A/N: After so long, the view count has reached over 20,000. I never would have thought I would have gone this far with this story. I thank you all for your support and dedication to reading this story that I came up with a friend only two years ago.
Browsing through the cake stand outside the shopping mall, Tateyama couldn't help but pick out multiple selections from the display case the treats were showed in. Tomoe chuckled at his enthusiasm as Tateyama was practically a kid in a candy store, his eyes sparkling with rare enthusiasm at all the different kinds of cake in front of him. Lunch and the ice-cream in his stomach must have gone by quick as Tateyama stacked the pile of cakes he had chosen on the counter and took out his wallet while he paid for both Tomoe and himself. She was holding onto two ice-cream cones they had both bought earlier, but she assumed it wouldn't be enough for the white-haired boy.
Paying the amount needed, the two packed up their stuff and sat down on a nearby bench to rest. Tomoe had a bag of 3-4 small cakes on her lap, while Tateyama had nearly twice the amount sitting by his feet, "Do you come her often, Tomoe?" Tateyama asked, checking the amount of cash he had left in his wallet with one hand while the other was holding his ice cream.
"Sometimes. I find their selections to be very diverse and are quite hard to find anywhere near the school," Tomoe leaned back on the seat, legs folded as she licked her treat. The sun's light poked through the groups of clouds and onto the brick and stone underneath their feet. The heat wasn't at all that overwhelming with the ice-cream in her hand and the time already reaching late noon.
Putting back his wallet back in his bag, Tateyama suddenly sensed something nearby. It was distant presence that he had never felt before and the cold pressure he felt made him shiver as if he felt the grip of death on his shoulder. He curiously looked around and checked his crowded surroundings. It was hard to make out anyone due to the crowds of people walking around on the streets, but this persistent feeling made him a bit suspicious at the people walking pass them as he felt the feeling slowly go away with his anxiety, "Was it my imagination?"
"Is there something wrong?" Tomoe inquired with a smile. She placed a hand on his lap and got his attention as he did a small jump in his seat out of surprise. His hand's grasp on his cone slipped and his half-eaten treat fell onto his shirt as the boy yelped. She retracted her hand and chuckled at his sudden response while Tateyama's face turned light red in color, "Oh my, are you alright?" Tomoe handed him a small handkerchief, which he embarrassingly thanked her for.
"I-I was just thinking of something," Tateyama stammered, wiping ice-cream off his shirt and wondering if the cone was still edible to eat. He did a small shrug and munched on the cone while he continued to clean the cream off his shirt. When he was done, he handed the handkerchief back to her, "Thank you."
"Keep it," she insisted, as Tateyama replied with a bewildered look, "Perhaps as a token of our relationship?" she added with a giggle, making him fluster as he pocketed the small gift, almost forgetting that there was now a large, white stain on his shirt.
"T-Thank you," he said again with a nod.
Then, an alarm on Tomoe's wristwatch started to beep. Licking the cream off his fingers, Tateyama did not notice the small look of disappointment on her face as Tomoe suddenly stood up and took her small cake boxes into hand. She gave a polite bow and apologetically said, "I'm sorry to end this quickly, but... I have business to take care of. Perhaps we can meet again next time? I mean, we can see each other in school, of course."
"It's all right," Tateyama assured her, understanding her need to go, "We can always do this again, Tomoe."
She smiled sweetly, "Of course we can," giving another polite bow, she waved at him goodbye as she left for the train station, blending into the crowd as Tateyama continued to look at her go. He couldn't keep his eyes off her as she skipped away and continued doing so until she was out of sight. Taking out the handkerchief Tomoe had given her, the little piece of cloth her name written on it in gold colors. He felt lucky to receive it as he put it back in his pocket again and finished up his ice-cream cone.
Thinking it was time to meet up the others, he packed up his cake containers in a plastic bag, thinking of giving some to the others since he was in a good mood. He picked up his laptop bag and Tateyama headed back into the crowded shopping mall lobby. Inside, he wondered where were they going to meet up and demonstrate the new gadgets he had made for them last night, as he went over to the elevators and found Hideki waiting nearby one of them all by himself.
The blue-haired boy noticed him and raised a brow at the boxes of cake he was holding, quipping, "Well, that's not something I don't usually see."
