Chapter 2
She remembered when a boy appeared before her window, soaked and ragged, huffing and panting uneven breaths as his disheveled hair blew against the chaotic wind.
It was a dark and stormy night.
She closed her eyes in the pitch-black sea and followed her recollections of that night. She was doing homework, as diligent as always, without a question to why or how her world was. It was a time before her eyes were unveiled to the obscene truth and the cruel reality simmering behind the picturesque utopia she lived within. Her soul was blessed with pure ignorance. She accepted everything that the TV broadcasted. Alice were criminals. And they were not.
But something raw gnawed at her heart that night. It was a primitive feeling, a sense of wanting to destroy everything. It distracted her so much that she walked over to her window. Without a moment of hesitation, she yanked open the window and enjoyed the blast of typhoon whipping past her face and destroying every bit of paperwork left on her desk. She could hear her homework scattering into shreds and drenched in the wrathful sleet. The sensation satiated her savagery as she smiled and howled into the eye of the typhoon.
She howled again and again, ending with a satisfying laugh. She was soaked. Her hair was windblown. Yet her eyes were shimmering with liveliness, watching the chaotic scene of trees swaying violently and debris flying and smashing into the wall adjacent to her house.
After she walked back to her room to gather the fallen, destroyed paper, a shadow flitted across the room. The hair on her neck stood up, quivering. She looked around. Nothing was out of place.
Until her eyes rested on the window. A dark figure leaned against the open frame. A prisoner's outfit. Disheveled hair. Blood. And vacant eyes. She could have screamed for help, but she didn't. She opened her mouth to say something.
At the speed of light, the stranger dashed and pinned her against the wall. One arm yanking both her arms together. The other dangerously wrapped around her neck. She could now see his face and clear, ragged breaths. He had mesmerizing ruby eyes. She felt captivated enough to not breathe a single sound.
"Wake up," he said.
She blinked, surprised. "What?"
"Aren't you going to wake up yet?"
Her eyes shot open and squinted against the blaring light of the sun. She groaned and hid underneath the blankets.
"Oh, the newbie is awake!"
Mikan opened her eyes, confused as she tore off the blankets and sat upright. She found herself staring at two males, who were also staring back. One had soft, blond hair with ocean-blue eyes. The other had spiky, black hair with darker blue eyes.
The latter one scratched his head in an awkward manner. "Uh, so what do we do now?"
"Didn't Misaki leave you with instructions?" the blond one asked and sighed when his friend shrugged.
"I think we're just supposed to inform the rest that she's awake. Not really sure what else we should d-" A loud rumble echoed through the room, startling a few birds outside as the two boys looked over at the red-faced girl, who immediately looked away. "...I think we should first feed her..." the dark-haired male finished before they burst into laughter, excluding Mikan who was extremely embarrassed.
"H-how long have I...been out for?" she asked timidly as she remembered a flow of events: school, examination, scientists, test, and...
The dark-haired boy wiped a tear from his eye. "Like...maybe a week? Man, I haven't heard a stomach growl that loud before!" He chuckled some more as he finally said, "You must be wondering where you are and who we are. I'll tell you in a bit where we are, but I'm Tsubasa and this guy's Ruka. What's your name, kiddo?"
"Mikan."
"And what's your Alice?"
She looked up startled. "A-Alice?" She looked down at her hands, expecting something crazy to happen.
"Do you not know it?" the blond boy gently asked her.
Mikan shook her head. "It's not just that, but...I...I don't think I have an Alice. I think everyone's gotten confused. I've never really..." Destroyed a building. Released thousands of animals to rampage the city. Stolen from banks. Unleashed destructive powers.
"But your test was positive. So that's something."
The brunette then looked at them wide-eyed. "Me positive? Then...what happened was..." She remembered being taken away. "A-are you guys...?"
Ruka nodded seriously as he reached down. And popped back up with a white rabbit in his hand. Mikan blinked at the rabbit sitting comfortably in his arms and twitching its nose at her. "My Alice is animal pheromones. I can usually talk to them. By the way, Usagi says hi."
"Hi..." she said, unsure. But she smiled a little when the rabbit leaned closer and touched her hand with the tip of its nose.
"He likes you."
"Does he?" Mikan asked eagerly and petted the rabbit on the head.
