A few opening words: Alrighty then! Welcome to the climatic end of Memories lost! A forewarning; expect tons of action and gunplay! As well as that, there will be some swearing as well. Anyway, enjoy!
Sakaki kicked the lobby door open, and scanned the room with her two pistols. From what she could see, the room was empty so far. Although, there were two enclaves to the left and right which she couldn't see, most likely the reception desks. Sakaki advanced, and aimed one pistol to either side, head swiveling left and right.
To her left was an empty desk, and to her right was a younger woman, maybe a few years older than herself. She looked nervous, but kept her cool. Almost instantly, the woman moved her hand for the intercom.
"You! Where is your boss?" The girl froze. She had to be new.
"I… uh… He's-"
"Out with it. What floor?"
"P-penthouse!"
"Thank you." Sakaki moved for the elevator. The girl looked terrified, but still moved her hand towards the intercom.
"Go ahead. Tell him I'm coming. Tell him, it's his day to die." Sakaki walked off to the open elevator before the girl could say more. She hit the button for the penthouse suite, and the door closed quietly. Sakaki stood there, pistols at her side, breathing heavily. Her muscles were trying to stiffen up, and her whole body ached from the motorcycle wreck. Still, she ignored it all; the adrenaline coursing through her veins made that a lot easier than it sounded.
Sakaki watched the lights count up the floors, idly listening to the bland elevator music. Apparently, the penthouse was on the 52nd floor, a long way up. Not the kind of fall a human could survive. Hopefully that wouldn't be an issue. Hopefully.
"Ah, Sakaki. You've showed up sooner than I thought. Well done on that."
Sakaki nearly jumped out of her skin at the sound of Shuji's voice. She searched around the small elevator, finding him nowhere.
"I thought you'd be smarter than that. Look up here, above the keypad in the corner." Sakaki followed the directions, and saw a small security camera mounted to the wall, with a red blinking light on the front.
"Hello there! Now, there is something I feel I should tell you. You seem to be coming up to the 52nd floor, so I might as well tell you. While that is as high as the elevator goes, it is not the last floor. Actually, it is my greenhouse. You see, I enjoy working with plants and such, particularly those from tropical places. That being said, it may be a little hot for you in that coat.
"I'm getting a little off-topic here. What I wanted to tell you is that you'll be faced with two dozen of my elite guard. The best money can buy." Sakaki looked up questioningly.
"Why did you tell me that?"
"Why, Sakaki my dear, whether or not you know about 24 heavily armed and dangerous men in the next room does not affect whether or not you can do anything about it."
"No, I mean, why did you bother? Nothing is going to keep me from killing you."
"So much hate." A bell dinged once, indicating that the elevator had reached the desired floor. "Well, good luck. Oh, here's some music to fit the mood. Welcome to the Jungle, Sakaki. Welcome, to my jungle." Sakaki sighed as a song began to play through the speakers, Welcome to the Jungle by Guns n'Roses. Suddenly, the doors slid open, and all hell ensued.
Gunfire erupted from all angles on the small elevator. Sakaki dove out into the greenhouse just in time, her trench-coat flailing behind her. Several holes could already be seen in it. She sprinted along the edge of the room, glancing into the center every few steps. In the middle of the greenhouse was a forest, or rather a jungle. Trees were strewn all over the place, with ferns and tall grass littering the ground.
There were many armed men in the jungle, that was for sure, if the amount of shooting had anything to say about it, but Sakaki couldn't see them at all, only the muzzle flashes. She reached the corner of the room and turned, still following the wall. She holstered her pistols and pulled the shotgun off her back, holding it near her waist as she ran.
Up ahead, Sakaki spotted a large support pillar, one she could use for cover. Just as she was nearing it though, a jolt of pain shot up through her left leg, a bullet had clipped her shin. The sudden pain caused her to misstep, and tumble forward. Sakaki shoulder rolled into something that looked like a slide-tackle. Before she was in cover however, she spotted a pair of men approaching through the ferns. Sakaki fired a pair of shots, taking both out, and then she was in cover.
Sakaki leaned back against the pillar and took a moment to catch her breath. The henchmen stopped shooting as well, leaving the greenhouse in an eerie silence, save for the music. She took a glance left and right, and then noticed something on the wall, right in front of her, near the top. A security camera. Great. Sakaki fired a single shot, destroying it. All of a sudden, the music stopped as well.
"I'd appreciate you don't destroy any more of my equipment," Shuji said, sounding a little annoyed.
"I'd appreciate you giving back my friend," Sakaki replied.
"Yet unfortunately, you aren't in a position to demand anything. Ta-ta!" Almost on cue, Sakaki heard a faint ting, then another closer by. Then she watched in horror as a grenade rolled by the side of the support pole.
"Shit!"
Shuji sighed as he lifted his hand off the intercom.
"She's determined, I'll give her that." Suddenly, there was a loud thwump, accompanied by a rumble that could be felt throughout the penthouse.
