in Japan, a country she knows nothing about. She'll be cut off from the outside, knowing her grandson was a mass murdering piece of shit. We'll tell her it wasn't her fault though. It's all we can do, after all. But it's more than what you give her."

"…Fuckers."

Shin had to hide his childish delight as the man unfolded the locations of several camps. Not only that, he told them where some of them had been relocated and where new centers were being founded. Giving all the schematics to the bases, he snarled, red-faced. "Now you slanty-eyed bastards keep your word about my nan."

"You nan will live freely as she had with no inclination that you're a terrorist spy and you will go into M16 history as a John Smith…AFTER the information checks out" Shin replied.

"That wasn't the agreement!" Cranston snapped.

Slowly, Komari slid the paper he'd written his info on back across the table to him. "Why the fuck would we honor an agreement made with bullshit information? Here's your chance to fix it, bitch. Once we leave this room and anything comes up false or completely untrue, our terms cease to exist."

Alfred slowly took the papers back and…rewrote them. Wow, he really thought, huh? Snatching the papers up, Komari huffed, flipping Cranston off, and left the room. Shin stood, folding his hands behind his back as Alfred glared at him hatefully. Hmm. Shin may have understood something about Lyla's situation now because of this.

"…You know what else I might pull out of the woodwork on you, Cranston, after your nan peacefully passes living her life freely without your stigma?" Shin questioned. "Three specialized bullets to the back. Brent Drake took…three specialized bullets to the back. A specialized gun only gifted to M16 agents in the late eighties that completed training."

Alfred stared quietly as Shin leaned over, his eyes closing some, "I believe Mr. Drake was attempting to…assist Terrans that were being harmed by some of your current Zechian cronies and got murdered for it. You pinned the blame on Terrans and got his father gung-ho enough to fund this initiative. Really, all you wanted was to get access to their technology. Imagine…if one day, I just slid him the pictures of his son's autopsy with those special bullet holes in his back. And, because I'm sure you covered every dark base, that the gun could only be accessed in a specific manner. Weird…weapon to choose, Alfred. Forensics could take you to town."

"…No one's looked yet."

"But they will. Because, as far as this…entire battle goes, one that almost had me killed and has played 'fuck up' with my psyche, you were ground zero. For nan's sake, and until I have the opportunity to have Bernard Drake sitting in this room to tell him his genocidal mania is without purpose but caused by someone he kept at his right hand, Mr. Smith, you get to live. For now."

Walking out of the room before the parasite could respond, Shin glowered. It didn't sit well. At all. That man…started this.

…Well, maybe it was okay. He…wanted to at least be one of the people that was going to end it.

"So…let me understand."

Shin smiled grimly as he stood by the phone, the receiver pressed to his ear, preparing to do…the unthinkable. Yes…he was about to get on a plane, fly back to Prana, and…oversee to an extent, this mission.

First off, he hadn't come home in almost a month which was…well, it was pretty much peak level insanity after being forced into isolation for two months after being lost in the desert two months. This was…probably his third call which was also not great. Now, he was not at home, on his third call this month, advising his family he was…going back to where he almost died.

Yea, his dad SAID he knew Shin was interested in continuing this line of work. There was, nonetheless, kind of a difference between 'easing' and 'catapulting'. Shin was doing the latter. The man had voiced that one line as Shin explained this to his family from afar…and failed to say anything else. There was dead silence on the other end.

"Shin…" Nelly said after some moments, "…If you go missing this time, I won't even cry. I'll just say 'what a crazy fuck'."

"Nelly" Dana reprimanded.

"Shin, I made all the siblings aware that you probably would…continue on your journey to making the world a better place. While you had some naysayers, I got most everyone on board" Koji explained, "…However, we weren't thinking it would be within a month, bro, not gonna lie."

Tony scoffed, "Seriously! Did they even, like, test you?! Are you even ready to go run around and start this shit over again?!"

Shin sighed, looking back as people started to head out. Boy, he picked a great time to have this conversation, he left in literally ten minutes. "I am a strategist on this one, guys. Both Komari and I are just helping with information and navigation. We will not be engaging in combat, we'll be sitting in a base. We will have soldiers guarding us because, yes, we are out of shape and not very sharp right now. We found the other camps…and we want to get to them before they get shut down. I swear, I will be home soon-"

"Déjà vu…" Koji sang.

"Shaddup, Koji. I am COMING home, no ifs, ands, or buts. Just…make sure to check up on Lyla for me, please?"

"…Okay, nii-san" Jill mumbled. "Please, please, please be safe."