"His favorite spot is behind the ears." He took her hand and led it behind the rabbit's right ear as she extended her fingers to rub the soft fur. The rabbit closed its eyes with a serene look.
"Uh, sorry to ruin the moment. But we should probably have some breakfast right now. You know, since her stomach was pretty demanding back there," Tsubasa cut in and chuckled more after seeing Mikan's face flush red.
"Right," she said quickly and jumped off the bed, wobbling from her unsteady strength. Ruka immediately grasped her arm.
"Are you okay?"
"Y-yea. Thanks."
"Mhm."
Tsubasa opened the door for them, but as soon as they entered, he jumped in front and pushed them down behind a counter connected to the wall. A mischievous smile danced across his face. "Hey, Mikan. Wanna see my Alice?"
"Sure?"
He rubbed his hands together and licked his lips. "Alright. Look above the counter. Do you see a pretty lady with pink hair?"
Mikan cautiously stood up and looked through some indoor plants. She saw plenty of people gathered in what looked like a hub room and was momentarily distracted by the size of it. It was huge. She realized the room she came out of was one of many that circulated around the gigantic hub, and there were more on the second floor when her eyes trailed a faraway staircase on the opposite wall. The hub was bustling. She realized she was hiding behind the counter of a bar.
"You see her?"
"Oh, uhm..." She blinked and looked ahead, immediately spotting a girl in front with short, pink hair talking to a couple of others. She was indeed very pretty, as Tsubasa had said. There was something tomboyish in the stance she took: feet apart, hands at her hip, and a toothy grin. "Yeah, I do see her, Tsubasa."
"Good. You see how that's her shadow over there?"
Her shadow extended to where Mikan was. It was probably due to the open window next to the pink-haired lady. "Yes?"
"Watch."
At that moment, Mikan's heart jumped erratically, fearing what would happen if Tsubasa showed his so-called Alice. Ruka's was fine, but she had no clue what Tsubasa's was. She could see the news flashing explosions caused by Alices. Robberies. Chaos. And murder. Inside, she felt as if Tsubasa would set the whole room on fire and murder everyone. It was a stigma biting into her brain. She opened her mouth.
Ruka sighed next to them, which startled Mikan since he was quiet for so long. "She's going to get mad, Tsubasa."
"Worth it. Okay watch, Mikan."
"Actually, Tsubasa. I-it's-" she began.
She faltered when she watched him step one foot onto the said lady's shadow and fixate a funny pose, where he was in mid-squat and had his hands pushing his cheeks together.
"What are you do-?"
A shriek interrupted Mikan mid-sentence, and with fear, the brunette quickly looked above, only to see the said girl assuming the same position as Tsubasa: mid-squat with hands on her cheeks. She had a furious expression though.
"TSUBASA, STOP THIS NONSENSE!" she shrilled, though she failed to maintain seriousness in the funky pose. A couple of people laughed, though many shook their heads at Tsubasa. One girl fumbled, but she managed to drape the shades over the window, which erased the pink girl's shadow and released her from his control.
"So...you manipulate shadows?" she asked Tsubasa.
"Yeah! Did you see her face? That was hilarious!" He burst into laughter, only to be met by a furious pink-haired girl, who yanked his ear and glared at him with all her might.
"I. Told. You. Not. To. Do. That," she hissed at him.
"S-sorry. Mind releasing my ear though, Misaki?"
"No!"
"That does put a damper on our relationship."
Misaki rolled her eyes. Two poofs of clouds appeared and revealed two duplicates of the pink-haired girl. Mikan squealed in surprise, only to cover her mouth in embarrassment when many pairs of eyes shot in her direction.
"Who's she?" A murmur rose.
"Yeah, I've never seen her."
"Is she new?"
"Oh, I think she's one of the new recruits."
"Calm down, everyone. The poor girl just wants some breakfast," Tsubasa said, only to wince when the pink girl pulled harder on his ear.
"I told you to tell me when she would wake up," Misaki hissed at him.
He shrugged. "She was really hungry though."
"Yeah, she was," Ruka pitched in.
"Oh," the pink-haired girl blinked and gave a warm, friendly smile to Mikan. "Just sit over here, and we'll get you some stuff to eat." But she redirected another glare at Tsubasa. "As for you, I'm going to make you suffer."
"Oo! How fun," he chirped and cheerily waved at Mikan as he was dragged away by Misaki's duplicates. "Ruka's going to take good care of you!"
