Kon ban wa!
It seems that the Sora Ops are on the edge of war, but will all be shared between L and Tsuki before the end?
Time to find out ;)
Disclaimer: Death Note belongs to Tsugimi Ohba & Takeshi Obata.
Chapter 15 – The Battle
It was the next day after the Sora Ops had discovered that they were correct and the block of land they had suspected to be the place where the Aka Sora were hiding was exactly where they were. Tsuki was sitting in her room in the large building that L had commissioned to be built solely for him and the Sora Ops to use.
No one had come to bother her since they had arrived back and she had stormed into said room without a word or a glance to anyone and it was better that they didn't. She had heard whispers from down the hall, which was L, wanting to come in and check on her, whilst Kumo eventually convinced him to leave her be.
She was staring out the window and had been doing so for at least a few hours, Hisuiro coiled around her enjoying the warmth of her body heat, and as she saw all the people walking past on the ground below, the people driving their cars, riding on the buses, she couldn't even begin to fathom how different her life would have been if that man had decided not to break into that particular bank, on that particular day at that particular time, and hadn't killed her parents right in front of her.
Maybe she might have become a lawyer, or a doctor and be living a quiet life in a nice house somewhere. She might have even been married, or having a child of her own and that child would have grandparents that would be around to see their only daughter give birth to their grandchild. It would be something that she would never ever know, and even though the reality of that pained her, she knew that if things didn't turn out the way they had, she wouldn't be half the person she was today.
After all that she had been through, all that she had seen and most importantly done, she knew that it had made her a stronger person. Many years back when Kumo had first joined the Sora Ops, he had nearly broke down in tears the first time he was forced to kill someone. She had sat there, on the cold, unforgiving concrete floor of a buildings basement and been there for him while he came to terms that he had taken a human life. She had told him about the things she had already done, and shockingly enough actually opened up to him a little just to comfort him, and to make sure that he knew what he had gotten himself into.
He had always had a great admiration for her, and she knew that she would be absolutely beside herself if he was killed by the Aka Sora. Ame had become someone she held close to her heart, and even though she could never give him what he truly desired from her, she knew that she wanted to protect him. Taiyou was like her father, and had been her teacher for 90% of her life, and she was indebted to him. She had already lost too many people.
As she had stood, looking out the window lost in thought, she had contemplated the things that had changed recently, what had happened over the past few months, such as being helpless while innocent people died, losing Hoshi, her house being destroyed, and she had come to terms with all that.
There was, however, one thing that she still couldn't completely break down into little pieces, and get past it bit by bit. That was one man, one skinny, pale, dark-haired man who had managed to get so far under her skin that she actually wanted him to approve of her. She found that she was enjoying herself when they spoke, and feeling a little odd when she noticed him just sitting there watching her at times.
The young woman tried to tell herself that it was just her getting used to the regular company of someone new, and that it was normal for a woman to feel a little different around men, even though she had barely been around any women for long periods of time and she worked with males all the time, so that theory had fallen through.
She had planned to question Kumo on these things since he was the most socially knowledgeable and yet still jaded person in the Sora Ops, but he had been terribly busy setting up and fixing new and old equipment for the past few days and she didn't really feel comfortable asking something like this anyway even though he was the only person she would talk to about these things.
Just as she had nearly given up on trying to figure out these feelings, said troublesome man, lightly tapped on the door and opened it a moment later. For a moment, he just looked at her, wondering what was going through her mind, if she was thinking about the mission tomorrow, if she was thinking about what might happen, if she was thinking about him. He shut the door and walked up behind her, close enough so that he only leant forward slightly, he'd bump right into her.
"Are you alright?" he asked quietly after a moment of silence.
She made a small sound of acknowledgement in her throat and barely nodded in response. Hisuiro shifted around her, feeling the vibration of her voice in her chest and she decided to put him back in his enclosure, which she did with a little difficulty since he had managed to coil up so his tail was around her bra strap and she actually had to get L to help her, which he did with hands that he was begging not to shake with nervousness and after they both sat at the end of her bed.
"What are you thinking about?" he asked with the utmost hesitation, which she raised an eyebrow at, but didn't bother thinking it over too much and sighed before answering.