"And there goes my beautiful greenroom. Damn, she'll pay for that." All of a sudden, the man to his right cried out in pain, waving his right hand around. Even so, he managed to hold onto his captive.
"Why are you doing this?" she demanded.
"All will be revealed in due time. And please don't bite the guards."
"Up yours, jerk. I can't wait for Sakaki to come up here and kick your ass!"
"You've got quite a mouth on you, Miss Mihama, especially for your age. No matter. As for Sakaki, you shouldn't expect much. If she doesn't die in the process of getting here, then I'll be killing her in due time. You as well.
"Why?"
"Because you're a witness, of course. Can't have you running around knowing what you know. I'll have to take care of your other friends too, the ones that got away already. What were their names? Kagura… and Ayumu, I believe…"
"You bastard," at that moment, Shuji nodded to the guard holding Chiyo, and he swiftly smacked her on the side of her head with the grip of the pistol he had pulled out. Chiyo fell back into his grasp, partially stunned by the blow. The man put the gun to her head as further deterrent.
"Now, if you'll please remain quiet, I have some paperwork to attend to…"
"Goddamnit, this bitch's too damn fast! How many did she take out already?"
"I dunno! Half a dozen, maybe a full dozen!"
"Shit, gather the others. We'll regroup back at the penthouse elevator. We'll take her-hurgh!" The man was interrupted as a large knife appeared through his throat. Sakaki yanked it free and spun around to face his companions. So far, she had eliminated at least half of the guards. That left a dozen more, well, eleven after this one. She leapt forward, and ended the first man's life with a few quick slashes with her knives, and before the second could draw a bead on her, he was sent sprawling by a powerful kick, courtesy Sakaki. He didn't get up.
Sakaki took a moment to get her bearings. The penthouse elevator was a few dozen yards behind her, but there were still guards in the greenroom. Every second I waste is another second Chiyo-chan is in his grasp, Sakaki thought. And even with her athletic ability and endurance, she was beginning to feel the effects of exhaustion, and her wounds were beginning to pile up as well. Throwing caution to the wind, she bolted to the open elevator.
Luckily, it was unguarded. She slid inside and hit the button to close the doors. As soon as they closed, the elevator began moving. There was only two floors (technically, two were taken up by the greenhouse) between her and saving Chiyo-chan… and getting her revenge on Shuji. She took a moment to look herself over, take note of the damage done.
Sakaki found herself to be bleeding from multiple wounds on her legs and arms, though none were too serious, most from bullets grazing her, or light slash wounds from the few that had knives. The few that were more serious bled more, like the bullet that had gone through her left shin, and the stab wound in her side. Sakaki put her hand to her forehead, and found that it came off sticky with blood. She checked her somewhat short hair, and found it matted with blood. Whether it was her own or not, she didn't know, but Sakaki didn't remember getting hit anywhere up there. Must've been falling debris from that grenade going off, she thought.
Now that Sakaki thought about it, a lot of the blood on her was not her own. Her clothes were stained with the blood of those she had killed, as well as her own. Reflecting on it, she probably could've gotten by without killing so many, or in such brutal ways for the few she had used her knives against. However, she had been in an enraged state, something that wouldn't have happened before the incident a few months ago.
Come to think of it, Sakaki thought, I have changed a lot since that day. The old me would be ashamed… No, the old me was killed by Shuji. This is me now. This is who I am. I still have all my friends, and they still like me for who I am, regardless of how I've changed. And now, one of my closest friends is in danger, danger that I dragged her into. I can't live with that.
A high pitched chime was heard, and the elevator doors slid open. Sakaki dashed out, shotgun in hand. She cast a glance left, then found what she was looking for to the right. She stopped dead in her tracks.
"How nice of you to join us, Sakaki." Shuji was sitting behind his desk, wearing a formal grey suit. Behind him was a set of large bay window, at least a dozen feet high. To his left was a guard with an SMG aimed at Sakaki, and to his right was what made Sakaki's blood run cold. A guard stood there, holding Chiyo firmly with one arm, and in his other he held a pistol to the girl's head. What made it worse was the thin line of blood flowing down the side of Chiyo's forehead. Shuji snapped his fingers, and two more armed guards stepped out from their hiding places, and took up positions behind Sakaki.
"You bastard…"
"Why thank you," Shuji replied, in a matter of fact tone. "Now, let's get down to business. Would you please drop the weapon, and kindly kick it away? Wouldn't want young Chiyo here to be harmed, would you?"
Against her better judgment, Sakaki complied. She dropped the shotgun, and kicked it away.
"Good, that's a good girl. As a further deterrent," Shuji pulled a pistol out of his suit and fired off two quick shots, one hitting Sakaki in the left bicep, the other her right thigh. Sakaki gasped in pain, and fell to one knee, clutching the wounds. Chiyo screamed, and struggled, but the man still held her tight.
"I'm sorry about that m'dear, but we can't have you thinking about attacking can we?" He looked her over, then got up and started pacing behind his desk. "With wounds like those, you'll most likely bleed out in less than an hour, so I'll keep this short. I'm sure you're wondering who I am, and why I've singled you, and consequently your friends, out."
