Shadows of Akademi: Deception
Chapter 3
A DEADLY SUMMONS
They walk unseen and foul in lonely places where Words have been spoken and the Rites howled through at their Seasons. The wind gibbers with Their voices, and the Earth mutters with Their consciousness. They bend the forest and crush the city, yet may not forest or city behold the hand that smites. Kadath in cold waste hath known Them, and what man knows Kadath?" -Book of the Night
Ayano tailed Osana from a distance, watching her every movement while socializing with others as to not draw any suspicion. Ayano figured that Osana would've kept to herself since she was a Tsundere, but there was no such luck. Osana constantly chatted with others, and was never seen outside of a group. She watched as the group parted, and Osoro strode into the school, the chatty ambiance diminishing to hushed whispers. Shiro walked over a moment later, Ayano hadn't even seen him walk in. He looked as if he had been up all weekend without any trace of sleep, as there were prominent dark bags under his eyes, and his hair was a little disheveled.
"Hello." Shiro greeted in an amicable tone.
"You're looking well." Osoro remarked with sarcasm.
"I've been busy." Shiro admitted to Osoro and the two walked off.
The two walked away and the atmosphere returned. Even Osana seemed wary of the two, especially Shiro. Ayano kept tailing Osana, yet it remained clear that she would have to wait until lunch to try and make a move. Ayano went to her classroom to find Shiro sitting in the desk next to hers, pouring over notes.
"Mornin'." Shiro waved to Ayano.
"Good Morning." Ayano replied in a flat tone. "Did they put you in this classroom?"
"For now." Shiro nodded to her. "Hopefully it's a permanent stick."
"I see." Ayano stared down before sitting at her desk.
More students filed in and the guy who sat next to Shiro as well seemed to be very nervous being next to him, something that Shiro was having fun with. He would make sudden gestures on purpose, and Ayano would watch the teen flinch. Eventually Shiro sharply turned to the kid and said "Boo.", nearly scaring him out of his clothes. Shiro introduced himself while laughing, and the teacher cleared her throat. Everyone sat down and the teacher took attendance. She rattled off names, and after each name, was rewarded with a student's reply.
"To those of you that do not know," The teacher told everyone, her gaze focusing on Shiro. "I am Shiori Risa."
Shiori started class almost immediately, and Shiro took notes again. Shiori seemed a little impressed, for a kid that hung out with the leader of the delinquents on a regular basis, Shiro seemed to be an avid note taker. Yet, his eyes began to droop. After a while of fighting to stay awake, Shiro nodded off. Ayano looked over and realized that the notes he had been taking, looked to be some sort of translation. Shiro had even tried cryptograms, but could not seem to make sense of the text. Shiori on the other hand, narrowed her eyes and picked up a piece of chalk. Her hand sprang into action as she pitched the chalk at Shiro. His eyes snapped open and his hand shot out, catching the piece of chalk. He cracked his neck and re-shuffled his papers, putting class notes on top. Shiro then got up from his chair and walked over to Shiori, apologizing for nodding off. He seemed sincere enough to convince the teacher.
"Don't do it again." Shiori remarked, and Shiro nodded.
"I promise this won't be an issue again." Shiro apologized once more.
Ayano watched as Shiro returned to his desk, analyzing him. She didn't think he was in any other club than the Occult Club, which already stood out like a sore thumb since he literally had nothing in common with the other members, but his movements were extremely fast. If she could have felt any emotions at the moment, this would have worried Ayano. She watched as he kept taking class notes, and the bell rang for lunch.
"Shiro, could I have a word with you for a moment?" Shiori asked in a calm tone.
"Yes ma'am." Shiro nodded, and everyone filed out, but Ayano stayed outside to listen.
Unfortunately, it seemed that the two were talking as quietly as possible, making it impossible for Ayano to glean any information. She peaked through the window, and gulped. Her teacher was holding onto Shiro's shirt and almost lifting him up.
"You would do wise to know that." Shiori told him in a threatening tone.
"Understood." Shiro replied with his hands up, and Shiori almost threw him off away.
"Good. Now go." Shiori told him, and Ayano walked off.