The hub room continued merrily as Ruka and Mikan took their seat. A couple of people passed by and gave her a small welcoming as she politely nodded. But she turned to Ruka with a curious glance. "Is Misaki's Alice duplication?"
He nodded. "Pretty unique, right? Tsubasa and Misaki have strange ones."
"Yours is unique too."
The blond smiled. "Thanks. I guess."
As the brunette settled into her seat, she tapped her fingers on the counter. Then she asked, "Am I one of the new recruits?"
"What do you mean?"
"I'm not the only one then, right?"
"Well, uhm. Yeah. I think there was another girl."
"Another girl?" Something in her heart lifted in hope. Her mind flashed back to the girl with black hair and velvety eyes. Hotaru.
"Yeah."
"Was she taken at the same time as me?"
"Well, maybe. We rescued her some time around yours."
"Rescue?" Mikan couldn't help but ask. However, as soon as she asked it, she remembered the venomous, rapturous faces spread across the scientists' faces as they injected something inside her. The memories shivered through her.
"Yes." Ruka's face became grave. "I'm guessing you fully remember your experience with the lab people. The reality of Alices being caught at examinations is either becoming experimental subjects or being subjected as victims of gruesome TV shows. In any way, an Alice is bound to die by suffering."
"That's terrible."
He smiled at her kindly. "I'm glad we managed to get you."
"I'm glad too. Thank you," she shyly smiled back.
"You know..." he scratched his head. "You're weird. You didn't freak out as much as we thought you would. I was in a worse state than you when I first entered."
"Really?"
"Yes. When I woke up, I didn't believe anyone. I had no inkling that I was an Alice. I constantly told people to go away because I thought they were scientists in disguise. It was weird and scary. I lost my family in an instant. I lost my original life. I had no idea where I was or why I was here."
"That's understandable. I also have those feelings too."
He tilted his head. "What makes you react so calmly then?"
She shrugged. It was just the atmosphere that floated by these people, she realized as she thought about it more and more. Seeing people openly laugh and joke around was incomparable to the frighteningly tranquil state back in her life. It made her feel safe here. Homely, even though she knew no one.
Ruka laughed. "You're strangely naive. Adaptable but naive."
"Maybe. But what made you finally accept this place?"
"Well..." A small smile graced his lips. "Someone barged into the room and slapped me."
Mikan's jaw dropped on the floor. "S-slapped you..."
"After time, he became my best friend. Weird, right?"
"Who is he? Is he in this room right now?" She looked around, trying to see if anyone was conspicuously glancing in their direction.
"He was-"
"Here's your breakfast! Scrambled eggs sausage with a couple of French toast sticks! Enjoy, new girl," a girl peeped up from behind. A mouth-watering dish was set in front of Mikan. Everything appeared as if it was made with care. Her mouth drooled as she turned to thank the girl.
Strangely enough, this girl also had pink hair like Misaki's but lighter, longer, and more wavy. She had a feminine grace upon her as her eyes, similar to Ruka's, twinkled like the ocean. Her dress modestly covered her entire body. Overall, she was extremely pretty. But something bit at Mikan's memories. The girl was strangely familiar. "I'm Anna," she introduced herself. "I heard your name was Mikan. It's a pleasure to meet you!"
"Likewise," Mikan said. "Thank you for breakfast."
"Oh, it was honestly nothing," she grinned. "Nice to see you by the way, Ruka-nyan. I'll be off then." They watched her walk away as Mikan eerily smiled at Ruka.
"Ruka-nyan, eh? What an adorable nickname."
His entire face flushed. "That was only because I rescued a cat. One time. Maybe two."
She laughed merrily, though she pointed at the sleeping rabbit. "Shouldn't your nickname take after a rabbit though? I feel like you like rabbits the best."
"Nicknames are embarrassing," he muttered.
"All the reason why they exist. I should call you Ruka-pyon."
He choked on air. "R-Ruka-pyon?"
"I think it has a better ring to it," the brunette chortled. "Who came up with Ruka-nyan anyways? That's hilarious."
"My best friend."
"Oh," she swallowed a bit of the delicious egg. "That's right. Your best friend. I'm really curious to who would slap someone like you."