"I've had close call after close call doing this for the past 18 years, but I've only just gotten to the point where I'm almost certain..." before she finished her sentence, she turned to him with the most heartbreaking smile on her face and continued, "that I won't live out the week."
He was sure that the look on his face was nothing like it's normal bored one, but one showing horror, concern, and desperation. It must have been because as she focused on him after her sad smile fell, her eyes grew wide, and she leant back a little in utter shock and surprise.
"...but...you..." he was stuttering and shaking his head for the sole reason that he didn't know what to do or say in this situation, all he knew that he couldn't let that happen and he had to tell her, "Y-you can't. I've just found you...you...I care about you."
Tsuki was in shock and literally couldn't even think straight enough to think of any words, let alone remembering how to string them into a coherent sentence right now. It was only the ringing of L's cellphone that broke her out of it.
With genuine frustration on his face, which would make her smirk any other time, he answered it, holding the technological device between his thumb and forefinger and didn't even say 'Yes?' like he usually would when answering his phone and she faintly heard Watari's voice on the other end asking him if he wanted the camera and wiretaps in that room turned off, to which he agreed, and Tsuki turned around to see the small red light on a camera in the corner fade.
Meanwhile, downstairs, a certain brown-haired man smiled from the bottom of his heart at the sight before his eyes, and chuckled lightly when the camera feed disappeared from the screen and went black. He muttered the word 'Finally' before turning back to his earlier task, still smiling.
"You care about me?" Tsuki asked, finally finding her voice after sitting there like a stunned mullet for a minute or two. "Why?"
"I don't know. You are the only person I've met that is on my level. I've never been able to get along with anyone for that reason. Since I met you, I've started to understand why that is." he answered, sounding more like a normal person that ever, but quickly reverting to his old self, "And you've also caused some involuntary and unpredicted bodily reactions from me on several occasions." he finished casually with a thumb pressed against his bottom lip.
Tsuki's eyes widened at that proclamation, and she chuckled silently at him not being able to realise that you don't usually say those things in public, and that it's more or less something you keep inside your own mind. Nevertheless, she had almost come to enjoy his lack of social skills, it just made him a little more interesting. She took in his words, and finally responded.
"Why exactly does my stomach feel funny at the moment? Why do I look at you when I don't need to? Why do I feel things that I don't feel with any other person when I'm around you? I don't understand. It doesn't make any sense to me." she thought out loud, honestly wanting answers to these questions.
"You aren't the only one. I too have noticed the odd increase in unfamiliar feelings whilst being in your presence for some time now. I hadn't thought much of it because I am not used to being in the company of females, but when I questioned Kumo on the subject, he said that it was just me and that I'd figure out what it meant in good time." he said most articulately, as if he wasn't talking about such a weird subject.
"Well, I'm not entirely sure what it means, but all do know is that I'm sick of being so emotionless. I'm sick of forcing myself to ignore every thought and feeling that pops into my head. I still don't even know how I trained myself to do it. My life has been one tragedy after another and I just want the pattern to end." she began feeling much more open to him and the deep depression she had a strangle hold on for the last 18 years was finally managing to peel her fingers back, one by one.
He looked at her with the most sympathetic look he could pull off, and it was fairly well done considering he hadn't ever really felt much sympathy for anyone before. The young man wanted her to be able to talk to him, he wanted to be able to comfort her, and he didn't even have to consciously think about it, it was just an instinct.
"When I was about 6 years old, I went to the bank with my parents one day. I remember feeling like I was having fun because I'd never seen something like that before. I recall the woman working at the bank putting a nice stamp on the back of my hand, and when we turned around to leave I looked at the man waiting behind us. I didn't recognise the look back then, but from then on I've always been able to tell when a person is about to do something incredibly stupid that they know is wrong." she spoke quietly, and even though her voice was level and didn't shake, L could hear the concealed pain.
"He walked up to the counter and pulled a gun from his jacket and told the woman to put all the money from the safe in the bag that he threw at her. Everyone dropped to the ground and we were all so scared. She did exactly as he asked, and I saw her walk back over to the counter and put the bag up, and I remember seeing something pass behind her eyes, and I could just see her arm moving under the counter. I now know that she pressed the silent alarm. I...I..." she struggled getting out the rest of the words, and just going off his instincts, L put his hand on her own.