She went through the halls searching for Osana, and eventually bumped into Shiro. He seemed to be on the phone with somebody, and Ayano brushed past him with her head down, not wanting to draw attention. She found Osana in a group, talking and laughing with the others. Ayano sat down at a table and began eating her lunch, quietly observing Osana from a distance. The moment she broke away from her routine… no, that would be too reckless. She would wait until Wednesday to make her move. It's always better to set everything up first, than jump at every first opportunity. She noticed Shiro walking in with the leader of the Occult Club, Oka Ruto. Ayano watched them, for a delinquent, he seemed like a pretty amiable person. The two sat down at a table and began discussing club matters. Shiro took out some notes and passed them to Oka, but it seemed that she couldn't make sense of them either.
"I guess then I won't be coming into the club meeting tonight," Shiro shrugged. "I might have to do a little digging on my own side."
"O-Okay…" Oka nodded in response, and suddenly Shiro's phone rang.
"Oh, excuse me." Shiro stood up and flipped open the phone. "Hello."
He walked out of the lunch room, the uniform coat flapping out behind him like some sort of dramatic movie villain's cloak would. Ayano began to plan out her method of elimination. The first thing that came to mind was to at least ruin Osana's reputation. That would give her a little more leeway to eliminate the annoying girl. Her first option would be to fake Osana's suicide, after ruining her reputation of course. That's what would make it believable. But if it truly came down to it, Ayano could always sneak into Osana's house and plunge a knife into her chest while she was sleeping… that would be a last resort though. Suddenly her phone buzzed. Ayano pulled it out and noticed that there was a text from an anonymous person. Most likely Info-Chan.
"Are you alone?" The person had texted.
"No. I'm in the cafeteria. Who is this?" Ayano texted back.
"Who do you think?" The person texted back, it was Info-Chan. "However, the more important matter is, can you get to a more… quieter place?"
"Yes, but why?" Ayano texted back, wary of the sender already.
"Let's say I can help you." Info-Chan replied to her. "Can you get to a private location?"
"Fine. Give me a moment." Ayano rolled her eyes.
She got up and walked to the first-floor girl's bathroom, and closed a stall. She texted Info-Chan that she was alone.
"Good. I have a job opportunity for you." Info-Chan told Ayano. "It pays well, and will be a source of free favors."
"So what's the catch?" Ayano asked Info-Chan, it seemed shady already.
"You'll be my assassin." Info-Chan told Ayano. "In return for each mission completed, you'll earn one free favor, and around 12,000 yen."
Ayano's eyes widened, 12,000 yen for each mission completed was quite a bit of money. But at the same time, most assassins charged up to 2,000,000 yen. It didn't matter though, as long as she had the proper training, Ayano was sure she could evade the authorities.
"Will I be receiving training?" Ayano asked info-Chan.
"Yes, does this mean you accept?" Info-Chan asked Ayano.
"Yes." Ayano agreed.
"Hontorocho, Shimogyo Ward, Kyoto. 12:00 midnight." Info-Chan texted. "There should be a man in his late fifties living there. He will train you."
Again, Ayano was a bit taken aback, since she lived so close to this so called 'Assassin Trainer'. He was within at least a mile away from her own home. Ayano then deleted the messages as per Info-Chan's orders. She then left the bathroom and headed back to class since lunch was almost over. She saw Shiro walking down the hall, and he looked at her. This time, it felt different. As if he was aware of her now. Something lurked behind those friendly eyes, something dangerous. Ayano sat down next to him, and felt nervous. The general air around Shiro had changed for her. He may have been talking to the other kid like he was their friend, but Ayano could feel it. The air around him was anything but friendly, it was almost poisonous to her. She felt like a mouse next to a fox, and Shiro's friendly smile, was that of a predator's looking for its next prey.
The class went by, and Ayano got up, exiting the room as quickly as possible. She could almost hear Shiro's dark laughter. Rather than watching Osana, Ayano chose to follow Taro home. When he got home safely, she went to her house and waited. Time passed as her thoughts were occupied with Shiro, and not in a good way mind you. He seemed to have an unnatural charm about him, almost as if he could bend people to his will with his charm. She would have to be wary of him. Shiro had to be up to something. Maybe it was him behind the bombing of Ritsumeikan? Ayano got up and put on dark clothing before heading out to the address. Upon arriving, a man opened up for her. He was bald and looked rather American. The man ushered her in with a silent gesture, and her training began. Ayano was out, Info-Chan had decided to stay in her home.