"Want one?" Tateyama offered, stretching his bag arm forward to him as he neared, "Store had a sale going on. Couldn't help myself."
"Heh, well you look happier than usual. Thanks," Hideki fished out one from the bag and placed it in his schoolbag. Zipping it tight, the elevator doors opened and the two boarded the empty elevator to the upper floors. The doors closed and Hideki clicked for the upper floors. As it went up, Hideki was smiling oddly to himself, tapping his foot on the floor as he quietly hummed to the catchy elevator music. His actions were nothing that could be deemed suspicious, but Tateyama could tell otherwise.
Tateyama's sharp eyes scanned his body language from head to toe, and he after a few moments, he asked out of the blue, "Did something happen?"
Hideki sighed, "Am I really that easy to read?"
Tateyama gave a blunt nod.
"Well... it's just," Hideki's words danced on his tongue as he couldn't find a way to describe what he had experienced a few minutes ago. The elevator continued to go up as he looked for the words. But he eventually gave up, and since they were alone in an elevator, Hideki simply spoke his mind instead of circling around the subject with complex or long explanations, "I saw her again," he said with a low tone, "Miki Sayaka."
Surprised, Tateyama looked and saw Hideki's melancholic expression. It had been so long since the two had actually talked about her, as Hideki had decided weeks ago that he would give up on her and move on. Both curious and worried, Tateyama closed the distance between the two of them and asked, "How did it go?"
Hideki chuckled, looking like he didn't know the answer to that himself as he placed his hands in his pockets, "Well, I can't really say. But, she talked to me for the first time. Not really sure how to feel about that... But, I guess I'm going to try and talk to her the next time I bump into her. Maybe try and get to know her instead of hiding from her all the time," he felt Tateyama's comforting hand on his shoulder, making him sigh, "Guess I just can't really let go of her, huh?"
Meanwhile, down at the car basement of the shopping mall, two security guards patrolled the empty parking lot as one held onto a security dog by its leash. They had flashlights attached to their belts, pistols at their sides and radios as they checked around the place while idly chatting to each other. Some of the ceiling lights flickered non-stop and at random moments, the two would hear something echoing through the place. The fact that the guard dog hadn't picked up any scent was their only comfort in knowing nothing dangerous was nearby.
"Alright, we've double-checked the place already," one of the guards said as he held the dog's leash, "Can we go back up now? I never liked being down here. Gives me the creeps. Some of the boys say this place is haunted."
"Relax. Nothing is going to happen. The boys come down here every day for a smoke or two," the taller guard said as he took out a cigarette from his pocket and placed it between his lips. He lighted it and puffed out some smoke with the cigarette held between his fingers, "If anything, they need to get those lights renovated. Those things don't even work at times."
They turned back to the elevator, but the guard dog that was with them stopped and looked at the far end of the parking lot, its ears perked up as if it heard something.
"What's the matter, boy?" the dog's handler crouched down and patted its head, "You hear something?"
The guard with the cigarette adjusted his cap and wondered what the fuss was about, "Come on, I don't want to stay here any longer than you do. We-"
A ceiling light down the hall suddenly blacked out and a section of the parking lot was now in complete darkness. The ceiling light next to it, too, went out as well. One by one, in order of farthest to closest, the ceiling lights began to short out as the security dog continued to stare into the growing darkness. The taller guard extinguished his cigarette and motioned for his flashlight while his subordinate tugged on his dog's leash, "What the hell?"
The light above them went out and the pair and their dog now stood in pitch-black. It was quiet enough to hear a pin drop as the two slowly stepped towards the elevators that were meters away from them, flashlights turned on and pointed around them. Suddenly, the guard dog sprinted off and its handler lost his grip on its leash, "Wait, come back!" the guard ran after his hound to the protest of his partner and went into the darkness to chase after it. Now alone, the lone guard took out his sidearm and flipped off the safety.
"Sogou, you there?" he called out for his partner and aimed his flashlight at where he last was. But his flashlight died out for a moment and the next thing he knew, he lost track of his partner. He pointed it around and kept calling out for him, his footsteps echoing through the dark hall as something could be heard dripping faintly in the background. Looking around the cars, he found the light of his partner's flashlight peeking out behind a few of them, "Sogou?" he walked up to the car with his gun ready, wiping the sweat off his cheek as he got closer.