"I will, imoto."

Yamada and Dana were dead silent. Their son literally was able to surpass dying in one of the most fatal situations imaginable and he just…decided to head right on back, yep. Swallowing, he murmured, "Mama, papa, I know you both are very realistic. Even with mama's faith in me coming home…you know the deal. However, I'm asking you to have faith that this Shin will always have the intentions of getting home because…because this isn't over yet. I have too much to do."

"…I guess that was what went wrong" mumbled Yamada.

Yea…that guy? The one he was named after? He had nothing he seemed to have been working for. JUST staying alive. That…wasn't always enough. Sometimes more was too much but…Shin was balanced right now. He was ready to set these wheels in motion.

"Yo, Shin, we gotta go!" Komari called, heading for the door.

"All right. I'll call you guys when I get to base and then I'll call you once it's over. Believe in me."

"You got this, nii-san" Shaun said confidently.

"…Oh…" Dana whined.

Shin smiled, "I love all of you. See you soon."

Hanging up before they started to yell some more, Shin rushed off after Komari, picking up his knapsack. They saluted them as they entered the plane and he just…saluted back. He didn't feel he'd earned seniority at all yet. But…in time.

"…Man. I didn't think I'd get to ask you this again!" Komari yelled as the helicopter lifted into the sky, staring out of the window.

"What's that?!" he tilted his head, puzzled.

"Ready to go fuck em up?!"

He snickered, "…Yea. Let's do it."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

December 10th, 2002.

"Why is he here?!"

"Because he needs to relax too!"

The last thing in any version of the universe Yagami Shin wanted to be in…was a hot damn box. It felt like he was choosing to go to Hell for kicks and giggles. Glowering as he sat across from Komari and Kasumi, he shook his head. "…I think I'm with Itoh on this one, Yamada, even if the reasoning is different."

He fanned himself, shaking his head, as they sat in a bathhouse sauna combination. The heat was pressing his face. It was almost enough to give him flashbacks except they were all wearing towels, Komari was dumping water on coals to create more steam, and they were drinking sake. Yea, still not quite dying in the desert.

"You have been hyped up to the gods since we got here, Yagami, you need to calm the fuck down" grunted Komari, pointing the ladle at him.

"Because I want to go home, Komari. I am not spending a third Christmas away from my people" Shin scoffed.

When they landed two weeks ago, everything was already rolling. The army was prepared to depart and recover. He and Komari advised what the bases looked like, what Cranston had told them the layout was, and what to expect. Simple enough…except he might have overestimated the promises made to his family.

He thought they were going to only be on the base, but one day, they were on the field casually…when the Zechs ran at them and essentially were ready to kill them. Shin could say, without a doubt, he was about, mm, eight percent stable? Because he went postal. He felt better because Komari and Kasumi also went postal but it just proved that they were…not a hundred percent at all in any respect, no. Teramoto rushed them back to base and insisted they just work remotely from there. "I mean…you all shot accurately but you are not entirely authorized to do so. Be our weapons here. We're…we're getting people back because of the work you've done."

The recovery percentage decreased. At first he was devastated but…he had to realize it'd decrease because they were finding these people months after the fact. They were finding a lot of people alive though and he was…pleased. Now, just to make sure they…stayed that way.

Komari sighed airily, her hair damp and coiling in the steam, "I get ya', bro. I would like to spend Christmas in Tsuyukasa with my parents and my lady here."

Kasumi nodded solemnly as Komari played with the woman's long hair. Yea, he got the idea Kasumi meant a few different things with 'why was he here?'. Before he could casually exit, Komari suddenly scoffed, "I am so pissed over Sato's…ballsyness—asshattery? That's your brothers' words, right? Asshattery?"

"It is" Shin chuckled.

"Well, asshattery then."

After a long day, Shin, Komari, and Kasumi returned from the communications room they were operating out of to get some shut eye only to have Teramoto greet them, clearly annoyed. "…Yagami, I'm sorry and I apologize, but you have some charges to answer for officially. Put on your dress uniform."

He was…so, so, so shocked. Komari went ballistic. "Charges, Teramoto? Like, criminal charges?! You can send us the fuck home right now!"

"Relax, Yamada. C'mon, Yagami…and you can come too, Yamada, but stay quiet. These aren't levied against you but you can witness."

Shin managed to dress after throwing up in panic. That sort of thing was not a great feeling after all this. What on Earth could he have done to have to be court-martialed right now?

When he arrived at the designated room and saw former Lieutenant Sato, he felt his face just melt into 'are you fucking serious right now?'.