"Trust me. You would've slapped me too at that time," he replied as they chuckled together. "You would really like him. He's an easy-going guy. An extrovert, I should say. His face is extremely easy to read as well, so you can always tell what he's thinking. And whenever someone's in a bad mood, he goes out of his way to help them. I think everyone likes him, even the prideful ones. One time, I lost Usagi, and he spent an entire week looking for - Sorry, I'm just rambling." He flushed.
Mikan laughed. "He sounds like an awesome person. When can I meet him? Sign me up!"
Ruka smiled bittersweetly. "You already have."
"I have?" she asked and thought about it. "Wait. Was it Tsubasa?"
He shook his head. "He was the one who rescued you."
"Alright, you maggots! Time for mission number 6136!" Misaki yelled over the crowd, and the hub room quieted down. Each person turned his or her full attention to the tomboy pinkie as she stood pridefully on the pool table.
Mikan sat in the back, thoughtfully sipping her orange juice, as she recalled what Ruka had told her earlier. His best friend, Natsume, was the one who rescued her. But rescuing her was only part of the mission. The main objective of that particular mission was to hack into the school system and steal information of potential Alices for future rescues. Even though they had no time to waste, the said friend still rescued her. And she remembered clearly her savior's voice.
You're safe.
Her heart thumped. She wanted to see him again. She wanted to properly thank him.
For now, however, it was impossible.
"Objective of mission number 6136 is to invade Building 136 and rescue our comrades!" Misaki hollered. "Who's with me?!"
"Us!"
"Louder!"
"Us!"
"Who?!"
"REQUIEM!"
Mikan listened to the chants as she continued to sip. In the same mission, Natsume had gone back after leaving her in Tsubasa's hands. But he and a few others were caught, imprisoned, and trapped in the so-called Building 136. In Mikan's memories, Building 136 was an equivalent to a torture-chamber. Half of it was an experimental facility, and she shivered, hoping they were safe. Her hands tightened around the glass cup, her knuckles whitening. It had already been a week since their capture.
I need to go.
She blinked and placed a hand over her heart. It was a similar kind of savagery that built in her heart, nibbling away and wanting to release into the open. She wanted to go. But what could she do? Watch? Sip orange juice in the back? Fight? She couldn't do anything. And she felt useless. She didn't even know her own Alice.
"Any volunteers apart from the assigned soldiers?!" Several hands raised as Misaki picked them off. Mikan watched from afar.
"Any more?"
No more hands were raised. In fact, some volunteers looked dubious as they looked at the name 'Building 136'. Their once eager faces dropped into a sallow, cautious expression.
"Once. Twice."
"HERE!"
Mikan internally slapped herself as every gaze looked at her, some muttering in a bewildered manner. She sweated, swallowed, and stood from her seat. "I'll go."
"You have a death wish," Ruka muttered as they ran through the black-covered sky. She huffed behind him, never having to run this much in her life, but tried her best to keep up. No one could wait for her, and they shouldn't.
"You're right," she agreed and panted. "I can...barely...keep up...with this."
"Natsume wouldn't have wanted you to come. He rescued you to keep you alive. Not to become suicidal."
"I need...to...thank him," she gasped.
The blond rolled his eyes. "Yeah, well, you could've done so when he comes back with us. Are you alright though?" he asked anxiously.
She nodded in silence.
"Stop."
Everyone halted as the brunette stumbled a little, putting one hand on Ruka's shoulder as she steadied herself. Her breath came out ragged, harsh. It was the same as that boy. The one she saw that night. And again in her dream.
"Hijiri, go investigate," Misaki ordered.
A tall male stood and walked out of the bushes, almost in a calm demeanor, as he approached the guard by the door. Like magic, his body began morphing in the shadows. And in a spontaneous second, he was a second replica of the guard. Or appeared to be. Perhaps his face was different, but he conversed with the guard, and after some time, entered the building. But something flashed. And the two fell onto the ground. Both unmoving.
"What the," Misaki gritted her teeth. She pulled out something and placed it to her ear. "Hey Hijiri. Can you hear me?! Hey! Are you alright?! Hijiri!"
Mikan covered her mouth. She clenched Ruka's shoulder. "H-Hijiri...what happened to him?" she whispered.
The blond didn't respond. She looked and saw he had a look of surprise as well, horrified even.
Out of nowhere, a brilliant fire sprouted from the door and devoured the two bodies. It soon burst and enveloped the entire building, the flames trickling and snaking around the walls and pillars of Building 136. Before them, the infamous building was collapsing.