"I couldn't believe it when he just...pulled the trigger and killed her. She didn't deserve it. She did exactly as he had asked. My father, he called out the exact same thing, and the man was just in a rage. He shot my father and my mother right in front of my eyes" she flinched as the feeling of the blood splattering on her forehead and hand came to her again and the hand that wasn't intertwined with L's gently touched the exact spot.
"He turned the gun towards me, and I couldn't even look away from his eyes, but before I realised it, someone had killed him first. There was a kunai that had gone straight into his heart and killed him instantly. A moment later, this man dressed in black landed on the ground from out of nowhere and I don't remember anything after that until the man in black came up to me later on." her eyes were unfocused and widened as she recalled the very feelings and thoughts she had at that time.
"It was Taiyou. He asked me if I wanted to join the Sora Ops, and gave me the name Tsuki. I don't even remember my real name any more. My parents used to call me Aoi because of my blue eyes, but my real name still escapes me. I lived with Taiyou for about 12 years before I bought my own place. He trained me day in and day out when he wasn't on missions and I started doing my own when I was ready." L was a little surprised when she said that the man was Taiyou, but he knew that he should have expected as much. Still, he sat silently with his hand in hers, just listening.
"The first time I died was on the first mission I ever led and it was the ninth mission I had taken. I think I was about 14 or so." she said it so casually and L gasped silently when her words fully sunk in.
"There was a politician who had threats on his life being made and it was my job to direct and lead the people who were going to hopefully stop any assassination attempts. Basically, there was agents from all over coming in for it, but as always the Sora Ops is the only one who could actually pull their weight. I nearly beat the shit out of my team because they wouldn't listen to me. When the politician was giving his speech, Taiyou spotted a sniper in my building, and I ran over to stop them from going through with their plan, and I barely remember kicking the door down and then all goes black." L was horrified at the fact that she had actually been clinically dead before, but he rationalised that it would probably be more common than most people would think in this line of work.
"I barely recall hearing Taiyou shouting out my name, but nothing beside that. I woke up about 2 months later in a hospital room, missing half of my shoulder. I've got a titanium shoulder now, and most of the muscle was barely hanging off me by the skin because the sniper bullet only just grazed me. That all had to be surgically reattached, and most of it had to be completely reconstructed which was finally done after 14 surgeries and I had about 30 skin grafts from my legs, stomach and bum." she absently rubbed the side of her thigh, while L sat there in shock at the severity of the injury.
"How long did it take to heal?" he asked quietly, voice struck with awe.
"About a year for it to be fully healed. It still hurts to this day if I move it around too much. That's why I have the numbing cream and painkillers for when it starts to flare up. It took me about 6 months of physiotherapy before I could use it normally, and then another few months to rebuild my strength and I still had to train for months to get back into shape. It's the worst injury I've ever had. There's getting shot, and then there was that." she shook her head after being silent for a minute, as if she still wondered how she was still alive after loosing so much blood. She was just lucky that she wasn't standing a few inches to the left, or it would have been her neck or head that the bullet hit. She wouldn't have survived either of those wounds.
"The second time was a close call, but I didn't clinically die this time, even though it felt like I did. We got word that a group of terrorists were holding people in a large company's building hostage and that they would blow up the building if their demands weren't met. So of course, the police tried to stall as long as they could for us to get in there and either get the hostages out, disarm the bomb or kill the terrorists if we had to resort to that. Luckily we were able to set the hostages free and get them out secretly but it turned bad when they found out." she recalled the story with her eyes unfocused, her chin on her chest and L could see the sadness that she tried to cover up.
"They were serious about blowing the place up, and Taiyou told us to get out of there, but there was no way we both would have been able to. One of us had to stay behind and stall the people from setting off the bomb. The agent I was with, my second-in-command, was Arashi. He offered to stay behind to protect me, saying that I was worth more to the Sora Ops than he was. We also had somewhat of a intimate relationship, and I have no idea how, but I just knew it was the right thing to do. I knew that I had to leave him behind even though it killed me to do so." her nose scrunched up when she mentioned the 'intimate relationship part' but she composed herself quickly.