He stopped and heard the pitter-patter of a dog's paw on granite. Crouching down, he shined the light downwards to the relieving sight of his partner's dog and groaned. He looked around once more and shouted, "Alright, Sogou, where are you?! Quit screwing around already... Huh?" he detected a faint, copper-like smell. He could smell it coming from the dog, and Wwhen he panned his flashlight onto the dog's collar, the guard screamed and recoiled, his flashlight falling to the ground, as barely dangling onto the dog's collar was a dripping, severed hand. The bleeding cloth barely clinging onto it reeked.
Before he could run or scream, a hand suddenly grabbed his mouth and he felt the cold steel of a blade stab into his back and quickly exit out of his chest. The guard tried to struggle, but he could not fight the powerful grip on his body and soon, his eyes rolled back into his skull. Once his body went limp, the long blade was pulled out and his corpse fell over on the granite in a growing pool of blood.
The lights all turned back on and shone on the killer who neatly cleaned his blade with a cloth. Wearing a Chinese straw hat, a hannya mask that bore the design of a demon's face and a cloak and hood that was draped over his body, Zed the Warlock had been waiting for the time to finally shed the blood of a Puerum Magi. Sheathing his long nodachi blade on his back, Zed petted the lone guard dog for not making any noise, "The Puerum Magi should be close. I can already feel him," he said to himself with a low chuckle as he could sense the strong presence of Recicio energy from here, "Hmm? Multiple Recicio Readings? Hmph. Sanbey must have been busy. Perhaps I should take further measures."
Kneeling down by the dead guard's body, Zed jabbed his fingers into man's neck and began filling the corpse's veins with his Obscurum energy from his fingertips. The guard's veins bulged and twitched as the man's face became a sickly pale shade while his eyes turned into a dark ebony color. As Zed retracted his hand, stood back up and waited, the guard dog ran off from the low growling the moving corpse started to make. Its movements smooth like a human being's, the dead guard rose up on its legs and the wounds on his neck and chest began to heal immediately. Besides the paleness of his skin, he looked no different than a normal man.
"Go. Spread my control to the rest of the security personnel," Zed ordered as he tossed a hand-radio from the other guard's body over to the living corpse, "Do not attract attention. Follow my orders and only attack once I give the command," walking over to the elevators, Zed pinched his hat and chuckled to himself.
Roaming around the supermarket section of the shopping mall, Takuya cheerfully sang to himself as he bought groceries that Narita asked him to get before he left school. Hunting down the food that he had a long list of, he bought things ranging from eggs that were on sale, meat, fish, rice, vegetables, candy for Tomura, toilet paper and more as he put them into a small trolley he was pushing around. All the while, Sanbey was sitting on his shoulder, talking to the boy through telepathic communication about certain things that came with being a Puerum Magi or any random topic Takuya would bring out of nowhere such as how much ice-cream a Puerum Magi could eat in 4 minutes.
"So, you're saying that each of our Soul Gem has a little voice that talks to us?" Takuya thought as he juggled a few bags of chips and tossed them into the trolley.
"Not exactly. These are AI modules built into your Soul Gems. They watch over your body's health and status, keep track of your power's time limits, scan enemy Warlocks and other tasks that you will be too busy to deal with when fighting a Warlock," Sanbey's voice was sage-like and clear, his three tails flicking behind him as he licked his striped legs, "They will also be responsible in activating your Puerum Magi armor. As you, Tateyama and Mamoru have yet to face true combat, only Hideki has unlocked his through. It takes a force of willpower and a clear heart to unlock it a Puerum Magi's final phase. Understand?"
Takuya nodded and smiled, even if he barely managed to understand what was just explained to him, "Well, kind of. Hehe. These 'AI modules', though. I can't help but feel like I saw this in a superhero movie before. Oh well, I guess these things sound really helpful!" heading over to the counter to pay for the groceries, Sanbey looked at all the stuff Takuya had bought and wondered if the abundance of sweets being placed on the counter and into plastic bags was partly responsible for the brunette's hyper attitude.