She watched as Shiro entered the school building with a large sheet of paper that had been rolled up and a bag slung over his shoulders. He made his way to the Occult Club, placed his bag down and unfurled the sheet of paper, pinning the edges down on underneath the chairs. Shiro then took out thirteen crimson colored candles, and placed them on the sheet of paper. With each candle lit, Info-Chan could see the what was on the paper with clarity. It looked like some sort of ritualistic circle. Lines and runic text crisscrossed the circle in intricate but geometrical patterns, forming a more complex version of the Occult Club's séance pentagram. Shiro took out the black knife with the eye in it and carefully stepped over the barrier of blood-red candles. The blade was covered in something dark red.
"pɐɹʞuǝss oɟ ʇɥǝ ɐqʎss qǝ ʞuoʍu, ɐs ʇɥǝ qןɐpǝ oɟ pɐɹʞ ɯnsʇ sǝʌǝɹ ʇɥǝ qɐɹɹıǝɹ ʇɥɐʇ qıups ʎon. oɟ sʇɹɐuɓǝ ǝous oɟ ʇıɯǝs ʇɥɐʇ dɐss, ɟɹoɯ ʇɥǝ sdɐɔǝ ʍɥıɔɥ ıs uoʇ sdɐɔǝ, ɐup oɟ ʇɥɐʇ ʍɥıɔɥ ןıʌǝʇɥ ɐdɐɹʇ ɟɹoɯ ɥıɯ ɐup ǝɐʇǝʇɥ sonןs, ʇɥɐʇ ʍɥıɔɥ sɯoʇɥǝɹs. ɥǝɐɹ ɯʎ ɔɐןן, ןısʇǝu ʇo ɯʎ ɥǝɐɹʞǝuıuɓ." Shiro whispered as he stabbed the knife into the middle-most circle.
Shiro then stepped out of the circle and set up a recording device. Layered voices began to chant, and Shiro joined in after kneeling at the circle and raising his palms to the circle as if he were warming his hands up by a fire.
"!sıɹqǝuǝʇ ɯǝʇnɐ ıuǝʌ!ıuǝʌ !ıuǝʌ !ıuǝʌ ;ɯɐǝɯ ɯǝɔoʌ ǝʇıpnɐ ,ɐuɓǝɹ suɐɹʇ pɐ snqnɔɔns ʇsǝ ınb ,soʌ ıʌɐɔoʌ ʇǝ ;opunɯ ɔoɥ uı snsɹnɹ ɯɐǝɯ ɯǝuoıʇɐɔoʌ ǝɹǝqıן !ɯnıןɐʇɹoɯ ɯnuɓǝɹ pɐ ʇıuǝʌ ,sıɹqǝuǝʇ ɯǝʇnɐ ıuǝʌ" Shiro chanted in a sinister tone, and the candles flickered.
Info-Chan rolled her eyes and scoffed, Shiro didn't actually think he would summon anything, would he? He kept chanting, barely pausing to take a breath when needed. His dedication to the Occult honestly impressed Info-Chan, none of the other members even tried rituals like these, as she was sure that there had been someone's blood on the intricate dagger. Suddenly there was a groaning sound, and Info-Chan blinked. It had sounded like the buzzing of a thousand flies mimicking that of a twisted trumpet. She gulped as Shiro kept chanting, the hairs on the back of her neck beginning to stand up.
Info-Chan watched from her computer with uneasiness. it felt like there was a lead weight in her stomach. Something was changing. The change was very slow and gradual though, as if something very powerful was drawing nearer and nearer to the school, but had a great length to arrive from. The room grew colder and colder as Shiro kept chanting. It wasn't a natural chill, no, it was something much more sinister. The shadows Shiro cast along the walls were moving on their own accord, yet his chanting remained uninterrupted. Some shadows were like dark smoke, and others like a grey mist, thrashing around on the edge of the unique pentacle as if they were desperately trying to get into it. The ground began to shake, and a vase fell over and shattered, yet Shiro remained vigilant.
The threatening rumbles came in pairs, almost as if they were the heartbeat of some angry titan climbing up from the very bowls of hell, tearing through the very stone itself. The ritual reached its crescendo and then… Nothing. Info-Chan breathed a sigh of relief as the wraiths faded away, it seemed as if it failed. Suddenly in the middle of the circle, a blot of blackness appeared. It spread like spilled ink on the paper, consuming everything in the circle, and stopping at its edges. There was now a circle of pure liquid darkness, and it even seemed that the light of the candles was being drawn into the void. The knife slowly sank into the soupy darkness like it was quicksand.