Two other people were in the room, a man and woman. The man was dressed up in the same uniform as they were, looking deadpanned while the woman was trembling. Who even were these people? Komari glared hotly at Sato who just stared emptily at them back. What even was this aside from some bull? Sitting next to Teramoto on the opposite side of the table, a general at the head, Shin waited with…curious breath what the man wanted to get him written up on NOW?

"Sergeant Yagami Shin, I would like you to meet Colonel Kitamura Yuuto and his wife, Kitamura Sana" the general introduced.

…Oh. Kitamura's parents.

Before he could give them his condolences, Sato jumped right in. "I've advised Daisuke's parents that I feel the circumstances of the plane crash and their son's subsequent death are questionable, at best."

Really. Shin blinked at him. "What about the circumstances are questionable?"

"How it is only you, Yamada, and three other soldiers were able to make it out of this heinous situation alive? Forty percent of the surviving five had active problems with Kitamura here at base."

He had never in his life in such a short span of time wanted to jump across the table and pummel so many people. First it was the interviewers, then it was Cranston, and now it was fucking Sato. Shin tried to keep composed but he had to rub his head, a migraine just slapped him in the brain hard. "…Are you trying to implicate that I perhaps…caused Kitamura's death?"

"Did you?"

"Boy, I should not have been let into this meeting" Komari had hissed under her breath.

Shin had taken a deep breath and looked to the parents. The father looked suspicious because Sato had probably been feeding him this for months. The mother…well, she probably just wanted her son back. "Kitamura-san, the last time I saw your son alive, he was designating me water to take out to the desert. When I walked away from our camp, he was very much alive and keeping our army very much alive. We did have our disagreements here at base but we came to a mutual agreement out there. He did not withhold water nor sustenance from me and my full intention was to get help back to our camp so he could come home. I did not bring any harm to Kitamura."

"The bias is incredible at best" Sato charged gravely, "Everyone that lived would be forever in Yagami's graces for bringing help back to rescue them. They would not tell the truth."

Boy, was it like a very dubious play…but he shook his head. "Ask Itoh."

Even Komari stared at him in horror with this remark. Yea, Kasumi might have given him that begrudging heart to heart back in Japan but that didn't mean she wouldn't flip. However, a soldier was sent to retrieve Kasumi who appeared, looking confused. Sato glared, "…As I said, anyone that bore witness would feel beholden to Yagami Shin for retrieving help for them."

"Itoh wouldn't" Shin countered.

Komari smiled nervously, kneading her fingers, as Kasumi sat beside her. Oh boy. Kasumi had been updated and advised of the charge. Really, hearing it laid out, he felt like he had definitely made a stupid move. She wouldn't have to worry about him taking Komari while he was in prison for treason. The broody woman stared at them, her green eyes heavy before she cleared her throat.

"…I do not care for Yagami much. For personal reasons, I assure you. However…what you're charging him with does not even make any plausible sense. That we're sitting here to even discuss it is damning because it shows the ignorance in this room."

Oops, Komari Jr. Sato hissed, "I beg your pardon?"

"Yagami would have had to shoot Kitamura amongst dozens of our fellow soldiers. Seventy soldiers would not have stood for this. They would have shot him down and that would have been the end of it."

"Nothing to say he didn't kill all of them with Yamada if they were capable of trekking across thousands of miles of enemy territory" Sato had proclaimed, looking to the Kitamura.

"Oh my God, oh my God" Komari said, her voice actually excited. She even started hitting his arm while Shin just squeezed the bridge of his nose, in…genuine and the utmost disbelief, "Am I being charged now? Can I say something now?"

"NO" Teramoto interjected quickly.

Kasumi rolled her eyes, "If you mean to proclaim me a liar, we'll need to do it in something higher than this…little room with no real witness, jury, or testimony. Yagami and Yamada departed perhaps ten to eleven days after the crash. Kitamura lived for close to a month after that. You have to have autopsies that show that he did not die in the timeframe where Yagami and Yamada were present. And if they WERE present, you know that Yagami and Yamada would have been humanly INCAPABLE of getting to where they were recovered by thousands of unbiased soldiers if they had killed Kitamura at the time his autopsy shows."

And boom. Sato was gritting his teeth while the mother broke down into sobs. This was fucking monstrous. Helpless, Shin looked to Teramoto who was stone-faced while he opened up a bag. No, stop, don't make that woman suffer anymore.