Paying and then packing all of his stuff into bags, Takuya skipped out of the market and stopped by a bench to manage his bags as Sanbey just continued sitting on his shoulder like a striped scarf wrapped around his neck. Sanbey sighed at the amount of energy it takes to go on a conversation with the brunette. Looking back, Sanbey then spotted a schoolgirl in the distance, inconspicuously peeking at Takuya as she watched from a cafe a few meters away while she sat at a table. Although Sanbey was at least familiar with the Morikawa sisters - Yuri and Minami - along with the boys' senior, Makoto, he didn't recognize this girl at all, "Takuya, I see a girl stalking you. Short, black hair. She's wearing your school's uniform. Do you know her, or is this common thing for you?"
"Eh? Mirai? What's she doing here?" Takuya turned to the same direction as Sanbey and the girl immediately hid her face behind a sheet of newspapers that were being held up-side down. But even without the rather obvious cover, Takuya could spot the school nurse's assistant and his childhood friend anytime, "Oh, it is Mirai. Let's go say 'hello' to her!" he packed up his grocery and school bags and scampered over to the cafe Mirai was sitting at as she continued to conspicuously hide behind her upside-down newspaper sheet.
"Are you sure that's a good idea? She doesn't look like she wants to be seen."
Sanbey's advise was null as Takuya was already behind her. He put as his bags at his feet and exclaimed, "Hey Mirai!" his not-so-subtle greeting made her jump in her seat and her knees hit the table by accident. Mirai winced and grabbed her legs while letting out a small cuss Takuya usually doesn't hear from her, "Oops. Sorry!" he apologized while scratching the back of his head, "Didn't mean to scare ya'."
The black and white Familiar felt a little sympathy for the poor girl, "Oh dear..."
Mirai rubbed her knees and looked back at Takuya with a surprised look as her cheeks turned a slight red. Takuya's face was far too close to hers, as at times, the brunette never really cared or either forgot about personal space, "H-How did you know I was here?" she stammered, turning away to avoid looking straight at him.
"Oh, ugh... Intuition?" Takuya answered with a smile. Sanbey wondered if he could've had come up with something more convincing as Takuya sat on the chair on the other side of the small table and happily continued with what he was doing, "Anyway, what are you doing here? Don't you usually go home after school?" he dragged his bags over to the side of his chair and made himself comfortable while Mirai was still in disarray from Takuya's surprise attack.
Her face still red, Mirai scratched her freckled cheeks and shifted uncomfortably in her chair, "I-I was just worried about you, so I followed you after school. Ever since your accident a few days ago, I couldn't help but be worried about what might happen next. M-Miss Narita was worried as well, so she asked me to follow you here. I-It's not like I was spying on you or anything."
Sanbey's ears flickered and the Familiar turned to the long-haired brunette with a simple question, "Takuya, is this girl close to you?"
"Huh? Mirai And I? Oh, we go way back when we were kids," Takuya laughed in his head and leaned back on his chair. Thinking about it, most of the time he spent with Mirai usually involved a lot of arguing and bickering over him getting constantly hurt from practicing his acrobatics and archery. They were always liked that: Takuya would get hurt and Mirai would be there to bandage him up. He pretty much had broke every single bone in his body at least once. But ever since the accident a few nights ago, Mirai had been mostly clinging to him and looking out for him most of the time.
Takuya wondered if Homura's death made her worried that the same was going to happen to him, as everyone but the boys saw it as an tragic, simple accident that happened in the hospital one night.
Noticing Mirai having gone quiet, Takuya saw the deep frown she bore and her sunken eyes. To ease her worries, he then gave her a warm smile and stated, "Don't worry about me, alright? I'll be fine. Nothing is going to happen to me if I got friends to cover my back. I promise."
Mirai fiddled with her fingers, her cheeks still red with embarrassment as she sighed in defeat, "Every time you say that, you always end up getting hurt and I have to patch you up... But, alright. Just don't do anything that would make Miss Narita, Tomura and I worried. Your accident that night really scared us all," she muttered her last word under hear breath, "Idiot..."
Takuya giggled as Sanbey interjected, "Takuya, I'm sorry to cut this short, but it's time. The others should be waiting at the bridge upstairs in just a few minutes. Don't take too long."