Info-Chan's heart almost literally stopped as the darkness churned and a being slowly arose from the void on the floor. It was a black depicted a black winged Succubus. The same from the statue room. Instead of a monochrome color scheme with black eyes and long black hair, her skin was a pale grey and her hair was magenta colored. Her body was still barely covered by lacy clothing and she had yellow jewels covering her nipples. She hovered in the air, and her bright yellow eyes fixated on the kneeling form of Shiro. She floated over to him, the tips of her shoes barely touching the ground. Her well-manicured hand slowly and deliberately reached out to him, cupping his cheek, and forcing his head up to look at her. She was smiling, but it wasn't a kind smile; it was cold, cruel, and as black as her heart.
"Fufufu... summoning me without protection?" The Succubus crooned lasciviously, licking her lips. "How very unwise…"
"Yes, but would it seem right to lock someone such as you away?" Shiro replied to the Succubus, mimicking her smile as well.
"Ara ara! You're a cute little thing." The succubus giggled in a lustful tone. "Do you want to play with me?"
"I'm not looking for pleasure." Shiro told the Succubus, and she gave him a confused look.
"Then why summon me?" The Succubus asked, narrowing her eyes.
Shiro took the pages of paper out of his pocket and offered them to the Succubus. She took the papers from his hands and her eyes widened.
"I'm looking for a teacher." Shiro told the Succubus. "Someone who can teach me how to read these."
The Succubus began to giggle, her seductive laughter growing and growing into full-blown raucous peals of laughter.
"Ara ara! How very interesting! Not only the first human to have summoned me in 500 years, but also this?" The Succubus laughed outright. "Very well, I shall teach you this language… and in return, I want you to continue in your mission, see it through no matter what shall befall you. Should you ever quit… well… there are worse things than hell."
"I accept these conditions." Shiro spoke with clarity, and the Succubus's smile widened.
"Now, as proof of our contract." She said to Shiro with a grin.
Black tribal symbols snaked up Shiro's left arm, stopping at his neck. He noticed that the same black symbols had appeared onto the Succubus's arm as well. She pressed Shiro's face into her crotch and threw her head back with a gasp. Info-Chan watched with a blush as her legs tightened around his head. It was clearly obvious that Shiro was pleasing the Succubus with his tongue, and quite well in all honesty. The Succubus ground her crotch on his face as her body squirmed in delight, her hands grasping his head. The Succubus stayed there for a bit, gasping and moaning before parting from Shiro, his mouth coated in her fluids.
"Oh, the things I am going to do to you…" The Succubus giggled as she lowered her face down to Shiro's, her tone low and sultry.
She flew over his head, no doubt giving him a good look before sinking into his shadow. Her chuckle echoing off the walls as she disappeared. The darkness on the paper seemed to lighten up a bit, and Info-Chan wondered what Shiro was planning next. Someone gave a small gasp, and Shiro turned. He noticed Musume Ronshaku standing in the doorway, holding a video camera. She fled the moment Shiro had noticed her, and he rushed after her. He took out a silenced Ruger 22/45 Lite Rimfire .22 Pistol, loaded with subsonic 710fps ammunition, and with a red dot sight on the slide. The ammo was specially designed to be the perfect ammo for stealth kills. He pulled the slide back and chambered around as he chased after Musume. She turned left, most likely attempting to shake him off before fleeing. He chased her all the way up to the third floor and pretended to stalk around. He knew where she was hiding.
Shiro flicked the safety off and took aim as Musume fled from her hiding spot. Pssh! The gun had barely made a sound and the bullet penetrated Musume's leg. Info-Chan watched as Shiro calmly strode over to the injured girl, taking aim. Pssh! Musume's hand shot to her chest, and she tumbled to the ground.
"Please…" Musume begged in pain. "I promise I won't tell anybody I swear!"
Shiro stepped on her stomach to prevent her from squirming too much, and watches the other girl twitch and sniffle underneath her. He'd heard these lines before. Victims and witnesses always cried and begged, pleading with him not to kill them. Musume's eyes were filled with unshed tears as she struggled to breathe.
"It's not polite to snoop Musume." Shiro told Musume with a sick smile.
Shiro's smile was a twisted as radioactive ooze leaking from a corroded toxic waste barrel. Info-Chan had once compared him to a fox, sly and dangerous. But, no, now she knew differently. In reality, Shiro was no fox, but a snake, looking for its next victim and swallowing innocents' whole.
"P-please, I don't w-wanna…" Musume choked up,
"You don't want to what?" Shiro asked the trembling girl.