He took out a…rather sun bleached journal. Opening it, he slid it across the table and tapped his finger to show the Kitamura couple a specific entry. "This is Kitamura's handwriting, yes?"

The mother had stared through bleary eyes but nodded. "You see where he wrote…Day 10, dumbfuck Yagami and Yamada set out in the desert today. Two cases of water issued, four cases down. Thirty boxes of field rations issued, sixty boxes down. A dead man…would not have been able to write that."

Sato had blanched. Kitamura's father looked lost for a moment before slowly shaking his head. Yea, there…there was no closure here at all. And Sato just wanted to dig the knife deeper.

Shin closed his eyes, shaking his head. After the general found that it was 'purely nonsense' and dismissed them, Shin wanted to crawl into a hole and die. Instead, Komari urged him to come relax in a sauna with some sake.

"I…I can't imagine what they're going through" Shin whispered, "I mean, to have your kid die like that in the first place but then to have some rat bastard tell you it was someone else's fault?"

Komari shook her head, staring into the steam, "…Imagine being that sick in the head, that hateful."

He just…really couldn't.To hate him that much? For something he didn't even do? He did not born himself! Kasumi closed her eyes, shrugging, "…He will most likely be demoted and discharged. He was skating on thin ice and Kitamura's father is higher in rank. I'm sure he was simply just wanting to hear the validity of the charges. To have them dismantled so neatly is not a becoming look for Sato."

Right… Komari scoffed, resting her ear on Kasumi's thigh, "I can only hope…speaking of racist dictators, you said you hooked back up with your girl, Shin. What was the back story on all that nonsense with her dad?"

"…Yea, she, uh…didn't really tell me?"

His other best friend stared at him quietly before she droned, "…She didn't tell you?"

"Nope. She…gave me a hint?"

Sitting up, Komari leered, "…Here's a riddle for why I didn't speak up on my dad's asshole remarks about how you're not good enough? Shin."

"It was a lot, Mari. And really, I'm so done, I could stand to be soaking in a bathtub with her right now regardless, I don't even care" he droned, rubbing his face.

"Oh, naturally, I'd rather be walking over hot coals right now versus that bullshit we just went through so hell yea on that option. But still. What was the riddle?"

Shin leaned back on his palms, closing his eyes, "…You've seen it in your family. Oh, outside of it. And you know something is off in mine. You probably just never thought to look past me meaning her."

Even Kasumi raised a brow as Komari gawked, "…She gave you an actual riddle?"

"Well, it's…probably not so much a riddle?"

"Kids, man" Komari sighed airily.

Shin smirked, "Well, shed your wisdom, 'nee-san', because I've been stumped for weeks."

"Why?" scoffed Kasumi, standing, "It's her mother."

…What? Kasumi leaned over and kissed Komari tenderly, rubbing her shoulder, "I'm going to get dried off. Don't be long."

"Sure thing, baby" Komari nodded, squeezing her hand.

…Wait though, her mother? Shin stared, wide-eyed, after Kasumi who left without another word. Komari came and sat beside him, staring at the top of the structure. "…Yea, Sumi's right. I don't think I would have gotten that much on my own either though, don't feel bad. It's hard seeing things when you're too close."

Shin swallowed. "I've seen it in my family yet outside my family…"

"That sick ass bastard step-father of yours, you said he was beating your mom, right?"

…SHIT. Shin almost choked. "…Oh my God, Mari."

Komari frowned as this giant Ferris wheel in this toiled amusement park of his and Lyla's relationship started turning. Shit! Shin felt…enlightenment and it felt bad! "Her mom…rarely if ever leaves the house. Only when the dad isn't there! Lyla stopped having us go to her house after a while when we were kids—Lyla never had a scratch on her but—but if that bastard is beating her mom in front of her to comply—oh my GOD, Komari!"

Well…Lyla was right: he was ready to go throw her son of a bitch father into a river. Komari shook her head in disbelief. "…He's probably holding the mom hostage and not letting Lyla make her own decisions else he'll do something horrible to her mother. What a fucking terrible feeling that'd have to be, man."

"Oh, and I will end it" he hissed.

"One mission after the other…" Komari murmured.

Yes. But like this one, he was going to see it through, no matter what monster got in the way. Just…hold on, Lyla, Lillian. It sounded like a damsel in distress scenario, a cliché marred in sexism and tradition. But without Komari and Kasumi, he'd still be lost in the dark, blind. He'd…he'd been given new sight.

Damsel in distress or not, Lyla had carried this burden on her own long enough. She…she had given him the breath of life when she came back into it.

He could at least be a new set of eyes for her too.