"Okay. Give me a sec," standing up, Takuya checked the presence his groceries and then hugged the girl around her shoulders. Fumes practically poured from her ears even after he broke the hug and picked up his groceries before leaving, "I gotta go now, Mirai. I'm going to meet the others in a few minutes, but if you want to talk with me about something, give me a call, okay? I'll be right there with you faster than you can say 'Jack Nicholson'! Wait, or was it 'Jack Robinson'?" he scratched his head in confusion.
Even when flustered, a small laugh escaped Mirai's lips, "A-Alright. Stay safe, okay?"
"Roger!" Takuya replied with a silly salute and then scurried out of the cafe with his groceries in his hands and Sanbey on his shoulder.
As he left, Mirai fell back into her seat and flipped open her phone. Contemplating something for a moment, she looked back at the brunette that hurried off and wondered about something, "Should I tell him?" she thought.
After the boys had gathered at the bridge that connected the dome-shaped mall to the tall, neighboring building beside it, they boarded a cylinder-like elevator and they waited as it went up the tall building. In it, the clear glass allowed them to gaze out into the city, where yellow light from sun fell upon as the time for sunset neared. Takuya and Mamoru chatted on the way up, Hideki was listening to some music with his headsets with Sanbey sleeping on his shoulders and Tateyama leaned on the railing, spacing out while he thought of Tomoe and the small, significant time he had spent with her. Bags of cakes and groceries sat by his feet as he gazed at the city and sighed.
He had a distant look that the boys had never seen him make at all and Mamoru was the first to notice this, "Is something the matter, Tateyama?"
The white-haired boy came back to his senses and turned around to see the questioning gazes aimed at him as he stammeringly answered, "No. I-It's nothing."
Pulling off his headsets from his ears, Hideki raised a brow at first time he had seen his best friend stutter, "You sure? You looked like you were thinking of something really important there."
"'Like a boy who fell in love'," Mamoru chuckled, his words making Tateyama twitch a bit, "Pardon me. Just remembering what my father used to say to me whenever I just kept looking at something."
Takuya then remembered about that time during school today where he accompanied Tateyama to return a borrowed umbrella back to a girl and was about to open his mouth when a sharp glance from Tateyama caused him to immediately shut it. Through telepathy, he heard the words, "Don't. Say. Anything" ring in his head with Tateyama's voice. So instead, Takuya just laughed along with Mamoru.
Sanbey was the only one that had a serious comment, as he asked in a serious tone, "Tateyama, did you perhaps happen to sense a Warlock?"
The white-haired boy then felt uneasiness tug at the corners of his mouth from the Familiar's question as he held tightly onto the elevator railing. He remembered that faint presence moments ago, that cold pressure that felt like he was being watched, and wondered if that was a Warlock. Sanbey took his silence as a 'yes', and Tateyama was quick to tell this to the group, "Actually... I did sense one. I think. I felt something, but I wasn't sure since it was only for a while. A kind of pressure that makes you feel like you're being hunted."
The boys shared a worried look and Sanbey continued with his questions, "Were you in a place without sunlight?"
Tateyama shook his head, "No. Broad daylight. Crowded. I was outside when I felt it."
Mamoru crossed his arms and began to think. Biting on his thumb slightly, he looked out at city behind Tateyama and thought of an explanation for this as Hideki wondered, "Why would a Warlock attack in broad daylight? Won't they just burn up faster than match tossed in a haystack?"
"Maybe they're preparing to attack?" said Takuya.
"At any rate, we should be careful, especially at night. This could mean the Warlock's attacks are starting soon," Mamoru advised, "If we stay in the sunlight, and possibly in crowded spaces, we should be safe. At night, keep an eye out at all times, especially when you have people nearby. We don't want to cause a fight that could harm civilians or any other bystanders. I assumed their attacks would be starting soon, but it seems to be faster than I thought, so do make sure report if anything is amiss. Understood?"
There was a consecutive nod from all them which satisfied the boy and the doors of the elevator finally opened as they came to a stop at the building's 100th floor, "Good. Because Tateyama and I have a few important things to show you all," Mamoru smiled and lead the group out into a small lobby that had a tiled surface. The floors echoed the footsteps of the group as statues and waiting chairs were placed in the small corners. Way in front were the double-doors of a private club guarded by a man in a suit with a pair of rounded spectacles. Mamoru took the lead and approached the man with a casual smug smile as the man peered suspiciously at the sight of four teenage boys.