He watched Musume's tears spilled down her cheeks, and as she brought her hands up to her head.
I don't want to die…" Musume whispered.
Shiro looked down at Musume's body, and sniffed the air. He looked down near her legs and Musume buried her face in her hands in shame. There was a puddle of urine on the ground below the girl. How utterly pathetic. Shiro aimed the gun at Musume's head, but waited, he wanted a clean kill.
"Look at me. Do you want to live?" Shiro asked in a kinder tone.
"Ye…" Musume never got to finish.
The moment she had taken her hands away from her face, Shiro pulled the trigger and a bullet lodged itself in her forehead. Blood splashed up and Musume's head hit the ground, her face frozen in shock. He took her phone and rifled through it, deleting any and all evidence with tact precision. Shiro opened his coat and put some gloves on before placing a bag of white powder in Musume's hand and a decent amount of Yen in her pockets, careful not to get any blood or urine on him. With the evidence planted, Shiro hid the handgun and walked off. He stashed up the candles after blowing them out and unpinned the sheet of paper from the floor, touching the dark spot on the circle. It was just wet ink now. As Shiro pulled up the paper, he saw the dagger was lying underneath, the blade pointing at him. He picked up the dagger and stashed it into the bag. Shiro then walked out of the building and headed towards the incinerator, he hid as he saw something move, but sighed as he noticed it was a cat.
Shiro then dumped the paper into the incinerator and turned it on to full blast. He didn't care what would happen when someone eventually stumbled onto Musume's body. The police would most likely link it to a drug deal gone bad anyway. Shiro headed home and decided that he would attend class normally, rather than skipping. No sense in angering Ms. Shiori any further than she was with him. He got home and into bed, pulling the covers over his body and closing his eyes. Shiro felt a weight on his groin, and noticed that the Succubus had snuggled in with him, the only problem however, was that she was completely naked. Shiro sighed and hoped to God that his parents didn't walk in unannounced in the morning, this situation would be nearly impossible to explain, and "Yeah, she's a demon I summoned last night." Was far from anything he would ever say. He closed his eyes again, and felt that the next morning had come way too quickly. Shiro yawned and got up, the Succubus tumbling off of him.
"Sorry, forgot you were here…" Shiro apologized to her.
"Next time wake me up first." The Succubus rolled her eyes.
Shiro got into the shower and the Succubus joined him, not bothered by their lack of clothing. Shiro rolled his eyes and washed up, ignoring the Succubus doing lewd things right in front of him. He got out and toweled off, wrapping the towel around him just in time, as his little sister barged in.
"S-Sorry!" She screeched and closed the door.
Shiro turned around to ask the Succubus if she had been seen, but she was nowhere in sight, not until his reflection moved that is. Shiro didn't bat an eye and the Succubus swan dived into his shadow. He then walked out and into his room, getting dressed and turning around. The Succubus was laying nude on his bed.
"I don't think we've introduced ourselves. I'm Shiro Tamagachi." Shiro introduced.
"Oh? Is someone finally taking an interest?" The Succubus crooned as she lifted up a leg to 'stretch'. "I am Yrelylia, Queen of the Night."
"Well then Yrelylia, let's go." Shiro smiled and offered her a hand. "No funny business."
Yrelylia pouted as the two exited the room, and she sank back into Shiro's shadow as they headed for Akademi High. Shiro grinned, he wondered who would find Musume's body. Most likely Midori Gurin. Shiro smiled wider, he desperately wanted to see her face when she found the bloodied body of Musume Ronshaku.
I would like to apologize for such a long delay in uploading chapter three. Agent Archangel and I have unfortunately been bound down with work, and as such, I could not find much time to write this chapter. Rather than put out hurried and less than desirable writing, I chose to take the time after my assignment with Agent Archangel had been complete. I do wonder how he manages to find such a time to write. As such, "NoticeMeSempai", well... This next one should be a new challenge. As to some who do not know, many professional contract killers have a salary between $65,000-$75,000. 12,000 yen roughly equates to just over $1,000 USD. This is considerably cheap since most contracts earn around $25,000-$30,000. Although this price will vary depending on the specific targets, quality of the hitman, and contract requirements. I have only used the middle range. The best contract killers easily earn millions for each hit. I had always planned to add in mission mode, but each mission will be dependamt on you readers. Please leave a review on this chapter, I await for Ayano's first contract. Keep in mind, Nemesis wont be added just yet. -Agent Zenith