L was a little bit upset at hearing that as well, knowing that someone else had already cared for Tsuki, and she had returned their feelings, to whatever extent that she could actually feel. The young man knew that it was silly to feel jealous of this 'Arashi' since he hadn't even met Tsuki back then, and also that there was no threat from a man who had died to save her. He was glad that the man sacrificed himself for her though.
"I still feel terrible about it, but I always said that I would respect the wishes of my fellow agents, so I held true to that and I let him stay back until I got out of the building. Taiyou was furious with me for months, but he knew the whole time that we both couldn't have gotten out of there alive. It was better to have one of us alive rather than neither of us." L nearly shuddered at the thought of Taiyou being furious, knowing how intimidating the man could be with just a look.
"I've always felt like things happened for a reason, but my brain tells me that it's stupid to think like that. What was the reason that my parents died for? Why Arashi died? Why innocent people die and suffer every day because of human beings? Those people are the reason I exist, and I barely exist at all. I don't remember my name, my proper birthday, my parents face's or their names. I don't remember anything about my life before the Sora Ops. My life began when I accepted Taiyou's offer, and that's when I celebrate my birthday because that's when I feel like I was truly born." she frowned slightly, still staring at her lap, her fingers tightening around L's.
"I only know the life I've had with Watari. I don't remember my parents, I don't know who they were. Watari has looked after me my whole life. I don't envy you for that reason. I think it would be harder to know them, and then lose them right before your eyes. I do wonder what they were like though. If they were smart, kind, helpful, righteous." L spoke up, saying things that he had only uttered to Watari, and had barely done that.
"Our lives are just a tragedy. We see the worst in people and try to fight against it. It's just too much sometimes. I will quit the Sora Ops one day, but only when I feel it's right. Taiyou will stay Taiyou until he can no longer wipe his own ass and Kumo will stay there for as long as he can still recite the order that he armours himself in for the field, Ame will become a great agent once he learns to detach himself and maybe become the next Tsuki when I leave. It's rare that we've had all the spots filled, but hopefully we can find a new Hoshi and Arashi." she sighed quietly and looked down at the kunai strapped to her calf where the serrated one used to be.
Looking at it reminded her that it was time to prepare her weaponry for tonight and she gave L a tiny, sad smile before she got up and made her way to the training room. She had brought whetstones with her and prepared it for use before she grabbed her weapons bag and began to sharpen all the kunai, shuriken, katana and whatever else needed it whilst L just sat silently and watched, enjoying the idle time with her as much as he could, her earlier words of doubt over her surviving the night haunting him.
Tsuki picked up her wakizashi and her hands almost began trembling as she held it, knowing what was to come this night. With a deep breath, she collected herself and sharpened the blade until it could slice through steel if she tried hard enough. Tsuki sheathed the blade and looked to Ryuzaki, who was still watching her. She smiled a little before her blank mask fell over her face once more.
It was getting dark outside and she could hear Ame, Kumo, Taiyou and Watari moving around upstairs. It was time to start getting ready for the fight and Tsuki packed up the whetstones and put them back, and went back to the main room along with Ryuzaki. Kumo had set up all the camera, microphones, GPS, radios, and everything else that needed to be set up so that he only had to show L what to do before they left so all would be in order for them.
Taiyou was sitting at the head of the large table that they used, and Hetoshi had been let out of his room to help with the organisations, although he was still cuffed to the chair he sat on, just for safety and custody reasons. Ame sat on the opposite sides, looking at the satellite images of the grounds as well as the blueprints of the land. Kumo sat down next to him, his laptop on the table, as he examined all the connections to the radio and the camera/microphone feeds were all working correctly.
Watari disappeared from the room, but appeared a moment after Tsuki and L sat down at the table, with a trolley that had plates of a delicious hot meal on them for them all to eat while they discussed strategies and back-up plans. After he served them, he left the room again to do whatever it was he needed to go and do, and everyone ate while studying the map of the surrounding area, the blueprints Taiyou had gotten as well as the satellite images of the land. Everyone stayed mostly silent until they had finished eating and it was Taiyou who spoke first. He sighed before speaking.