"May I help you?" the club doorman said with furrowed brows, adjusting his glasses and eyeing them all.
"I am Tezuka Mamoru, son of the renowned Tezuka Kenji who is a member here," the group leader formally introduced himself with a bow and flashed his identity card from his back-pocket, "If you would be so kind, sir, I would like to use one of the private lounges of Club Hierophant for the personal use of my friends and I."
The doorman stifled a laugh, which irked Mamoru and possibly made him more irritated than the calm face he had made him seem to be, "Listen, my dear boy, you could be son of the Queen of England, and I would still have to turn you and your friends away. Only people of class and with high status are allowed to go through Club Hierophant's doors and your little bunch seem to lack one or even both of that."
"Wow, someone that thinks Mamoru doesn't act high-and-mighty, that's a first," Hideki quietly snarked from the back of the group as Tateyama nodded in agreement.
Mamoru pressed the tips of his fingers against each other and tried to request in a polite voice once more, the act of being treated like this having more than struck a nerve as he did his best to smile, "Is there a sort of fee I would have to pay? I suppose I could pay to get inside."
"No," the man flatly replied, turning his look away from them, "Now, run long, little boy. Perhaps you should visit that Hermit Purple bar all those ruffians seem to love dwelling in."
The green-haired boy bit his lip and adjusted his collar, muttering in a frustrated tone, "I suppose I have to do it the hard away," In a flash, he materialized one of his puppeteer gloves into his hand and fired the gloves' prehensile strings from his fingertips, wrapping them around the man's neck and bringing him to his knees as its tight grip choked him. The wire was thin, but it was durable as Mamoru's Control magic transmitted through the string and the man's eyes went dull. As Mamoru pulled away the strings, the club doorman stood back up and cleared his throat.
"Forgive me for my rude behavior, Mr. Tezuka. Is there anything I can do for you?" the man said in a respectful tone.
A smirk grew on Mamoru's face, "I would like to use my father's private lounge. With room service and anything else you offer if you would be so kind, dear sir," the club doorman bowed in reply and Mamoru turned back to his friends, who were a bit surprised by his sudden actions, "Oh, don't worry. The magic will only stay for a few minutes. We'll be inside before he even realizes it."
Opening the double doors of Club Hierophant to let the group into the club, they followed the man to the designated room of Mamoru's father as Hideki commented, "Pretty convenient that we can use anything but our weapons and armor without using the Soul Key for our Gems, isn't it?" he then tapped on Mamoru's shoulder to tell him something, "Just don't go pull that on any of us to do anything weird, alright?" Hideki got a smug smile in reply, which made him feel a shiver down his spine.
In the club, glass chandeliers hung from the ceiling as the boys walked in a carpeted hallway. The smell of perfume, cologne and cigar smoke was thick. They would hear constant, obnoxious laughter behind closed doors. Doors that were marked with numbers as the hallway lead to different rooms filled with various people in fancy suits and dresses, the school uniforms of the boys making them look out of place as they walked to the end of the hall. A few people that passed glanced at them, so the boys did their best to not do anything that would attract anymore attention.
"I wonder if all rich people do is drink wine and smoke cigars while petting really expensive dogs?" Takuya's blunt thoughts transmitted to the other boys, "That's all I see in TV, though. Do they have people wash and change their clothes for them?"
"Not even I know the answer to that, Takuya," Mamoru answered, "Father always taught me to never be to reliant on servants."
"I will never understand the joy humans find in these sort of activities," Sanbey remarked, "Is this really all that fun?"
Finally, the club doorman brought the boys to their private lounge. The room they were let into was a small one that was rarely used by Mamoru's father, as during the Mamoru's younger years, every time he would come here, Mamoru would accompany him. There was a big c-shaped couch with a round, glass table in its middle and behind it, a rectangular window with a remarkable view of the city. A fireplace burning in the corner and a wide-screen TV in the other, the boys quickly got comfortable.
Takuya jumped head-first into the couch and gave a contented sigh as Sanbey and Hideki mimicked his actions. His body sank into the couch as Sanbey rolled on his back, "So comfy... I feel like I'm melting..."