"Natsume..." she heard Ruka breathe.
Natsume? She looked at the ravenous fire devouring everything in its path. Did Natsume do this?
Misaki was the first to stand up as she walked toward the fire. A look of disbelief was sketched on her face. "What the hell happened?" she murmured.
A ball of fire erupted from the magnificent flames and shot for Misaki, but she barely dodged in time, the flames singeing the tips of her hair. The fire instead hit a tree behind and exploded into another patch of flames.
"Misaki!" Ruka yelled.
"I'm fine! We should try to-!" She paused and looked down. Another flame had shot out in the form of an arrow and pierced through her chest, straight into her heart. She had stopped in mid-sentence and while looking at the flames, collapsed to her knees. Another arrow shot out and struck her neck. She fell. Unmoving as a puddle of blood formed beneath her.
"Misaki!" Tsubasa roared and leapt over the bushes, running over to the fallen. Mikan stumbled back and fell onto the dirt, trembling. She had witnessed two...no, three deaths. In a single minute. Her eyes fearfully stared into the fire that licked everything in its course and exploded into another wrathful ball of flames. Like a finishing blow, she saw dozens of fire arrows aim towards the sky and fall like raindrops toward the Alices.
"Run!" Ruka shouted into her ear. He pulled her with a gruff movement and yanked her out before three arrows could pierce her torso. "What the hell are you doing?" he screamed. "Move, move!" She looked at him wide-eyed and scrambled to her feet, following as he pulled her hand through the forest, backtracking their path.
"What about Misaki?! What about Hijiri?! Tsubasa?! Natsume?!" she yelled. "W-we...we have to go back! They're not safe!"
"What can you-shoot, get out!" He pulled her away from another tumble of arrows that diminished as soon as they hit the ground. "I don't get what's going on, but we have to escape!"
"We have to help!"
He pulled her by the shoulders. "What can you do?! You don't even know your Alice! My Alice can't even do anything!"
"Well, we can't just leave them behind!"
"We-!" He ran a hand through his hair as he looked away. But his eyes were caught by something. Mikan turned in his direction as her mouth fell open. It was a boy around their age. Wearing blood-stained prison clothes. Untamed raven hair. And sullen, dead eyes. He looked like the boy in her dreams.
"Natsume?" Ruka whispered. He stumbled over a root as he walked toward the figure. "You're safe! I thought you were gone! Did they do anything to you?!"
Silence.
This was Natsume. Mikan looked at the still figure, who bore his eyes into Ruka, staring at the blond as if he were prey. This was Natsume, the one who had saved her and was Ruka's best friend. The Natsume who had saved the both of them. The figure took one step forward, walked to Ruka in an unsteady fashion, and flicked his hand. It was a flame arrow.
"RUKA!" she screamed.
In a moment's flash, Ruka was gone. The arrow whisked through the night air and pierced the same spot where Misaki was hit. He staggered. And fell, twitching away the last bits of life as the figure took one more arrow and stabbed the blond's head, coloring it with red. He stopped twitching.
A sob broke out. Mikan covered her mouth. She fell backwards and scampered, moving until her back hit a tree. This wasn't Natsume. She watched the figure slowly rise from the body, his back still turned to the brunette. And that was when she noticed something black devouring the back of his neck. Like a kiss mark. It pulsated, dragging his head to face Mikan as his sullen red eyes glowed in the darkness. It was the kiss mark controlling him, she realized.
Like light, the figure wildly ran toward her as she screamed. His hand clenched her throat and dragged her up the tree trunk. She coughed. Her eyes rolled into darkness. She couldn't breath. Her feet dangled helplessly in the air.
She had to get rid of the kiss mark before he could form another fire arrow. But he didn't. He only looked at her with cold eyes and an unforgiving expression, waiting for Mikan to choke out her remaining life. She struggled futilely. And without thinking, she clasped her hand on his neck and dug her fingernails in, willing her power to remove it. He roared in pain, clenching her throat harder.
It was coming out. Whatever was in there. She needed more time. She needed all the time. Where were the rest? Did they fall? She needed someone. Just one person to pull him away. Just one -
A sharp pain cracked her neck, and she collapsed onto the ground, still.
A/N: gotta study for midterm oh god. bye guys LOL.