"Now that we're all here, and well fed, it's time we discuss the mission. We only have until this time tomorrow night to organise everything, so we'll need to be efficient and make sure we cover everything. I have organised transportation to the location, and it will be Watari who drives you all there, but you will need to split up and escape on your own. You will all be given different tasks that you must stick to." Taiyou stood up and laid out a copy of the blueprints, satellite images and a basic street map of the area.
"Kumo and Ame, your job is to cover and back-up Tsuki as per usual, but you both have a specific part of that which will need to be done by each of you. Kumo, you will be jamming any outgoing signals from phones, or transmitters and then you'll go in first and sacking the first two buildings on the left, whilst Ame will come in a moment later and take the two on the right. Tsuki will provide ranged back-up and when you are both done, Tsuki will join you." he pointed to the buildings he was talking about and drew little K's, A's and T's on the map to show where each of them would be going.
"If something goes wrong in that first section, Tsuki will provide close-range back-up and take lead of the situation, but I need to make sure that she is prepared to go up against Eclipse alone, so that is why I'd like for her to stay back up until that time. From that point on, Tsuki will go ahead and scout the next two buildings and then you will both swap sides and take care of anyone each building. Kumo will be taking what we know as the training room, and Tsuki will there to help if there is too many people to take care of for Kumo alone." Taiyou continued to draw lines, arrows, letter and write things on everything, while the three agents and their boss were watched in awe by L and Hetoshi.
They stared and studied and it almost seemed like all the information was being sucked up into their brains with their eyes and ears like vacuums. Hetoshi didn't really understand much of it, and L was a little out of the loop, but he was more experienced in the strategising part, not so much the organisation of field attacks, but he listened with intrigue anyway, taking it all in so he knew what was happening as well.
"After that, the main doors to the largest building at the top of the grounds will be the last and only target. Tsuki will not move until you are both clear and you can go straight through the front doors. You will attack as a unit and take out all the guards and you two will protect Tsuki until she can get to Eclipse and make sure that everyone else is out so that she won't need to worry about any other guards or members attacking her. You will need to get out of the way and look out for any back-up or reinforcements that might have been contacted, and take out any possible threats." Taiyou looked at Tsuki who had her fingers laced underneath her chin.
"Tsuki, I just need one thing from you. Kill Eclipse. That's all." he said quietly, knowing her duty would be the hardest of all. He was relying on her, and he knew that she would come through for him, but whether she survived it as well was the difficult question. He watched as she leant back in her chair and crossed her arms behind her head before speaking.
"And it shall be done." she responded, and Kumo knew her well enough to figure out that there was more on her mind about that matter than she would like to reveal, but he knew not to question her now.
After the basic strategies were sorted, they discussed other tactics, in case things went wrong, such as the place being empty, which could mean that it was rigged up to bombs and would be detonated by the Aka Sora as soon as they knew the Sora Ops were on the grounds. That is why they were getting Kumo to jam any incoming or outgoing signals which would stop any camera feeds.
The remaining Sora Ops agents were also going to be keeping an eye on the surrounding houses within a 1 kilometre radius and watching for any possible suspicious activity, whilst still keeping themselves hidden. The grounds were on a bit of a hill, and it would be possible for someone with binoculars to stay at a distance and detonate a bomb when they saw the Sora Ops clambering over the roofs.
Kumo also presented the idea of an ambush, which they were always prepared for, that it why they had Kumo and Ame go in first, while Tsuki watched them and gave ranged back-up, so if Kumo and Ame got caught, Tsuki could always go in and save them, something that would be harder for a much less experienced Ame, and a more technology savvy man Kumo.
Everything was discussed at a length and after 2 hours of heavy tactic and strategy discussion, they decided that it was time for them to get prepared and with a deep breath, Tsuki got up from her seat and went to her room. She would shower and feed Hisuiro and go to bed so she could be well rested for tomorrow night.
The time had come to make the Aka Sora tremble...
Well, it's come down to this.
You'll have to wait until the next chapter to find out about the fight, but even though it might take a while, I want it to be perfect, so please be patient!
Til next time!