Tateyama sat down and placed all their bags except his underneath the table with Takuya's groceries and his cakes. Placing his laptop bag on the table, Mamoru chuckled at the other two's actions as the hypnotized club doorman quietly left the room with the doors closed, "Now, let's straight to the point of why we are here," sitting down beside Tateyama, the white-haired boy unzipped his laptop bag and began taking out all sorts of things. Gadgets that looked rough but durable, some wires, and even a few of them were some of Mamoru's wood-carving works.
Takuya and Hideki sat upright and leaned in closer for a better look at them. On the table, there were four ear-pieces, four clam-shaped devices and a growing number of scarab-shaped pieces of wood as Tateyama unloaded everything that they were going to show from his bag. Hideki picked up one of the ear-pieces and said, "I'm guessing you stayed up late and ended up late for school because of these?"
Putting away the bag, Tateyama simply nodded and Mamoru started to explain what were these objects piled up on the table, "With the exception of the bug-shaped objects that I have made, these are what we will be carrying around to help us in our fight against the Warlocks," he gestured to the ear-pieces, "These are linked to each other with a private line that cannot be hacked and are quite durable enough as to not break during fights against Warlocks. While these other ones over here are gadgets used to detect the magical energies of Warlocks, Witches, and each other," he opened one of the clam-shaped devices and showed the insides. One side was a screen, and the other side showed readings of distance along with a smaller, more trivial reading that told the time.
Hideki rubbed his chin and raised a hand, "Mind telling us on how did you make a gadget that detects magic? That sounds really complicated," he said as Takuya and Sanbey agreed.
Tateyama and Mamoru shared a look, and then for the next four minutes, the two went on into a long, long explanation of techno-babble that went through one ear and out out the other. Takuya kept smiling and nodding despite not knowing what the Hell he was hearing and Hideki raised a hand to tell them to stop and apologized for even bringing the question up. Back to the topic, Mamoru proceeded with the bug-shaped objects on his right.
"These are surveillance bugs. Modified with cameras linked to Tateyama's computer, they'll be patrolling the city for any signs of the Warlocks and will be keeping an eye on Kaname to ensure her safety. My Control magic will be powering them like you saw how it affected that twat of a doorman previously, and since they are inanimate, they should take a while for the magic to wear off," he picked up one and showed off the scarabs's articulate wings.
"I think I understood that one," Takuya said with a smile, "Can I-?" he then felt his phone rang and he took it out to answer it. From the caller's number, he saw it was Mirai and pressed the phone to his ear, "Yeah? Ugh... Okay? Sure!" he closed the phone and pocketed it back in his pants, "Errr, Mamoru, can you come with me outside for a bit? Mirai wants to meet me a few floors below us because she wants to talk to me about something. I'll be quick, but I kinda need you to do your Jedi Mind-Trick again on the doorman when we get back in."
"Of course," Mamoru said and stood up with Takuya to head to the door. The green-haired boy stopped and turned back to Tateyama and Hideki, almost forgetting to tell them something, "Room service can be called anytime if you two get hungry - Don't order too much, Tateyama - There's a television in the corner, bathroom over there, so do make yourselves comfortable. My father's private lounge is one the best ones this club has to offer. Later, we shall be deploying the surveillance bugs and testing the ear-pieces."
"No promises," Tateyama replied, taking out his laptop to play some games while Hideki kicked back on the couch with Sanbey and turned on the television.
Wondering if it was really a good idea to leave the lounge to the two, Mamoru chuckled and closed the door behind him. On the way back to the entrance, he spoke Takuya, "So, what did does she want from you? I assume she's worried about you?"
"She wanted to ask me about something. Didn't really say anything but that."
When the two came out of the club, the doorman did a double-take at them right before Mamoru phased him with another wave of hypnosis. Takuya took the elevator down to a few floors below beneath Club Hierophant to the place Mirai told him to meet her at. When the elevator doors opened again, Takuya looked around and saw Mirai sitting on a bench placed near the viewing balconies where only the sunlight fell upon. The floor they were on was where tourists would go to take wide pictures of the city, but at this time, no one but Mirai and him were present.
The ceiling lights above them flickering, Takuya smiled and waved at her when she saw him, "Mirai! You wanted to talk to me about something?"
