Chapter 2 : Attack!

Disclaimer : Standard disclaimers apply

The silence had returned. After the nurse had left, Katagiri sensei had led a sobbing Megumi out of the ward. Probably to calm the girl down. Ryuu could imagine the thoughts going through the poor girl's mind right about now. The pain of losing a loved one could kill one from the inside out. She had told him once that her sister was her only living relative left. Her parents had tragically perished in a car accident abroad.

"Dan-sensei," said Kazuma from his place beside Kinta "What do you think caused this?"

"What are you talking about?" asked Kinta "This is a riot. There's probably some power crazed psychopath somewhere who's got some sort of point to prove"

"No…The whole thing was planned. This was no ordinary protest" said Dan-sensei.

"Yeah." Added Nanami "The protest was just a cover-up. It was most likely that their actual target was the Shinabara bridge that just exploded."

"But…how can you say that?" Kinta sounded outraged "Why would someone cause a riot just to bring down a bridge?.. unless…"

"The real target of whoever caused this must've been on the bridge at that time. The riot was probably a diversion to draw police and other authorities away from the scene of the crime. By detonating the bomb just after the riot started, it would make it seem like a random act of violence instead of cold blooded murder" explained Dan-sensei.

"Sensei, how do you know that? What makes you say the bridge was the main target?" asked Kazuma.

"Up till now.. I'm relying more on guesswork and suspicion instead of hard facts but think about this, what were these people going against? Why bother destroying so much public property if you are just going to protest a single matter?"

"That's it!" shouted Kinta suddenly "There are many other bigger and far more crowded places those people could have bombed! So, why bomb only one place? Why Shinabara bridge? This cant be a random attack."

"However, I do not think Dark Horizon itself is responsible for this attack" said Nanami quietly.

Each one of them had their suspicions and doubts, but all of them had the same thing in mind : Pluto.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

It was already 11pm and Ryuu had volunteered to get some coffee for the rest of the gang. It was not just the caffeine that he so desperately needed. He wanted some time alone to think. Being in that room felt like the spotlight was constantly on him although he knew it was not. Did he feel guilt? Should he tell Dan-sensei what he knew and his association to Pluto? Somehow, he felt as if the old man could read his thoughts and he feared that should he think about Pluto in the presence of the old detective, he would be found out instantly.

Ten minutes ago, Katagiri sensei had walked into the room alone. She said that Megumi needed time alone. Their teacher had said that the girl was taking the death of her sister hard.

As he entered the nearly deserted confectionary area, he immediately noticed the aforesaid girl sitting by herself at one of the tables there. Two mugs were on the table beside her, one empty and one hardly touched. He approached her and placed a had on her shoulder. She jerked in shock at his presence and looked up at him with wide eyes full of fear.

"Oh, its just you." She said, sniffling slightly. "Am I needed back in the room?"

"No, how are you feeling?" he took the seat beside her

When she did not answer him immediately, he took a proper look at her. Her pale cheeks were streaked with dried tears. Her hair was tousled as if she had been trying to rip it out of her head and a few strands of the pink hair hung limply over her face.

"Its hurts," she said quietly "I cant feel anything but pain. I just feel like jumping out of the window and ending my life. And the worst part is…"

The door slid open and one person rushed into the room as if he was being chased. Ryuu had barely enough time to register the click of a gun being loaded before he instinctively pushed Meg to the floor, upturning the plastic table as he went and then using it as a shield.

Shots rang out as the mysterious gunman fired at the blue table. One, two, then three holes punctured the table as the bullets pierced through. His mind was racing. He needed to get them out of here. Fast.

"Ryuu.." said Megumi weakly from under him ".. I knew."

He had no time to ask her what she meant because the gunman had opened fire again. Another bullet pierced the table as a sudden thought struck him. Where were the others? Had they been hurt? They should've been here by now.

"Come here little girl." Said the gunman in a taunting voice. "Come on out so I can finish the job properly"

Ryuu's blood froze. So Meg was the target. That meant..

"Your sister was easy enough to finish off, didn't even put up much of a fight when I strangled that lovely little neck of hers" he laughed like a maniac "And all it took was a nice, big, kaboom to destroy the body!"

When he looked at her, He was startled to find a sudden ferocity in her eyes. Those pink orbs he used to find so lovely were now ablaze with an unbridled anger. She got up into a seating position and started to grope around for something. The instant she got hold of a large kitchen knife, he knew what she was thinking.

"No! Meg," he said in an urgent whisper "I know you're angry but you don't have to do anything stupid. He has a gun!"

"He killed her… He killed her and now he's going to kill me. Even if I have to die today, I will avenge my sister and my parents before I allow that to happen!"

Her parents? Were their deaths planned to?

Before he had the chance to do anything. A sudden thud caused the both of them to look up. The gunman was slumped, unconscious, on the floor and looming above him, was the dark figure of Anubis.

The blonde man looked up at the two teenagers, with a slight smirk to his lips, he gave a slight bow and said.

"My greetings to you master Ryuu and of course Lady Megumi"

The two teenagers spun to face each other shock on both their faces

"You know him??" they said simultaneously

Author's note : Review's please?