"Fuck you."
"If you wouldn't mind."
Sakaki shot him an evil glare, one that said I'm going to kill you, very painfully. Shuji shrugged it off.
"Come now, is that any way to greet a family member, after so long?" Sakaki's eyes widened in shock. "Yes, that's right, sister dear. I am your brother."
"How…?"
"You met with Mr. Takanawa, yes? I thought he would've told you." Shuji paused for a moment. "Right, right, he never did find out your father had a child before they met. Well, I suppose I'll fill you in. I owe you that much don't I?
"Now… where to begin? I suppose I'll start when I was young. Your, I should say, our parents had a little baby boy one day. Your father, with his somewhat successful 'business' still on the rise, kept working it in his free time, spending all other time with his family. It was a good life, for all I knew, my dad was a normal dad, the kind who went to work every day, came home, and put food on the table.
"I never found out about his true profession until I was six, but it was too late for him to do anything about it. A rival gang had had enough of his power, and put out a hit on our dad. Unfortunately, they were unsuccessful in killing him. So, what did they do? They took his firstborn child, me, instead. I was taken from my home at night, and from there, I learned the meaning of hell.
"The next six years of my life was torture. Literally, torture. The sick bastards would rather torture me, have fun with me than kill me. Then, one day, when I was twelve, or sometime around then, I broke free of captivity. As you would probably guess, I was quite bitter at the world, as well as my parents. Why hadn't they come to find my? Why hadn't they saved me?
"A few shaky years later, I found myself part of a small time street gang, working my way up to the top. It was about then that I found out the truth about my parents. My father, he was now the co-leader of one of the larger underground organizations in the city. What pained me the most was that he had moved on. He had forgotten me! Both him and his wife! They just… forgot about me, and moved on! They even had another child, you! Life was great, for them!
"I couldn't strike then, not in my current situation. I bided my time until now. Or rather, a few months ago. I got my revenge on them, for forgetting me."
"You're wrong." Sakaki looked up at him.
"What?"
"You're wrong. They wouldn't have forgotten about you. They would have been crushed."
"Lies! They moved on so quickly! You took my place!"
"So you had to KILL them? Is that it? They couldn't save you, yet you blame them?" Shuji was beginning to get angry. It was clear that he was insane, probably caused by the torture.
"And what would YOU know?! No matter, you won't be living much longer anyway. Gustaf? Do it." The man holding Chiyo, apparently Gustaf, tightened his grip on the girl. A sadistic grin came to his face as he gripped the pistol tighter.
It was then that Sakaki noticed something, the sun glinting off something on the roof of the building across the street. All of a sudden, there was a faint sound of glass cracking, followed by a thwip sound. The man holding Chiyo dropped his gun. His eyes rolled back into his head, and he fell backwards with a bloody hole in the side of his head, leaving Chiyo standing there with a stunned look on her face. A moment later, the same thing happened to the guard on the other side of Shuji. The sniper on the opposite roof stood up, and Sakaki was able to make out who it was. It was Ayumu Kasuga!
"What?!" Almost as if on cue, the stairs door burst open behind Sakaki, and Kagura dashed out. She fired two quick bursts from her assault rifle and dropped the two guards behind Sakaki. Shuji looked around frantically. Kagura was walking slowly forward, rifle leveled at Shuji. He cast an enraged glance at the two girls then aimed his own pistol at Chiyo, who was still frozen with fear.
Time slowed, or seemed to at least. Shuji mouthed the words to something, But Sakaki didn't hear. She pushed herself to her feet.
"Family or not, you're dead you son of a bitch!" Sakaki surged forward, ignoring the searing pain all over her body. A third sniper shot whizzed through the glass and destroyed Shuji's pistol, but Sakaki was oblivious. Her vision had begun to fade. All she saw now was Shuji. She built up full speed in four steps, then vaulted the desk with ease. Shuji never saw it coming. Sakaki planted a flying kick dead center on his chest on her way over the desk.
Shuji, with a shocked expression on his face, was catapulted backwards into the glass. Normally, it might have saved him, but weakened by the bullet holes, it couldn't take the force of the hit. The giant window shattered, and he soared into the open air. As he plunged down to the street below, he let out a shriek that could be heard blocks away. Oddly enough, it made Sakaki content. She wavered where she stood, but couldn't keep herself up. She collapsed to the side, onto the floor.
Chiyo and Kagura were at her side immediately. They had tears in their eyes, and were speaking frantically, but Sakaki could not hear them. She had completed her mission. She was happy now, her friends were safe. Sakaki stopped fighting the exhaustion and pain, and let her body do as it wished. She was done fighting. She could finally rest, knowing all was well…
Author's notes: Not much to say here. Hope you enjoyed the fic! Stay tuned for the Epilogue! As a note, there will be no Author's notes or opening words to accompany it, so I'll say this now.
I'd like to thank all those who read and gave feedback on this story! It is officially the first fanfic I have finished, and I promise it won't be my last! Thanks guys!