Mirai quietly nodded, her lips quivering as she shifted to a side on the bench and gestured him to sit next to her. After he did so, she looked down on the floor and began to speak in a low tone, "Takuya, I... You said if I wanted to talk about something, I should call you. So, I wanted to ask you about something important. This has been something that has been bothering me for a while now, so I wanted to see if you knew anything about this."
"Hmm? Sure. Ask away," Takuya said as he relaxed on the seat.
Mirai's voice then began to sound brittle, her hand moving a strand of black hair off her face as she continued, "Around the night of your accident, my father... he went missing. He's nowhere to be found. Nothing. My father's colleague had told me he had gone on a business trip, but when I tried calling him, he wouldn't answer. I found nothing that showed he went out overseas."
"The night of your accident," those words echoed in Takuya's mind. The same night Homura died. The same night they all became Puerum Magi. Looking at Mirai as she stared at her feet, she looked completely lost. Was this any way related to Warlocks? he pondered, "Did... Did you speak to Miss Narita about this?"
"No," Mirai shook her head and wiped away something from the corner of her eye, "She doesn't know where he is either. She asked me before I even realized that he had gone missing, but I haven't told her anything after that. I didn't want her to worry," Mirai sighed and cupped her face, "Since I was desperate, I... wanted to know if you knew anything about this," she looked at him with teary eyes that made Takuya reel, "Do you?"
He did not know if this was by mere coincidence that her father had disappeared the same night that Warlock came. Since it had escaped from its battle with Hideki, it could have possibly taken a few more lives that night. But he had no proof of this, and he of course, he could not tell anyone about the existence of the Warlocks. Looking at her straight in the eyes, Takuya answered, "No. I don't know anything. I'm sorry."
Mirai chuckled hysterically to herself, as if she expected this answer, "Guess so. Not like you would know anything either..."
She pulled her feet to her chest and grimaced. As Takuya was about to console her, he suddenly felt the sharp presence of something nearby coupled with a cold pressure that made his skin shiver, "This feeling," he thought, remembering what Tateyama had told them earlier, "Obscurum energy?" Putting a hand below his collar bone where his Soul Gem was, the bronze gem was shimmering slowly under his clothes as he realized that danger was close, and the first thing he had to do was get Mirai to safety immediately, "Mamoru, can you hear me?!" he tried to call Mamoru, but without Sanbey to increase their telepathy range, he heard no reply.
A loud ring from one of the elevators signaled something arriving on this floor, causing Takuya to look back at the balcony behind them. It was the only place where sunlight directly shone upon, but would it work. He could feel the cold presence of Obscurum energy getting closer, so he had no choice. Standing up, Takuya grabbed Mirai by the arm and spoke in a worried tone, "Mirai, come with me. Please."
"Takuya?" she looking at him with confused, teary eyes as he suddenly dragged her over to the balcony and out into the sunlight. The Warlock's presence grew stronger, Takuya looked back cautiously at the elevators as Mirai kept a hand on a railing, becoming worried from Takuya's weird behavior, "Takuya, what is going on?" she pleaded for an answer, placing a hand on his shoulder as the brunette's body tensed.
He looked left and right, eyes scanning for movement, the cold pressure feeling only meters away as he tried again to call out to his teammates, "Just stay here, alright?" Takuya told her, "Just for a few minutes," in his mind, he scrambled for what to do now: Should he tell Mirai to just get out of here and pray the Warlock would just come for him? Or should they wait and see if the others are feeling the Warlock's presence as well and are coming to help them now? Could he try to escape by himself and still keep Mirai safe? As his breathing turned hoarse, his Soul Gem started flashing wildly.
The indoor ceiling lights blacked out in an instant and Takuya could no longer see anything inside. There was the sound of an elevator door opening and closing, but nothing else as Takuya opened one hand and materialized his Soul Key. Sweat trailed down his cheek and he nearly jumped in reflex when Mirai held onto his arm out of worry.
"W-Who's there?" Mirai's voice was shaky.
"Mirai, just stay behind me and you'll be fi-" right before Takuya could finish his words, a small bomb with a burning fuse rolled onto the balcony and within moments, the sounds of an explosion echoed through the building.